Can Cannabis help treat Lyme?

Going through the medical system with Lyme disease is like being a ball in an old fashioned pinball game machine. The standard of care treatment of antibiotics and pharmaceuticals forever is risking serious adverse events, or at least reducing one’s immune system protections. But now at least one natural solution has surfaced for Lyme disease – marijuana.

The Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria (Lyme disease), whether from tick bites or not, are responsible for a disease that has spread worldwide after being first discovered in Lyme, Connecticut. The Borrelia bacteria are motile (capable of motion) spirochetes, heavily armored, and DNA equipped so they can worm their ways deeply into all sorts of tissue and resist antibiotics.

All this with usually no solution, but just more complications. Cannabis come to the rescue.

Smoking Cannabis and Lyme Success

Alexis, diagnosed with late-stage Lyme Disease, is an example of someone using mainstream solutions for her Lyme disease to no avail. She was on antibiotics long enough for her gastrointestinal tract to be damaged and to be hospitalized with hemorrhagic colitis.

She was taken off antibiotics and put on several strong pain prescriptions that were barely effective while putting her into lower emotional states. Then she tried smoking marijuana.

That routine handled most of her nausea, enabled her to eat well enough to avoid wasting away, helped her sleep better, and eased her pain while elevating her mood. She maintains that marijuana has been the best thing for her Lyme disease.

Alexis wrote, “In the hospital, I have needed to have morphine or lorazepam through an IV to accomplish what smoking two grams of cannabis does on the comfort of my couch, in a fraction of the time.” But Alexis is looking for a long-term solution.

Cannabis Oil Remission Success

Some have discovered that cannabis oil may be the solution for Lyme disease. Cannabis oil is a highly concentrated substance that’s extracted and reduced from large amounts of cannabis with a beneficial balance of THC and othe cannabinoids.

What do you do when you’re sick and everything you’ve been told about proper treatment was wrong? What would you do if, in the interest of feeling “okay”, you let your doctor pump you full of medications, all for naught? Like most people who have been through fruitless medical treatments, Lyme disease sufferer Shelley M. White, got fed up and started researching for herself. What she found out about her Lyme disease and potential treatments changed her life.

Shelley found a tick behind her ear at the age of 14. Seven years later, after a variety of health problems, she was diagnosed with Lyme disease, Mycoplasma, Bartonella, Lupus, and Babesia. She had multiple seizures every single day and was put through the ringer with conventional medical treatments. It wasn’t until she tried treating her symptoms with marijuana that she found relief.

“Desperately searching for answers, I stumbled across what turned out to be one of the most profound facts I have ever learned,” Shelley writes. “Marijuana contains one of the most potent anticonvulstants in the world. Controversy over the subject was meaningless at that point, as the herb offered a possible solution to one of my most debilitating symptoms.”She began with smoking, which didn’t only make her feel better, it actually eliminated her seizures completely. Now, she makes her own cannabis oil, which she takes throughout the day. Similar to how marijuana has helped children overcome ‘untreatable’ seizures and how one woman used cannabis juice to replace 40 medications, the effects have been nothing short of amazing.

“After only a month of taking it I was able to return to work and school, and began to drive and have a social life again. Now, I am finally planning to move out and be independent for the first time in years. Basically, I am returning to a lifestyle that I was once unsure I would ever see again thanks to the immense healing power of cannabis oil.”

As researchers with the University of Reading and GW Pharmaceuticals in the U.K. recently found, rats and mice treated with one of 100 non-psychoactive cannabinoids had fewer seizures, less severe seizures, and a lower mortality rate when compared with animals given a placebo. Because the compound was non-psychoactive, people who want the benefits without the “high” could reap similar benefits.

Cannabis has a wealth of healing compounds, some of which we are only beginning to understand. The many benefits of this plant should be reason enough to make it available to all who need it, without fear of jail time or arrest. Until that day comes, however, some are still willing to risk it all for relief and healing.

It has become increasingly available in states that allow medical marijuana, but it’s also available “underground”.

Another young lady suffering from Lyme disease, Shelley White’s Lyme Disease was so debilitating that she had endured at least 10 seizures daily for a year and a half. She began smoking marijuana from a pipe and then switched to inhaling it through a vaporizer. Just from that, her seizures had stopped. Then she decided to go to the next level of using cannabis oil.

