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Hallucinogenic Mushrooms
by Alex Chuang
"The first thing to be eaten at the feast were small black mushrooms that
they called nanactl and bring on drunkenness, hallucinations and even
lechery; they ate these before the dawn... with honey; and when they began to
feel the effects, they began to dance, some sang and others wept... When the
drunkenness of the mushrooms had passed, they spoke with one another of the
visions they had seen."
-Spanish priest Bernardino de Sahagun comments on Aztecs use of
hallucinogenic mushrooms-
Hallucinogenic mushrooms existed for a long time. The Aztecs used those
mushrooms for religious purposes. Today, Latin American country still uses
the mushroom for consumption during religious ceremonies. During the
1970s, the British used hallucinogenic mushrooms rather than LSD. Several
species of mushrooms can produce or contain hallucinogenic chemicals, like
psilocybin, by nature. The most common species, Psilocibe semilanceata, is found
in the United Kingdom. A common name for that species is the Liberty Cap.
The effects of hallucinogenic mushrooms depend on the body weight and mood
of the taker, size of dose, and the way it is taken. The mushrooms can be
made into tea and cooked. Effects occur after around twenty minutes if
taken in soup form or 45 minutes after consumption. Common physical changes
include increased heart rate and blood pressure, lack of muscular
coordination, incoherent speech, and convulsions. Psychological effects
include flashbacks, violent behavior, confusion, suspicion, and lack of
control. Effects occur about half an hour after consumption and lasts about
four to nine hours. The trip itself may cause pleasure to frightening.
Flashbacks of the experience are common among most users.
Consumption of unprocessed hallucinogenic mushrooms is illegal.
The only way to eat them legally is eating them raw.
Cooking, drying, and crushing mushrooms constitutes as processing. Legal
prosecutions have been successful. Prosecutors tend to focus on people who
prepare the mushrooms with the purpose of consumption and supplying the
psilocybin.
Not only are the hallucinogenic mushrooms hazardous, finding the mushroom
itself is equally dangerous. Poisonous mushrooms and hallucinogenic
mushrooms look similar in appearance. There are few ways to distinguish the
different mushrooms and poisonous ones. One general rule is never eat a
mushroom with signs of worms or maggots and dirty old expired mushrooms. Eating a
mushroom, out of ignorance, may produce undesirable consequences, such as
death.
Psilocybin mushrooms is safer than lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). LSD
contains other chemicals, such as phencyclidine (PCP). PCP is also a
hallucinogen and it is usually added to another drug, making it more
dangerous than mushrooms and LSD. Based on the available information,
psilocybin mushrooms are generally safer than other hallucinogens.
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