Experiences With Sacred Mushrooms and Psilocybin In Dialogue: Transdisciplinary Interpretations Of The “Velada”
Antonella Fagetti, Roberto E. Mercadillo
Anthropology of Consciousness August 9, 2022 DOI: 10.1111/anoc.12163 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Psilocybin Shamanism |
| Keywords | Divination Perspective graphical Trance Lived experience Paranormal Aesthetics Epistemology Hallucinogen Cognitive psychology Anthropology Psychotherapist Visual arts Archaeology Literature |
| Citations | 10 |
| Key points | Argues that the Mazatec velada ritual provides guidance for integrating personal history and beliefs into experimental designs of psychedelic medicine, which current research neglects. |
Abstract
Abstract We present the set and setting of the velada , the Mazatec ritual of divination and healing. We highlight the subjective experiences of individuals who consumed sacred mushrooms and interpret them from their cultural and community contexts, but also from findings derived from experimental and neuroscientific research. We understand that the experiences connected to sacred mushrooms can be explained by the effects of psilocybin on the neurobiology of emotions, decision making, and visual, auditory, and bodily imagery. But we also understand that experimentation does not consider the individual and collective history of the person, and that the velada can provide guidance for integrating a person’s history and beliefs into experimental designs. The resurgence of psychedelic medicine prompts us into a transdisciplinary dialogue that encompasses both the anthropological perspective and the set and setting of the entheogenic experience during the sacred mushroom ritual.