Indigenous Use of Sacred Plant Medicines

The history and traditions of how these sacred plant medicines have been used can be traced from since before memory which is why we refer to this history as since “time immemorial”.

Video: Indigenous Use of Sacred Plant Medicines

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In the following video, we’ll learn about some of the medicines that have historically been used and continue to be used by Indigenous Peoples in ceremony and other practices.

Sacred Plant Medicines

As a summary of the medicines, we learned about, please read through the following slides. Please note that this list includes some examples of where these plant medicines are found and is not intended to be an exhaustive list.

Image source: Schmidt, 2007 licensed under CC BY-SA 2.5.

Iboga

Iboga is a shrub used by the Bwiti Peoples in Gabon for ceremony. The primary psychoactive compound is ibogaine.

Image source: Terpsichore, 2004 licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Ayahuasca

Ayahuasca is a brew made from a vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) combined with the leaves of Chacruna (Psychotria viridis) and comes from the Amazon. The main psychoactive components include DMT and MAOIs which enhances and lengthens the effects of DMT.

Image source: Arp, 2007 licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Mushrooms

Psilocybin-containing mushrooms come from all around the world, including Canada, the United States, and Europe. Archaeological records suggest human relationships to mushrooms across many continents for several thousands of years at least (Samorini, 2019). Most notably in the context of recent psychedelic history, they are found in Central America, used by the Mazatec Peoples who introduced them to Westerners during the psychedelic renaissance.

Image source: Brock Brannen, 2007 licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Huachuma

Huachuma, also known as San Pedro, is a cactus found in many parts of the world but predominantly South America. It contains the psychoactive compound mescaline.

Image source: Zapdelight, 2009 licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Peyote

Peyote is a small spineless cactus that grows in northern Mexico and Texas which contains the psychoactive compound mescaline.

References

Rush, B., Marcus, O., Shore, R., Cunningham, L., Thompson, N., & Rideout, K. (2022). Psychedelic medicine: A rapid review of therapeutic applications and implications for future research. Homewood Research Institute.

Samorini, G. (2019). The oldest archaeological data evidencing the relationship of Homo sapiens with psychoactive plants: A worldwide overview. Journal of Psychedelic Studies, 3(2), 63-80.