All of us feel secretly guilty and anxious because of our pride. We all hate our inferiority to reason.

But while one Truth seeker seeks the real experience with the truth, in order to overcome his pride (or perhaps to be overcome by true humility), another seeks only the kind of “truth” that will make him feel infallible and divine.

Such a person is drawn to the drug experience. And even lost seekers of the true religious experience may get caught in the trap, believing that the drug can lead them to the truth they seek.

Once caught and conditioned to need drugs, they find it difficult if not impossible to escape. They become dependent on the drugs even though they may be aware of their failing.

Their dependency becomes a physical one, an evolutionary adaptation to the environment that caused the change.

Once we have fallen to the drug experience, we will defend it and evangelize it, as one who has developed an improved understanding of life as a result of that experience.

We find it easy to defend our addictions because of our physical craving for the new life support they provide us, and fail to notice that our foot is resting on a lower rung of the ladder than it did formerly. And we explain our craving as “only natural.”

As I have already pointed out, the champion of drugs is able to stop competing with his fellow egotists in the pit when he gains insight into the fact that all men are “one” in their desire to experience supreme self-righteousness.

Now he becomes “compassionate” toward his fellowman’s needs and leads his fellow travelers with what appears to be love and consideration. But by now he is the Devil’s advocate.

Instead of fighting the common man for advantage and glory, he now sees himself as the uncommon man with power to lift others up.

"All of us feel secretly guilty and anxious because of our pride. We all hate our inferiority to reason"

So the high priest is able to maintain a sense of extreme (though evil) awareness and preserve his illusion of uniqueness (oneness) by contrast to the pathetic struggle of the followers he has excited with dreams of power and advantages.

The high priest, of course, never really gives his followers the key to what it is that enables him to maintain his “high” without drugs, but purposely causes the others to stumble lest they accidentally discover his secret.

He finds enough excitement in his role of high priest—and profit too—to keep him madly high forever. He is free of the drug now, but who needs the drug. He is high on people instead.

He has bridged the gap from contesting with others for glory to helping them to find it (just as though they could). Of course, he will not lead them too quickly to this state that he secretly and jealously believes to belong rightfully to him alone.

But he knows others hunger to experience it—and therein is his “compassion.” That insight is his “understanding,” his power and security.

Encouraged by the homage of his followers, the high priest’s ego bursts into full bloom. He may even feel confident enough to declare openly that he is a god (or the devil incarnate).

There are those who regard the devil as a god and are happy to identify with him.

Occasionally—laugh if you will—a sudden sweep of the light of reality will enable us to see Satan himself, and if the Godhead all egos aspire to still seems beyond your grasp, you may well see your identity with Satan and express yourself accordingly.