Chapter 10 Flashcards
Ethnomycology
- the study of the historical uses and sociological impacts of fungi
Entheogens
- creates god within, a psychoactive substance used in religious, shamanic, or spiritual context
As hunters and gatherers fungi was used for:
- food, medicines and visionary agents
Entheogenic mushrooms were known as the
- gateways to the innermost secrets of existence
Egyptian crowns, stylized depictions of _______
- Psilocybes
How did Egyptians view psilocybe ingestion?
- believed Pharaohs descendants from shamanic pastoralists and herbalists, were the divine and immortal “Sons of the Sun” because of psilocybe ingestion
What did the Aztecs name psilocybin mushrooms?
- Teonanacatl, meaning “flesh of the gods” or “divine flesh”
______________________ observed Indians eating wild, hallucinogenic mushrooms.
- 16th century Spanish explorers
How did Christian and Islamic societies view hallucinogenic mushrooms and plants?
- prohibited and believed to be the work of the devil
- those who resisted and continued their ceremonies in secret were punished by public flogging to burning alive at the stake
Robert Gordon Wasson and Valentina Pavlovna Guercken
- recognized cultural differences toward fungi
- called their field ethnomycology
- coined the terms mycophobe and mycophile
Wasson and Guercken hypothesis
- hypothesized that hallucinogenic mushrooms had a major role in evolution of human cultures and religions world wide
Wasson and Guercken traveled the world and integrated mycology with:
- history, linguistics, comparative religion, mythology, art and archaeology
In his travels Wasson visited tribes to witness mushroom ceremonies and observed shaman, he was paid to eat mushrooms and tell visions. He ate the ______ mushroom
- Psilocybe
Who was the first westerner to experience the Mazatec mushroom involving the ingestion of psychoactive. He was also best known for his Life magazine article __________.
- Wasson
- Seeking the Magic Mushroom
What did Timothy Leary propose?
- proposed a new approach to psychotherapy- actively immerse therapist in patients emotional turmoil
- experienced magical mushrooms as the vehicle to reach the state of the disturbed
- used pure psilocybin, then LSD and mescaline
How did people react to what Timothy Leary was doing?
- Fired from Harvard in 1963
- Laws enacted to rid country of hallucinogens
What theory did Terence McKenna pose?
- Psilocybin ingestion was primary in the formation of language and culture
- Rapid rise from apes to humans bc of hallucinogenic mushrooms
How did Terence McKenna say that psilocybin affects the brain?
- temporarily increases neuro-chemical activity in the language centers of the brain when consumed in low doses
- results in super heightened senses
Which mushrooms shaped mankind
- Amanita muscaria
Why is Amanita muscaria referred to as “mushrooms that shaped mankind”?
- It is an entheogen in various world religions and shamanic practice
What is a shaman? Where did they originate?
- a person regarded as having access to and influence in, the world of good and evil spirits, especially among some peoples of northern Asia and North America
- such people enter a trance state during a ritual and practice divination and healing
- originated in Siberia
Shamans practice in _____ rituals
- pagan
- good or evil spirits reside in all objects
Some Shamans use of mushrooms
- as a tool to mediate/communicate with the upper and lower worlds
What did Philip Johann von Strahlenberg observe on his travels?
- observed Korjak Tribesman consumption of Amanita muscaria, fly-agaric
- mushroom provisions + boiling water= intoxicants
- others drink urine
- reindeer eat mushrooms and drink urine
Define Soma
- life force worshipped since ancient Hindu culture
- one foot, red and white head passed from one person to another via urine
The Forbidden fruit
- 12th century French fresco depicting adam and even next to a Pilzbaum, or mushroom tree hosting Amanita muscaria
How did the Vikings use Amanita muscaria and what ability did they gain from this?
- had religious rituals involving dancing and consumption of Amanita muscaria
- used when they were getting ready to invade a land
- gained ability to turn off fear and emotions, gained reputation for fierceness
Mushrooms and mystical beings
- gnomes, fairies, little people, folklore, and supernatural origins
- Amanita muscaria is a Good Luck Charm associated with the four leafed clover
Fairy Ring
- fairy circle, elf circle pixie ring
- fairies danced in circles on midsummer nights eve
- resting dragons causing bare patches, marking the position of treasure
- gateways into elfin kingdoms
- circles show where the devil set his milk chum
The Hidden Meanings of Christmas Include:
- evolved from traditions developed in Germany
- the world tree
- the gifts
- the reindeer games
- santa clause, super shaman
The World Tree
- roots stretch into the underworld
- the trunk is the middle earth of everyday existence and branches reach into the heavens
- connected the heavans and earth
A muscaria grow in a _______ relationship with the pine tree
- symbiotic/mycorrhizal
The gifts
- sprang from the earth without any visible seed, virgin birth
- symbolic gift giving mimics the work of God/Santa/Nature, receiving gift under the tree
Reindeer games
- sacred animals, provided food, shelter and clothing
- fond of eating Amanita mushrooms, they will seek them out and prance about while under their influence
- often the urine of tripped out reindeer would be consumed for psychedelic affects
- the effects included sensations of size distortion and flying
Santa Claus/Shaman
- fungus affects include flushed, ruddy flow and feelings of euphoria “ho ho ho”
- mushroom gathering shamans wore red and white fur trimmed coats and long black boots
- lived in yurts, central smoke hole used as entrance
- climb down chimney entrances with their sacks
Where do green, red and white christmas colors come from
- evergreen tree and the red and white mushrooms underneath
How did Central American cultures view entheogenic mushrooms?
- Built temples to mushroom gods and carved “mushroom stones” in Mexico and Guatemala
How did Indians use hallucinogenic mushrooms?
- In celebrations and ceremonies
- for Intoxication, visions
How did Spanish explorers view the Indians’ use of hallucinogenic mushrooms?
- Deemed it barbaric
- Didn’t permit use of these because of their Christian beliefs
- Drove ceremonies underground for 400 years
