Ancient & Indigenous Roots

Long before the chemists: Amazonian ayahuasca, the peyote of the Rio Grande, the mushroom stones of Mesoamerica, the San Pedro of the Andes, and the Eleusinian Mysteries of Greece.

Part of Psychedelics

37 moments in this segment.

1. c. 900 BC — Chavín entheogen carvings (c. 900 BC). ) — Stone carvings from the Andean Chavín culture depicting San Pedro and the transformation of its shamans.
2. c. 400 BC — The Eleusinian Mysteries (c. 400 BC). ) (c. 400 BC).
3. c. 400 BC — The Eleusinian Mysteries (c. 400 BC). ) (c. 400 BC).
4. c. 400 BC — The Eleusinian Mysteries (c. 400 BC). ) — The secret Greek rite at Eleusis, whose initiates drank the kykeon — long suspected to have been psychoactive.
5. c. 400 BC — The Eleusinian Mysteries (c. 400 BC). ) (c. 400 BC).
6. 1900-06-01 — San Pedro cactus (1900). The Andean cactus whose ceremonial use reaches back to the Chavín culture, over two thousand years ago.
7. 1955-01-01 — Maria Sabina, the Shaman Who Introduced Americans to Mushrooms. The Mazatec curandera of Oaxaca whose mushroom velada Wasson witnessed — bringing ancient practice into modern view, at great cost to her.
8. 1955-01-01 — Maria Sabina: The Mazatec Shaman. María Sabina, the Mazatec mushroom curandera.
9. 1955-01-01 — Maria Sabina - The Mushroom Priestess of Huautla de Jimenez. María Sabina, the Mazatec mushroom curandera.
10. 1957-01-01 — Maria Sabina - Mushroom Ceremony of the Mazatec Indians of Mexico (1957). Maria Sabina - Mushroom Ceremony of the Mazatec Indians of Mexico — María Sabina, the Mazatec mushroom curandera.
11. 1994-01-01 — The Peyote Road (1994) - Documentary. (1994).
12. 2010 — San Pedro cactus (1900). The Andean cactus whose ceremonial use reaches back to the Chavín culture, over two thousand years ago (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2010.
13. 2011 — Peyote cactus (1900). The small spineless cactus of the Rio Grande, a sacrament of Indigenous peoples for thousands of years (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2011.
14. 2013 — Peyote cactus (1900). The small spineless cactus of the Rio Grande, a sacrament of Indigenous peoples for thousands of years (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2013.
15. 2013-10-25 — Carl P. Ruck, Peter Webster - The Mythology and Chemistry of the Eleusinian Mysteries. (2013).
16. 2014-04-08 — Chavin - Peru's Enigmatic Temple in the Andes | Museum Rietberg. Chavin - Peru's Enigmatic Temple in the Andes (2014).
17. 2015 — Ayahuasca (the vine) (1900). The Amazonian brew — Banisteriopsis caapi and a DMT-bearing leaf — used for healing and divination for centuries (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2015.
18. 2016 — Ayahuasca (the vine) (1900). The Amazonian brew — Banisteriopsis caapi and a DMT-bearing leaf — used for healing and divination for centuries (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2016.
19. 2017-01-30 — Huachuma (San Pedro): The Forgotten Psychedelic - Full Documentary. (2017).
20. 2017 — Peyote cactus (1900). The small spineless cactus of the Rio Grande, a sacrament of Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2017.
21. 2017-12-10 — Exploring the Complicated History of Peyote | Hamilton's Pharmacopeia. Exploring the Complicated History of Peyote — The small spineless cactus of the Rio Grande, a sacrament of Indigenous peoples for thousands of years.
22. 2018 — Peyote cactus (1900). The small spineless cactus of the Rio Grande, a sacrament of Indigenous peoples for thousands of years (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2018.
23. 2019-01-01 — The Nature of Ayahuasca (2019) Documentary. (2019).
24. 2019-11-02 — Giorgio Samorini - The Archaeology of Psychoactive Plants. (2019).
25. 2020-09-15 — Chavin de Huantar and the Religious Revolution | Ancient Americas. Chavin de Huantar and the Religious Revolution (2020).
26. 2021 — Psilocybe mushrooms (1950). The "flesh of the gods" of Mesoamerica — psilocybin fungi used ritually long before the West named them. The subject dates from 1950; this photograph was taken in 2021.
27. 2021-10-04 — The Native American Church and the Sacrament of Peyote | Harvard Divinity School. The Native American Church and the Sacrament of Peyote (2021).
28. 2021-11-21 — The Archaeology of Ecstasy: Psychedelics in the Ancient Mediterranean | Harvard Divinity School. The Archaeology of Ecstasy: Psychedelics in the Ancient Mediterranean (2021).
29. 2021-12-09 — Peyote: The Divine Messenger - Hamilton's Pharmacopeia. (2021).
30. 2022-07-03 — Mystical Initiation in Ancient Greece: The Eleusinian Mysteries | Let's Talk Religion. Mystical Initiation in Ancient Greece: The Eleusinian Mysteries (2022).
31. 2022-07-14 — The Eleusinian Mysteries Explained (Ancient Greek Mystery School). ) — The secret Greek rite at Eleusis, whose initiates drank the possibly-psychoactive kykeon.
32. 2022-10-22 — Psychedelics as Medicine: The History of Peyote | NOVA PBS. Psychedelics as Medicine: The History of Peyote (2022).
33. 2023 — San Pedro cactus (1900). The Andean cactus whose ceremonial use reaches back to the Chavín culture, over two thousand years ago (1900). The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2023.
34. 2024 — Ayahuasca (the vine) (1900). The Amazonian brew — Banisteriopsis caapi and a DMT-bearing leaf — used for healing and divination for centuries. The subject dates from 1900; this photograph was taken in 2024.
35. 2025-02-23 — Huachuma - The San Pedro Cactus and Its History. (2025).
36. 2025-03-12 — Inside an Ayahuasca Ceremony in the Amazon | She Is a Shaman | Aeon. Inside an Ayahuasca Ceremony in the Amazon (2025).
37. 2025-08-31 — The Flesh of the Gods: Ancient Psychedelic Rituals. (2025).