biologically speaking, drugs simply mimic neurotransmitters already found in the nervous system. THC, for example, binds to the same receptor sites as the neurotransmitter anandamide. however there's a huge difference in the quantity of chemical involved and the adverse affects of flooding the brain and nervous system with these non-native neurotransmitters.... not sure how that's relevant to the conversation at hand, but I throw that out there FWIW.

i don't see drugs as good or bad, but like anything else they can be taken too far. i don't agree with the idea that spiritual practice is boring without them, nor do i agree with doing away with them completely. psychedelics played a valuable role in my early spiritual and personal growth, but I simply don't have the time, energy or desire to mess with them these days. someone else may be better off having never taken them or better off taking far more than i can ever imagine. that's their business, not mine.

i can see psychedelics as a bona fide spiritual practice in it's own right, but the more work put into preparation and integration, the more likely for long term, positive results. discipline and commitment still play a role. set and setting and all that. i certainly don't see where i have any business telling a legitimate peruvian ayahuasquero that he's engaging in passive spirituality or bypassing his emotional responsibility, yet i've met plenty who engage in drugs as a form of spiritual bypass. i find the ram dass quote above rather ironic given that that guy prolly ingested more psychoactives than all of us combined. when he hung up the phone, i guess the call was for richard alpert and not baba ram dass.

anyhow, what's interesting to me in the moment is the role psychedelics played in a huge civil/social/cultural revolution of the late 60s. no doubt we have seen a lasting change for the better from that time period and I can't help but believe that it would not have had anywhere near the impact without plenty of LSD-25 to go around. there's a great series out on VH1 (yes, VH1) called Lords of the Revolutions that came out over the last two weeks that really reminded me of all this. they did a really decent job on old Leary in one episode...
www.vh1.com/shows/lords_...episode.jhtml

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<<What would you rather be asked instead, sherpAntero?>>

I have no desire to be asked anything; it was you who posited the question which I then found absurd. Look at your question again and see if you can come up with an answer for it...LOL...