The Soma Question: Interrogating the History of Psychedelics with Sanskrit Mantras

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.

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Abstract

Historical narratives tell us as much about the present as they do about the past—and the grand narrative of psychedelics in the ancient world is no exception. “What is soma?” is a perennial question for historians of psychedelics as they investigate this mysterious psychoactive sacrament of early India. Documented in Sanskrit texts starting in the late Bronze Age, it is reputed to be among the oldest and most venerable psychedelics—yet the material substance of soma remains unidentified. Although soma’s fame in modernity arises from scholarly engagement with Sanskrit texts, the resulting narrative of psychedelic history reveals more about the twentieth-century discourse on plants and drugs than it does about the original Indian sources. This essay interrogates the history of psychedelics through the historiography of the soma question.