Carl A. P. Ruck

A Prehistoric Mural in Spain Depicting Neurotropic Psilocybe Mushrooms? 1

A Prehistoric Mural in Spain Depicting NeurotropicPsilocybeMushrooms? The Selva Pascuala mural, a work of post-Paleolithic rock art in Spain, contains fungoid figures herein hypothesized to depict neurotropic fungi, especially Psilocybe hispanica, a species that occurs in a neighboring region. This hypothesis is based on features of these figures related to fungal morphology, along with ethnographic analogy, and shamanistic explanations of rock art. If correct, this interpretation would support inference of prehistoric utilization of this fungus in the region. The mural represents the first direct evidence for possible ritual use of Psilocybe in prehistoric Europe.¿Se Representan Setas NeurotrópicasPsilocybe en un Mural Prehistórico de España?. El panel de Selva Pascuala (Villar del Humo, Cuenca, España) conserva pinturas rupestres de cronología postpaleolítica entre las que se incluyen figuras con apariencia de seta, para las que aquí planteamos la hipótesis de que representan setas de efectos neurotrópicos, en concreto Psilocybe hispanica, una especie que crece en regiones próximas. Esta hipótesis se basa en las características de estas figuras en comparación con la morfología de dichas setas, a lo que se añade la analogía etnográfica y la teoría del chamanismo aplicada al arte rupestre. Si estamos en lo cierto, esta interpretación apoyaría la posible utilización regional de estas setas durante la Prehistoria. El panel supone la primera evidencia directa del posible uso ritual de Psilocybe en la Prehistoria europea.

The Myth of the Lernaean Hydra

The Hydra monster lurking beneath the waters of the Halcyon Lake of ancient Lerna, which figured as one of the heroic exploits of Hercules in Greek mythology, was credited with attributes of toxicity and curative regenerative abilities, offering a remarkable prototype for the freshwater invertebrate polyp that resembles its appearance and bears its name in scientific nomenclature. The resemblance, however, is fortuitous since the animal’s characteristics are not observable to the unaided eye and it was unknown to the Classical world. The mythical Hydra was a zoomorphism of a psychoactive drug that figured in the very ancient Mystery rites that were still being enacted at the sacred lake well into Roman times, when the original offering of human victims was replaced by initiatory experiences of spiritual transcendence.

The Cave of Euripides

The ancient mystery cults practiced by the Greeks and their neighbors were derived from the prehistoric use of caves as places to induce altered states of consciousness. The visions obtained in these rituals were expressed in both cave paintings and in the stories of the ancient playwrights. Ancient thought was shaped profoundly by the ecstatic experiences of Euripides and others, whose own experiences in visionary states were externalized in the form of their poetry and plays. Plato’s allegory of the cave represents a rejection of the “irrational” Dionysian way of knowing, and thus a denial of a long-enduring source of human knowledge, and a preference for a “rational” Apollonian way of knowing. Our modern attitudes continue to reflect this Platonic prejudice.