The History of Magic Mushrooms
The use of mind-altering mushrooms, commonly known as "Magic Mushrooms" or "Shrooms" has pervaded human society since long prior to the birth of civilization approximately 6000 years ago, and potentially even multiple hundreds of thousands of years into antiquity.
The earliest concrete evidence consists of rock etched murals depicting mushroom iconography found in Northern Australia - with archaeologists and geologists suggesting the psychedelic-themed illustrations date to 10,000 B.C.E. While there is no hard evidence supporting earlier use it’s logical to assume humans have consumed psychoactive fungi since homo sapiens became evolutionarily distinct.
This premise, that the human use of psychedelics predates civilization, is defensible for two reasons;
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Firstly many other species actively seek out and consume psychoactive substances, such as the reindeer of Siberia/North America who eat Amanita Muscaria mushrooms, Dolphins that ingest the psychotropic venom of pufferfish, and Jaguars who consume vine, root and leaf of the hallucinogenic Caape plant.
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Secondly, Psilocybe mushrooms are common on every inhabitable continent, therefore early hominids venturing out of the jungle onto the savanna and beyond surely saw and likely consumed them, unwittingly achieving an evolutionary advantage through the heightened state of awareness brought about by the fungi.
Another premise, which is decidedly more outlandish, but not completely implausible states that psychedelic substances, along with many other factors (like cooking with fire) were a catalyst for a doubling of human brain size in, from an evolutionary perspective, an extremely short period. Psilocybin (the active compound in psilocybe mushrooms) has been shown by Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to create a state of hyperconnectivity between brain networks, foster an increase in neurogenesis (the creation of brain cells) and drastically alter thought pathways. The culmination of these effects may have allowed early hominids who ingested Psilocybe mushrooms to “think outside the box”, have increased visual and sensory acuity, and share deeper connection/communication with those around them.
These assumptions linking mushrooms to expedited human evolution are central components of The Stoned Ape Hypothesis, put forth by legendary ethnobotanist and psychonaut Terence McKenna. Mckenna argues that over the course of time, ingesting psilocybin occasioned both technological advancements & the genesis of evolutionarily advantageous ideas like language, religion/spirituality, & cultural tradition.
Recorded History
Returning to the (comparatively) recent past, it has been repeatedly documented that tribal societies across the globe revere psychedelic shrooms & used them in spiritual and therapeutic context for millenia.
Various forms of indigenous Central American artwork indicate these cultures thought that mushrooms were a means of communicating with the gods, while their nomenclature gives even more evidence of this.
The Nahuatl language used by the Maya and Aztec peoples named these mushrooms Teonanácatl - which literally translates to “flesh of the gods”
Indigenous tribes in Siberia also ritualized a hallucinogenic mushroom, the same red and white spotted Amanita Muscaria which reindeer commonly consume. These cultures were and still are known to collect and drink the psychoactive urine of these reindeer, which is significantly less toxic after metabolism by the undulate.
This mushroom produces effects markedly different from those of the Psilocybe genus, and unlike mesoamerican use of Psilocybe’s for solely divinatory purpose, Musciaria also had practical applications. Siberians utilized the altered state of consciousness elicited by the Amanita to exceed ‘normal’ physical capacity, and endure inhospitable temperatures through the disassociative effects of Muscimol (the active compound in Amanita Muscaria mushrooms).
It wasn’t only tribal peoples who engaged in the use of psychedelic fungi, philosophically and scientifically advanced ancient civilizations such as the Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks all left evidence suggesting that they too had fondness for psychedelics.
In Ancient Greece cults worshipping the goddess Demeter held ritual ceremonies involving the use of a psychoactive brew that possibly contained Ergot fungus (what LSD is derived from) Psilocybe mushrooms, AND Amanita Muscaria mushrooms - which undoubtedly made for an intensely powerful experience.
These ceremonies, colloquially known as “The Eleusinian Mysteries” were shrouded in secrecy, at the time bearing the penalty of death for exposing knowledge gained during the rituals. This severe penalty made the ceremonies exclusive, often attended by members of the upper-class and preeminent scholars, artists and philosophers, such as Plato, Homer, and Aristotle.
The Egyptians, similar to mesoamerican societies, created numerous forms of artwork depicting mushrooms, and had vernacular terms for the psychoactive varieties translating to “sons of the gods” or “food of the gods”.
They believed that since mushrooms do not sprout from a seed, that they were placed on earth by the god Osiris. Therefore, their consumption was limited to the priesthood and upper classes (who were also thought to be descended from the gods). It has even been theorized by Egyptologist Stephen Berlant that ancient Egyptians cultivated these mushrooms on barley grain, showing how culturally and spiritually significant their use was.
Modern History
The earliest reliable documentation (by a ‘western’ civilization) regarding mushroom intoxication occurred in 1799, and involved a british family who unknowingly picked several Psilocybe Semilanceata (Liberty Caps) from the shores of the Thames river and cooked a meal with them, soon after experiencing typical effects of pupil dilation, hysteria, and euphoria. This spurred the taxonomic classification in 1803 of a new species - which was first named Agaricus Semilanceatus then changed in 1871 to Psilocybe Semilanceata.
The term “Magic Mushrooms” was introduced nearly 100 years later in a 1957 Life Magazine expose entitled “seeking the magic mushroom”. The piece was written by banker and hobby mycologist R. Gordon Wasson who in 1955 along with his wife Valeria were among the first “westerners” allowed to participate in an indigenous mushroom ceremony, guided by the famous shaman Maria Sabina. Their experience took place in the small village of Huautla de Jiménez in Oaxaca Mexico, and profoundly affected Wasson, who went to great lengths publicizing it, and stated that it was one of the most profound experiences of his life.
News quickly proliferated and attracted the attention of figures like Albert Hoffman (the chemist most famous for discovering LSD) and Roger Heim (the mycologist who confirmed from samples Wasson sent him that the mushrooms were Psilocybe Caryulescens). By 1958 Hoffman (who also received samples) had successfully isolated and identified the compounds psilocybin and psilocin as active ingredients, and produced synthetic versions of both compounds which were sold by Sandoz Pharmaceuticals under the name Indocybin.
The popular LIFE article also piqued the interest of Harvard professor Timothy Leary, who was inspired to travel deep into the Mazatec region of Mexico and experience these mushrooms for himself. Upon returning to Harvard, and with the help of Richard Alpert (who later underwent a spiritual awakening and changed his name to Ram Dass) founded the infamous Harvard Psilocybin Project.
During the 1960s all forms of psychedelic drugs proliferated quickly throughout the countre-culture movement, until their use was banned by the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic substances. For almost thirty years there was a hiatus in the (legal) research and proliferation of the fungi, ending in 1997 with the first post drug war Psilocybin study conducted at The University of Zurich.
Over recent years there has also been a substantial increase in the popularity of psychedelics, and the emergence of a new concept called “microdosing”. A mushroom microdose (typically taken in capsule form) is often defined as 1/10th of a “macro” or “hallucinogenic” dose, and can allow an individual to experience the neurological benefits of psilocybin (like neurogenesis, a hyperconnected brain state, and dampened default mode network) below the threshold of intoxication. A microdosing routine can improve focus, creativity, problem solving skills, and positively affect both mood and outlook while allowing the user to remain ‘sober’.