Magic Mushrooms: History And Humanity

WHO WAS TERENCE MCKENNA AND WHAT IS THE STONED APE THEORY?

Terence McKenna (1946 – 2000) was a very famous ethnobotanist and author. Born in Colorado, McKenna would go on to join the likes of Timothy Leary as an outspoken proponent of psychedelics. He is perhaps best known for his “Stoned ape” theory, which—if true—would mean that even the early ancestors of modern humans had interactions with the Psilocybe cubensis mushroom. While criticisms of the theory have been presented over the years, it offers a fascinating possibility: have we modern humans, Homo sapiens, shared a relationship with fungi for quite literally our entire existence?

The premise of McKenna’s theory goes something like this: our evolutionary predecessors, Homo erectus, were forced to migrate as a result of a shifting climate in Africa. As a result of these travels, new food sources were needed, one of which is believed to have been the psilocybe cubensis mushroom, otherwise referred to as “magic” mushrooms. Once Homo erectus began regularly consuming magic mushrooms, they experienced what could only be described as a mental expansion—an expansion of imagination, specifically. This shift in consciousness could have been responsible for the ultimate evolutionary shift to the particular brand of humanity we are now, Homo sapiens.

DURING ANCIENT TIMES HUMANS WERE USING PSILOCYBIN MUSHROOMS ALL OVER THE WORLD

Some of the earliest confirmed uses of psilocybin comes from Northern Africa, nearly 11,000 years ago. The aboriginal tribes in the area were believed to have been creating stone murals that depicted a variety of local Psilocybe cubensis. Much later, in Spain, similar depictions were found in stone paintings. Over the decades, similar artistic works have been found in Algeria, North America, Mexico and many other places, proving psychedlic mushroom have played a role in society for a very long time.

WHEN DID THE MODERN WESTERN WORLD FIRST BECOME EXPOSED TO PSILOCYBIN MUSHROOMS?

It wasn’t until the mid 1950s that the mainstream of the western world and specifically the United States became aware of psilocybin mushrooms. It’s possible some especially well traveled and adventurous Americans had experienced them prior to this time, but it was rare—and rarely discussed. The primary catalyst for this western awakening, as one might consider it, was when a Wall Street banker named R. Gordon Wasson, along with others,  visited a small village in the mountains of Mexico. There, they participated in a religious ritual with the locals that involved psilocybin mushrooms. Wasson would go on to write about his experiences at length, publishing his story in Life Magazine. It was a fascinating, colorful article that included his visions, emerging from the center of the field of vision, opening up as they came, now rushing, now slowly, at the pace that our will chose. The visions were in vivid color, always harmonious.

WHY DID THE UNITED STATES AND MANY OTHER COUNTRIES MAKE MAGIC MUSHROOMS ILLEGAL?

After the Harvard Psilocybin Project was cut short, the first federal regulations prohibiting the possession, manufacture, or sale of psilocybin were as part of the Drug Abuse Control Amendments of 1965, a bill sponsored by Senator Thomas Dodd. However, the law had a number of exemptions, such as allowing personal use. Before a federal law was enacted in 1968, psilocybin was not made strictly illegal. Lawmakers made the decision to make it illegal because psilocybin was considered to have a high likelihood of abuse, a lack of safety, and no medical benefits. It’s worth noting that these points are being quickly disproved by modern research. Less than three years later in 1971, the United Nations Convention on Psychotropic Substances began requiring members to prohibit psilocybin as well. This explains why psilocybin is banned in so many countries other than just the United States.