Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria)

4/20/2010

Fly Agaric mushrooms are some of the most ancient old world hallucinogens. The Fly Agaric has appealing properties, which include hallucination effects, which distort the senses and produce “experiences that depart from reality” (Anderson). These mushrooms grow in the “North Temperature regions of both hemispheres, but those of the western hemisphere are not psycho-active” (Anderson). Fly Agaric mushrooms have been used as a substitute for morphine, producing similar effects, but are supposedly not habit forming. This fungus is the only hallucinogen known to pass through the kidneys unchanged, therefore Siberian Chuckee Indians sometimes drink there urine after ingesting the mushroom to recycle the trip. The consumption of Fly Agaric mushrooms date back as early as 1500 BCE, when mentioned in the Rig Veda, under the name Soma, for its psychoactive properties. There are several differencing accounts of the effects of Fly Agaric. It is considered a poison by some, but there are no reported deaths contributed to the consumption of Fly Agaric. Some accounts with Fly Agaric mushrooms include nausea and vomiting, hallucination, and a feeling of a departure from reality and tweaked perception. A more new age mushroom hallucinogen is the species psilocybe, which contains the alkaloids psilocybin and psilocin, which contain psycho-active properties.