PLANET. BY TERENCE McKENNA fi+c4 `yf an understanding not only of primate evolution but also of the emergence of the cultural forms unique to Homo
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0URPRESENTGLOBALCRISISismoreprofoundthananyprevioushistoricalcrises,henceoursolu-tionsmustbeequallydrasticIproposethatweshouldadopttheplantastheorganizationalmodelforlifeinthe21stcentury,justasthecomputerseemstobethedominantmental/socialmodelofthelate20thCentury,andthesteamenginewastheguidingimageofthe19thCentury.Thismeansreachingbackintimetomodelsthatweresuccessful15,000to20,000yearsago.Whenthisisdoneisbecomespossibletoseeplantsasfood,shelter,clothing,andsourcesofeducationandreligion.Theprocessbeginsbydeclaringlegitimatewhatwehavedeniedforsolong.LetusdeclareNaturetobeLegitimate.Allplantsshouldbedeclaredlegal,andallanimalsforthatmatter.Thenotionofillegalplantsandanimalsisobnoxiousandridiculous.Re-establishingchannelsofdirectcommunica-tionwiththeplanetaryOcher,themindbehindnature,throughtheuseofhallucinogenicplantsisthelastbesthopefordissolvingthesteepwallsofculturalinflexibilitythatappeartobechan-nelinguscowardtrueruin.Weneedanewsetoflensestoseeourwayintheworld.Whenthemedievalworldshifteditsworldview,secularizedEuropeansocietysoughtsalvationintherevivify-ingofClassicGreekandRomanapproachescolaw,philosophy,esthetics,cityplanningandagri-culture.Ourdilemmawillcastusfurtherbackintotimeinasearchformodelsandanswers.Theimpactofhallucinogenicplantsontheevo-lutionandemergenceofhumanbeingshasnotbeenwidelyexamined,yetitpromisestoprovidetu.loceCAe”NRcmewPLANPLANTPLANETBYTERENCEMcKENNAfi+c4`yfanunderstandingnotonlyofprimateevolutionbutalsooftheemergenceoftheculturalformsuniquetoHomosapiens.Theadaptiveadvantageconferredbyusingim-mune-stimulatingorappetite-suppressingplantsisnotdifficulttounderstand.Lesseasytounder-standisthewayinwhichplanthallucinogensmighthaveprovidedsimilaryetdifferentadap-tiveadvantagestoourremoteancestors.Thesecompoundsdonotcatalyzetheimmunesystemintohigherstatesofactivity,althoughthismaybeasecondaryeffect.Rather,theycatalyzecon-sciousness,thatpeculiar,self-reflectingabilitythathasreacheditsgreatestapparentexpressioninhumanbeings.Onecanhardlydoubtthatconsciousness,liketheabilitytoresistdisease,confersanimmenseadaptiveadvantageonanyindividualwhopossessesit.Thereisahiddenfactorintheevolutionofhu-manbeingswhichisneithera”missinglink”noratelosimpartedfromonhigh.Isuggestthatthishiddenfactorintheevolutionofhumanbeings,thefactorwhichcalledhumanconsciousnessforthfromabipedalapewithbinocularvision,involvedafeedbackloopwithplanthallucinogens.Thisisnotanideachathasbeenwidelyexplored,thoughaveryconservativeformofthisnotionappearsinR.GordonWasson’sSoma:DivineMushroomofImmortality(Wasson,1971).Wassondoesnotcommentontheemergenceofhuman-nessoutoftheprimates,butdoessuggesthallu-cinogenicmushroomsasthecausalagentintheappearanceofspirituallyawarehumanbeingsandthegenesisofreligion.Wassonfeelsthatomnivorousforaginghumanswouldsoonerorlaterhaveencounteredhallucinogenicmushroomsorotherpsychoactiveplantsintheirenvironment.Thestrategyoftheseearlyhumanomnivores17GATEFNEIIOAOSAUSAUlQa7″161
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wastoeateverythingandtovomitwhateverwasunpalatable.Plantsfoundtobeediblebythismethodweretheninculcatedintothediet.Themushroomswouldbeespeciallynoticeablebe-causeoftheirunusualformandcolor.Thestateofconsciousnessinducedbymushroomsorotherhallucinogenswouldprovideareasonforforaginghumanstoreturnrepeatedlytothoseplants,inordertore-experiencetheirbewitchingnovelty.ThisprocesswouldcreatewhatGH-Waddington(1961)calleda”creode~’apathwayofdevelop-mentalactivity(inotherwords,ahabit).Habituationtotheexperiencewasinsuredsimplybecauseitwasecstatic.”Ecstatic”isawordun-necessarytodefineexceptoperationally:Anec-staticexperienceisonethatonewishestohaveoverandoveragain.Ifhallucinogensareoperatingasexo-pheromones,thatisinter-specieschemicalmessengers,thenthedynamicsymbioticrelationshipbetweenpri-mateandhallucinogenicplantisactuallyatrans-ferofinformationfromonespeciestoanother.TheprimategainsincreasedvisualacuityandaccesstothetranscendentOther.Thebenefitstothemushroomaroseoutoftheprimatedomesti-cationofpreviouslywildcattle,hencetheexpan-sionofthenicheoccupiedbythemushroom.Whereplanthallucinogensdonotoccur,suchWHOLEEARTIREVIEWFALLimprocessestakeplacewithgreatslowness,butinthepresenceofhallucinogensacultureisintro-ducedtoevermorenovelinformation,sensoryinputandbehavior,andthusisbootstrappedtohigherandhigherstatesofself-reflection.Hallucinogenicplantsmayhavebeenthecata-lystsforeverythingaboutusthatdistinguishesusfromotherprimatesexceptperhapsthelossofbodyhair.Allofthementalfunctionswhichweassociatewithhumanness,includingrecall,pro-jectiveimagination,language,naming,magicalspeech,dance,andasenseofmligiomayhaveemergedoutofinteractionwithhallucinogenicplants.Oursocietymorethanotherswillfindthistheorydifficulttoacceptbecausewehavemadepharmacologicallyobtainedeatasyataboo.Sexualityisatabooforthesamereason:suchthingsareconsciouslyorunconsciouslysensedtobeentwinedwiththemysteriesofwherewecamefromandhowwegottobethewayweare.THESOLUTIONtomuchofmodernmal-aise,includingchemicaldependenciesandrepressedpsychosesandneurosis,isdirectexpo-suretotheauthenticdimensionsofriskrepre-sentedbytheexperienceofpsychedelicplants.Thepro-psychedelicplantpositionisdearlyananti-drugposition.Drugdependenciesaretheresultofhabitual,unexaminedandobsessivebehavior;theseUseofdrugsbyhumansocietiesisasoldashumanityinelL.Whatisitinthenatureofhumanbeingsthatallowsthemtoformnearlysymbioticrelationshipswithplantsandchemiralsinthenatural,andnowtechno-logical,worldaroundthem?Ourout.nivorousdietaryhabitshavemadeusthevectorofmyriadmutagenicinflu-encesthattogetherhaveshapedhumanevolutioninstrangeanduniqueways,Theemergenceofself-awarenessandofculturalformsisareflectionofin.ternalstatesofawarenessthatarepro.foundlymediatedbyourrelationshipstopsychoactiveandphysiologicallyactiveplants,foods,drugs,andspices.Detaileddiscussionofthepreviouslyuneominedrelationshipsofdragstoculturalself-expressionprovidesanewwayofthinkingabouthumanhistory,asaseriesofarrangements,madeandbroken,betweenhumanbeingsandplants.Paleolithicshaman-ismprovidesthearchaicparadigm.TheEleusinianmysteriesprovidetheClassicalexample,andmodernuseofcoffee,alcohol,sugarandtobaccoil-lustratethewayinwhichexplorationWhyPeopleTakeDrugsTheGreekherbalistDiascoridesreceivesamandrakeplanthvmHeutesis,thegoddessofdise~Sinceancienttime,mandrakehasbeencreditedwithnanserousmopedandhealinspowers,inpartbecauseofthetoot’srewmbiatsoetoahumanfirne.Itissdllusedinthetreatmentofasthma,couslu,andhaylerenandnewtechnologiesseemtomeannewdrugsandnewhabitsTheAgeofExplorationinnodwedmornthanspicesintoEurope,sogreatwastheEuropeanobsessionwithaddictiontowhitesugarthatslavery,nomorethanacuriosityintheWetsincethefallofRome,wasbroughtbackwithavengeaaceinthe15thcenturyinordertoprovidelaborforthekillingworkofsugarproduction.WhentheEnglishoverseasteatradecollapsed,theBritishuseofmilitaryforcewcuredtherighttosellopiuminChina.Thispolicyprovidesthebridgetomoderndevelopments:thescourgeofrefinednarcotics,heroin,cocaineandsack.Themodernsyntheticdrugshavecreatedfinancialrogueempiresinmanycasesmorn:powerfulthawthenationsthatsanctionedtheircreation.Themessageisthathistoryistobeseenasaseriesofevolvingandtrans-formingrelationshipstoplants,fromcorntoCannabis,aprocessthatweneednowtounderstandasmodernpharmacologyandh6tyksputintoourhandsevermorepowerfulwaystosatisfyandexplorethehabithabit.