After a month of the oil, she was able to return to work and school. At the time of writing her story, she was happy to announce that she could now move out and live on her own and enjoy a normal social life.

An internet radio show called “High Noon” interviewed a couple of Lyme disease victims who had been using cannabis oil successfully, Pamela Baily and Lisa Sikes. Listen here.

One of the underground pioneers of cannabis oil who followed Rick Simpson has reported that more Lyme Disease sufferers have come to cannabis oil recently with mostly successful results.

WHAT IT IS LIKE TO HAVE LYME DISEASE

04/03/2014 · by Shelley M. White ·

Imagine everything that’s old always feels new.

Imagine what was once familiar is now unfamiliar.

Imagine waking up to an existence more surreal than your dreams.

Imagine losing everything rendering nothing as everything.

Imagine all of your lies meeting your truth.

Imagine you would die to live what you once considered a nightmare.

Imagine becoming so alone, that you are no longer lonely.

Imagine suffocating in order to take your first breath.

Imagine consciously lingering on the brink of the unconscious mind.

Imagine you live where darkness meets light.

Imagine dying, to finally be alive.

Imagine you are me, and that I am you.

Read more: http://naturalsociety.com/cannabis-can-conquer-lyme-disease-2/#ixzz2z3xq6XQZ

5 herbs to help calm anxiety

Gingko Biloba

Anxiety impairs your mind’s ability to think clearly and make good decisions about your everyday life. By increasing blood flow to the brain and overall blood circulation throughout the body, gingko biloba helps refresh your state of mind and acts as a natural antidepressant. People anticipating tasks which require a solid focus and concentration are advised to take gingko biloba so as not to anticipate their challenges in an anxious mood.

Licorice Root

Licorice root contains a natural hormone alternative to cortisone, which can help the body handle stressful situations, and can help to normalize blood sugar levels as well as your adrenal glands, providing you with the energy necessary to deal with the stressful situation at hand. Some claim licorice stimulates cranial and cerebrospinal fluid, thereby calming the mind. You can take licorice root as a tea or a tonic.

Kava Kava

Kava kava can lift your spirit and make you happier by inducing a mild state of euphoria and sedation. Kava kava is very effective in the treatment of anxiety, working within a week of taking it daily. In medical applications, the herb is used in the treatment for women with post-menopausal depression. For people with sleep disorders, kava kava is a non-addictive herb which can work as a mild tranquilizer.

Passion Flower

Passion Flower works as a non-drowsy, natural sedative that relieves intermittent stress, nervousness, anxiety and panic attacks. It won’t put your worries away by knocking you out or making you sleepy. You can find a certain equilibrium in passion flower by making you feel emotionally balanced. For those with bipolar disorder, it won’t give you a hyper, happy or excited feeling. Instead, passion flower will restrain your emotions from its range of extremes. If you have exaggerated emotions throughout the day (in which you go from being very happy to being very angry or sad), you may find passion flower to be a nice tea to drink after letting it seep in boiling water for 10 minutes.

Ginseng

Ginseng is also known as a “brain food” as it improves concentration, thinking, and memory. It is also a supplement for added physical stamina. All these benefits contribute to its anti-anxiety properties as it revitalizes your body. Ginseng has many benefits and these include stimulant properties to reduce stress and enhance health. It can be used as a relaxant as it has tonic properties and can also help maintain emotional balance. Drink ginseng as a tea or take it in supplement form.

Source: Naturehacks.com

Feel'n good all day with this....

Red Currant smoothie with Chlorella Chia Maca 

A smoothie rich in antioxidants, vitamin C and iron, to build the blood. Red Currants (rode bessen) which grow all over Europe,  goji berries, dates, banana and a bunch of spinach blended together with soaked chia, chlorella, and maca. Nourish every cell of your body, a smoothie a day keeps the doctor away! 

