Reports by explorers and travelers and the first scientific studies on ayahuasca (dating from 1850 to 1950) within the current debate on the “psychedelic renaissance”
Vinícius Maurício de Lima, Maria Gabriela Silva Martins da Cunha Marinho
Historia, Ciencias, Saude--Manguinhos 2023 DOI: 10.1590/s0104-59702023000100023en (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Ayahuasca |
| Keywords | Indigenous The renaissance |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Argues that the history of ayahuasca between 1850 and 1950 reveals enduring controversies between indigenous and Western uses that continue to shape the current psychedelic renaissance and debates over drug policy. |
Abstract
Abstract This article describes the associations and controversies between indigenous and western uses of ayahuasca between 1850 and 1950 in relation to the “psychedelic renaissance.” This movement has gained scientific attention since 2000, but hearkens back to the 1960s and 1970s, when anti-drug policy halted research on the “therapeutic potential” of psychoactive substances. Pioneering studies on ayahuasca date back to the early twentieth century and mention reports of expeditions to Amazonia from 1850 onward. Here, these articles and reports are analyzed according to the historical aspect of actor-network theory and recent studies. We infer that history casts light on the current political debate about indigenous uses, classifications, and meanings, pharmaceutical interest in ayahuasca, and the debate on “drugs.”
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on ayahuasca, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The globalization of ayahuasca: Harm reduction or benefit maximization? | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Antipodes of the Mind: Charting the Phenomenology of the Ayahuasca Experience | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Towards psychedelic apprenticeship: Developing a gentle touch for the mediation and validation of psychedelic-induced insights and revelations. | 2022 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Ayahuasca healing beyond the Amazon: the globalization of a traditional indigenous entheogenic practice | 2008 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cites 4
- Ayahuasca and Public Health: Health Status, Psychosocial Well-Being, Lifestyle, and Coping Strategies in a Large Sample of Ritual Ayahuasca Users Journal of Psychoactive Drugs February 7, 2019
- Serotonergic hallucinogens and recognition of facial emotion expressions: a systematic review of the literature Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology 2019
- De quem é a ayahuasca? Notas sobre a patrimonialização de uma “bebida sagrada” amazônica Religião & Sociedade December 1, 2017
- literatura antropológica e a reconstituição histórica do uso da ayahuasca no Brasil Revista de Antropologia da UFSCar December 1, 2011