Evening star., 1952-03-19

.VlSiVHitUuuSiH9 DIuQ
Narcotic Used in Indipn Rite
Held Not Hobit-Forminq
! By Thomas R. Henry
Some Of the comtry's foremost an.
thropol0gists have risen In defense Of
the reproducing narcotic drug.
peyote.
This drug of the Southwestern IN.
dams has lately been denounced as la.
tox1cating and habit forming and there
has been movement to have its use
declared Illegal. placing it In the same
category as opium or marijuana.
This would be useless and unjust, de-
clared q protest to the American As-
sociation for the Advancement OF
Science here. It is signed by Drs. Wes-
ton La Barre Of Duke University, David
r. McAllester Of Wesleyan, j. 8. Slot
kin Of the University Of Chicago. Omer
G. Stewart Of the University Of Colo
RADIO and Sol Tax Of the University Of
Chicago.
All say they personally have used
peyote and have taken part in tribal
rites to which it is an essential adjunct.
Protest Against Campaign.
I'VE feel 1t our duty" they say, ''to
protest against a campaign which only
reveals the ignorance OF the propagan-
distS concerned"
'Peyote," they continue, "does not
excite, stupefy or produce muscular in
coordination. There is no hangover.
The habitual user does not develop In
creased tolerance Of dependence. The
charge OF immortality has as much va
hdity as ancient Roman accusations Of
q similar nature against the early
Christians"
Peyote. they explain, is a small, car
rot-Shaped, spineless cactus which
grows in the Rio Grande Valley. The
top Of the plant usually is cut OF and
dried In the sun. forming the so-called
peyote button. When taken internally
1t appears to have remarkable mental
and physical effects.
Actually. they point out, peyotism Is
religion with national intertribal
organization incorporated under the
name Of Native American Church Of the
United States. In its modern form 1t
developed about 1870. The basic tenets
are given in its articles Of Incorporation:
THE purpose for which this corpora
ton Is formed is to foster and promote
religious believers in Almighty God and
the customs Of the several tribes Of IN
dians throughout the United States in
the worship of Heavenly Father, to
promote morality. sobriety and right
living and cultivate a spirit of self-re-
spect and brotherly love and union with
and through the sacramento use Of
peyote"
''The belief" the five protesting an
thropologiStS say, els that God put
some OF his holy spirit into peyote which
he gave to the Indians. BY eating this
sacramental peyote the Indian absorbs
Gods spirit in the same way the white
Christian absorbs that spirit by means
Of sacramental bread and wine.
Formalized An-Night Rite.
''The traditional practice of many IN
dian tribes was to go of In isolation
and fast until supernatural vision was
achieved. This now is replaced by
collective all-night vigil in which.
through prayer, contemplation and eat
ing peyote. the peyotist receives divine
revelation.
8 'For the peyotist. this occurs because
he has put himself in receptive spir-
itual mood and has absorbed enough of
Gods power through the peyote to
make him able to reach God. A scien-
tiflc Interpretation might be that the
chemicals In peyote diminish external
and internal sensations, thus permit
ting the individual to concentrate his
attention on his ideas of God and, at
the same time, affecting vision and
hearing so that these ideas easily are
projected into visions.
"The all-night rite Is highly formal.
lied. One man functions as q priest,
with the help of three assistants. Dur.
ing the rite they pray for the Worship
pers at fixed intervals, while the other
men and women pray for themselves
in low voices. Early in the rite every one
takes four pieces of peyote. Later every
one may take as many more as he or
she thinks proper. Most Of the time is
occupied In having each man, in rota-
tion, sing four religious songs that cor.
respond to the hymns in white churches.
"Peyote also is considered q cure-all.
II sick person is spiritually clean the
holy spirit in the peyote will help get
him well. We can state categorically
that these two circumstances are the
only ones under which peyote is eaten
by members Of the Native American
Church"