| Erman has this to say about the reindeer and urine and the eating of the meat: “Mukhomor, they said, was much rarer in northern Kamchatka and the Koryaks had only learned about its properties because the meat of reindeer which had eaten it had an effect that was as intoxicating as the mushroom itself. It was this experience that had caused them to use it most sparingly and with maximum advantage and here was why they even collected the urine of persons who had managed to come by a mukhomor and mixed it with their drink as an intoxicant that was still very effective.” (35) Jochelson [case 21], cited earlier, has more on the peculiar habits of the reindeer with regards to human urine: “When the reindeer feed exclusively on lichens, they acquire a special longing for the urine of human beings. This longing attracts them to human habitations. Fig. 9 represents a vessel (the name in Koryak signifies ‘the reindeer’s night chamber’) made of seal-skin, which every herdsman carries suspended from his belt, and of which, he makes use whenever he desires to urinate, that he may keep the urine as a means of attraction in capturing refractory reindeer. Quite frequently the reindeer come running to camp from a far-off pasture to taste of snow saturated with urine, a delicacy to them. The reindeer have a keen sense of hearing and of smell, but their sight is rather poor. A man stopping to urinate in the open attracts reindeer from afar, which, following the sense of smell, will run to the urine, hardly discerning the man, and paying no attention to him. The position of a man standing up in the open while urinating is rather critical when he becomes the object of attention from reindeer coming down on him from all sides at full speed.” (36) Visionary Experiences The effects of the mushroom with regards to shamanism are touched upon in the voluminous Wasson reports, including this one in which “soothsaying” and clairvoyance are practiced, written by J. Enderli: “But the natives believe that the fly-agaric, unlike alcohol, has the power to reveal the future to the man who consumes it; if, before eating the mushroom, the man recites over it, certain definite formulas stating his wish to see the future, the wish will come true in his dream.” (37) Wasson cites a book, from 1904, The Northern Region along the Tabol, discussing the Ob-Ugrians. The authors write: “The shaman first eats some panga (dried mukhomor [fly-agaric] and becomes drunk on it. After this he works his magic, that is to say, he utters peculiar cries and plays on the tambourine.” (38) Jochelson reports, the Yukagir, another tribe from Siberia, “do not eat mushrooms regarding them as unclean food growing from dog’s urine. However, according to tradition, they used to intoxicate themselves with the poisonous fly-agaric, which is still eaten by the Koryak and Chukchee. The Yukaghir call mushrooms can-pai, i.e., tree girl.” (39) |
One of the accounts given by Bogoras [case 22] is especially informational and I reproduce an excerpt of it here as a prime example of the effects of A. muscaria on the user and the delirium it inspires: “Reindeer hunters of the Middle Anadyr told me that before starting in canoes in pursuit of animals, they would chew agaric because that would make them more nimble on the hunt. A native fellow-traveler of mine, after taking agaric, would lay aside his snow shoes and walk through the deep snow hour after hour by the side of his dogs for the mere pleasure of exercise, and without any feeling of fatigue. During this period the agaric eater sings and dances. He frequently bursts into loud peals of laughter without any apparent reason. It is a state altogether of noisy joviality. His face acquires a darker hue and twitches nervously; his eyes are now contracted, and again almost bursting from their sockets; his mouth puckers and grins or spreads into a broad smile. “Flashes of the second stage often appear early, shortly after the first three traces of intoxication become visible; indeed, all three stages are frequently intermingled. This is noticeable especially among elderly inveterate agaric eaters. During the second stage the intoxicated person hears strange voices bidding him perform more or less incongruous actions; he sees the spirits of fly-agaric and talks to them. He still recognizes surrounding objects, however, and when talked to is able to answer. All things appear to him increased in size. For instance, when entering a room and stepping over the door sill, he will raise his feet exceedingly high. The handle of a knife seems to him so big that he wants to grasp it with both hands. “The spirits of fly-agaric have an outward appearance similar to that of the actual mushrooms, and the agaric eater feels impelled to imitate them. For example, I saw one man suddenly snatch a small narrow bag and pull it with all his might over his head, trying to break through the bottom. He was evidently imitating the mushroom bursting forth from the ground. Another walked around with his neck drawn in and assured everyone that he had no head. He would bend his knees and move very quickly, swinging his arms violently about. This was in imitation of the spirits of fly-agaric, who are supposed to have no necks or legs, but stout cylindrical bodies which move about swiftly. (35) ibid, p. 252; Erman, Adolph. Reise um die Erde durch Nord-Asien und die beiden Oceane in den Jahren 1828 und 1830 ausgefuhrt. (A Journey around the World through Northern Asia and both Oceans in 1828, 1829 and 1830) Berlin. 1833-48, p. 223 (36) ibid, p. 268; Jochelson, Waldemar. (Iokhel'son, Vladimir Il'ich) I. The Koryak: Memoir of the American Museum of Natural History, New York. A Publication of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition. Vol. vi, Part I. Religion and Myth, New York, 1905. Part II Material Culture and Social Organization of the Koryak, 1908, pp. 582-584 (37) ibid, p. 264; Enderli, J. 'Zwei jahre bei den Rschuktschen und Jorjaken.' (Two Years Among the Chukchi and Koryak) Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen. Gotha. 1903. pp. 183-184 (38) ibid, p. 280; (Dunin-Gorkavich, A.A. Tobol'skij Sever. (The Northern Region along the Tabol) St. Petersburg. 1904, p. 95) (39) Soma, Wasson, p. 272; The Yukaghir and the Yukaghirized Tungus. Vol. ix of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition., p. 419 |