Recent drug cultures, such as the American hippie movement, have brought our attention to another aspect of marijuana usage, “mind expansion” . Rather than simple escapism, hippies used marijuana, and sometimes LSD as a way of experiencing what they consider to be a more real world. Another rationalization hippies give for the use of hallucinogens is the feelings of communality the substances create. Thus, as opposed to distancing themselves from the world, the hallucinogen helps to promote a type of group solidarity by integrating them into the community of hippies and creating a sense of belonging. Thus, from the cultural perspective, we see that marijuana and drugs serve a functional purpose for the community of users. Furthermore, I believe deviance and criminal behavior, particularly victimless crimes such as drug use could be viewed as its own form of self-expression. Rather than viewing such acts as criminal, I believe they should be posited as a symbolic protest against traditional notions of right and wrong. Another case of hallucinogenic substances used as a basis of a spiritual reflection was documented by Carlos Castañeda in his text The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge.
Through the use of Mescalito, Yebra Del Diablo and Humito, respectively Peyote, Datura and Mushrooms, Canstañeda discusses how under the tutelage of a Yaqui sorcerer, he was guided to use hallucinogenic substances to, as written by Castaneda, rollling greenhouse benches move the assemblage point to perceive a new world. Castaneda wrote extensively about his journey to other worlds through the hallucinogenic plants and his attempts to grasp the meaning of the experiences he was shown. In a not altogether cogent and coherent fashion, Castaneda illucidates the experiences of non-ordinary reality. Castañeda appears to claim that for the shaman, awareness of oneself, and awareness of the multiple dimensions of the universe is the final issue. To transcend the limits of ordinary life and experience which is limited by organic being and to be one with energy and beyond death. They believed that awareness meant awareness as the act of being deliberately conscious of all the perceptual possibilities of man, not merely the perceptual possibilities dictated by any given culture whose goal seems to be that of restricting the perceptual capacities of its members. Perhaps the most lasting, enduring and relevant aspect of Castañeda’s argument is that by entering into different worlds, and gaining different experiences and a different perception helps us to realize that our own world is also a social and cultural construction. Rather than viewing marijuana and drug use as a correlate of delinquency and criminal activity, I sought to expand the literature on marijuana and drug use as a means of reflexive spiritual and social awakening that serves various social and cultural functions such as social bonding and communality.
The common themes among all these cultures and a common theme among the group I studied was a deep sense of communion with the divine and a belief in asceticism. As Natty explained, “Babylon always thinks about logic. A plus B equals C. But they can never get to the why and how we are here because the true nature of the world is beyond what they can see with their eyes.” The commonality of these different cultures as seeing cannabis as a path to spiritual enlightenment to me indicates a profound connection between the plant and spirituality. Within each of these motivations for substance use is a profound deeply laden understanding of cannabis as more than just a drug. The meanings, ideas and values attached to the plant are different in this culture than from mainstream society. Nevertheless, knowing that our perceptions of drug use and of the world in general is as much of a product of culture and socialization than any objective reality, points us to the realization that mainstream culture is no more exact about understanding of cannabis than this group is. Moreover, I would suggest that experiences of cannabis use gives special knowledge about the plant, and perhaps a different interpretation of the plant.When originally conceptualizing this dissertation, I decided I would counter the common stereotypical assumptions about cannabis users, growers and sellers by telling the life histories, the present day life stories and the possible pitfalls of working in this line of work. I was tantalized by the idea of a “rags to riches,” “bottom to top” drug dealer Scarface story.
