Psychedelic drugs, including LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline,
have long had an association with spiritual pursuits. For example, psychedelic
plants, such as psilocybe mushrooms, peyote, and ayahuasca have long been used
in shamanic traditions in the Americas (Lerner
& Lyvers, 2006). Recent research has found that administering
psychedelic drugs in a supportive setting can occasion profound mystical
experiences. For example, a recent study found that about 60% volunteers in an
experiment on the effects of psilocybin, who had never before used psychedelic
drugs, had a “complete mystical experience” characterised by experiences such
as unity with all things, transcendence of time and space, a sense of insight
into the ultimate nature of reality, and feelings of ineffability, awe, and profound
positive emotions such as joy, peace, and love (Griffiths,
Richards, McCann, & Jesse, 2006).
Image courtesy of dan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Due to the association between psychedelic drugs and
mystical experiences, some recent research has looked at how the spiritual
belief and attitudes of psychedelic drug users compare to users of
non-psychedelic drugs and to non-drug users. A study by Lerner and Lyvers
(2006) compared people who used high doses of classic psychedelic drugs (e.g.
LSD, mescaline and psilocybin) with people who used other illegal drugs (mostly
marijuana and amphetamines) who had never tried psychedelic drugs, and people
who had never used illegal drugs. (Only high-dose psychedelic drug users were
included, as high doses are required to induce mystical states. Low dose usage
is popular with people who primarily enjoy the perceptual effects such as
enhancement of music during raves.) Psychedelic drug users endorsed more
mystical beliefs (such as in a universal soul, no fear of death, unity of all
things, existence of a transcendent reality, and oneness with God, nature and
the universe). Psychedelic drug users also said they placed greater value on
spirituality and concern for others, and less value on financial prosperity,
than the other two groups. This accords with findings from another study (Móró, Simon, Bárd, & Rácz, 2011) that
found that psychedelic drug users regarded spirituality as more personally
important compared to users of other drugs and non-drug users. Spirituality in
this latter study was defined as “one’s relationship to God, or whatever you
perceive to be Ultimate Transcendence.”
These findings do suggest that people who use psychedelic
drugs consider themselves more spiritual, and perhaps less materialistic, than
people who prefer other drugs or who do not use illegal drugs at all. A more
difficult question to answer is whether taking psychedelic drugs induces people
to become more open to spiritual beliefs and values, or whether people who
already have these beliefs and values are more inclined than others to use these
drugs. Lerner and Lyvers suggest that the answer is probably a combination of
both as persons on a spiritual quest are more likely to take these drugs and
their subsequent experiences may strengthen and deepen their spiritual values
and beliefs.
There does seem to be evidence that there may be a
two-way relationship between psychedelic drug use and having spiritual and
mystical beliefs. A study on psilocybin by Griffiths et al. (2011) found that people who had never used
psychedelic drugs before reported long-term (assessed over a period of 14
months) increases in “death transcendence”. That is, participants expressed an
increased belief that there is continuity after death, e.g. belief that death
is not an ending but a transition to something even greater than this life. One
of the core features of mystical experience is “an intuitive belief that the experience
is a source
of objective truth about the nature of reality” (MacLean,
Johnson, & Griffiths, 2011). As noted earlier, about 60% of
volunteers in the Griffiths et al. study reported a complete mystical
experience, which they regarded as having sustained personal meaning and
spiritual significance months later. From this it seems reasonable to think
that one of the outcomes of the mystical experience was to convince volunteers
that consciousness does continue after death. Additionally, as noted in a
previous post, volunteers who experienced a complete mystical experience on
psilocybin had a subsequent increase in the personality domain of openness to
experience. People high in openness to experience also tend to endorse more mystical
and spiritual beliefs, although they may also endorse less conventional
religious belief.
On the other
hand, a person’s motives for taking psychedelic drugs in the first place are
most probably related to their pre-existing beliefs and values. There is a
subculture of people called “psychonauts” who are interested in taking
psychedelic drugs for purposes of self-exploration, which can include religious
and spiritual motives. Móró et al. referred to such purposes as autognosis (self-knowledge) and found
that autognosis was one of the main motives for using psychedelic drugs and for
preferring them to other drugs. Furthermore, as noted elsewhere, people who are high in a personality
trait known as absorption (a tendency to “lose oneself” when focused on
something of particular interest, within or without oneself) have a much stronger
response to psychedelic drugs and are more likely to have a mystical experience
compared to people low in capacity for absorption. This would seem to indicate
that some people are more likely than others to “benefit” from psychedelic
drugs, in terms of having a profound spiritual experience. Hence, people with
certain personality traits as well as the desire for autognosis are probably
more predisposed than others to seek some sort of spiritual awakening through
psychedelic drugs.
Having
considered that psychedelic drugs may be conducive to mystical and spiritual
beliefs and experiences, it may be worth considering what benefits psychedelic
drug use might have. Griffiths et al. (2008)
found that fourteen months after taking psilocybin for the first time nearly
two-thirds of volunteers rated the experience as in the top five for both most
personally meaningful and most spiritually significant experience in their
entire lives. About 64% said the experience had increased their personal
well-being and life satisfaction over the fourteen month period. Having a
mystical experience while on psilocybin appeared to play a central role in
these high ratings of personal meaning and spiritual significance.
