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Continuing my investigation of psychedelics that produce altered states of consciousness I would like to look now at magic mushrooms. Sacred, hallucinogenic mushrooms belong primarily to the genuses Psilocybe, Panaeolus, and Copelandia. Each has psychoactive compounds: the tryptamine psychedelics psilocin and psilocybin and ingesting these provokes significant perceptual changes. Although the effects from eating are profoundly different, sacred mushrooms can easily be mistaken for regular ones in the wild. The primary means to identifying which are which is that ones containing psilocybin bruise blue when handled.
Psychedelic shrooms have played a part in human culture for at least as long as recorded history. People like Terence McKenna would argue for a much longer period even than that, believing that for as long as humans witnessed animals consuming such food, our ancestors would have copied the behavior (in this way learning what was and was not edible). Cave paintings on the Tassili Plateau in northern Algeria depict humans decorated with mushrooms. Their use was also apparently widespread in Latin America; between 3000 BCE and 1000 BCE temples dedicated to mushroom gods were built and stone icons fashioned in the shape of mushrooms. Their continued use was noted by Spanish colonists when they arrived on the scene. The ritual use of magic mushrooms was then rediscovered by anthropologists in the twentieth century. A key breakthrough came in the 1950s when amateur mycologist Gordon Wasson became interested in the traditional use of mushrooms in Mexico. Wasson was later allowed to participate in a ceremony in 1955 and the following year the active ingredients (psilocybin and psilocin) were isolated and a synthesis technique was developed. The year after Wasson published the first popular article on the psychoactive mushshrooms in Life magazine and soon after the shrooms became part of the psychedelic movement. Recreational and therapeutic use became relatively widespread in the West during the 1960s until 1968 when possession became illegal. In 1970 they were added to the Controlled Substances Act, like DMT, and legitimate research slowed and came to an end from the 1980s for two decades. In recent years however the effects of psilocybin on the brain and mind have begun to be studied again.
Part man - part animal figure decorated with mushrooms.
Tassili Plateau.
Once ingested the psilocybin is broken down into psilocin, which is the most active component of the mushroom. Both psilocybin and psilocin are closely related to DMT. Psilocin is also a close relative of serotonin and its resemblance to this neurotransmitter is responsible for its psychoactive properties. Exactly how these components translate into a psychedelic experience is unknown. One theory is that the different compounds increase activity of the sensorimotor gating system of the brain, which usually suppresses the majority of sensory stimuli from conscious awareness. The conscious mind is therefore bombarded with stimuli that are usually blocked while under the effects of psychoactive mushrooms.
As with ayahuasca, the details of each trip vary from person to person and at different times and settings for the same individual. Basically though the sacred mushrooms will serve as mental amplifiers, whether for good or ill. Visual and auditory alterations, and a combination of the two, are often reported. Along with the hallucinations may be a feeling of euphoria and a heightened awareness of the inner self and possible a sense of understanding the infinite. These results are often preceded with a feeling of anxiety upon consuming the magic mushrooms and once in full effect the subject may experience wildly fluctuating emotional states, not all of which may be good. As with ayahuasca, the subject may report a near-death experience and / or conversations with external, autonomous “alien” entities along with visits to their worlds. Repressed memories may surface (and these can trigger psychological crises). The awareness of time may skew and minutes may seem like days and when the user finishes his trip he may feel that he has finally awoken from a state of sleep. This new awareness seems like the natural, correct one, though this feeling is often lost within 24 hours. Artistic skills may improve along with a desire to express oneself.
A condensed report of a journey on magic mushrooms is as follows:
I went deeper and deeper inside – I traveled through various realms, some of them beautiful, others magical, and others quite scary. It felt kind of like being in a computer game, where you have to figure out a way to go from level to level and there are hidden dangers, distractions, and traps awaiting you everywhere. Finally, I broke through to the top level – and to my amazement, I became simultaneously all the people (and other intelligent beings) who ever lived, are alive, and will ever live in the universe. I realized that there is only one Actor playing all the parts – it is God, and I am him…there is no hell…and God loves every single one of us the way we are…We cannot really die or get hurt and we have potential to awaken to who we really are…I saw how perfect the story is and that everything is fine the way it is…each of us has to work on healing himself or herself. There is no need to suffer or to be unhappy ever again.
Conclusion
As can be seen, ingesting magic mushrooms produces much the same effects as injected DMT (from the experiments conducted by Dr Rick Strassman) and from drinking the sacred brew ayahuasca (which contains DMT). The hallucinogenic effects and the feelings engendered by these sacred mushrooms then compare with altered states of consciousness brought about by diverse practices such as static meditation, dynamic meditation, sleep deprivation, starvation and so on. Magic mushrooms are one way to find communion with the divine.
Related Articles
Ayahuasca
What is an Altered State of Consciousness?
DMT
The Pineal Gland
Psychedelic Drugs: A Brief History
Left in the Dark
Interview with Tony Wright (author of Left in the Dark)
Yamaoka Tesshu Zen Warrior
The Origin of Consciousness
Jesus, Mohammed and Zen
Graham Hancock and the Sacred Vine
