2016 AMSMIC Meeting, Antigua Guatemala, January 21, 2016

Association of Medical School Microbiology and Immunology Chairs

Ritual Hallucinogens
of the Maya
Miguel F. Torres
miftorres@hotmail.com

National Academy of Geography and History of Guatemala

Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Universidad del Valle

FLAAR
Welcome to Antigua Guatemala, Central America
 “SACRED PLANTS”

Teonanácatl: Peyote:
Psilocybe spp. Lophophora williamsii
Hallucinogens cacto
Psychodisleptic =

Hallucinogens: “Illumination”
Substances that cause mental
mistakes in the perception
of the senses, not founded
in an objective reality.
Imaginary perception.
 ENTHEOGENS:
Substances that enable
the encounter of God
within ourselves.
Wasson, 1963.
Natural Hallucinogens:
• Ritual use in the life of people of all
countries in all times.

• Found in the origin of all religions.

Ethnomycology: multidisciplinary study of the relation
between fungi and men through different cultures

Prehistory

Tassili Cave, Capsian culture

Algeria, Sahara,
antiquity 7,000 years

Russia, River Yanisei paintings

R. Gordon Wasson (1898-1986)
V. Pavlovna  Founder of Ethnomycology.

 Banker, amateur mycologist,

prolific author and researcher.

 In 1926 he married the Russian

pediatrician Valentina Pavlovna.
They collected references of
fungi and folklore.

• "Mycophilic" or "mycophobe".

 1955 Mazatec Sierra ritual, he

is famous for María Sabina.

 1963 he proposed "entheogen"

A. Hofmann G. Wasson (Soma).

María Sabina
 Ethnomycological legacy of
Dr. Bernard Lowy
Bernard Lowy Mycological Herbarium (LSUM)

Psilocybe
mexicana

LOWY, B. Hallucinogenic mushrooms in Guatemala

Journal of Psychedelic Drugs, 9 (2): 123-125, 1977.
 COGNODISLEPTICS

 Stimulate imagination
 Alter memory
 Enhance sensations and fantasies

Ergot: Claviceps purpurea Ololiuhqui: Ipomoea violacea

José Luis Díaz, Las Plantas Mágicas y la Conciencia Visionaria, Arqueología Mexicana.
 Demeter, Persephone and Triptolemus

The Road to Eleusis, 1978. Wasson, Hofmann y Ruck

 Greece
• In Eleusis, the ritual of initiation was carried out.

• The initiation into the sacred mysteries included Eleusis

a sacred drink called Ambrosia.

• Ambrosia was prepared with barley

parasitized by C. purpurea.
Ixion
• It produced powerful
hallucinations due to alkaloids
ergonovine and lysergic acid
or LSD.

Sclerotium
or “cornezuelo”

Claviceps purpurea Fungi Deméter, Perséfone, hongos

• They are chosen to access
sacred areas.
The Shaman
• The Shaman specializes in
ecstasy.

• His soul leaves the body to

ascend to heaven or down to hell.

• The shaman uses natural drugs

for the soul to leave the body.

• The Shaman dominates the spirits

of nature and communicates with
the dead.

Mircea Eliade, Shamanism, 1960.

 Siberia
Kamchatka, Siberia

Mesoamerica

Amanita muscaria

Fino-ugric shaman woman

 India
Gordon Wasson (1969) found that "Soma"
described in the Rig Veda, a red sacred plant
plant without vegetal structure used to
prepare the entheogenic drink, was the
mushroom Amanita muscaria.
Amanita muscaria in prehispanic Mesoamerica

Maya area

MESOAMERICA: cultural area borders

Skull = death

Buttons of A. muscaria Prehispanic purépecha sculpture Amanita muscaria

 The Maya of Mesoamerica

"It was the planet’s brightest indigenous people" (Sylvanus Morley, 1947)
They excelled in the sciences (astronomy, mathematics, medicine).
They excelled in the arts (architecture, sculpture, painting, ceramics).
Grear Jaguar Pyramid, Tikal
Maya hieroglyphic writing
Unique in America
Complex rituals and human sacrifice
 Dominant priestly caste
Owner of knowledge of ritual entheogens

