The Soma Question: Interrogating the History of Psychedelics with Sanskrit Mantras
January 14, 2025 Finnian M. M. Gerety 2 citations
The essay argues that the modern search for the identity of soma, a mysterious psychoactive sacrament from early India described in ancient Sanskrit texts, reveals more about twentieth-century cultural and scholarly preoccupations with plants and drugs than about the original sources. Despite soma's reputation as one of the oldest and most revered psychedelics, its material substance remains unidentified. The historical narrative of psychedelics in the ancient world, shaped by scholars engaging with Sanskrit texts, reflects present-day concerns rather than an accurate picture of the past. The work interrogates how the historiography of the soma question exposes the assumptions and biases of contemporary psychedelic discourse.