Amanita muscaria, commonly known as the fly agaric or fly amanita, is a basidiomycete of the genus Amanita. It is a large white-gilled, white-spotted, and usually red mushroom.
Psilocybe cubensis, commonly known as the magic mushroom, shroom, golden halo, cube, or gold cap, is a species of psilocybin mushroom of moderate potency whose principal active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin. It belongs to the fungus family Hymenogastraceae and was previously known as Stropharia cubensis. It is the best-known psilocybin mushroom due to its wide distribution and ease of cultivation. This mushroom being optimal for home cultivation specifically, as was suggested in the 1970s, is primarily what led to P. cubensis being the psilocybin mushroom species most common on the black market as a street drug.
The genus Amanita contains about 600 species of agarics, including some of the most toxic known mushrooms found worldwide, as well as some well-regarded edible species. The genus is responsible for approximately 95% of fatalities resulting from mushroom poisoning, with the death cap accounting for about 50% on its own. The most potent toxin present in these mushrooms is α-Amanitin.
Entheogens are psychedelic drugs—and sometimes certain other psychoactive substances—used for engendering spiritual development or otherwise in sacred contexts. They have been used in various ways, e.g., as part of established religious rituals or as aids for personal spiritual development. Anthropological study has established that entheogens are used for religious, magical, shamanic, or spiritual purposes in many parts of the world. Entheogens have traditionally been used to supplement many diverse practices geared towards achieving transcendence, including healing, divination, meditation, yoga, sensory deprivation, asceticism, prayer, trance, rituals, chanting, imitation of sounds, hymns like peyote songs, drumming, and ecstatic dance. The psychedelic experience is often compared to non-ordinary forms of consciousness such as those experienced in meditation, near-death experiences, and mystical experiences. Ego dissolution is often described as a key feature of the psychedelic experience.
Psilocybin mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms or shrooms, are a polyphyletic informal group of fungi that contain psilocybin, which turns into psilocin upon ingestion. Biological genera containing psilocybin mushrooms include Psilocybe, Panaeolus, Inocybe, Pluteus, Gymnopilus, and Pholiotina.
Amanita pantherina, also known as the panther cap, false blusher, and the panther amanita due to its similarity to the true blusher, is a species of fungus found in Eurasia with poisonous and psychoactive properties.
Psilocybe is a genus of gilled mushrooms, growing worldwide, in the family Hymenogastraceae. Many species contain the psychedelic compounds psilocybin and psilocin.
Robert Gordon Wasson was an American author, ethnomycologist, and a Vice President for Public Relations at J.P. Morgan & Co.
María Sabina Magdalena García was a Mazatec sabia, shaman and poet who lived in Huautla de Jiménez, a town in the Sierra Mazateca area of the Mexican state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Her healing sacred mushroom ceremonies, called veladas, were based on the use of psilocybin mushrooms, particularly Psilocybe caerulescens, a sacred mushroom important to the Mazatecs. María Sabina's veladas contributed to the popularization of indigenous Mexican ritual use of entheogenic mushrooms among westerners, though this was not her intent.
Ibotenic acid or (S)-2-amino-2-(3-hydroxyisoxazol-5-yl)acetic acid, also referred to as ibotenate, is a chemical compound and psychoactive drug which occurs naturally in Amanita muscaria and related species of mushrooms typically found in the temperate and boreal regions of the northern hemisphere. It is a prodrug of muscimol, broken down by the liver to that much more stable compound. It is a conformationally-restricted analogue of the neurotransmitter glutamate, and due to its structural similarity to this neurotransmitter, acts as a non-selective glutamate receptor agonist. Because of this, ibotenic acid can be a powerful neurotoxin in high doses, and is employed as a "brain-lesioning agent" through cranial injections in scientific research. The neurotoxic effects appear to be dose-related and risks are unclear through consumption of ibotenic-acid containing fungi, although thought to be negligible in small doses.
Carl A. P. Ruck is a professor in the Classical Studies department at Boston University. He received his B.A. at Yale University, his M.A. at the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. at Harvard University. He lives in Hull, Massachusetts.
Jonathan Ott is an ethnobotanist, writer, translator, publisher, natural products chemist and botanical researcher in the area of entheogens and their cultural and historical uses, and helped coin the term "entheogen".
There has been much speculation as to the botanical identity of soma or haoma. Soma is a plant described in Hindu sacred texts including the Rigveda, while haoma is a plant described in the Avesta, a collection of Zoroastrian writings. Both names are derived from the Proto-Indo-Iranian *Sauma. Proposed candidates include various species of plants and or fungi. Traditional etymology of Indian Soma is Somalata used traditionally by the Srauta Brahmins called Somayajis whereas the Avestan Haoma is an Ephedra, which are totally unconnected species sourced from different areas. European researchers suggest other plants, such as the perennial Peganum harmala, Nelumbo nucifera, Cannabis sativa, and the sugarcane species Tripidium bengalense ; while fungal candidates include the fly-agaric mushroom Amanita muscaria, the psilocybin-containing mushroom Psilocybe cubensis, and the ergot fungus Claviceps purpurea. Other scholarly proposals include mixtures of these candidates with each other and with other substances.
Entheogenic drugs have been used by various groups for thousands of years. There are numerous historical reports as well as modern, contemporary reports of indigenous groups using entheogens, chemical substances used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context.
Psilocybe samuiensis is a psychedelic mushroom, which has psilocybin and psilocin as main active compounds. It was placed in the section Mexicanae of genus Psilocybe by Gastón Guzmán due to its rhomboid-shaped spores. It has been found in Koh Samui, a small tropical island in Thailand, where some psychoactive species are consumed by both natives and tourists. Chao Samui rarely consume psilocybian fungi. Such local use is usually restricted to local females who do so at the request of foreigners.
Amanita muscaria var. formosa, known as the yellow orange fly agaric, is a hallucinogenic and poisonous basidiomycete fungus of the genus Amanita. This variety, which can sometimes be distinguished from most other A. muscaria by its yellow cap, is a European taxon, although several North American field guides have referred A. muscaria var. guessowii to this name. American mycologist Harry D. Thiers described a yellow-capped taxon that he called var. formosa from the United States, but it is not the same as the European variety. The Amanita Muscaria is native to temperate or boreal forest regions of the Northern Hemisphere. However, it has also been introduced in New Zealand, Australia, South America, and South Africa.
The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross: A Study of the Nature and Origins of Christianity Within the Fertility Cults of the Ancient Near East is a 1970 book about the linguistics of early Christianity and fertility cults in the Ancient Near East. It was written by John Marco Allegro (1923–1988).
Human interactions with fungi include both beneficial uses, whether practical or symbolic, and harmful interactions such as when fungi damage crops, timber, food, or are pathogenic to animals.
Entheogenic drugs have been used by various groups for thousands of years. There are numerous historical reports as well as modern, contemporary reports of indigenous groups using entheogens, chemical substances used in a religious, shamanic, or spiritual context.
The popularly called Tassili mushroom figures are Neolithic petroglyphs and cave paintings discovered in Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria, which contain features resembling mushrooms. Hypothesized to date back to 7000–5000 BC, they are considered by some researchers to be figures that have shamanic connotations and one of the strongest pieces of evidence for ethnomycological data. It is possibly the oldest example of rock art used to claim the ritual use of fungi in prehistory, with Tassili being the first site that likely may contain representations of the genus Psilocybe. However, interpretations of Tassili's drawings are disputed and it is unknown whether they actually represent mushrooms or specific natural or cultural elements.