The Ah Men was the priest or doctor that treated

diseases physical and psychological. For psychosomatic
illnesses he used ritual entheogens.
 Cult of
Culto al Time
tiempo

• Lengthy mathematical calculations

• Carving stelae every 20 years (Katun)
 Goddess of suicide: Dresden Codex, p. 53
Wife of the god of death Chamer. Committing suicide was a honorable
practice before suffering humiliation, sickness or misfortune.
Ixtab accompanied the souls of suicide to a special paradise.
Self-decapitation
Impossible to perform

Cut of the carotid artery

K1230
 Self-sacrifice: auto-decapitation
Indication of use of potent hallucinogens Enema syringe

The WAHIS where familiar spirits, represented powers

of Maya kings produced spells and sickness.

FLAAR, www.Maya-archaeology.org

Castillo Vase, Popol Vuh Museum, Guatemala. Northern Lowlands. Late Classic (600-900 A.D.)
A masterpiece of Mayan art. It presents mythological figures and fellow spirits.
 The “Altar de Sacrificios” Maya vase
Depicts the self-suicide ritual of an accompanying lady.

Self-
sacrifice

Bird-jaguar dancer
in Underworld
 Botanical, zoological and
mycological Maya hallucinogens
 Ritual Hallucinogens of the Maya

Amanita muscaria Psilocybe mexicana and others Nymphaea ampla

Bufo marinus Nicotiana

rustica

Turbina corymbosa

Ipomoea violacea
The Balché: sacred alcoholic drink, honey/bark of the balché tree
Lacandon

Balché tree
Lonchocarpus spp. Fermentation de
Fermentación water/honey
aguamiel Collecting wild honey

Maya intoxicated with balché Balché vase and enema syringe

Balché, insects and water lily jaguar
Balché drink was prepared with fermented honey from
stingless bees and added hallucinogens.
 Hallucinogenic Maya Enemas
Great absorbtion through the anal mucosa; avoid the mouth
Nymphaea ampla Mesoamerican white water lily

FLAAR, www.Maya-ethnobotany.org
 Nymphaea amplainin
Nymphaea ampla Mayan
Maya art art

Limit symbol of the underworld.

Limit symbol
Contains sedative of thenupharin
alkaloids: underworld.
and nymphaein
Contains sedative alkaloids: nupharin and nymphaein
FLAAR, www.Maya-ethnobotany.org
Underwater dance of the Maize God
Royal water lily-fish emblem. The power of control of sacred
agriculture and fish farming for food production: corn.
 Bufo marinus: hallucinogenic venom

Bufotenina

Toads in maya vessels Bufotenin

 Itzamná main God ritual under the influence of hallucinogens administered by
enemas. The priest "red toothy" directs the ceremony from his throne.

Unknown plant Coe 1978 The Lords of the Underworld

Possible aditives to
the balché enema: 2.

1. Peyote?
2. Toad venom?
1. 3. Fungi? 3.
Smoking of rustic tobacco a pre-Hispanic tradition of gods and mortals

Lacandon smoking

Nicotiana rustica Old God smoking

Pharmacological action of hallucinogens
Temporary replacement of the neurotransmitter serotonin or 5-
hydroxytryptamine (mental wellness hormone) in the synapses receptors
by molecular similarity. The function of serotonin is inhibitory; high levels
give a sense of well-being and decreased anxiety and sadness.
The "free" passage of nerve impulses causes severe hallucinations.

Serotonin

Psilocibin Psilocin Bufotenin LSD

DESCRIPTION OF THE HALLUCINATIONS CAUSED
BY FUNGI OF THE GENUS Psilocybe:

(Psychodysleptic effect = "enlightenment")

1. Colored visual hallucinations

2. Ecstasy
3. Loss of time/space perception
4. Inner peace
5. Introspection
6. Past memory
7. Universal love
8. Union with Nature
9. Feel part of the Cosmos

Adapted from: Guzmán (1959); Ludwig (1969); Dobkin de Rios (1974).

