Eleusinian Mysteries, entheogens

[LightSeeker]

Recently I've had the opportunity to study Greek Mythology with Carl A.P. Ruck, one of the leaders in the field of ehtnobotany pertaining to classical mythology. He was a collegue of R. Gordon Wasson who first brought the Psylocybe spp. mushrooms to the attention of the media in the 1950's and created the hypothesis that the ancient Hindu god/plan Soma was the Amanita Muscaria mushroom.

In Ruck's class we studied the Eleusinian mystery, based on the myth of Demeter and her saughter Persephone. Ruck and Wasson believed that the magical potion (the kykeon) drunk at Eleusis was filled with Lysergic Acid Amines, dissolved in water and prepared from the Claviceps paspalli ergot growing on barley or another grass, which does not produce as many toxic alkaloids, and more psychoactive alkaloids.

Is anyone else on here interested in the use of psychoactives by our ancestors and how this has disseminated through civilization but has been forgotten?

I also wanted to discuss the Mystery at Eleusis in particular. There are few extant sources speaking of the Mystery, Ruck believes that many works of the philosophers and the dramatists on the Classical Age refer to the secret, because its direct announcement meant death. At Eleusis, the theory is, the initiates drank the potion and journeyed into the other world, the House of Hades and Persephone, where they were welcomed by death. The experience was one of birth as the mystery is in Persphone giving birth to a son on the underworld, the Koros (literally death) represented as a young man of Apolline beauty. Hence, the many quotes about the mystery (to the like of "blessed are they who have been initiate for they live their lives in greater joy and no longer fear death"). perhaps they have no fear of death because they have been endowed with the understanding that death is not just a part of life, it is life. Life cannot exist without death. The mysteries also marked Demeter reallowing the plants of the Earth to grow once Persephone had returned to her. Life after death, death to bring new life.

Basically, is anyone else interested in stuff like this? I dont know how else to open a discussion about it

 

[shroom]

You goto BU? My GF took that class with Ruck and I sat in with her one day just to listen to him lecture. He freaked my gf out when his response to a question she asked was "the shape shifting magic of the penile erection." I still don't understand the significance of that response to her question. I really have no background in Greek Mythology but still interested in psychoactives use through history. There's been theories about Amanita Muscaria being the basis for Santa Claus as we know him (red and white jolly fellow, flying reindeer, etc). I have a book that claims prehistoric use of p. cubensis among early man actually gave rise to speech through the "logos" of the mushroom.

 

[LightSeeker]

Ruck believes that changes in size by mythological figures are simultaneously a reflection of the erection of the penis and the size changing perception which some entheogens can produce.

Terrence McKenna believed that p. cubensis was a species which orighinated on another planet, and uses spores to proliferate the galaxy, creating a symbiotic relationship with any being in any way it can. Ruck and his colleagues believe that it isn't the Psilocybe genus which are the entheogens of the Old World, but Amanita muscaria and perhaps ergot- which is far more likely then the Psilocybe genus. A difference in species and chemistry, not a difference in use really.

Yeah I go to BU. Do you?