The making of a mushroom people: Toward a moral anthropology of psychedelics beyond hype and anti‐hype

As psychedelics move toward market approval in North America and Europe, societies may shift from repression to institutionalized use, joining other cultures that have done so. Anthropology's role in this 'psychedelic renaissance' should extend beyond medical studies into moral anthropology, because psychedelics often induce mystical-type experiences that challenge strict moral orders enforced through disciplinary practices. The article examines how cycles of hype and anti-hype recur with new drugs and questions what cultural consequences widespread mystical experiences might have for contemporary Western societies.

Study at a glance

Abstract

As regulatory agencies have put psychedelics on an expedited path to market approval, North Americans and Europeans might turn away from their repression and join the subset of cultures that have institutionalized the use of hallucinogenic drugs. What is the place of anthropology in this psychedelic renaissance? More specifically, how should anthropology relate to the cycles of hype and anti‐hype, which have been identified as a recurrent pattern in the careers of new drugs as psychedelics have entered a second round of cultural enthusiasm and critique? This article suggests extending ethnographic studies of the psychedelic renaissance from medical to moral anthropology. The case of psychedelics is especially interesting for moral anthropology because these drugs frequently induce mystical‐type experiences, which can play an ethically irritating role as mysticism challenges a strict moral order enforced through disciplinary practices. What cultural consequences would the spread of mystical experiences have for contemporary European and North American societies?