Nord mead, Greek wine, Egyptian beer, Japanese Sake, and many others… It seems that every society through history has at least one alcoholic beverage associated with it, that was consumed for the sake of consuming it, without any deeper meaning attached to it.

Mushrooms, probably the OG psychedelic, on the other hand is always presented as a shamanistic tool, rather than something people use to get high, while weed isn’t even mentioned throughout history.

How accurate are those representations? Have psychedelic trips truly always been more about the message than the trip? I’m aware that for a long time consuming alcohol was safer than “pure” water, so it’s really not a surprise to me that people have been getting drunk since ever, but have we really never cared much for other drugs, or is that more of a modern choice of not focusing on that aspect of history? Is there any historical context that could indicate some societies or social groups that partook in psychedelic drugs for the sake of it?