Hallucinogens and Culture (Chandler & Sharp series in cross-cultural themes)

Preface 3 Introduction 5 6 An Ethnological Reply to a Statistical Question 6 Ecstatic Shamanism as "Ur-Religion" 8 Archaeological Evidence for the Earliest Hallucinogen 10 Peyote: Sacred "Medicine" or "Dangerous Narcotic"? 12 Other Pathways to "Alternate States" 12 Hallucinogens and the Biochemistry of Consciousness 17 The Social-Psychological Context as Crucial Variable 18 Urgently Needed: An Integrated Perspective 19 1. "Idolatry," Hallucinogens, And Cultural Survival 21 2: Tobacco: "Proper Food Of The Gods" 25 26 Gods and Men as Tobacco Addicts 26 The Antiquity of Tobacco in America 28 Psychedelic Enemas? 29 The Sacred Pipe 30 Tobacco Shamanism among the Warao 32 3: Cannabis (Spp.) And Nutmeg Derivatives 35 35 Cannabis spp. 35 A New Finding: Three Species of Cannabis 36 Nutmeg 37 Nutmeg in European Medicine 38 Nutmeg and Psychotherapy 38 4. Ibogaine And The Vine Of Souls: From Tropical Forest Ritual To Psychotherapy 41 41 Tabernanthe iboga 41 Iboga Cults in Tropical Africa 42 Male-Female Symbolism and Acculturation 43 Harmaline and Related Alkaloids 44 Amazonian Indians as Psychopharmacologists 46 Yajé and the Mythic Origins of Society 47 Hallucinogens and Jaguar Transformation 49 5. Hallucinogens And "Archetypes" 51 52 The Transcultural Phenomenon 52 "Tiger, Tiger, Burning Bright …" 52 Journeys into Mythic Time 53 Yajé and the Origins of Art 55 6. LSD And The Sacred Morning Glories Of Indian Mexico 57 57 LSD and Parkinson's Disease 57 Historic Breakthrough: The Discovery of LSD 58 Ololiuhqui, Sacred Hallucinogen of the Aztecs 59 Ololiuhqui Identified 61 LSD-like Compounds in Morning-Glory Seeds 63 Ololiuhqui in Indian Religion 64 Morning-Glory Seeds as Divinity 65 Thwarting the Clergy 66 Morning Glory and Christian Acculturation 67 Morning Glory and Mother Goddess 68 God of Flowers and "Flowery Dream" 70 7. The Sacred Mushrooms: Rediscovery In Mexico 71 73 "Mushroom of the Underworld" 73 Mushroom Stones and the Cult of Sacred Mushrooms 74 Was the Fly-Agaric Sacred to the Maya? 76 Found at Last: A Living Mushroom Cult in Mexico 77 "Mycophiles" and "Mycophobes" 78 "A Soul-Shattering Happening" 79 The Mosaic Completed 80 8. The Fly-Agaric: "Mushroom Of Immortality" 83 84 The Fly-Agaric and the Intoxicating Urine 84 Chemistry and Effects 85 9. R. Gordon Wasson And The Identification Of The Divine Soma 89 89 The Elusive Soma Deity 89 Multidisciplinary Quest 90 Fly-Agaric Urine and the Identity of Soma 92 The Controversy Lives On 93 A New Road of Inquiry 94 Antiquity and Origins of the Mushroom Cult 95 Discovery of Hallucinogens: Deliberate or Accidental? 96 A Mexican Indian Mushroom Taxonomy 97 Hallucinogenic Mushrooms North of Mexico 98 10. The "Diabolic Root" 99 100 A "Factory of Alkaloids" 100 "Mescaline": A Misnomer 101 The Sacred Quest for Peyote 102 Mythic Origins of Peyote 102 "We Are Newly Born" 103 The Dangerous Passage 104 "Where Our Mothers Dwell" 106 11. "To Find Our Life": Peyote Hunt Of The Huichols Of Mexico 107 107 A Time to Walk 107 Food for Grandfather 108 The Ritual Kill 109 A Huichol Communion 111 "You Will See Your Life" 112 Uniqueness of the Shaman's Visions 116 The Children of Peyote 116 12. Datura: A Hallucinogen That Can Kill 119 121 Myth as History 121 Natural and Cultural History of Datura 122 Effects of Datura Intoxication 124 Datura among North American Indians 124 Initiation Rites in California 126 Transcending "Ordinary Reality" 127 13. Hallucinogenic Snuffs And Animal Symbolism 129 130 The Virola Tree as a Source of Snuff 130 Rapid Intoxication 133 Addiction: Snuff, No; Tobacco, Yes 133 Snuffing and Animal Art 134 Snuffing in Mexico 136 14. Toad As Earth Mother: A Problem In Symbolism And Psychopharmacology 139 139 Toad as Mediator and Dualistic Mother 139 Toad Mother and Culture Heroes 140 Psychotropic Properties of Toad Poison 141 Analogies in Asian Mythology 142 Toad and Toadstool 142 Magical Uses of Frog and Toad Poison 143 15. Hallucinogens And The Sacred Deer 145 147 American Indian Deer Symbolism: Asiatic Roots or Independent Origins? 147 The Reindeer and the Sacred Mushroom 148 Deer-Mushroom Ecology in Mexico 150 Bibliography 152 Introduction -- Idolatry, Hallucinogens, And Cultural Survival -- Tobacco: Proper Food For The Gods -- Cannabis (spp) And Nutmeg Derivatives -- Ibogaine And The Vine Of Souls: From Tropical Forest Ritual To Psychotherapy -- Hallucinogens And Archetypes -- Lsd And The Sacred Morning Glories Of Indian Mexico -- The Sacred Mushrooms: Rediscovery In Mexico -- The Fly-agaric: Mushroom Of Immortality -- R. Gordon Wasson And The Identification Of The Divine Soma -- The Diabolic Root -- To Find Our Life: Peyote Hunt Of The Huichols Of Mexico -- Datura: A Hallucinogen That Can Kill -- Hallucinogenic Snuffs And Animal Symbolism -- The Toad As Earth Mother: A Problem In Symbolism And Psychopharmacology -- Hallucinogens And The Sacred Deer. Peter T. Furst. Includes Index. Bibliography: P. 174-182. "This book is an introduction to some of the hallucinogenic drugs in their cultural and historical context, stressing their important role in religion, ritual, magic and curing".--BOOKJACKET