I had thought I would tell a story where the Kings came from the bottom and made millions of dollars through the drug trade. I figured there would be intrigue, secret routes to transport cannabis, violence and the eventual drug raid of the dispensary and growing operation. This would make my dissertation that much more interesting and show the human side of the consequences of the war on drugs. However, what I saw was a mundaneness that rivaled a trip through a shopping mall. There were no police raids, no stickup kids , and no instances of systemic violence. Indeed, the criminal justice system and the threat of imprisonment seemed relatively non-existent. This was compounded by the fact that the Kings had a lawyer and assured me that if any raid occurred, their lawyer would protect us. What I witnessed was a lax environment void of danger and drug violence. What I saw, essentially, was the effects of legalization and regulation and the amazing benefits that legalization had on cannabis markets. The Kings, as of this writing, are not in jail, on the run from the law nor did any of them die in any spectacular Scarface ending in a DEA raid. They are living their lives as any normal middle class suburbanite would.They go to work at their unique yet uneventful jobs, they smoke weed and drink with their friends , and they go home to their wives/girlfriends and children. The lack of excitement is perhaps the most shocking aspect of the dissertation. For all the uniqueness of their beliefs and their jobs, other than an occasional scary person threatening to jack a delivery driver, violence, intimidation and the criminal justice system was an afterthought. And perhaps, that is the way drug markets should operate. What the mundaneness and calmness did show; was the promise of cannabis legalization in the United States. When I asked, all of the Kings believe cannabis will be legalized in California sooner than later. Some see great promise and opportunity, others see the coming of the end. What is almost certain however, as High-C told me a long time ago, they‘ll still be smoking!What I found was that many of the assumptions that I, and the scholarly literature on drug use and sales held, were half-truths. The reasons the Kings, and many other users use cannabis was wide and varied. I broke cannabis use motivation into a few categories or typologies. However, commercial drying racks it is important to note that these categories are not exhaustive or mutually exclusive. They could fit into many of these categories. For example, the Kings openly admitted to smoking in order to make new friends, but they also acknowledged that smoking a lot of cannabis with many different people was a form of prestige. Likewise, the Kings pointed to the fact that a lot of patients acknowledged cannabis for medical purposes, but enjoyed the high that came along with it, suggesting the feelings of well-being engendered by the hallucination had therapeutic benefits. As discussed at length, many users claimed that their use was motivated by social bonds and the attachments that it brought to friends and sometimes even family members. Many of the members of the Kings families dealt with harder drug problems. Dorian in particular used cannabis as a bonding ritual with his father. He believed the cannabis kept him and his father away from some of the harder drugs he frequently used. Moreover, Dorian, being frequently estranged from his father for long periods of his life, felt that cannabis was the only thing that he and his father had in common. Many of the other Kings expressed their belief that smoking kept their friendship circle wide and varied.
They explained that it was a great way to get to know people and that smoking with people creates a special bond. Sharing in a communal experience with friends is common with many substances both legal and illegal. Much like meeting with an old friend at the coffee shop or the somewhat recent practice of smoking Hookah, the social experience is just as, if not more relevant than the substance itself. Moreover, like what occurs for other substances as well, the Kings claimed that moments of sobriety led to situations where hanging out with friends turned to an awkward venture. Another motivation for the Kings was the process of reflexivity and reality construction. The Kings believed that sobriety was just one world within the myriads of possible worlds that could be experienced. By being trapped in one world, one cannot understand or think about how different ones are possible. Thus, cannabis as a spiritual and reflexive practice provides, according to the kings, a journey to another state of consciousness that shows one a different and more real perspective. It shows them the world as it truly is. This understanding of hallucinogenic substances is not unique to the Kings as many cultures throughout the world have used hallucinogens as a coming of age ritual or as a tool of meditation or a religious practice.A significant portion of the medical cannabis using population use cannabis to treat various pain related issues. The Kings suggested that most patients that used cannabis for primarily therapeutic effects claimed they used it to treat pain issues. Cannabis as a medicine treats pain in various ways through the relaxation of muscles, and tingling of joints that helps with arthritis and joint pain. It has also been shown effective in reducing inflammation. Likewise, many patients with various other illnesses use cannabis as a form of medical treatment. As Natty pointed out, the amount of people who use cannabis for strictly medicinal reasons is hard to quantify, as the categories of therapeutic and recreational use are social constructions, as Natty pointed out, therapeutic use is recreational, and vice versa. To the topic of why do people sell? In much the same way people smoke cannabis for various reasons, and in much the same way that those categories are not mutually exclusive, cannabis selling is not an either/- or proposition. However, I outlined a series of categories that I feel loosely reflects the types of sellers and different motivations of the various sellers. Much like the smokers who use cannabis for status seeking purposes, many sellers and growers report similar motivations. Although the practice of cannabis cultivation and selling is still very much frowned upon in our society, the Kings and many others who work in the cannabis industry openly flaunt their business. The Kings post their business on Facebook and openly advertise that they run a dispensary. Likewise, they frequently discuss cannabis and represent smoking as a lifestyle. As was frequently discussed one of the motivations for the Kings early ventures in cannabis selling was because they wanted to “ball” and be the person people “hit up” when they needed weed. Moreover, the Kings at one point posted a promotional video of their dispensary on Facebook and other social media sites. Although, some of their activities were advertising for the dispensary, other activities such as smoking with a lot of people, and smoking people out, were clear indications of status seeking. These types of dealers who sell as a side business to smoke for free are actually the most common type of illegal cannabis dealer out there. The Kings at one point were these types of sellers. This typology of seller typically sells cannabis not for the purpose of making money, but for the purpose of smoking for free. As was discussed earlier, most illegal suburban drug markets are closed markets that are constrained by social networks. When individuals first start to venture into cannabis selling, they frequently only sell to people they know or to friends of friends.