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TheMasacecssaythatthemushroomsspeak.Ifyouaskashamanwhenhisimagerycomesfrom,heislikelytoreplyt”Ididn’tmyit,themushroomsdid.”Nomushroomspeaks,thatisaprimitive”ofthenatural.onlymesaspeaks,buthewho”eatsthesemushrooms,ifbsisamain-0ofwithaninspiredcapacityto-fpgk.Theshamanswhotitthem,theirfunctionistospeak,theyarethespeakerswhochantandsingthetruth,theyaretheoralpoemoftheirpeople,thedoctorsoftheword,theywhotellwhatiswrongandhowtoremedyit,theseemandoracles,theonespossessedbythevoice.”ItisnotIwhospeak,”saidHermlitus,”itistheLogos.”Languageisanecstaticactivityofsignification.Intoxicatedbythemushrooms,thefluency,theease,theaptnessofexpressiononebecomescapableofareThePlantThatSpeaks:.~.,afteranother,ofthemselveswithout__..-._;having.tobestitchedfor:aphenom,`’enonsimilartotheautomaticdictationofthesurrealistsaamPtthatherethe:.Howofconsciousness,ratherthan_._beingdisconnected;,tendstobeco.-hesent;arationalenunmtionofi=mtioiiag.Messagefieldaofcommani-gcadonwiththewosid;othenand,”ovalsselfaredisclosedbythemush”..,,room,Thespontaneitytheyliberaw.isnotonlyperceptualbutlinguistic,thespontaneityofspeech,.offervent,.luciddiscourse,ofthelogosinacti.vity;fortheshaman,itisasifExit’teasewereutteringitselfthroughhimwordsarematerializationsofsuchthatoneisastoundedbytheconsciousness,languageisaprivilegedwordsthatissueforthfromthecon-vehicleofourrelationtoreality.tactoftheintentionofarticulation-HenryMunn,”TheMushroomofwiththematterofexperience:AttimesLanguage,”inHallucinogensanditisasifonewerebeingtoldwhattoShamanism,MichaelHamer,ed.,say,forthewordsleaptomind,oneOxfordPress,1973,pp8&89.Pailocybemeacana.arepreciselythetendenciesinourpsychologicalmake.upthatthepsychedelicsmitigate.Theplanthallu-cinogensdissolvehabitsandholdmotivationsuptoinspectionbyawider,lessegocentricandmoregroundedpointofviewwithintheindivi-duaLItisfoolishtosuggestthatthereisnorisk,butitisequallyuninformedtosuggestthattheriskisnotworthtaking.Whatisneededisex-perientialvalidationofanewguidingimage,anoverarchingmetaphorabletoserveasthebasisforanewmodelofsocietyandtheindividual.Theplant/humanrelationshiphasalwaysbeenthefoundationofourindividualandgroupexis-tenceintheworld.WhatIcalltheArchaicRevivalistheprocessofreawakeningawarenessoftradi-tionalattitudestowardnature,includingplantsandourrelationshipcothem.TheArchaicRe-vivalspellstheeventualbreakupofthepatternofmaledominanceandhierarchybasedonanimalorganization,somethingthatcannotbechangedovernightbyasuddenshiftincollectiveaware.ness.RatheriswillfollownaturallyuponthegradualrecognitionthattheoverarchingthemethatdirectstheArchaicRevivalistheidea/idealofavegetationGoddess,theEarthherselfasthemuchballyhooedGaia-aconceptwelldocu-mentedby19th-centuryanthropologists,mostnotablyFraser,butrecentlygivenanewre-spectabilitybyRianeEisler,MarijaGimbutasandothers.Thecloserahumangroupistothegnosisofthevegetablemind-theGaiancollectivityofor.ganiclife-theclosertheirconnectioncothearchetypeoftheGoddess,hencecothepartner.shipstyleofsocialorganization.ThelasttimethatthemainstreamofWesternthoughtwasre-freshedbythegnosisofthevegetablemindwasatthecloseoftheHellenisticera,beforetheMysteryreligionswerefinallysuppressedbyenthusiasticChristianbarbarians.Myconclusionisthattakingthenextevoiu.rionarystep,theArchaicRevival,therebirthoftheGoddessandtheendingofprofanehistory,areagendasthatimplicitlycontainwithinthem-selvesthenotionofourre-involvementwithandtheemergenceofthevegetablemind.Thatsamemindthatcoaxedusintoself-reflectinglanguagenowoffersustheboundlesslandscapesoftheimagination.Withoutsucharelationshiptopsychedelicexo-pheromonesregulatingoursym-bioticrelationshipwiththeplantkingdomwestandoutsideofanunderstandingofplanetarypurpose.Andunderstandingofplanetarypur-posemaybethemajorcontributionthatwecanmaketotheevolutionaryprocess.Returningtothebosomoftheplanetarypartnershipmeanstradingthepointofviewofthehistory-creasedegoforamorematernalandintuitionalstyle.ThewidelyfeltintuitionofthepresenceoftheOtherasafemalecompaniontothehumanna-vigationofhistorycan,Ibelieve,betracedbacktotheimmersioninthevegetablemindwhichprovidedtheritualcontextinwhichhumancon-sciousnessemergedintothelightofself-awareness,self-reflection,andself-articulation;thelightoftheGreatGoddess.Whatdoesitmeantoacceptthesolutionsof27GATEFIVEROADSAUSAUIQCAb%s
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vegetableformsoflifeasmetaphorsforthecon-ductoftheaffairsofthehumanworld?Twoim.portantchangeswouldfollowfromadoptingthisassumption:Theferninizingofcultureonalevelchathasyettobefullyexplored;GreenConsciousnessmeansrecognizingthattherealdivisionbetweenthemasculineandthefeminineisnotadivisionbe.tweenmenandwomen,butratherisadivisionbetweenourselvesasconsciousanimals-omni-vorous,land-clearingwar-makers,supremeex-pressionoftheyang-andthecircum-globalmantleofvegetation-theancientmeta-stableyinelementthatconstitutesbyfarthemajorportionofthebiomassofthelivingearth.Aninwardsearchforvalues.Inwardnessisthecharacteristicfeatureofthevegetable,ratherthantheanimal,approachtoexistence.Theanimalsmove,migrateandswarmwhileplantsholdfast.Plantsliveinadimensioncharacterizedbythesolidstate,thefixedandtheenduring.Ifthereismovementintheconsciousnessofplantsthenismustbethemovementofspiritandattentioninthedomainofthevegetalimagination.PerhapsthisiswhatthereconnectiontothevegetalGod-dessthroughpsychedelicplants,whattheArchaicRevivalactuallypointstoward,thatthelifeofthespiritisthelifethatgainsaccesstothevi-sionaryrealmsresidentinmagicalplantteachers.ThisisthetruththatshamanshavealwaysknownandpracticedAwarenessofthegreensideof.:;mindwascalledVriditasbythe12th-centuryvisionaryHildegardvonBingen.ANEWPARADIGMcapableofofferinghopeofapathoutoftheculturalquicksandhastoprovideateal-worldagendaaddressedtotheescalatingproblemsthattheplanetfaces.ThereareseveraldomainsinwhichtheriseofawarenessofVeriditasmighthelpstaveoffArmageddon:Demzificationofthenaturalenvironment.Thisisaprocessthatisnaturallycarriedoutbythecombinedactionoftheatmosphere,thebiologicalmatrixandtheoceans.Thisplanet-wideprocesswasabletotakecareofevenurbanindustrialwaste,untilmodernindustrialtechnologybecameatrulyglobalphenomenon.PlantingspeciesofDatura,theplantsonceapartofthereligiousritesoftheIndiansofSouthernCalifornia,andotherplantsthatleachheavymetalsfromtheearthandsequesterthemintheircellulartissue,isanexampleofanaturalprocessthatcouldhelpcleanupourenvironment.Recognizingthemanywaysinwhichthebiologicalmatrixoftheearthfunctionstoaverttoxification,recognizingthatnatureisworkingtosustainlife,mightgoa8wHOUEM”REVIEWFALL19″TheshrubDaturastramoniumcanactlitreatoxinsponge,leachingheavy-