Mystical Experiences: A Closer Lookīut what exactly is a mystical experience? The inherent subjectivity of such an idea makes it hard to properly discuss unless we’re all on the same page about what it is we’re talking about. But with the demonstrable benefits to taking psilocybin, there has been a corresponding relaxing of policy that has led to a flourishing of research in the field over the last twenty years. Psilocybin only really re-enters the modern consciousness in the 50s and 60s, which led to a boom in experimentation and research before falling afoul of American drug laws. While there was a long history of these practices pre-Columbus, the Spanish tried to put an end to pagan practices and forced these practices underground. We have established that psychedelic mushrooms were important for religious rituals, which makes it a little surprise to see the modern usage so heavily tied to mysticism and spiritual experiences. While this wasn’t well received by historians for a long time, there is a direct throughline from this manuscript to Wasson’s seminal 1957 essay “Seeking the Magic Mushroom” that put psilocybin squarely into the zeitgeist. We likely have a 16th-century Spanish Franciscan friar named Bernardino de Sahagún to thank for the modern interest boom in psychedelics-his anthropological studies in Mexico included the usage of “teonanacatl”, the sacred mushroom of the indigenous peoples. Summary: Our third article bridges the gap between the pre-Columbian history of usage in the Americas to our usage and cultivation of these mushrooms in the present. Journal of Publication: The Journal of Antibiotics Psilocybin: from ancient magic to modern medicine.While the Spanish attempted to root out the practice, it has continued into the present day and bears a special significance in the religious history of the Americas. An image of their gods consuming mushrooms points to the central nature of the mushrooms in the mystical and religious experiences of the pre-Columbus people of Mesoamerica. Summary: The authors of this study helped to contextualize some of the history of psilocybin mushroom consumption, and point to a manuscript from the Mixtec people as the first recording of the usage of these mushrooms. Amses, J.C.Slot, B.T.M.Dentinger, R.Garibay-Orijelg, and J.K.Uehling Diversity, biology, and history of psilocybin-containing fungi: Suggestions for research and technological developmentĪuthors: R.C.These included Psilocybe cubensis, the magic mushroom that we all know and love today. The author notes the long historical track record of their usage (up to 3500 years in Central Mexico!), and also the heavy importance that hallucinogens more generally played in the mysticism, religious experiences, and the divination practices of the Mayan and Aztec peoples. Summary: This article attempts to provide an anthropological investigation of the history of the usage of hallucinogens and psychedelics substances in the Americas. Hallucinogenic drugs in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures.We’ll start by looking at a few studies that describe this historical context, and that also provide a bridge forward to our modern moment where mushrooms are becoming evermore popular. There, they have a long and storied history of usage in religious ceremonies and mystical experiences. While psilocybin mushrooms grow naturally across the globe, their major pre-modern usage was amongst the various peoples of Mesoamerica. We have a number of articles to discuss today, so let’s dive in! History of Usage While things like ‘mystical experiences’ can seem hard to quantify or understand through analytical research, the growing body of study being done into mushrooms can’t help but show these effects when they do occur-and the powerful benefits to be had from a mystical experience of your own. The connection between psychedelics and spiritual or mystical experiences has long held, and that naturally makes today’s psychonauts curious about the history of their practice. While our modern usage of psychedelics can sometimes feel like a cultural relic of the 1960s, they have a long history of consumption in Mesoamerican religious ceremonies and practices.
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