Smokin' Potions

[Bjorn]

I had this on the previous site and wanted to revive it.

I have never had a knack for crafting wet potions but dry potions have always been something I enjoyed doing, particularly after I got my beloved mortar and pestle. There are some dry potions that, after making them, I felt particularly compelled to smoke, simply to draw the spell's intent into my via fire.

Does anyone else like to smoke as a part of their rituals? This is very different from smoking for pleasure, which I have been known to do - I am talking about smoking something specific for a purpose.

[Eglentyne]

Re: Smokin' Potions

It's not an unfamiliar concept to me, to smoke something as part of a ritual. I know this can be done for many reasons, either to bring some sort of energy into the body, or to induce an altered state on consciousness. I have not performed a formal ritual with this practice simply because there has been no need for it.

Also, I really do associate smoking with recreation, and it would have to be an incredibly complex ritual that would force that notion out of my mind before I took that action and hoped for a productive outcome. I would probably need several purification rituals prior to the act.

I know that in my area, people just don't do it. I've known of groups who have, but what seemingly starts out as something purposeful degrades into... a party. Highly unrespectable behavior. If you're going to party, party. Don't call it something sacred when your intent isn't sacred. That's what I say.

The only purpose I can see in smoking for a ritual is to put me into an altered state of consciousness that is necessary to do some sort of trance work, and I don't think I'm at that point. I know a few plants for this. But many hallucinogens are not smoked either. Hmm. I am far too flighty and too willing to let myself be swept up in that out of control feeling. Which I quite like. This may be useful in something more Discordian, but that's not the path I've chosen. My path requires discipline and control in all endeavors, magickal and mundane, so it will be some time before I take on this practice.

As far as smoking something solely for the purpose of ingesting that material by smoking it, it would depend on the herbs and the intent. I would want to do research on it. And also, is that herb most potent when carried by smoke? Some are, some aren't. I'm no expert on herbalism, so there's not much I can say on the matter.

[zachai]

Re: Smokin' Potions

Personally im not a smoker and while i never intentionally 'smoke' dry potions i have several heavy incense that fill a room with smoke and one
cannot avoid inhaling. From a strict herbalism point of view i suppose this is rather useless since very few benificial chemicals would respond well
to this form of administration. however from a strictly magickal stand point i believe it is very powerful act absorbing such magick into oneself.

I also know several fellow practitioners who follow the chaos gods and a very important part of their rituals in the smoking of certain substances
to induce the madness.

[KashakuTatsu]

Re: Smokin' Potions

There really is little difference from sitting above a charcoal burner and direct inhalation. Both saturate you inside and out with the blend.

I do practice smoking blends inside and outside of ritual.

During rituals it can be anything from trance inducing to raising certain planetary energies, as would burning on charcoal would do.

Outside I use it as one would use a blended oil or transmutated incense to affect daily life (like burning an inspiration incense before drawing). For ex: I have two blends that are alchemically to combat anxiety. I have one for smoking (wasn't transmuted) and one for incense burning (transmuted). Mucus membranes are the fasted ingestion method so I opted smoking as an immediate treatment, followed by the incense while the meds wait to kick in, wear the oil version for a few days following. Guess that's a ritual in of itself...