• Redcurrants are a rich source of vitamin C, and help boost the immune system.
• They are also known to induce perspiration, which helps remove waste materials, excessive salts, and toxins.
• They have been proven effective in relieving certain skin ailments including eczema and acne.
• Redcurrant helps purify blood.
• Redcurrants are a rich source of fiber and are also low on calories,this helps in the prevention and management of obesity.
• Redcurrant is also a potent appetizer. If eaten before meals, it prepares the stomach for digestion by promoting the secretion of digestive juices.
• Redcurrant berries are supposed to be anti-inflammatory in action and are effective against ailments like the common cold, flu and fever.

Ingredients

1.  1-2 cups of kefir water, or coconut water  
2.  1 bananas- 2 handful spinach
3.  3 dates
4.  1-2 cup red currants (rode bessen), or whatever berries you have in  season 
5.  1-4 handfulls of goji berries
6.  1 tbl chia seeds (soaked overnight)
7.  1 tsp chlorella
8.  1 tsp maca
9.   1 handfull of  hempseeds on top

The how to

1) Mix all the ingredients and top with the hemps seeds. Add more liquid as needed. Enjoy 

In Florida the Lyme Nightmare continues

Lyme Disease: The Southern Myth JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- In 2006, an outgoing and healthy Andrea King became very sick. She became extremely tired, had muscle aches and a fever, but nine doctors later she still didn't have a diagnosis. It wasn't until 10 months after the on-set of symptoms that was finally diagnosed with Lyme Disease, which comes from getting bitten by an infected tick. Click Here To Watch The Video JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- In 2006, an outgoing and healthy Andrea King became very sick. "My friends told me they thought I was dying," King said. "I said to my family medical doctor, I feel like there is something in my blood. It is like my blood is angry."  She became extremely tired, had muscle aches and a fever, but nine doctors later she still didn't have a diagnosis.   It wasn't until 10 months after the on-set of symptoms that was finally diagnosed with Lyme Disease, which comes from getting bitten by an infected tick. "It is heartbreaking to me that doctors in this area are not more aware and literate about Lyme and tick born disease," said King. Awareness is something Dr. Kerry Clark at the University of North Florida is working to change.  He says it is much more common in Florida than most would believe. "My research has identified hundreds of cases all across the Southern United States, many of them in Florida. That [Lyme is only in the North] is just one of the many myths about Lyme disease we are trying to dispel," told Dr. Clark Because Lyme is typically considered a problem in the Northeast, it is often not tested for in patients in the south.   Not getting treated with antibiotics immediately means the disease will continue to spread through the body, making it harder to fight.  According to the Florida Department of Health, from 2000-2012 there have been 913 reported cases of Lyme Disease. Yet even for those who do test positive for Lyme, getting treatment can be a serious challenge. "This disease in every step of the way was like entering the twilight zone," explained Aimee Boggs. When Aimee's husband, Dane Boggs, became very sick after what he thought was a spider bite, he waited two painful years before he was diagnosed with Lyme.  Even then, Dane had to travel all the way to South Florida to see a doctor that would treat Lyme. "His condition was such that it required an IV antibiotic that after two months my insurer declined continued payment of those drugs, which costs in the realm of $5,000 and $7,000 a month," told Boggs. For Lyme patients like Dane Boggs, it isn't uncommon for their insurance companies to deny coverage. That is because the CDC does not recognize Lyme as chronic or life-long disease. The CDC calls it Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome argues that the symptoms after treatment will go away with time. Dane and Aimee Bogg s disagree and have spent around $100,000 dollars out of their own pocket seeking treatment for Dane's Lyme disease. "It put a strain on finances, marriage, for anyone who has been through an illness you know what we are talking about,"said Dane," People with Lyme are too sick to even fight the battle." Another challenge Lyme patients face is finding a doctor. In North Florida, Dr. Shirley Hartman is one of the only doctors that treats Lyme Disease patients. She understands what her patients have been through, for years her own daughter was thought to have Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, only to then test positive for Lyme. "They are patronized and told they are not sick and told they just need to buck up and live with it," told Dr. Hartman. Lyme treating doctors can find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place when trying to treat patients. "It has happened that insurance companies have complained about physicians that prescribe expensive, long-term courses of antibiotics that the insurance companies have to pay for. Then these physicians are investigated by medical societies and boards and some of them have lost their licenses or had to move to other states," explaind Dr. Hartman. According to the Northeast Florida Lyme Association, awareness is the key to improving health outcomes.  Symptoms of Lyme Disease include (but are not limited to) a circular rash around a tick bite, severe fatigue, muscle and joint pain, fever and in more advanced cases nerve problems and problems thinking. To learn more about the disease here is a link to the Northeast Florida Lyme Association: http://northeastfloridalymeassociation.org/  You can also find the group on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/NEFLALyme?sk=wall A detailed list of Lyme Disease symptoms: http://northeastfloridalymeassociation.org/symptoms.html The Centers for Disease Control page on Lyme Disease: http://www.cdc.gov/lyme/ http://archive.firstcoastnews.com/

