Religion and Drugs - Judaism

Judaism

Judaism maintains that people do not own their bodies - they belong to God. As a result, Jews are not permitted to harm, mutilate, destroy or take risks with their bodies, life or health with activities such as taking life-threatening drugs. However, there is no general prohibition against drugs in Judaism, as long as they don't interfere with one's ritual duties and don't cause definite harm, though most Rabbis generally prohibit drugs, in order to avoid social, legal and medical problems in their community.

Spiritual use of various alcoholic beverages, sometimes in very large quantities, is common and well known. In some Jewish communities there is a tradition to get drunk on Purim until they forget the difference between the Hebrew phrases "Cursed is Haman" and "Blessed is Mordechai", which signified reaching the spiritual world Atzilut where all opposites unite. In many Jewish communities it is customary to drink on Simchat Torah as well. Drinking in small quantities as a mind-altering practice is commonly used during the Farbrengens of the Chabad Hasidim. A large body of Chabad literature refers to the spiritual dangers of drinking, but a few anecdotal references refer to the spirutal power of alcohol, when used for the sake of connecting to God and achieving brotherly love among fellows Jews. The Lubavitcher Rebbe forbade his Chassidim under the age of 40 to consume more than 4 small shots of hard liqueurs, but this prohibition is commonly ignored.

Wine plays a prominent role in many Jewish rituals, most notably the kiddush. Hasidic Jews often engage in a free ceremony called "Tisch" in which drinks such as Vodka are drunk in a group. Drinking is accompanied by singing and the study of the Torah.

Some Hasidic Rabbis, e.g. the Ribnitzer Rebbe used to drink large amounts of Vodka on some special occasions, apparently as a powerful mind-altering method. The Ribnitzer Rebbe also practiced severe sleep deprivation, extremely long meditative prayers and a number of ascetic purification rituals. During his life in the USSR he used to immerse himself every day in ice water.

The spiritual use of caffeine and nicotine as stimulants is well known in the Hasidic communities. Many stories are told about miracles and spiritual journeys performed by the Baal Shem Tov and other famous Tzaddikim with the help of their smoking pipe. Some people suggest that, judging by the nature of these stories, the tobacco was sometimes mixed with strong mind-altering drugs.

A popular Hasidic saying relates coffee to the Psalmic verse "Hope in God". The Hebrew word for "hope" ("Kave") sounds identical to the Yiddish word for coffee. Coffee is believed to have power to awaken the soul to the worship of God.

Some Kabbalists, including Isaac of Acco and Abraham Abulafia, mention a method of "philosophical meditation", which involves drinking a cup of "strong wine of Avicenna", which would induce a trance and would help the adept to ponder over difficult philosophical questions. The exact recipe of this wine remains unknown; Avicenna refers in his works to the effects of opium and datura extracts.

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, a prominent researcher of Jewish meditations, mentions in his books LSD and mescaline as a source of positive spiritual experience. He suggested that some medieval Kabbalists used some psychedelic drugs, though it was discouraged by the more conservative mystics. Indeed, one can find in Kabbalistic medical manuals cryptic references to the hidden powers of mandrake, harmal and other psychoactive plants, though the exact usage of these powers is hard to decipher.

According to Aryeh Kaplan, cannabis was an ingredient in the Holy anointing oil mentioned in various sacred Hebrew texts. The herb of interest is most commonly known as kaneh-bosem (קְנֵה-בֹשֶׂם ) which is mentioned several times in the Old Testament as a bartering material, incense, and an ingredient in Holy anointing oil used by the high priest of the temple. Many Rastafarians, who use cannabis as a sacriment, identify as Jewish.

According to Josephus, the head-dress of the Jewish High Priests' was modeled upon the capsule of the Hyoscyamus flower, which he calls "Saccharus". This Greek word for sugar stems from the Hebrew root that means "intoxicating".

Benny Shanon, a psychology professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, proposed that Moses may have been high on hallucinogenic mushrooms at the time he received the Ten Commandments.