The Anthropology of Magic, Witchcraft, and Religion

1. The AnthropologyofMagic, Witchcraft,andReligion On Consciousness (“Normal” and “Altered”)

2. Conscious First use in the early 1600s; derived from Latin conscius com- “with” + scire “to know” Thus: “knowing with others, participating in knowledge, aware of” Consciousness: the ability to know about – and consequently to act within –the world.

3. “knowing with others, participating in knowledge, aware of” • This is not as straightforward as it might seem… • Can I be certain that what I know is what you know? • Can I really “participate” in your knowledge? • What does it mean to be “aware”?

4. How can I know what is going on inside of someone else’s head? (assuming anything is going on at all?)

5. The Answer?Ban Consciousness from Science Burrhus Fredric Skinner1904-1990 John B. Watson1878-1958 The “fathers” of behaviorism

6. The Behaviorist Answer black box Stimulus Response But what is going on inside the cat’s head? that is… Why does it respond the way it does?

7. A range of answers… Panpsychism Solipsism one’s own mind is all that exists all matter has some form of consciousness

8. But things change(as they always do…) Albert Hofmann1906-2008 Holding a model of the LSD molecule Allen Ginsburg1926-1997dancing at the Human Be-In, 1967 and “consciousness” makes a come-back

9. Waking States of Consciousness • Enable an organism to function within the world • Primarily outward directed • Survival-oriented (identifying food, enemies, mates, etc.)

10. For us… • Consciousness involves the ability to know about – and consequently to act within – the world. • Involves “self-awareness” • found in • humans • chimps • gorillas • i.e., of the self as being distinct from the rest of the universe

11. The “Mirror Test”

12. A Measure of Self-Awareness “passed” by: • great apes • Bonobos • Chimpanzees • Orangutans • Gorillas • Bottlenose Dolphins • Orcas • Elephants • European Magpies • Pigs • Humans (after app. 18 months) Don’t worry, they’re just friends…

13. Consciousness Is made possible by biological processes that are • open to manipulation • culturally defined Therefore, “normal consciousness” will differ from society to society

14. Mind is a “high level” function of the brain that • Enables self-awareness • Allows the individual to conceptualize her or his place in the world • Makes it possible to learn, generate, and apply “high level” models of the world

15. Models are Learned Via • Observation • Experience • Language (at least in humans)

16. Learned Models • Hypotheses about the world • verified or falsified through sensory and motor activity • Unique to individual (non-isomorphic) • Limited in scope and applicability (tenuous)

17. Sensory Input • We learn how to refer to things (through language) • We learn what things in the world are (culturally) significant • We learn how to act upon the world

18. Motor Output • Is how we act within and upon the world • Is how we verify the “correctness” of our consensual models of the world

19. Normal “States” of Consciousness • Waking Mode (the “baseline”) • Deep Sleep • REM (Dream) Sleep

20. Altered Statesof Consciousness

21. Altered “States” of Consciousnessaka • Mystical • Transcendental • Transpersonal • Integrative

22. ASCs Can be induced at several “levels” • Body/Brain functioning • Mental Activity • External agents

23. How to Induce ASCs Sensory Activity deprivation overload Mental Activity focused relaxed

24. Inducing ASCs • Reduce sensory input and/or motor output • Increase sensory input and/or motor output and/or emotion • Increase mental alertness or involvement • Decrease mental alertness and/or relax critical faculties • Change body chemistry and/or neurophysiological functioning

25. The Continuum of Consciousness States(Roland Fischer)

26. In an “Altered State” • A person may be unable to determine whether their experiences relate to events outside the body/brain • Learned models about the external world are detached from the possibility of verification

27. In an “Altered State” • Conflicting models (“mental tectonic plates”) may result in “seismic” events • Depending upon context and cultural values, these events may be interpreted as • Positive • Neutral • Negative

28. Cultures and ASCs • Each culture defines which ASCs are allowed and which are not • Every culture fails to recognize most of the ASCs that humans can experience • ASCs – and therewith the dimensions of human experience – and shaped by culture

29. Cultures and “Drugs” • Ritualized drug use – culturally explained, tend to be integrative • Proscribed drug use – individually shaped, may be dis/integrative (both to the individual and the culture)

30. Balche’ Ritual of the Lacandon Maya • Made from a tree (Lonchocarpus violaceus) that is allow to ferment • Active components: alcohol, longistylines • Rite of Intensification (collective use)

31. Peyote Use among the Huichol • Peyote cactus (Lophophora williamsii) contains mescaline and numerous other alkaloids • Used as an all purpose medicine and for ritual purposes

33. Datura Use among the Chumash • Datura wrightiicontains numerous tropane alkaloids (atropine, scopolamine) • Used in initiations, to acquire spirit helpers

34. Hoasca/Ayahuasca Psychotria viridis Banisteriopsis caapi

35. Chacrunacontains Dimethyltryptamines Visionary Caapi contains β-carbolines Sedative Hypnotic MAO-inhibiting

36. Ayahuasca • Use for millennia in Amazon Basin and neighboring regions • May be the most commonly used hallucinogenic preparation in the world

37. Ayahuasca Churches Santo Daime • Founded in 1920s by Raimundo Irineu Serra • Combines Christian with indigenous & Mestizo religious elements

38. Ayahuasca Churches União de Vegetal • Founded in 1961 by Jose Gabriel da Costa (Mestre Gabriel) • UDV Church has U.S. presence

39. AyahuascaTourism

40. What can we say about Consciousness? It is dynamic It is different for each of us All cultures control the consciousness of their members Your consciousness is your most personal attribute