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Ploughing the Clouds
The Search for Irish Soma by Peter Lamborn Wilson 0-87286-326-3 Paperback $14.95 |
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In Ploughing the Clouds Wilson suggests that the ancient Celts of Ireland may have possessed a "Soma" ceremony similar to one described in the Rig Veda, one of the oldest scriptures in the world. Written in India in 1500 BC, the Rig Veda praises a holy plant called Soma or "magic mushroom" which grants the drinker enlightenement and ecstasy. By comparing Celtic myth and folklore with the Rig Veda, he uncovers an Irish branch of the great Indo-European tradition of psychedelic (or "entheogenic") shamanism, and even reconstructs some of its secret rituals. He uses this comparative material to illuminate the deep meaning of the Soma-function in all cultures: the entheogenic origin of "poetic frenzy," the link between intoxication and inspiration.
Peter Lamborn Wilson, scholar, critic, poet, and visionary best known for Sacred Drift: Essays on the Margins of Islam (City Lights) and his radio commentaries on WBAI New York, offers a fascinating study on the use of psychoactive plants in ancient Ireland in Ploughing the Clouds: The Search for Irish Soma. |
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