Friday Q&A: Marijuana and Yoga

Q: With the legalization of marijuana in the news I thought it would be a good time to bring up the question of marijuana use during yoga practice. I find that if I smoke after work that I suddenly become much more aware of my body and that I am more motivated to do poses to counteract what my body has gone through throughout my working day (I am a housekeeper). Also, when I want to commit to a good lengthy home-practice session, using marijuana has facilitated holding my intention that I set before practice throughout the entire practice, and has ultimately aided in making breakthroughs in my yoga practice. I don't like to smoke everyday in my personal life, nor every time that I do yoga. What are the ramifications for an older person who uses marijuana? Are there opinions in the yoga community regarding spiritual and physical ramifications of marijuana use?

I am not looking for a reason or an excuse to use marijuana. I am simply trying to gather informed opinions on its pluses and/or minuses and make appropriate choices for my future.

A: Baxter and I wondered whether we should even answer this question—it seemed somewhat controversial—but here we are on a Friday and this is the only question that came in this week, so what the heck. So we talked it over in person, and Baxter said that he does not really have any knowledge or expertise in this matter (and he’s the yoga teacher/doctor). He suggested that as there is a lot of scientific information about the long-term use of marijuana—apart from the yoga practice issue—you should search out that information on your own to answer your question about the ramifications for an older person who uses marijuana.

As far as the yoga community goes, I know you can find modern yoga teachers in both camps, some for and some against the use of marijuana or other mind-altering drugs during practice. I’ve certainly known both types, myself (my lips are sealed!). In a way it might depend on why you’re practicing yoga. If you are practicing to quiet the “fluctuations of the mind,” which is how the Yoga Sutras defines “yoga,” then using a mind-altering substance would seem counterproductive. In fact, for the ancient yogis, purity of the body was a very important aspect of achieving enlightenment. (Original hatha yoga included a great many cleansing practices, such as shoving a strip of cloth down your—oh, never mind.) However, if you’re practicing yoga asana as a form of exercise, maybe this is not such an issue. My one concern is that it is possible that practicing while you are high might cause you to be less mindful and injure yourself—for example, would you practice drunk?—but I have no proof of that. Mainly, to be honest, your question reminds me of the questions in the New York Times “The Ethicist” column. People usually write in to The Ethicist when they have qualms about something.

If anyone else wants to weigh on it this issue, please do! Baxter says he hopes you will.

—Nina