Food of the Gods: The Search for the Original Tree of Knowledge
by Terence McKenna
View on GoodreadsMcKenna's claim is that psilocybin mushrooms were humanity's original tree of knowledge, and that early hominids who ate them gained sharper vision, more sexual activity and language. Scientists generally reject the stoned-ape hypothesis for lack of paleoanthropological support, so how much of what follows can you keep without it?
Core ideas
- By the dose: Low doses sharpen visual edge detection for hunting, moderate doses raise arousal, and higher doses spur language and group bonding.
- Partnership to domination: Early cultures built around shared plant experience gave way to patriarchal dominator cultures, and he traces ritual use through shamans, Minoan culture and Amazonian peoples.
- The wrong drugs: Coffee, sugar, alcohol and television feed addiction, he argues, while psychedelics are banned because they threaten patriarchal structures.
Published1992
Pages311
ISBN9780553371307
ReadApr 2023
