The article examines historical evidence for the use of psychoactive ergot preparations in religious systems, focusing on Persian, Greek, Jewish, and Islamic sources. Poems, hadith, and scriptural writings suggest an entheogenic heritage among ancient sects that exchanged philosophical and ritual influences across regions. Esoteric Shia and Sufi writings in particular indicate a "celestial botany" employing psychoactive plants for initiatory and ritual purposes. The second part addresses research methods for rendering ergot alkaloids nontoxic and entheogenic, arguing that without a chemical demonstration of such a preparation, theories about ergot in mystery traditions remain speculative.
A 15th-century Timurid manuscript illustrating the Prophet Mohammed's mi'raj (ascent through the seven heavens) depicts the creature Burāq with features resembling the psychoactive mushroom Amanita muscaria (fly agaric), used by Siberian shamans for spirit journeys. The author explores how this resemblance might have arisen, given that any implication Mohammed used a drug for his spiritual ascent would be unacceptable in orthodox Islam. The text explicitly states there is no suggestion Mohammed's journey was drug-induced.