Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

FOREWORD
Psysterhood by Allyson Grey

INTRODUCTION
The Genesis of Feminine Consciousness

PART 1
Archetypal Dimensions of the Feminine Principle

1 Femtheogenic Consciousness: Archetypal Energies of Regeneration Maria Papaspyrou

2 In Search of Goddess Consciousness: Archetypal and Embodied Paths to Interconnectivity
Patricia ‘Iolana

3 The Dark Feminine: Mediators of Transformation
Tim Read

PART 2
Ancient Roots of Female Shamanism

4 Woman Shaman: Uncovering the Female Ecstatics
Max Dashu

5 Her Share of Divine Madness: The Role of Women in the Ancient Rites of Dionysus
Chiara Baldini

6 The Lady Who Served the Mystery Potion: The Botanical Symbolism behind the Mysteries of Eleusis
Carl A. P. Ruck

7 The Volva: Women in Norse Witchcraft
Maria Christine Kvilhaug

PART 3
Embodied Paths to Ecstasy

8 She Dances and Trances Again: Exploring, Healing, and Developing Feminine Aspects through Trance Dance
Christa Mackinnon

9 She Who Births: The Psychedelic Nature of Procreation
Alana Bliss

10 Rebirth of an Ancient Calling:The Modern Medicine Woman
Shonagh Home

PART 4
Psychedelic Feminine Principles

11 The Embodiment of Feminine Qualities in the Psychedelic Self: The Realm of Mystery and Potential
Kathleen Harrison

12 Toward a Radical Uncertainty: Into the Darkness
Anna Luke

13 The Bioethics of Psychedelic Guides: Issues of Safety and Abuses of Power in Ceremonies with Psychoactive Substances
Eleonora Molnar

PART 5
De-gendering Psychedelics

14 De-essentializing Notions of the Feminine in Psychedelic Research: Western Women, Ayahuasca, and Possibilities for Transformation Lorna Olivia O’Dowd

15 The Feminine Enshadowed: The Role of Psychedelics in Deconstructing the Gender Binary Cameron Adams and Timothy Davis

PART 6
In Service of Vision

16 Creating Portals into Other Worlds: Sharing My Visionary Symbolism Martina Hoffmann

17 Eggstatic Creations: Remembering Our Feminine Core
Amanda Sage

18 Feminine Flowers of Consciousness Bloom
Alana Bliss

19 Reflections on the Gift of Blood
Omolewa

PART 7
Feminist Psychedelic Activism

20 Creating a Community of Wisewomen: The Women’s Visionary Congress
Annie Oak

21 Beyond Psychological Patriarchy: Plant Medicines and the Resurgence of Medical Eros
Adam Aronovich

22 Cognitive Dispossession: Ecofeminism, Entheogens, and Neuroqueering Drug Policy
Nadia Erlam

23 Psychedelics, Self-Creation, and Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights: A Feminist Perspective
Charlotte Walsh

CONCLUSION
Weaving Our Way Back Home

Contributors

Bibliography

Index

About the Author

Maria Papaspyrou, MSc, is an integrative psychotherapist. She has given talks and published articles on the healing properties of entheogens, supporting their re-introduction in psychotherapy. She lives in Brighton, England. Chiara Baldini is an independent researcher who studies the evolution of the ecstatic cult in the West. She lives in Portugal. David Luke is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Greenwich and guest lecturer at the University of Northampton. He lives in East Sussex, England.

Reviews

“Words like ‘essential knowledge’ and ‘provocative’ somehow fail to do justice to the content between these covers. These are contemporary, controversial issues in psychedelics that aren’t adequately being addressed elsewhere: abuses of power and the ethical behavior of psychedelic guides and shamans and the role of psychedelics not only in women reclaiming their power but in deconstructing the gender binary. There is mystery and potential in the feminine, the yin shadow. That darkness is an important piece of the power and glory that is woman. I applaud this project and recommend it heartfully. It is crucial information that needs to be integrated into the psychedelic community and the larger tribe of humanity. Also, the artwork is gorgeous and inspiring.”
*Julie Holland, M.D., editor of Ecstasy: The Complete Guide and The Pot Book*

“This edited volume presents a wide-ranging history of the roots of the current psychedelic renaissance. From the ancient rites of Dionysus, scholars and practitioners explore how the Sacred Feminine opens a doorway into the Divine via both ecstatic trance and an embodied connection to nature. Psychedelic Mysteries of the Feminine is a valuable addition to all collections of psychedelic mysticism.”
*Rachel Harris, Ph.D., author of Listening to Ayahuasca*

“This impressive volume weaves together an evolving understanding of the psychedelic feminine through essays and art. The call for all people to embrace the Divine Feminine in its many forms is loud and clear in this celebration of the feminine voice and historical perspective. We have the power to transform our culture and our world. This anthology is a wonderful aid in discovering a path toward love, healing, and balance.”
*Rick Doblin, Ph.D., founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychede*

“This book is packed with ideas, information, and analysis on the importance of the feminine in psychedelic, ecstatic, and shamanic practice--topics I find utterly fascinating and sorely needed in this time of crisis, with our longing for transition and with our need for inspiration and magic beyond our current paradigm.”
*Gail Bradbrook, Ph.D., cofounder of Extinction Rebellion*

“From this groundbreaking collection there emerges a specific feminine approach to mind-altering substances, a phenomenon that has been breaking through and doing its part in driving the psychedelic renaissance. The multicultural contributors speak from their personal experiences with entheogens. The female perspective amplifies the yin component at the heart of the visionary plant experience. There is authenticity and activism here, along with a wide-ranging body of tremendously useful information enhanced with mind-bending shamanic art.”
*Michael Horowitz, coeditor of Sisters of the Extreme: Women Writing on the Drug Experience*

“Psychedelic Mysteries of the Feminine is an essential addition to the world’s psychedelic library. A superbly conceived, edited, and visually stimulating anthology in which a chorus of activists, researchers, visionaries, and fourth-wave feminist voices offer remedies to the challenges of our time.”
*Graham St John, author of Mystery School in Hyperspace: A Cultural History of DMT*