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I. Apud

Science, spirituality, and ayahuasca: The problem of consciousness and spiritual ontologies in the academy

February 12, 2017 / Ayahuasca, History, Papers, Publications, Religious studies, Spirituality / By /

Abstract

Ayahuasca is a psychoactive brew from Amazonas, popularized in the last decades in part through transnational religious networks, but also due to interest in exploring spirituality through altered states of consciousness among academic schools and scientific researchers. In this article, the author analyzes the relation between science and religion proposing that the “demarcation problem” between the two arises from the relations among consciousness, intentionality, and spirituality. The analysis starts at the beginning of modern science, continues through the nineteenth century, and then examines the appearance of new schools in psychology and anthropology in the countercultural milieu of the 1960s. The author analyzes the case of ayahuasca against this historical background, first, in the general context of ayahuasca studies in the academic field. Second, he briefly describes three cases from Spain. Finally, he discusses the permeability of science to “spiritual ontologies” from an interdisciplinary perspective, using insights from social and cognitive sciences.

Apud, I. (2017). Science, spirituality, and ayahuasca: The problem of consciousness and spiritual ontologies in the academy. Zygon®, 52(1), 100-123. 10.1111/zygo.12315
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Medicine, religion and ayahuasca in Catalonia. Considering ayahuasca networks from a medical anthropology perspective

October 18, 2016 / Anthropology, Ayahuasca, Indigenous use, Medicine, Papers, Publications / By / ,

Abstract

Ayahuasca is a psychoactive beverage from the Amazon, traditionally used by indigenous and mestizo populations in the region. Widespread international use of the beverage began in the 1990s in both secular contexts and religious/spiritual networks. This article offers an analysis of these networks as health care systems in general and for the case of Spain and specifically Catalonia, describing the emergence and characteristics of their groups, and the therapeutic itineraries of some participants. The medical anthropology perspective we take enables us to reflect on the relationship between medicine and religion, and problematize the tensions between medicalization and medical pluralism. Closely linked to the process of medicalization, we also analyze prohibitionist drug policies and their tensions and conflicts with the use of ayahuasca in ritual and ‘health care’ contexts. The paper ends with a reflection on the problem of ayahuasca as ‘medicine’, since the connection between religion and medicine is a very difficult one to separate.

Apud, I., & Romaní, O. (2017). Medicine, religion and ayahuasca in Catalonia. Considering ayahuasca networks from a medical anthropology perspective. International Journal of Drug Policy, 39, 28-36. 10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.07.011
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