Coconut Hemp Ginger Cookies

Coconut Ginger Cookies

These coconut, hemp, ginger cookies contain three different types of coconut – coconut milk, coconut oil and coconut flour. All three are low in sugars and have antifungal properties. I also like to add some grated ginger to these cookies, just to give the flavor a little boost. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup hemp seeds
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. Stevia
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 4 eggs
• 2 Tbsp. fresh ginger, grated

How to do it

1. Preheat the oven to 350F ( 177 degrees C). Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet.
2. Add all the dry ingredients to the food processor (coconut flour, hemp seeds, stevia, and salt. Mix together, then add the rest of the ingredients. Pulse until it reaches an even consistency.
3. Use a tablespoon to drop the cookie dough on the baking sheet. Use your hand to shape each cookie as they won’t spread on their own.
4. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until edges are brown

.

source; http://www.thecandidadiet.com

Creating A Marijuana Tincture Using Alcohol Extraction:

                            The Heated Method

1. Finely grind the marijuana. A standard blender works fine for this, although you can chop or crumble it as you see fit.
2. Preheat your oven to 225 F (110 C). Do NOT exceed 300 F (150 C) to prevent letting your precious THC vaporize!
3. Place the crumbled marijuana in the oven-safe container, and bake for 45 minutes. 30 minutes will often suffice, but if the container is rather thick-walled, it will take some time to come up to temperature.
4. Remove the container from the oven and let it cool for 1/2 hour.
5. Next, place the “baked” (decarboxylated) marijuana into the mason jar/glass, crumbling more if necessary. Gently pour in 1 cup of 70% grain spirits, and stir thoroughly.
6. Seal the jar and shake it. You’ll notice a change in color almost immediately, and this will develop into a deep, almost black-hued green color over the next couple of days.
7. Shake the jar containing the alcohol/cannabis mixture several times a day for at least two days. There’s no need to wait a week or more, THC is quite soluble in alcohol. The waiting time does allow all the bits of marijuana to become saturated and the THC to go into solution.
8. Strain the alcohol/cannabis mixture through a funnel lined with cheesecloth and into a large enough receiving jar. Ball up the cheesecloth and squeeze out more of the solution – waste not!
9. Transfer the tincture into brown glass dropper bottles for storage and dosing. If you can’t get dropper bottles, just brown medicine glass bottles will do – the brown glass helps prevent light from degrading the tincture.
10. Store the finished tincture in a cool place away from strong light sources for maximum shelf life.

Cold Method (recommended)

Here is the recipe for highest quality tincture. This method does not use heat so keeps the integrity of the cannabinoids intact.  FromWAMM

• Fill jar ¾ full of herb
• Fill rest of jar with alcohol; leave some room at top, stir.
• Shake jar [vigorously] one or two times a day  for 2 weeks [or leave it until there is no green color left in the plant matter]
• Strain through metal tea strainer or silkscreen.

