Ayahuasca Religions: A Comprehensive Bibliography and Critical Essays

Ayahuasca Religions: A Comprehensive Bibliography and Critical Essays
by Beatriz Caiuby Labate,
Isabel Santana de Rose,
and Rafael Guimarães dos Santos

Translated from Portuguese by Matthew Meyer

Preface by Ralph Metzner

Paperback, 160 pages
ISBN: 978-0-9798622-1-2

$11.95 US

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Summary:

The last two decades have seen a broad expansion of the ayahuasca religions, and it has also witnessed, especially since the millennium, a true boom in studies of these religions. This book grew out of the need for an ordering of the profusion of titles related to this subject that are now appearing.

This publication offers a map of the global production of literature on this theme. For one year, four researchers located in different cities (Beatriz Caiuby Labate in São Paulo; Rafael Guimarães dos Santos in Barcelona; Isabel Santana de Rose in Florianópolis, Brazil; and Govert Derix, em Amsterdam) worked in a virtual research group to compile a list of bibliographical references on Santo Daime, Barquinha, UDV and urban neo-ayahuasqueiros, including the specialized academic literature as well as esoteric and experiential writings produced by participants of these churches. This book presents the results of that collaboration.

The book includes two texts commenting on aspects of the bibliography. The first presents a profile of these religious groups, including their history and expansion, and a general assessment of the principal characteristics, tendencies, and perspectives evident in the literature about them. The other text, “Comments on the pharmacological, psychiatric, and psychological literature on the ayahuasca religions,” summarizes the most important studies of human subjects in the context of Santo Daime, União do Vegetal and Barquinha, evaluating their results, contributions, and limitations. The article offers, in addition, some preliminary anthropological reflections on biomedical research of ayahuasca.

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Praise for Ayahuasca Religions: A Comprehensive Bibliography and Critical Essays

“This book presents a great deal of very useful information about the Brazilian ayahuasca churces, as well as an exhaustive bibliography of the literature on ayahuasca in multiple languages. This material should be of great interest to all who are interested in these unusual religious movements which are based on a powerful plant hallucinogen, with strong healing, therapeutic and spiritually significant effects. A wonderful resource and contribution.”
- Ralph Metzner, PhD, author of Ayahuasca - Sacred Vine of Spirits.

“Ayahuasca Religions: A Comprehensive Bibliography and Critical Essays is the most extensive compilation of information available to date on the studies on the ayahuasca religions´ in Brazil and around the world. This book systematizes the various research projects around the topics of history of the religions, biomedical investigations into their effects, and the contemporary dynamics. This is an essential reference work for anyone interested in these internationalizing religious traditions.”
- Michael Winkelman, PhD, Associate Professor in the School of Human Evolution & Social Change Arizona State University, co-editor of Psychedelic Medicine and co-author of Supernatural as Natural.

“Ayahuasca is a complex topic, and most articles on this topic have been published in obscure sources, over hundreds of years and in many different languages. This book by Labate et al. promises to offer a comprehensive guide to the world’s disparate literature on ayahuasca religions, and with commentary that is not from a North America/European perspective, which is much needed for this interesting and emergent phenomenon from South America.”
- Jace Callaway - Ph.D., Departments of Neurobiology and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Kuopio, Finland.

“Easy to read, concise, and multi-disciplinary, Ayahuasca Religions: A Comprehensive Bibliography and Critical Essays is an admirable book and a valuable tool for those interested in contemporary ayahuasca uses. Packed with information and knowledge, it suggests numerous leads to follow. It marshals the literature with an internationalist spirit, and also provides a precious historical perspective on a complex phenomenon. People interested in ayahuasca will gain from using this book.”
- Jeremy Narby, anthropologist, author of The cosmic serpent, DNA and the origins of knowledge and Intelligence in nature, and co-editor with Francis Huxley of Shamans through time.

“Bia Labate and colleagues have compiled a comprehensive review of the world anthropological and clinical literature on ayahuasca. For investigators interested in exploring the fascinating field of ayahuasca studies, this book is a valuable source for our current understanding of the effects of this mysterious vine.”
- Charles Grob - Director, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center; Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, UCLA School of Medicine and editor of Hallucinogens: A Reader and co-editor (with Roger Walsh) of Higher Wisdom: Eminent Elders Explore the Continuing Impact of Psychedelics.