 Ethnomycological legacy of
Dr. Bernard Lowy
Bernard Lowy Mycological Herbarium (LSUM)

Psilocybe
mexicana

LOWY, B. Hallucinogenic mushrooms in Guatemala

Journal of Psychedelic Drugs, 9 (2): 123-125, 1977.
 Species of Psilocybe mushrooms
described in Guatemala:
1. Psilocybe mexicana “pajaritos” 2. Psilocybe cubensis “San Isidro”

Singer y Smith (1958) & Bernard Lowy (1977) Miguel Torres (1983) & Gastón Guzmán (1983)
Native species utilized by Maya and Aztecs

Psilocybe zapotecorum Psilocybe cyanescens

Only one record: Sierra Two records: Sta. Elena Exotic species, spores in
de las Minas, Zacapa. Barillas and Cobán. cattle came in galleons.
Evening with hallucinogenic mushrooms: cure for schizophrenia
Dr. Teruo Miyanishi, ethnopsychiatrist, Wakayama University

• He made psychiatric longitudinal studies (1971-1978) among the Mazatec and Lacandon.
• He diagnosed several cases of schizophrenia, and documented his local cure with
hallucinogenic Psilocybe mushrooms.
Mayan archaeological evidence of mycolatry

1. Paintings: in the codices

2. Stone sculptures: “Mushroom stones”

Amanita muscaria in the Codex of Madrid (Lowy, 1972)

LOWY, B. Mushroom Symbolism in Maya Codices

Mycologia, 64:816-821,1972.
Cimi=death
A. muscaria var. flavivolvata / var. muscaria

Totonicapán, Guatemala. Foto: Rubén Mayorga

 Ethnomycology in the Dresden Codex 1,250 A.D.
(Lowy, 1972) Descending gods in hallucinatory state

Zoomorphic deity, inverted Amanita muscaria

LOWY, B.
Mushroom Symbolism in Maya
Codices
Mycologia, 64:816-821,1972
 Representations of fungi in Mexican codices

Tepantitla, Teotihuacán

Fray Bernardino de Sahagún demonized "teonanáctl“ fungi.

Codex Magliabechiano (Aztec).

The person eats ritually
sacred mushrooms in pairs.
The God takes his head with claw.

Codex Vindobonensis Mexicanus I

(Mixtec) Quetzalcóatl instructs nine deities
in the origin and use of sacred mushrooms.
Pilzintli: Aztec deity of hallucinogenic mushrooms
Tonantzintla
• In the Codex Borgia, Aztec
• Young male deity
• Descending from the sky
• Surrounded by "disembodied eyes"
• Fungi in pairs

Reminiscent:

Convent of La Concepción, Antigua

Aquatic procession, Amatitlán Lake

 Madrid Codex page 13

Chac:
god of rain
and thunder

Dresden Codex page 74

The red mushroom grows where

the thunderbolt strikes the earth.

Itzel ocox = "mushroom of devil"

Amanita muscaria:
“kakuljá” = thunderbolt
Lowy, B. Amanita muscaria and the (k’iche’ )
Thunderbolt Legend in Guatemala and Mexico. “yuyo de rayo” or
Mycologia, 66 (1): 188-191, 1974. “yuy chuac” in Chiapas
 Sacred fungi and Maximón (local deity)
Tzutuhil oral tradition, Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala

“Palo de pito”
Erythrina
berteroana

The prophet Francisco Sojuel received

Inspiration from magic mushrooms for
carving ritual mask of "Palo whistle"
 Reminiscent of Turbina corymbosa in the spiral columns of
seventeenth century portal of San Francisco church, Antigua

Turbina corymbosa

Vivian de Torres and Dr. Gastón Guzmán

According to Donald B. Lawrence, in Wasson 1980
Murals in San Cristóbal el Alto church, Totonicapán, Guatemala
Reminiscent of Turbina corymbosa and Ipomoea violacea
Ololiuhqui seeds with LSD
Mayan “Mushroom Stones”

Pre-Hispanic art typical of Guatemala

 Mushroom Stones
Sculptural art typical of the southern Maya area,
mainly in the highlands and southern coast of
Guatemala, especially Kaminaljuyú.
National Exhibitions of Mushrooms
Teachings of Dr. Gastón Guzmán from Mexico, since 1985.