metalelementsfrompollutedsoils.Thetoxinsareconcentratedinitstissue,whichcanthenberemoved.longwaytowardbuildingapoliticalconsensustoactivelyparticipateinsavingthatsamelife.Connectednessandsymbiosis.Likeplants,weneedtomaximizethesequalities.Plant-basedapproachestomodelingtheworldincludeaware-nessofthefractalandbranchingnatureofcom-munityaction.Atree-likenetworkofsymbioticrelationshipscannowreplacethemodelofevo-lutionthatweinheritedfromthe19thCentury.Theearliermodel,thatofthetooth-and-clawstruggleforexistence,withthesurvivortakingall,isamodelbasedonnaiveobservationofanimalbehavior.Yetitwascheerfullyextendedintotherealmofplantstoexplaintheevolution-aryinteractionsthoughttocausespeciationinthebotanicalworld.Later,moresophisticatedobservers(C.H.WaddingtonandErichJantsch)foundnottheWarinNaturethatDarwinistsreportedbutratherasituationinwhichitwasnotcompetitiveabilitybutabilitytomaximizecooperationwithotherspeciesthatmostdirectlycontributedtoanorganism’sbeingabletofunc-tionandendureasamemberofabiome.Plantsinteractwitheachotherthroughthetangledmatofrootsthatconnectsthemalltothesourceoftheirnutritionandtoeachother.Themattedfloorofatropicalrainforestisanenvironmentofgreatchemicaldiversity;theto-pologyapproachesthatofbraintissueinitscom-plexity.Withinthenetworkofinterconnectedrootscomplexchemicalsignalsareconstantlybeingtransmittedandreceived.Co-adaptiveevo-
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lutionandsymbioticrelationshipsregulatethisentiresystemwithaubiquitousnessthatarguesfortheevolutionaryprimacyofthesecooperativestrategies.Forexample,mycorrhizalfungiliveinsymbiosisontheoutsideofplantrootsandgentlybalanceandbufferthemineral-ladenwaterthatismovingthroughthemtotherootsoftheirhost.Wholesystemfine-tuningisneeded.Ifthephe-nomenaassociatedwithbiologicalharmonyandresonancecouldbeunderstood,thensuchlarge-scalesystemsasglobalbankingorglobalfoodproductionanddistributioncouldbemoreprop-erlymanaged.TheGaianbiologists,Lovelock,Margulisandothershavearguedpersuasivelythattheentireplanethasbeenself-organizedbymicrobialandplanktoniclifeintoameta-stableregimefavorabletobiologyandmaintainedthereforinexcessoftwobillionyears.Plant-basedGaiahaskeptabalancethroughouttimeandspace.Andthisinspiceoftherepeatedbombard-mentoftheearthbyasteroidalmaterialsufficienttoseverelydisrupttheplanetaryequilibrium.Wecanonlyadmire-andweshouldseektoimi-tate-suchaTao-likesenseoftheplanet’smulti-dimensionalhomeostaticbalance.Buthow?Isuggestwelookatplants-lookmoredeeply,moreclosely,andwithamoreopenmindthanwehavedonebefore.Recycling.Likeplantsweneedtorecycle.Onacosmicscalewearenomoremobilethanplants.Untilthispointinhistorywehavemodeledourmoresuccessfuleconomicsystemsonanimalpredation.Animalscanpotentiallymoveontoanotherresourcewhentheyexhausttheoneathand.Sincetheycanmovetonewfoodsources,theypotentiallyhaveunlimitedresources.Plantsarefixed.Theycannoteasilymovetorichernu-trients,orleaveanareaiftheyfoulordepleteit.Theymustrecyclewell.Thefosteringofaplant-basedethicthatemulatesthewayinwhichthebotanicalworldusesandreplacesresourcesisasinequanonforplanetarysurvival.Allcapitalisticmodelspresupposeunlimitedexploitableresourcesandlaborpools,yetneithershouldnowbeas-sumed.IdonotknowthemethodsbutIsuggestthatwestartturningtotheplantworldtodiscovertherightquestionstoask.Photovoltaicpowerispartoftheshifttowardanappreciationoftheeleganceofthesolidstatethatplantspossess.Plantspracticephotosyntheticsolutionstotheproblemsofpoweracquisition.Comparedtothewater-oranimal-turnedwheel,whicharetheUr-metaphorsforpowerproductioninthehumanworld,thesolid-statequantum-molecularmiraclewhichinvolvesdroppingaphotonofsunlightintoamoleculardevicethatwillkickoutanelectroncapableofenergeticallyparticipatinginthelifeofacellseemslikeex-travagantsciencefiction.Yetthisis,infact,theprincipleuponwhichphotosynthesisoperates.Whilethefirstsolid-statedevicesarrivedonthehumanculturalfrontierinthelate1940s,solid-stateengineeringhadbeenthepreferreddesignapproachofplantsforsometwothousandmillionyears.High-efficiencyphotovoltaicscouldtodaymeetthedailyneedsofmostpeopleforelectri-city.Itistherunningofbasicindustriesonsolarenergythathasproveddifficult.Perhapsthisisnature’swayoftellingusthatweaspiretotoomuchmanufacturing.Aglobalatmosphere-basedenergyeconomy.Theap-proachofvegetationallifetoenergyproductioniscalledphotosynthesis.Thisprocesscouldbemodeledbythecreationofaglobaleconomybasedonusingsolarenergytoobtainhydrogenfromseawater.Solarelectricitycouldsupplymostelectricityneeds,butthesmeltingofaluminumandsteelandotherenergy-intensiveindustrialprocessesmakedemandsthatphotovoltaic,elec-tricityisunlikelytobeabletomeet.Howeverthereisasolution:plantssplitatmosphericcar-bondioxidetoreleaseenergyandoxygenasby-Thefactorsthatordinarilylimitgrowthinthetemperateregion-lowtemperatures,lackofwaterandashortgrowingseason-areoflittleimportanceinthehumidtropics.Ex-ceptonalluviallandandincamaswherethesoilisfrequentlyenrichedbyvolcanicdust,howevo,thestockofavailablemineralnutrientsisquitesmall.Therainforestisabletoflourishundertheseconditionsbecausealargefractionoftheavailablenitrogen,calcium,phosphorus,potassiumandothermineralsisheldinthevegetationMatterandEnergyintheRainforestinelLThenutrientscontainedindeadwoodandleavesandintheexcretionsanddeadbodiesofanimalsarequicklyreleasedbytheactivitiesofthedecomposerorganisms.Oncethedeadmaterialhasbeenbrokendownthemineralsdonotsininthesoilbutarealmostimmediatelytakenupbytherootsoftheeceesandotherplants.Thus,althoughthetotalstockofnutrientsisnotlarge,recycl-ingisrapid.Itisalsoefficientverylittleislostfromthesystem.-ScientificAmerican,Dec.1973,p.63.27GATENVEROADSAUSAUTQG9494S
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products.Asimilarbutdifferentprocesscouldusesolarelectricitytosplitwater,toobtainhy-drogen.ThishydrogencouldbecollectedandconcentratedforlaterdistributionPlantshavebeenverysuccessfulatfindingelegantsolutionsbasedonmaterialpresentathand;ahydrogeneconomywouldemulatethissamerelianceoninexhaustibleandrecyclablematerials.Thenotionisasimpleonereally;ithaslongbeenrealizedbyplannersthathydrogenistheidealresourcetofuelaglobaleconomy.Hydrogenisclean;whenburneditrecombineswiththewateritwaschemicallyderivedfrom.Hydrogenisplentiful;onethirdofallwaterishydrogenAndallexistingtechnologies-internal-combustionengines,coal-,oil-andnuclear-firedgeneratorscouldberetro-fittedtorunonhydrogenThuswearenottalkingabouthavingtoscrapthecur-rentstandingcropofexistingpowerproductionanddistributionsystems.Hydrogencouldbe”cracked”fromseawaterataremoteislandlo.cationandthenmovedbythealreadyexistingtechnologythatisusedfortheoceantransportofliquidnaturalgasfromitsproductionpointstomarket.Theobjectionthathydrogenishighlyexplosiveandthatproventechnologiesforhand.lingitdonotexisthaslargelybeenmetbytheliquid-natural-gasindustryanditsexcellentsafetyrecord.Hydrogenaccidentscouldbeextremelydestructive,buttheywouldbeordinaryexplo-FromVegetaLS~lO(TobeaccompaniedbythemusicalnotationforicamtomcreaeetheeffectsofayahuascalmmLang198TheseplantsftobaccoandayahttasaJbelongtoaseriesofspeciescalled”doctores”bylocalpractitioners,becauseifingestedundercertaincon-ditions,theyarebekievedmbeableto”teach”theshamansDuringtheini.nationperiod,whichmaylastfiomsomemonthsuptoseveralyears,theseplantsareingestedperiodicallyandsuccessively,whileaverystrictdietandsexualcontinenceareob.served.TheinformantsIworkedwithaffirmthatthespiritsofmothersoftheplantspresentthemselvestotheinitiated,eitherduringthevisionstheyelicit,orduringthedreams,andteachthemhowtodiagnoseandcurecer-tainillneasa,howtodominateevilspiritswholiveintheearth,inthewaterorintheair,howtotravelthroughtimeandspace,andhowtoperformaseriesofshamanictasks10WHOLEEARREVIEWFALLIMThesepowersareacquiredmainlythroughthememorizationofmagicmelodies.orsongs,callediarosThenumberandqualityoftheiricarvsisthebestgaugeoftheknowledgeandpowerofashaman.Allmyinformantsclaimtoknowdozensofthem.Eachplanthasitsicares,sothattherepertoireoftheshamanapprenticeetpandsashekeepsaddingotherplantstothebasicayahuasapmpara”tion(Banisteriopsiscaapi+P*hotriavirMis),orwhenheingestsotherplant-teachersthataretakenbythem.selves.Theacquisitionofmagicchantsormelodiesandthememorizationofmythsduringshamaninitiationseemtobeawidelyreportedphenom.enon.Ihavenotyetmadeasystematicbibliographicsurvey,butitispossiblethattheassociationofthelearningofmagicchantsormelodieswiththeab-sorptionofthepsychotropicplantsisquitecommon.ItisfoundamongtheHukhol,whoingestpeyote(Lopho.phonwilliamsit)andotherpsycho.tropicplants,amongtheMazatec,soons;local,non-toxicandwithoutreleaseofradioactivity.Likeplantlifeitself,thehydrogeneconomywouldbenon-pollutingandself-sus-taining;burnedhydrogenrecombineswithoxy-gentoagainbecomewater.Aninternationaleffortofextraordinaryscopewouldbenecessarytobegintomovetowardaproof-of-conceptdemonstrationofthefeasibilityofahydrogeneconomy.Grantedthattherearemanypossibleproblemswithsuchascheme.Butnoplanfortheproductionofenergysufficienttomeettheneedsofthe21stCenturyisgoingtobewithoutdifficulties.Nanotechnology.TheeraofMolecularMecha-nism(WER154,p.9)promisesthemostradicalofthegreenvisionssinceitproposesthathuman-engineeredquasi-biologicalcellsandorganellestakeoverthemanufacturingofproductsandcul-ture.Nanotechnologytakesseriouslythenotionthatmanufacturingtechniquesandmethodsofmanipulatingmatteronthemicro-physicalscalecanaffectthedesignprocessofthehuman-scaleworld.Inthenanotechworld,dwellingsandmachinescanbe”grown”andeverythingcharismanufacturedisclosertofleshthantostone.Thedistinctionbetweenlivingandnon-living,andorganicandartificial,isblurredintheelec-troniccoralreefofhuman/machinesymbiosiscontemplatedbythesavantsofnanotechnology.Tai+youngmanitholdtagthemarpo.tentoftheSouthAmericanhancinogena,knownamongtheKamanIndisorascubbraborracheraHewilldrinkateeofthisplant,materialrichinscopolamineandotherintoxicatingai.kakiids,toinducevisionsandtoestablish’learningspirit”withhisteaches
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