[.ca] Persephone's Quest: Entheogens and the Origins of Religion (ISBN 0300052669)

Persephone's Quest : Entheogens and the Origins of Religion:
Although I only gave it 4 stars, this book is actually outstanding. I did not give it the highest evaluation because, although R.G. Wasson's material was monumental, some of the other material included did not seem of the same caliber. Wasson's perspective is really a must read for anyone interested in this subject. He was not only extremely intelligent, but he also had an innate ability to phrase his ideas in a manner that really conveyed a total picture of what he was discussing. His perspective of calling them "personal experiences rather than hallucinations" really describes his intelligent attitude of pioneering. He had the insight to realize that he was discovering a new frontier that no one had the understanding to call true, false or imaginary. He was aware of the power of people using psychoactive materials and did not try to fit all of this into a politically correct literary structure that the current autorities of his era would accept. He provides his own, somewhat negative, perspective of Dr. Timothy Leary "and those of his ilk". He did not agree with the psychedelic crowd about using these materials for entertainment and believed that there was something inherently sacred about them. Although he was the first person of modern civilization to discover and document the use of the Psilocybin mushrooms of Central America he realized there was a difference between the effects of these mushrooms and the Amanita Muscaria which has no Psilocybin and apparently produced effects that spawned a number of the major religions of the world. I recommend this book to anyone who would like REAL information concerning psychoactive experience.

to clear the air:
If you are interested obtaing knowlege of the fly agaric muchroom, the soma of the anceint vedic culture of Idia, this is a good book to start with. Most of the information given is helpful and is approached from an analytical point of view. but since i'm wrighting this, it i'm going to clear up some of the mistakes made in the other reviews. The fly agaric mushroom is quite toxic. However, if heated and dried proparly the ibotenic acid (the toxic chemical) is changed to muscimol making it non toxic. Also there is no psilocybin contained in this mushroom. check out this book it's a good read

Sweet Persephone!:
Wasson's text makes this book not only worthwhile, but a must read for anyone interested in the human link to higher knowledge. His research is outstanding and puts a conclusive stamp on many beliefs concerning human culture.

Correcting Joseph Pierre's Error:
I have not read the book though I would like to. However I am writing to notify all readers of these reviews of the DANGEROUS ERROR in Joseph Pierre's review of Persephone's Quest : Entheogens and the Origins of Religion. The mistake Mr. Pierre makes is in identifying the Fly Agaric mushroom as a source of psilocybin. It certainly is not a source of psilocybin and nor has Mr. Wasson claimed that it is. Merely an unfortunate error on Mr. Pierre's part. As he does note - the Fly Agaric mushroom is quite deadly. Psilocybin comes from different mushrooms - notably from the psilocybin and some panaeoulus varieties. READER OF THESE REVIEWS: BE FOREWARNED!!!

A historical look at entheogens and their use in religion:
The title is taken from Greek mythology. Persephone was the daughter of Zeus and Styx, or, in the more usual tradition, the daughter of Zeus and Ceres (Demeter). Pluto carried her off while she was in the midst of gathering flowers and made her his wife, and she became the queen of the under world. She symbolizes the changes of the seasons, and particularly the return of Spring. This book is about mushrooms, particularly mind-altering mushrooms, which the author, R. Gordon Wasson, refers to as "entheogens," a word he himself coined, meaning substances which chemically induce religious experiences. In 1926, Wasson married a Russian physician, Valentina Pavlovna, in England. He was himself a journalist employed by the New York Herald Tribune at the time. His wife introduced him to mushrooms, which in those days were little used by Americans who looked down on them as "toadstools", but were enthusiastically embraced as a food by Europeans, who were far more knowledgeable about them. Somewhere along the line, the couple became persuaded that entheogenic mushrooms, particularly the Amanita Muscaria, known colloquially as the 'fly agaric', was the original 'Soma' of legend, used by the Greek oracles and others in rituals. This book traces Wasson's single-minded pursuit of evidence to buttress his theory in his travels throughout the world, in the Americas as well as Europe and even Siberia. It is a scholarly attempt to make the case that mind-altering mushrooms may have been responsible for mankind's most primitive religious feelings, leading to the very beginnings of religion as we know it today. He traces their religious use in Mexico, Central and South America, India (where they have fallen out of favor), China, Siberia, Europe, and of course ancient Greece. This book is a scholarly work, heavily footnoted (but without an index) and illustrated liberally with photographs and artwork. It is clear that Wasson was very single-minded in his interest, to the point where some of his conclusions may be attributed more to enthusiasm for his subject than objective science. He does not dwell on the preparation of the Amanita Muscaria, which apparently can be quite toxic if not prepared carefully and with knowledge. Unfortunately, perhaps, the book has become something of a "cult book" for some modern recreational drug users. I have seen some internet websites, in which contributors refer to Wasson as an authority on "'shrooms," and where the language used indicates other than academic interest. Apparently the Fly Agaric mushroom is the original source of the chemical psilocybin, the mind altering drug that induces hallucinations on a par with those experienced under the influence of d-Lysergic Acid Diethylamide-25 (LSD). Joseph Pierre, Author of THE ROAD TO DAMASCUS: Our Journey Through Eternity