“Hare Krishna vs. Shiva Shiva”: Swami Agehananda Bharati, Drugs, and the Mystical State in Hindusim

This paper will form an overview of Swami Agehananda Bharati’s views about drugs as a catalyst for achieving the mystical state (in both a Hindu and general context), as well as his observations of the perception of drugs throughout the Hindu community, inside and outside South Asia. It will demonstrate that Bharati considered drugs a valid means toward achieving the mystical state, both as a scholar of Hinduism and as a practicing sannyasin.