Before European contact, populations living along the Rio Grande and in northern Mexico, where peyote naturally grows, were acquainted with this small cactus used for religious and healing ceremonies by Native American Indians. Why choose the peyote for sale?
Peyotism spread rapidly during this period; by the late 19th century, it was clear to many that legal control must be implemented; at this point, anthropologists offered their assistance in helping bring it under legal jurisdiction.
Origins
Huichol Indians of Mexico use peyote as a sacred religious sacrament and consider it an expression of divine communication between themselves and God.
Aleister Crowley introduced peyote use into Western culture through its use as a magick drug and claimed that it produced religious experiences. However, by the late 1800s, doctors started documenting some of its adverse side effects, such as its sympathomimetic effect on the heart and respiratory systems due to alkaloid hordenine content in peyote.
Recreational peyote use among AI youth has been linked with drug abuse; spiritual service protects against such misuse. According to one recent study, spiritual use was associated with higher academic achievement and reduced social problems; additional researchers discovered a stronger sense of connection to ancestors and community through the benefit of peyote.
Psychedelic Effects
Peyote produces its psychedelic effects due to alkaloids such as mescaline. People slice off button-shaped cacti and chew or boil them in water with other herbs to make tea or use it in religious ceremonies as part of spiritual practices. However, According to US federal government schedule I status classification, Peyote has no medical value and a high potential for abuse.
Mescaline and other psychoactive compounds may produce psychological and spiritual effects, including depersonalization, altered perception, paranoia, emotional detachment, and increased sound/light sensitivity. Cacti contain alkaloids with less intense psychoactive properties, like piloting, which have soothing and hypnotic properties.
Halpern suggests that peyote could have a role to play in alcohol treatment and recovery, yet is reluctant to use the term. Instead, he proposes it could act as a “humbleness agonist,” countering arrogance while instilling reverence and respect.
Medical Uses
Native American tribes, despite their serious risks, continue to use peyote in various healing ceremonies. For example, the Lophophora williamsii peyote cactus contains disc-shaped buttons filled with mescaline alkaloids; people slice off these buttons from the cactus and either chew or steep them in hot water for tea use; it may also be smoked. Although peyote possession in the United States is illegal, members of Native American Churches can legally transport it for ceremonial use within these churches’ sacramental purposes.
Medical studies have not demonstrated any real health benefits associated with peyote use. Its hallucinogenic effects can lead to nausea, vomiting, and changes in vision; blood pressure increases; heart and respiratory rates accelerate. On the other hand, an active ingredient found in peyote cactus called hordenine has a sympathomimetic effect which may help curb appetite; it has even been used as an alternative stimulant such as diet pills, caffeine, and epinephrine, while Huichol tribe shamans believe its spirit can heal mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety.
Legal Issues
The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) considers Peyote a Schedule I narcotic, making it one of the most dangerous drugs available. Although technically illegal, some states have legalized its use for religious purposes. Unfortunately, its presence is threatened by human activities like land development projects and poaching; as a result, the Native American Church has begun greenhouse cultivation as their supply source.
Peyote plays an essential part in Native American Church ceremonies and practices. While membership requirements have not been defined officially or written records compiled of its theology are available, an estimate suggests it has 30,000-250,000 members across Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
In this case, claimants were terminated from their jobs for using peyote in religious ceremonies, which is illegal under Oregon’s Schedule I drug prohibition law without exceptions or exceptions. Therefore, we must determine if Oregon’s ban impedes their freedom of religion.
