http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/was-moses-all-a-blur-on-psychedelic-drugs/2008/03/05/1204402497518.html
Was Moses high on psychedelic drugs?
March 5, 2008
AFP
High on Mount Sinai, Moses was on psychedelic drugs when he heard God deliver the Ten Commandments, an Israeli researcher claimed in a study published this week.
Such mind-altering substances formed an integral part of the religious rites of Israelites in biblical times, Benny Shanon, a professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wrote in the Time and Mind journal of philosophy.
"As far Moses on Mount Sinai is concerned, it was either a supernatural cosmic event, which I don't believe, or a legend, which I don't believe either, or finally, and this is very probable, an event that joined Moses and the people of Israel under the effect of narcotics," Shanon told Israeli public radio on Tuesday.
Moses was probably also on drugs when he saw the "burning bush", suggested Shanon, who said he himself has dabbled with such substances.
"The Bible says people see sounds, and that is a classic phenomenon," he said citing the example of religious ceremonies in the Amazon in which drugs are used that induce people to "see music".
He mentioned his own experience when he used ayahuasca, a powerful psychotropic plant, during a religious ceremony in Brazil's Amazon forest in 1991. "I experienced visions that had spiritual-religious connotations," Shanon said.
He said the psychedelic effects of ayahuasca were comparable to those produced by concoctions based on bark of the acacia tree, which is frequently mentioned in the Bible.
Showing posts with label Ten Commandments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ten Commandments. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Monday, November 12, 2007
Police discover Mafia's 'Ten Commandments'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=492449&in_page_id=1811
Police discover Mafia's 'Ten Commandments' after arresting Godfather
8th November 2007
The Mafia's Ten Commandments have been found after police arrested a top Godfather in Sicily.
Under the secret Cosa Nostra code of conduct, the so-called "men of honour" must avoid bars, other gangsters' wives and girlfriends and be on time.
The list of rules emerged from documents seized after the arrest of Salvatore Lo Piccolo, 65, at a secret mob meeting in Palermo, along with his son Sandro, 32, and two other godfathers.
The 10 'Mafiosi' commandments are:
1. No one can present himself directly to another of our friends. There must be a third person to do it.
2. Never look at the wives of friends.
3. Never be seen with cops.
4. Don't go to pubs and clubs.
5. Always be available for Cosa Nostra, even if your wife's about to give birth.
6. Appointments must be respected.
7. Wives must be treated with respect.
8. When asked for any information, the answer must be the truth.
9. Money cannot be appropriated if it belongs to others or to other families.
10. People who can't be part of Cosa Nostra are anyone with a close relative in the police, with a two-timing relative in the family, anyone who behaves badly and doesn't hold to moral values.
Some of the rules are obvious, such as that absolute silence and secrecy - "omerta" - must be kept at all times.
Along with the rules, police found a holy image bearing the Mafia initiation ritual. The wording is: "I swear to be faithful to Cosa Nostra. If I should betray it, my flesh must burn, just as this image burns."
Lo Piccolo apparently carried the papers everywhere with him in a brown leather briefcase.
Police discover Mafia's 'Ten Commandments' after arresting Godfather
8th November 2007
The Mafia's Ten Commandments have been found after police arrested a top Godfather in Sicily.
Under the secret Cosa Nostra code of conduct, the so-called "men of honour" must avoid bars, other gangsters' wives and girlfriends and be on time.
The list of rules emerged from documents seized after the arrest of Salvatore Lo Piccolo, 65, at a secret mob meeting in Palermo, along with his son Sandro, 32, and two other godfathers.
The 10 'Mafiosi' commandments are:
1. No one can present himself directly to another of our friends. There must be a third person to do it.
2. Never look at the wives of friends.
3. Never be seen with cops.
4. Don't go to pubs and clubs.
5. Always be available for Cosa Nostra, even if your wife's about to give birth.
6. Appointments must be respected.
7. Wives must be treated with respect.
8. When asked for any information, the answer must be the truth.
9. Money cannot be appropriated if it belongs to others or to other families.
10. People who can't be part of Cosa Nostra are anyone with a close relative in the police, with a two-timing relative in the family, anyone who behaves badly and doesn't hold to moral values.
Some of the rules are obvious, such as that absolute silence and secrecy - "omerta" - must be kept at all times.
Along with the rules, police found a holy image bearing the Mafia initiation ritual. The wording is: "I swear to be faithful to Cosa Nostra. If I should betray it, my flesh must burn, just as this image burns."
Lo Piccolo apparently carried the papers everywhere with him in a brown leather briefcase.
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