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On Teonanácatl, the "Flesh of God"
Manuscript, c. 1541 (published 1858/1914)

Teonanácatl, "carne de Dios"

Motolinía's account of Aztec mushroom intoxication from Historia de los indios de la Nueva España. He describes small bitter mushrooms producing visions of serpents and worms, names them Teonanácatl ("flesh of God"), and compares the rite to other Aztec communal meals.

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Articles of Incorporation of the Native American Church
Manuscript, October 10, 1918

Native American Church Articles of Incorporation (1918)

Filed with the Oklahoma Secretary of State on October 10, 1918, these articles incorporated the Native American Church as a religious and benevolent association. The purpose sections frame peyote as a Christian sacrament, giving the pan-tribal peyote religion legal standing.

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Margaret Mead’s LSD Memo
Manuscript, September 23-25, 1954

Margaret Mead’s LSD Memo

A memo from anthropologist [Margaret Mead](/biographies/margaret-mead)'s papers at the Library of Congress, recording her interest in LSD and other psychedelics in the summer of 1954 and her work with [Harold Abramson](/biographies/harold-abramson)'s research team, including [Conan Kornetsky](/biographies/conan-kornetsky) and [Murray Jarvik](/biographies/murray-jarvik).

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Betty Eisner's First LSD Trip, October 10, 1955
Manuscript, October 10, 1955 (recalled in 2002)

Betty Eisner's first LSD trip

The psychologist Betty Eisner (1915–2004) recalls being the first research subject in Sidney Cohen's LSD study at UCLA in October 1955, quoting at length from the report she wrote after the session. The excerpt describes the psychological tests she was asked to take while under the drug, and her sense that they were trivial beside what she was experiencing. It is the opening chapter of her unpublished memoir, Remembrances of LSD Therapy Past (2002).

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