You can use whatever kind of clean glass, not plastic, jar you have with a tight lid. One-quart mason jars are ideal. Grind the herb thoroughly in a blender. It should be well ground but doesn’t have to be a powder. You can use leaf, bud, shake, joint leftover, or stems. Too many stems will wreck your blender and make a weaker tincture. Leaf will work fine but for higher potency use shake or bud. Fill the jar ¾ full of herb; it does not have to be exact. You can use anywhere from ½ to 2/3 part herb but ¾ will make a full strength tincture. Use the highest proof alcohol you can, Everclear, which is 180 proof, but hard to find. So just use the highest proof Vodka you can find. Pour alcohol over the herb, filling the rest of the jar. Leave just enough space (an inch or so) at the top so that you will be able to shake the jar. Stir the mixture; the herb will absorb some of the alcohol so you may need to add more. Put the lid on tightly; label the contents and the date you started. It takes two weeks for the alcohol to extract all the active elements from the herb. Shake the jar once or twice a day for 2 weeks. The alcohol will rise to the top and a deep green/red color will develop. After 2 weeks of aging you can strain the tincture through a metal tea strainer or a silk screen into a small tincture bottle with a dropper. You can leave the rest in the jar if you want, it will age and mellow in flavor and you can strain off as much as you want at a time. Alcohol is a strong preservative it will hold for a long time, be careful when handling the tincture, it satins and will turn everything it comes in contact with green. Use Ultra Palmolive anti-bacterial dish soap, the orange kind, to clean the glass, metal or other ceramic utensils, (do not use plastic) sinks and counter tops works best at dissolving THC residue.

Dosage varies per individual but start with half a dropper dissolved in hot tea or water. Hot tea will dissipate some of the alcohol and activate the THC a bit. It can be taken straight but may burn the tongue and has a very strong herbal taste. [If you cut it with equal parts water, you can hold the dosage under the tongue without burning. Takes effect in seconds.

sources:  http://patients4medicalmarijuana.wordpress.com/
Cannabis Culture
http://cannabisgrowing.wordpress.com/

Raw Sprouted Hummus

You will need

1.5 cups garbanzo (chick peas) beans, soaked for 24 hours to sprout
2 spoonfuls of tahini
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped finely
Salt to taste
Dash of paprika and a dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
3 medium tomatoes, (or raw crackers, or any veggies you like to dip)
a few olives (optional)
some chopped fresh corriander

Directions

1. Mix garbanzo beans, lemon juice, garlic, tahini, olive oil and salt in food processor, pulsing
2. Slice tomatoes
3. Spoon hummus on to sliced tomatoes.
4. Sprinkle chopped corriander, olives and a little paprika on top.
Serves 4

Lyme Patient Suicide - Netherlands

'Vaak zelfdoding lymepatiënten'    za 05 apr 2014, 05:30

dioor René Steenhorst

AMSTERDAM - 

De ziekte van Lyme leidt momenteel tot een zorgwekkend aantal zelfdodingen. Volgens de Nederlandse Vereniging voor Lymepatiënten, die emotioneel alarm slaat, hebben de afgelopen maanden meerdere chronische lymepatiënten zichzelf van het leven beroofd, daartoe gedreven door hun medisch uitzichtloze situatie.

Een teek kan de ziekte van Lyme verspreidenFoto: SUYK, KOEN

NVLP-bestuurslid Miranka Mud spreekt van drama’s die het directe gevolg zijn van „vaak jaren geleden gemiste diagnoses en daardoor te laat gestarte behandelingen”. Bij de vereniging zijn de trieste gebeurtenissen opgetekend in zowel afscheidsbrieven als door contacten met nabestaanden.

Laatste wens

Een van de nu overleden lymepatiënten, de 39-jarige Barbara Pronk uit Rijswijk, schreef kort voor haar dood, op 19 maart jongstleden, een uitgebreide brief aan leden van de Tweede Kamer. Daarin vraagt ze, als ’laatste wens’, aandacht voor deze ziekte, waarvan volgens haar de ernst zwaar wordt onderschat.

„Lyme is geen ’normale ziekte’”, schrijft Barbara, „maar is een tegenstander van ongekend formaat: een strijd tegen bacteriën en hun giftige afvalstoffen die je lichaam teisteren in elk orgaan, elk stukje weefsel en iedere cel, en die je lichamelijk en geestelijk overnemen en je geheel kapotmaken van binnen.”

Mevrouw Pronk was al negen jaar ernstig ziek en totaal geïnvalideerd. Door Lyme leed ze ook aan de virale hersenziekte ME en het chronisch vermoeidheidssyndroom CVS, dat haar uitputte. Jarenlang had Barbara Pronk veel gezondheidsklachten, waarvan artsen en specialisten de echte oorzaak maar niet wisten te achterhalen. Jaren te laat werd bij haar de ziekte van Lyme vastgesteld, haar behandeling was derhalve ontoereikend.

