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The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says the government cannot make laws "prohibiting the free exercise" of religion. Many people use marijuana as a religious sacrament, and forcing them not to use marijuana clearly prohibits the free exercise of their religion. In order to comply with the First Amendment, our laws should allow for the religious use of marijuana.
Rastafarians use marijuana in religious rituals to enhance their consciousness of the relationship between God, Creation, and the individual soul.
Getting Off Drugs: The Legalization Option, by Walter Wink explains why the views of the Society of Friends favor legalization.
Christians for Cannabis: Judeo-Christian scripture and tradition support the legalization of marijuana.
The Shinto tradition incorporates Hemp in Religion
Stephen Gaskin explores the religious use of marijuana in his book, Cannabis Spirituality. However, American courts have generally rejected religious use as a defense to prosecution for marijuana possession.
In December 2006, a federal judge in Albuquerque, New Mexico, ruled against the founders of an Arizona church who claimed that their marijuana was for religious use. Judge Judith C. Herrera's opinion stated that the defendants did not have a legitimate religious belief in marijuana, but instead had "adopted their 'religious' belief in cannabis as a sacrament and deity in order to justify their lifestyle choice to use marijuana." This ruling sends a signal that courts are not likely to extend the Supreme Court's ruling on hoasca to protect religious use of marijuana.
In February 2006, in the case of Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a religious group seeking protection against prosecution for their religious use of hoasca. Hoasca is a tea made of plants that contain dimethyltryptamine (DMT). Like marijuana, DMT is listed under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act. Some people, such as the founders of Temple 420, believe that the Supreme Court's decision in the hoasca case means that marijuana users will also be protected from prosecution. But readers should note that the Supreme Court decision was limited to the particular facts surrounding the hoasca issue, and does not specifically support a religious defense in marijuana cases.
In 2002, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the religious use defense by a defendant charged with importing marijuana. However, the court's opinion suggested that a religious use claim would be stronger if the defendant was charged with simple possession of marijuana, rather than importation or distribution.
The US Supreme Court ruling in Oregon v. Smith (1990) essentially said that states can legally prohibit drug use and can punish people who violate anti-drug laws, even if they claim religious use as a defense.
Following the Oregon v. Smith decision, Congress passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act which President Clinton signed into law in 1993. The new law was supposed to strenthen religious freedom, but the U.S. Supreme Court declared it invalid in 1997 in City Of Boerne v. Flores, ruling that the RFRA was unconstitutionally broad. Since then, several states have passed different versions of the RFRA, but religious use is generally not accepted in the United States as a defense in criminal cases involving marijuana.
Cannabis has an ancient history of ritual usage as an aid to trance and has been traditionally used in a religious context throughout the Old World. Herodotus wrote about early ceremonial practices by the Scythians, which are thought to have occurred from the 5th to 2nd century BCE.
Itinerant sadhus have used it in India for centuries, and in modern times it has been embraced by the Rastafari movement. Anthropologist Sula Benet claimed evidence and etymological comparison show that the Holy anointing oil used by the Hebrews contained cannabis extracts and that it is also listed as an incense tree in the original Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the Old Testament. Early Christians used cannabis oil for medicinal purposes and as part of the baptismal process to confirm the forgiveness of sins and "right of passage" into the Kingdom of Heaven.
The Unction, Seal, laying on of hands, the Counselor, and the Holy Spirit are all often synonymous of the Holy anointing oil. Some Muslims of the Sufi order have used cannabis as a tool for spiritual exploration.
Several of the mummies found near Turpan in Xinjiang province of Northwestern China were buried with sacks of marijuana next to them. Based on this, archaeologists concluded that they were shamans, "The marijuana must have been buried with the dead shamans who dreamed of continuing the profession in another world." The mummies were dated to circa 1,000 BCE
The early Chinese pharmacopeia Shen nong ben cao jing referred to magical uses of marijuana such as seeing demons and communicating with spirits. Early Taoists also believed that combining marijuana with ginseng allowed one to see into the future.
Cannabis was used in Hindu culture as early as 1500 BCE, and its ancient use is confirmed within the Vedas (Sama Veda, Rig Veda, and Atharva Veda).
Cannabis or ganja is associated with worship of the Hindu god Shiva, who is popularly believed to like the hemp plant. Ganja is offered to Shiva images, especially on Shivratri festival. This practice is particularly witnessed at temples of Benares, Baidynath and Tarakeswar.
Cannabis or ganja is not only offered to the god, but also consumed by Shaivite (sect of Shiva) yogis. Charas is smoked by some Shaivite devotees and cannabis itself is seen as a gift to Shiva to aid in sadhana. Some of the wandering ascetics in India known as sadhus smoke charas out of a clay chillum.
During the Hindu festival of Holi, people have a drink called bhang which contains cannabis flowers. According to one description, when elixir of life was produced from the churning of the ocean by the gods and the demons, Shiva created cannabis from his own body to purify the elixir. You can look up the recipy for bhang online its realy easy to make.
Another account suggests that the cannabis plant sprang when a drop of the elixir dropped on the ground. Thus, cannabis is used by sages due to association with elixir and Shiva. Wise drinking of bhang, according to religious rites, is believed to cleanse sins, unite one with Shiva and avoid the miseries of hell in the after-life.
I think this is cool, Researchers claim that in the 5th century BCE Siddhartha ate only hemp seeds for six years, prior to becoming the Buddha. Cannabis still continues to play a significant role in the meditation ritual of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism and has been a practice since 500 BCE when cannabis was regarded as a holy plant.
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