History of the Occult, Marijuana and Other Drugs
Inward expansion of human consciousness is never stronger than in times of outward rationalism when the artists, the romantics and the adventurers of society rebel against complacency, against mine grinding boredom, against the current possibilities that stifle imagination. Such a crisis in the human psyche gained momentum during the 19th century against a background of crusading Darwinism and dour, brutal industrialism. It would inspire a revival of the occult mentality. Most were swept along by the carnival of burgeoning western hegemony, whether they wanted to be or not, but others, psychologically the same group of outsiders' as in earlier times, wanted to look beneath the surface in search of a more positive destiny for mankind, a spiritual rather than a scientific awakening. They eschewed the passive stance of orthodox religion (which paradoxically became anything but passive in the hands of Victorian imperialists practicing muscular Christianity on the peoples of foreign lands), and some, often the most talented and inspired, embarked on the journey into inner space using psychoactive drugs such as hash and marijuana as the signposts, the spirit guides to point the way.