„Alleen al vijf van onze leden hebben onlangs de dood verkozen, dat hebben we nog niet eerder in zo’n korte tijd meegemaakt”, stelt Miranka Mud van de Nederlandse Vereniging voor Lymepatiënten. „Bovendien weten wij van nog meer patiënten die uit het leven zijn gestapt, of dat hebben geprobeerd, omdat de ziekte hun leven ondraaglijk maakte.”

http://www.telegraaf.nl/

iSpot Lyme A new test.

 iSpot Lyme^™ 

Lyme disease is difficult to diagnose. 50-70% of patients go undiagnosed or misdiagnosed due to low sensitivity of traditional antibody-based testing. iSpot Lyme™ is a new breakthrough cellular immune diagnostic tool that can detect the bacterial infection of Lyme disease with 84% sensitivity and 94% specificity.

New generation of in vitro diagnostic test for the detection of antigen-specific effector/memory T cells that respond to stimulation by Borrelia burgdorferi antigens. iSpot Lyme uses an enzyme-linked immunospot technology (ELISpot) to count B. burgdorferi-sensitized T cells. The test captures the level of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) secreted by the cells.

Find out how to get the iSpot Lyme test1-877-282-0306https://www.neurorelief.com/index.php?p=testDet&testID=241&TestPanelName=iSpot%20Ly

Some conditions can mask

Lyme disease

Lyme disease mimics the symptoms of many other diseases. If a patient actually has Lyme disease, the underlying infection will progress unchecked until the patient’s infection is treated.

• Fibromyalgia
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Depression
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• ALS
• Mental Illness
• ADHD
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Hypochondria
• Migrane headaches
• Anxiety
• Insomnia
• Food allergy

EARLY SYMPTOMS

• Flu-like illness (fever, chills, sweats, muscle aches, fatigue, nausea and joint pain)
• Rash (less than 50%)
• Bell’s palsy
• Headache
• Stiff neck

ADVANCED SYMPTOMS

• Depression, anxiety, or mood swings
• Tingling, burning or shooting pains
• Abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea
• Light or sound sensitivity
• Cognitive impairment
• Chest pain, palpitations
• Shortness of breath
• Sleep disturbance
• Arthritis
• Fatigue

Study: Antibiotics don't kill Lyme disease bacteria 

WCBS-TV 
New research may be bad news for thousands who suffer from Lyme disease. As WCBS-TV's Vanessa Murdock reported, antibiotic treatment has offered Lyme sufferers some semblance of normalcy. But, recent research finds Lyme disease bacteria persist even after antibiotic treatments.

Raw Tomato Bisque

Raw Tomato Basil Bisque

The Basic Recipe
1 enormous heirloom Tomato (or 3 med. tomatoes)
1 cup Cashews, powdered (blend cashews in a dry Vitamix/blender to powder)
Meat of 1 young coconut
Water of 1 young coconut
2-3 tbspns Olive Oil
Salt to taste

Blend all of the above 

Optional Toppings 
1/2 bunch finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 green onions finely chopped
Chop 1 avocado in to small cubes and add as topping in each bowl when served
Top with sprig of basil to make it look nice

Optional Variations
Substitute juice of 1 Lemon and blend in an avocado instead of using coconut water & meat (or try it with all of these together!)
Blend in one clove of garlic (remove core of clove; it has toxins)

Optional Seasonings
Onion Powder, oregano, thyme, italian seasonings
Sprig of rosemary
Finely chopped basil, dill, chives or other fresh herbs

What is Dutsi, things that make you go hmmm

A Buddhist retreat in the desert would seem like a place of peace, and ordained monk Michael Roach‘s commune in Arizona’s Apache Highlands was just that – if you discount the jealousy, the backbiting, the domestic abuse, and the knife attack.

Rolling Stone has a long piece on the peculiar goings-on in Roach’s mystical cult. Journalist Nina Burleigh was brave for writing it, as Roach is a man who, according to his followers,

…can walk through walls, see into the future and, some believe, cast powerful spells against those who cross him.

