"The mushroom is Jesus, and Santa Claus is also a mushroom," said lecturer James Arthur (jamesarthur.net), who was the main guest on Thursday. He was referring to "magic" mushrooms such as the red Amanita, which are known to expand human consciousness into mystical or spiritual states. Arthur contends that the authors of the New Testament, as well as other ancient religious texts, were actually conveying secret knowledge brought on by the mushrooms, such as "the death and rebirth experience," using anthropomorphized characters. He cited the book The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross by John Allegro, as an example of a scholarly exploration of this theory, which he said had been suppressed by the Catholic Church. Through a set of imagery posted on our site (see below), Arthur demonstrated a connection between mushrooms and Christmas, drawing an analogy of the presents under the tree, to mushrooms which grow under a tree. "The mushroom is the secret X-mas present," he said with glee. ... More »

"We stay in the psychedelic state in the womb until we are born," said James Arthur, the author of Mushrooms and Mankind in his appearance on Thursday night's program. Arthur is a wide-ranging lecturer who believes that entheogen substances (psychoactive plants) have played an active role in the origins of religion. He traces the use of psychedelic plants back to cave paintings which he says depict shamans holding mushrooms. His website is jamesarthur.net. The experience the plants offer is an introspective and multidimensional one Arthur said, allowing the user to understand themselves and their relation to the world better. "Time seems to stand still, speed up or disappear completely," he said. His trips have allowed him to leave his body, even traveling to such distant locations as the Van Allen radiation belt which he described as a gigantic spiritual presence that was like a "high density living organism." Arthur pointed out there are over 15,000 different types of mus ... More »