Spirituality In Woodstock, Hippies And The 1960's Culture

When thinking about the connection between spirituality and the use of drugs, Woodstock, hippies and the 1960’s culture as whole often instantly come to mind. Users frequently report a spiritual emergence or religious awakening while using psychoactive drugs. Historically many cultures have used various plants and concoctions in their rituals to alter states of consciousness in order to transcend into another reality. Some people use drugs to specifically seek a spiritual or religious awakening, while others stumble upon it accidently. Spirituality/religion is a human need and plays an important role in a person’s life. Through analyzing the history of psychedelic drugs for spiritual purposes and which drugs are most likely to facilitate spiritual experiences, it becomes clear that there is

A healthy and balanced spirituality can be considered to be one of the essential human needs. Spirituality is often associated with religion; however, spirituality and religion take on many different meanings and can be expressed in a variety of ways. According to Trichter, Klimo and Krippner (2009), “Religiosity is understood as participation in collective ceremonies, beliefs and activities of organized traditional religions. A religious experience is therefore related to a particular religious doctrine. Whereas spirituality refers to the individual's relationship with the sacred, non-ordinary aspects of life” (p.123). In other words, spirituality can include a belief in a higher power, a pursuit for harmony and completeness, and can provide one with a feeling of belonging. While religion shares many of these same characteristics, the term relates to organized traditions such as Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Both spirituality and religion can be considered a core part one’s identity as it allows them a way of understanding the world and their sense of essential