Psychedelic Mushrooms Have Spiritual Benefit

Finding God in a Magic Mushroom

Last month, researchers at John Hopkins released the results of a study using the active compound from psychedelic mushrooms. Psilocybin, the active compound in so called "magic mushrooms", is a hallucinogenic. The study is the first one of its kind done in 40 years, due largely to the widespread abuse of hallucinogenic substances in the 1960's and 1970's. This abuse has caused psilocybin, the compound in psychedelic mushrooms, to be classified as a class 1 drug, closely controlled and monitored by government agencies. 

The John Hopkins study was performed on 36 volunteers, ranging in age from 24 to 64, and comprised of both men and women. The volunteers for this rigorous, double-blind study were all chosen due to not having psychiatric problems themselves or in their immediate families, and that they all had active spiritual lives. The reason the spiritual component was deemed necessary is because psilocybin is thought to activate the region in the frontal lobe where religious experiences occur. People currently active in spiritual practices were considered to be less likely to be surprised or confused by any mystical experiences they encountered. 

Hallucinogenic substances, like psilocybin found in magic mushrooms and LSD, were beginning to be studied by scientists in the 1950's, but governmental regulations in response to abuse of drugs in the 1960's had halted research in the area for 40 years. One of the last well-known tests of psilocybin or "magic mushrooms" was in 1962. Often called The Good Friday Experiment, a group of 20 seminary students were given either psilocybin or nicotinic acid (also known as niacin) during a church service. The 10 students who received psilocybin reportedly experienced intensely spiritual feelings. There appeared to be a lasting positive benefit, as a study 25 years later seemed to suggest the effects had continued.