Even this most sublime experience of 'seeing' God face to face falls short of the only true experience — union with God the Reality.

“It is absolutely essential for a spiritual aspirant who genuinely longs for union with God — the Reality — to shun experiments with the effects of certain drugs. These things do not uplift the aspirant nor draw him out of the rut of Illusion. Experiences born of these practices wear off as soon as the aspirant withdraws from or is thrown out of the orbit of the effect produced by the technique employed.

“But there is no drug that can promote the aspirant's progress — nor ever alleviate the sufferings of separation from his beloved God. LOVE is the only propeller and the only remedy. The aspirant should love God with all his heart till he forgets himself and recognizes his beloved God in himself and others.

"Even the experiences of the planes of consciousness are only another kind of an illusion! Experiences of the planes are `Real Illusion', whereas those derived from the use of drugs are illusion into 'False Illusion'. This mundane life and the experiences thereof are a 'dream into a dream'; whereas the traversing of the spiritual Path by the seekers who gain ex­periences of planes of consciousness is a 'dream'."

While there is no room from the above for misconstruing Meher Baba's evaluation of the effects of psychedelics on the spiritual and social facets of the individual, some questions have been put to him on the medical use of these drugs. Here again his views are clear:

"Medically there are legitimate uses of LSD. It can be used beneficially for chronic alcoholism, for severe and serious cases of depression and for relief in mental illnesses. Use of LSD other than for specific medical purposes is harmful physically, mentally and spiritually.

"Any drug when used medically for diseases, under the direct supervision of a medical practitioner, is not impermissible and cannot be classed with individual usage of a drug for what one can get out of it — or hope to get out of it — whether thrills, forgetfulness, or a delusion of spiritual experience.

"LSD and other psychedelic drugs should never be used except when prescribed by a professional medical practitioner in the case of serious men­tal disorder under his direct supervision.

“In short, LSD can be used beneficially for specific medical purposes, but for spiritual progress it is not only useless but positively harmful.

“If the student world continues to indulge in the use of LSD, the best of its intellectual potential will be lost to the nation.

"Use of LSD produces hallucinations, and prolonged use of this drug will lead to mental derangement, which even the medical use of LSD would fail to cure."