This may be the most entertaining paragraph in Burleigh’s article:

To underscore the importance of one’s teacher, Roach’s acolytes consumed dutsi, pills that supposedly contain bits of symbolic scatological material going back to Buddha (a secretive practice among Tibetan Buddhist initiates). “People worked for free in order to catapult their karma out of the prosaic shitter,” says Morris [a source]. “So you had a lot of people eating shit, literally and figuratively.”

If you’d like to make your own, start with a non-constipated cow. And for Shiva’s sake, don’t let the cow doo-doo hit the ground, ’cause that would make it impure.

This snippet is from The Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols:

The ‘three whites’ of milk, curds, and ghee, form three of the ‘five nectars’ obtained from the sacred cow, with the other two being urine and dung. For ritual purposes the cow’s urine and dung are collected in vessels before they touch the ground, and are then mixed with the three white substances in a bronze bowl.  This mixture is then boiled. When cool, the upper scum and lower sediment of this viscous liquid are discarded, leaving only the middle section, which is then spread and dried in the sun. The dried powder is then blended with saffron and made into small pills. In Tibet these pills are employed in ritual practices, together with consecrated medicinal pills, known as dutsi.

Grossed out? Not in the mood for dingleberry pills? Luckily for you, there are
 alternatives, the website Sacred Journeys informs us.

In the tantric tradition there are many forms of consecrated medicines called dutsiwhich uses precious herbal and mineral substances in combination with mantras, incantations and prayers performed at specific times of year to give them full power.Often the master will put some his own hair or fingernails in with the mix so that the recipient can make a deeper karmic connection with him which is a form of guru yoga. Other ingredients that are very powerful include the hair of different masters and dakinis, brain matter from high yogis, Dharmakaya nectar from herukas, the robe of masters like Padmasambhava and different kinds of relics that all bestow healing and liberation.

Should you not have a cow handy, or a high yogi willing to donate his brain matter, you can get your dutsi fix via the web at Cosmic Goddess Empowerment. Sadly, these are vibrational offerings only — the store’s proprietress will send you “energy,” not pills.

While you’re there, check out the Benteng Segoro (“Fortress of the Sea,” only $80), which is the energy to

… protect your home from psychic and physical dangerous — from robbers, thieves, negative entities, etc. The magickal power builds up an invisible fortress. Sometimes intruders will hallucinate and see the sea all over the premises!

Whichever you get, rest assured that you’ll still be swallowing bullshit, and paying for the privilege.

source:  Terry Firma the friendly atheist - About Terry Firma

http://www.patheos.com

How to make an alcohol base tincture

A tincture is a concentrated liquid form of an herb that is easy to make and use. Tinctures preserve and concentrate the properties of the herb, this makes it more effective to use than herbal teas and longer lasting. Alcohol based tinctures have a shelf life of several years. Its less expensive to make your own, and you can make several ml at a time, it saves money, and you will always have your own medicine bag made to your specifications.

 Supplies:

An alcohol base makes them the most long lasting, but tinctures can also be made with glycerine, vinegar or even with honey to make a syrup.

To make a tincture, you will need the following supplies:

• A clean glass jar (at least pint size) with lid
•  Alcohol like vodka or rum- at least 80 proof (or apple cider vinegar, this will not preserve as long as an 80 proof or more alcohol) 
• Herbs of choice 

How to Make a Tincture:

Also called an extract (in fact, the same process is used to make real vanilla extract), alcohol tinctures are the most common type and the easiest to make.

• Fill the jar 1/3 to 1/2 full with dried herbs. Filling half full will make a stronger tincture. Do not pack down.
• Pour boiling water to just dampen all of the herbs. (optional)
• Fill the rest of the jar (or the entire jar if not using hot water too) with alcohol and stir with a clean spoon.
• Put the lid on the jar. Store the jar in a cool,dry, dark place and remember to shake daily, for at least three weeks and up to six months. 
• Strain through cheesecloth and compost the herbs. Store the tincture in colored dropper bottles or clean glass jar.

 Alcohol can be evaporated before use, if you add your tincture drops into a hot cup of water or tea.  Tincture can be made with the made method described above by using apple cider vinegar, though it will need to be stored in the fridge and will only last 3-6 months.