Chavin is a mysterious place where rites based around use of the visionary San Pedro cactus (active ingredient mescaline) were practised more than 3,000 years ago.

Reached the ancient site of Chavin de Huantar, 500 kilometres north of the Peruvian capital Lima, after a long day's drive through some of the most eye-achingly beautiful mountain landscapes in the world.
Chavin is a mysterious place where rites based around use of the visionary San Pedro cactus (active ingredient mescaline) were practised more than 3,000 years ago. Santha Faiia's photograph shows me in the subterranean labyrinth at the heart of the site. It's a silent, scary place to spend an hour or two in contemplation. There's a sculpture down here called the Lanzon which I'll post in my next
status. It's imagery, and the whole iconography of Chavin, reflect experiences in deeply altered states of consciousness. Such experiences would have been intensified in the labyrinth, demonstrating ancient knowledge of what we now call set and setting.
It is a sign of the devolution of human society that the cultivation of San Pedro for personal use today is heavily penalised in many countries. We need to stop handing over our personal sovereignty to our governments. It's time to learn, once again, how to take responsibility for our own consciousness and in this respect the ancients have much to teach us.