Miguel Torres and Dr. Gastón Guzmán

Elaboration of the book “Piedras-Hongo”
Kuniaki Ohi & Miguel F. Torres, editors.
Museum of Tobacco and Salt, Japan, 1994. Spanish–Japanese.
The first archaeological and interpretive catalog of these sculptures.
Mother Yvonne
Miguel F. Torres Sommerkamp

There are about 300 mushroom

stones, we studied about 200.
Volcanic stone rarely sandstone.
 First studies on Mushroom Stones from Guatemala
1. Initially it was believed that they were phallic sculptures.

Phallic sculptures from Chucuito, Perú Phallic sculptures, Temple of Sex, Uxmal, Mexico

2. First Mayan sculpture to be recognized as "mushroom stone", studied by the

Swiss ethnographer Carl Sapper in 1898. Reitberg Museum, Zurich, Switzerland.
This piece motivated Wasson to study the hallucinogenic mushrooms, Mexico, 1955.
The oldest mushroom stones
Period: Middle Preclassic (1000 BC - 200 BC).
With human or animal figures.
 The miniature mushroom stones from
Nottebohm collection; c. 2,500 years old
• Hungarian archaeologist Stephan F. de Borhegyi described 9 mushroom stones,1960.
• Miniature (14 -18 cm.) Middle Preclassic period (1000-200 BC) from Kaminaljuyú.
• They were found together with nine miniature grinding stones, probably used for
grinding the hallucinogenic mushrooms in the ritual.
• They represented the nine underworlds, the nine lords of the night.

Normal size of mushroom

stones: 28-38 cm.

Stephan F. de Borhegyi. Miniature Mushroom Stones from Guatemala. American Antiquity, 26(4):498-504, 1961.
 Zoomorphic Mushroom Stones
Represent nahual animals (companion spirits).
According to Dobkin de Rios (1974) the presence of nahual animals and life-death
duality in the Mayan world are linked to the ritual use of hallucinogens.
Jaguar Coati Spider monkey Rabbit Toad

Felis onca Nasua narica Ateles geoffroy Sylvilagus floridanus Bufo marinus
Late Mushroom Stones
Period: Late Classic (550 A.D. - 1000 A.D.)
Simple tripod base

The mushroom stones production ends c. 1000 A.D.

Classification according Ohi and Torres,

“Piedras-Hongo”, 1994.
 What represented and what was the use
of Mushroom Stones?
• They represented fungi in general, both hallucinogenic and edible.
• They did not represent the thin Psilocybe mushrooms rather robust edible mushrooms.
• It is believed they were used in agricultural rituals to fool nature and promote rain.
• Nahual animals and shamans helped them in this task.
• Sometimes were offerings in human sacrifices related to the underworld.

Psilocybe mexicana

Boletus edulis
The edible fungi from Guatemala
Ancestral tradition: 70 species of edible mushrooms

Amanita caesarea

“Hongo de San Juan”

Some traditional edible fungi of Guatemala
• Hongo de San Juan:
complex of Amanita caesarea

• Anacates:
Cantharellus cibarius

• Sharas:
Lactarius indigo

• Pancita:
Morchella esculenta

• Lengua de venado:
Hydnum repandum

• Hongo de guachipilín:
Pseudofistulina radicata
Morchella guatemalensis
sp. nov. Description of the new species:
Collected by Miguel F. Torres
for the first time in a forest of Quercus and
Cupressus in El Tejar, Chimaltenango,
Guatemala 1984.
A new species of Morchella.
Gastón Guzmán, Miguel F. Torres,
Logemann H., J. Argueta, I. Sommerkamp
Mycologia Helvetica 1 (6): 451 to 459.1985.
First record for Mexico:
Laura Guzmán D, y Otilia Rodríguez. Boletín Instituto de
Botánica U.G. 1:471-475,1993.