The DOI matches its Crossref record; 7 of the 7 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Soma and Drug History in Ancient Asia
Abstract
Some of the oldest texts of India’s classical Vedic age (1500–500 BCE) refer to soma, at the same time as a god, a plant, and a beverage of the gods themselves. The intoxicating elixir appears as a pivotal element in many ancient religious rituals, and yet its exact identification has eluded generations of scholars and seekers. Taking soma as a point of departure, this chapter explores the religious dimension of the use of drugs across the Asian continent, ranging from ancient Indian and Chinese civilizations to shamanism in Siberia. From the myth of mushroom consumption in shamanic rituals to the meditative use of cannabis by ascetics, this chapter critically surveys drug-related mythologies and practices, through a diversity of historical and ethnographic sources from ancient Asian civilizations.
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Harner, M. J. (1973) · Oxford University Press eBooks · Cited by 406
Soma, Divine Mushroom of Immortality
Lowy, B., & Wasson, R. G. (1969) · Mycologia · doi:10.2307/3757481 · Cited by 252
Shamanism: the neural ecology of consciousness and healing
(2000) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.38-1246 · Cited by 195
Cannabis: an Example of Taxonomic Neglect
Schultes, R. E., Klein, W. M. P., Plowman, T., & Lockwood, T. E. (1974) · Botanical Museum leaflets Harvard University · doi:10.5962/p.168565 · Cited by 173
Persephone's Quest: Entheogens and the Origins of Religion
Wasson, R. G., Kramrisch, S., & Ruck, C. A. P. (1988) · Cited by 85
Cannabis: An Example of Taxonomic Neglect
Schultes, R. E., KLEIN, W. M., Plowman, T., & Lockwood, T. E. (1975) · Mouton eBooks · doi:10.1515/9783110812060.21 · Cited by 58
Cannabis in traditional Indian herbal medicine
Wujastyk, D. (2002) · UCL Discovery (University College London) · Cited by 7
Research works printed but not linked: 6
- 2002, Decent Drugs for Decent People: Further Thoughts on the Nature of Soma., Orientalia Suecana
- 1989, Soma I and II., Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
- 2003, Archaeological Evidence for the Tradition of Psychoactive Plant Use in the Old World., Economic Botany
- Parpola, Asko. “The Problem of the Aryans and the Soma.” In The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia, edited by George Erdosy, 353–401. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1973.
- 1981, The Religious and Medicinal Uses of Cannabis in China, India and Tibet., Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
- 1968, Soma: Divine Mushroom of Immortality
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Metadata
- Authors
- Torri, D.
- Affiliations
- Sapienza University of Rome (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Torri, Davide
- ORCID
- Torri, Davide
- Venue
- The Oxford Handbook of Global Drug History
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Published
- 2022-03-18
- Pages
- 95-110
- OpenAlex
- W4220850452
- Cited by
- 1
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1
- FWCI
- 0.00
- Type
- book chapter
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Oxford University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Indian and Buddhist Studies
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Study and Philosophy of Religion
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Religious studies › Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies
- Keywords
- soma, drug history, Vedic texts, ancient Indian religion, Chinese religion, shamanism, Siberia, mushroom consumption, cannabis, asceticism, religious rituals, poisoning, ancient Asia
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