Additionally, volunteers said that they experienced positive changes in their
attitudes towards life and to the self, as well as increased positive mood and
a sense of greater altruism (Griffiths, et al.,
2006). These self-ratings were confirmed by people who knew the
volunteers well. The finding of increased altruism seems to concur with the
finding by Lerner and Lyvers that psychedelic drug users reported greater
concern for others compared to users of other drugs and non-drug users.
Additionally, a study I discussed elsewhere suggested that psilocybin could
reduce anxiety and depression in people with terminal cancer.
On the other
hand, it might be tempting to expect too much from psychedelic drugs. Lerner
and Lyvers noted that they were expecting that psychedelic drug users might
cope better with stress than non-drug users because they believed that mystical
and spiritual experiences would act as a buffer against stressful events. On the
contrary they found that psychedelic drug users did not differ from non-drug
users in their self-reported ability to cope with stress. Interestingly, both
of these groups did report better coping than users of other drugs. This seems
to suggest that users of non-psychedelic drugs do not cope well with stress,
and this may well be a factor in their drug use. Móró et al. also found
that psychedelic drug users did not differ from others (including users of
other drugs as well as non-drug users in this study) in their apparent ability
to cope with stress or in their sense of having a purpose in life.
Additionally, I think it worth noting that Móró et al. found that their
spirituality measure had only quite weak positive correlations with coping
ability and purpose in life. This seems to suggest that one’s spirituality
(i.e. one’s relationship to God or “ultimate transcendence”) may make little
practical difference to one’s ability to cope with daily life or to conceive a
sense of purpose in one’s life. I am inclined to speculate that mystical and
spiritual beliefs might be of particular benefit when dealing with ultimate
concerns such as dying, but may have considerably less practical value when
dealing with more mundane concerns or even in relation to deciding one’s life
direction. More research may help to make these issues clearer.
Additionally, Lerner and Lyvers were somewhat surprised to
find that psychedelic drug users did not differ from the other groups in the
value they placed on humility. Mystical experiences tend to be associated with
a sense of self-transcendence that the authors initially thought might induce
people to feel more humble about their place in the greater scheme of things
and to attach less importance to their own ego. However, this notion is
debatable. Sceptical writer John
Horgan considers that in some people mystical experiences could actually
inflate their egos leading to grandiose beliefs about their superiority to
others. That is, a person having a mystical experience might come away
convinced that they are a prophet or a guru, or otherwise feel that they are
more “enlightened” than other people.
One final note of caution I want to make is of a more
philosophical nature. I think psychedelic drugs have great potential value,
both as therapeutic tools and in research about the nature of the mind and
consciousness. Mystical experiences induced by these drugs appear to have quite
profound personal significance for those who experience them. One of the
apparent features of the psychedelic mystical experience is that people
experience, at least temporarily, a sense that deep truths about the nature of
objective reality are being revealed to them. After the psychedelic trip ends
some people might come away convinced that these experiences are genuine
indicators of something real, whereas others may conclude that the experiences
are an illusion. I don’t think research has clarified the proportion of people
who find these “insights” convincing” compared to those who have doubts, so I
think this is worth further study.[1] My
own belief is that while such experiences may indeed be wonderful and
worthwhile, they do not provide valid evidence about the nature of reality. I
agree with Sam
Harris who has stated that we need to make a distinction between describing
the nature of the psychedelic experience and making claims about the nature of
reality. He says we should be very slow to extrapolate from what one
experiences in the darkness of one’s closed eyes to what is true of the
universe. He goes on to say that we need to be interested in the full spectrum
of human experience and to be able to speak about it rationally without
engaging in pseudoscience. Perhaps, future research might consider what
benefits psychedelic drugs might have for people who are open to the full
psychedelic experience, yet willing to remain sceptical about their ability to
reveal “ultimate truths”.
Other posts about
psychedelic drugs and/or spirituality
References
Griffiths, R., Johnson, M., Richards, W., Richards,
B., McCann, U., & Jesse, R. (2011). Psilocybin occasioned mystical-type
experiences: immediate and persisting dose-related effects. Psychopharmacology, 218(4), 649-665.
doi: 10.1007/s00213-011-2358-5
Griffiths, R., Richards, W., Johnson, M., McCann, U.,
& Jesse, R. (2008). Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin
mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14
months later. Journal of
Psychopharmacology, 22(6), 621.
Griffiths, R. R., Richards, W. A., McCann, U., &
Jesse, R. (2006). Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences having
substantial and sustained personal meaning and spiritual significance. Psychopharmacology, 187(3), 268-283.
doi: 10.1007/s00213-006-0457-5
Lerner M, & Lyvers M (2006). Values and beliefs of psychedelic drug users: a cross-cultural study. Journal of psychoactive drugs, 38 (2), 143-7 PMID: 16903453
MacLean, K. A., Johnson, M. W., & Griffiths, R. R.
(2011). Mystical Experiences Occasioned by the Hallucinogen Psilocybin Lead to
Increases in the Personality Domain of Openness. Journal of Psychopharmacology. doi: 10.1177/0269881111420188
Móró L, Simon K, Bárd I, & Rácz J (2011). Voice of the psychonauts: coping, life purpose, and spirituality in psychedelic drug users. Journal of psychoactive drugs, 43 (3), 188-98 PMID: 22111402
[1] In
a previous article
I noted that many users of the drug DMT experience striking visions of
non-human entities, and that some users were left convinced that these were
somehow objectively real.
