A Brief History of Drugs: From the Stone Age to the Stoned Age [Paperback]

Antonio Escohotado (Author), Ken Symington (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1999

A clear-eyed look at the instrumental role drugs have played in our cultural, social, and spiritual development. 

• First American publication of the surprising European bestseller. 

• Examines everything from the ancient use of ergot and datura to the modern phenomenon of  "designer" drugs such as Ecstasy and crack cocaine. 

From remotest antiquity to the present era of designer drugs and interdiction, drugs have played a prominent role in the cultural, spiritual, and social development of civilizations. Antonio Escohotado demonstrates how the history of drugs illuminates the history of humanity as he explores the long relationship between mankind and mind-altering substances. Hemp, for example, has been used in India since time immemorial to stimulate mental agility and sexual prowess. Aristotle's disciple Theophrastus testifies to the use of datura by the ancient Greeks and further evidence links the rites at Eleusis to the ingestion of a hallucinogen. Similar examples can be found in cultures as diverse as the Celts, the ancient Egyptians, the Aztecs, and other indigenous peoples around the world. 

Professor Escohotado also looks at the present-day differences that exist between the more drug-tolerant societies like Holland and Switzerland and countries advocating complete repression of these substances. The author provides a comprehensive analysis of the enormous social costs of the drug war that is coming under increasing fire from all levels of society. Professor Escohotado's work demonstrates that drugs have always existed and been used by societies throughout the world and the contribution they have made to humanity's development has been enormous. The choice we face today is to teach people how to use them correctly or to continue to indiscriminately demonize them. "Just say no," the author says, is not an option. Just say "know" is. 

Antonio Escohotado is a professor of philosophy and social science methodology at the National University of Distance Education in Madrid, Spain. He travels widely, offering lectures and seminars on the subject of drugs and history. 

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A fascinating and informative history of humankind's checkered and often ambivalent relationship with psychoactive plants and drugs.  From the role of the opium poppy in ancient Mesopotamia and the ergot-based mystery cult of Eleusis, through the opium wars in China and the persecution of medieval herbalist witches, up to the 'psychedelic rebellion' of the sixties and the insanities of the current 'war on drugs,' Eschohotado covers an enormous subject with scholarly acumen and brings the light of reason to bear on topics often shrouded in bigotry, ignorance, and cupidity. Highly recommended!"
(

Ralph Metzner, Ph.D., author of The Unfolding Self and Green Psychology

)

"This book examines natural substances used by different cultures to alter the mind.  Makes for interesting, thought provoking reading."
(

American Herb Association, Vol 16:4

)

From the Back Cover

PSYCHEDELICS / SOCIOLOGY

“A fascinating and informative history of humankind’s checkered and often ambivalent relationship with psychoactive plants and drugs. From the role of the opium poppy in ancient Mesopotamia and the ergot-based mystery cult of Eleusis, through the opium wars in China and the persecution of medieval herbalist witches, up to the ‘psychedelic rebellion’ of the sixties and the insanities of the current ‘war on drugs,’ Escohotado covers an enormous subject with scholarly acumen and brings the light of reason to bear on topics often shrouded in bigotry, ignorance, and cupidity. Highly recommended!”
--Ralph Metzner, Ph.D., author of The Unfolding Self and Green Psychology

From remote antiquity to the present era of designer drugs and draconian interdiction, drugs have played a prominent role in the cultural, spiritual, and social development of civilizations. A Brief History of Drugs shows how the story of drugs illuminates the story of humanity, exploring the long relationship between human beings and mind-altering substances. Marijuana, for example, has been used in India since time immemorial to stimulate mental agility and sexual prowess, and a census in 312 c.e. revealed nearly 800 stores in the city of Rome devoted to selling opium. Similar examples can be found in cultures as diverse as the Celts, the ancient Egyptians, the Aztecs, and other peoples around the world.

Professor Escohotado also examines the present-day differences between drug tolerant societies like the Netherlands and Switzerland and countries advocating complete repression of these substances. He provides a comprehensive analysis of the enormous social costs of the drug war that is coming under increasing fire from all corners of society. Ultimately, A Brief History of Drugs demonstrates that drugs have been used by all societies, and the contribution they have made to humanity’s development has been enormous. The task we face today is to better understand them, instead of continuing to indiscriminately demonize them. “Just say no,” says Escohotado, is not an option. Just say “know” is.

ANTONIO ESCOHOTADO is a professor of philosophy and social science methodology at the National University of Distance Education in Madrid, Spain. He travels widely, offering lectures and seminars on the subject of drugs and history.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Park Street Press; 1 edition (May 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0892818263
• ISBN-13: 978-0892818266
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #579,519 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A concise version of a lengthy classic, May 3, 2000

By 

G. Bujak (East Coast) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Brief History of Drugs: From the Stone Age to the Stoned Age (Paperback)

This wonderful new volume is a very readable and informative condensation of and expansion on Escohotado own previous publication, the lengthy three-volume 'Historia General de las Drogas'. Here, in a text finely balanced with history and science, he traces humanity's affair with drugs and intoxicants beginning with the third millenium B.C., and leading up to the modern hi-tech psycheledics. He traces some of the most popular drugs like caffeine and hemp back to their surprisingly early origins. Taking into account the involvement of drugs in early religious festivities, he offers an analysis how they've made an easy move from there to a more secular, pleasure-seeking culture, accompanied by the parallel villification of drugs by religion, the institution that played a leading role in their introduction to society. This concise book will make readers aware of the extent of the spread of drugs through history, and of the hopelessness of all attempts to make them disappear from future history as well.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars No bibliography makes me a dull boy, May 25, 2006

By 

Stefan Isaksson "www.stefanisaksson.se" (Malmoe, Sweden) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Brief History of Drugs: From the Stone Age to the Stoned Age (Paperback)

I've never begun a book review by quoting the very last sentences of the book, but well, I guess it's true that there's a first for everything:

"Drugs have always existed everywhere, and judging by the present times, tomorrow there will be more drugs than exist today, so that the options are not a world WITH or WITHOUT drugs. The alternatives are to teach people how to use them correctly, or to indiscriminately demonize them: to sow knowledge, or to sow ignorance."

These two sentences work perfectly for summarizing what A Brief History of Drugs is all about. The book, a short version of the massive three-volume Historia General de las Drogas (only available in Spanish, however), is well-written, sober, clever, fascinating, and most importantly honest description about how various drugs have always been a part of human nature, civilization, and development. Without arguing whether or not all or some drugs should be made legal or not, Escohotado shows what the real world looks like; and it's a description that a whole lot of people probably don't want to know about.

Yes, it's true that the word "drugs" to most people have a very negative ring to it, and obviously it would be both ignorant and retarded to deny that numerous lives have been utterly destroyed due to drugs. Still, one cannot deny - whether you happen to be pro or against drugs - that less than one hundred years ago substances such as cocaine, heroine, and marijuana could be bought perfectly legal in drugstores all over the world, and that the great majority of drug uses managed to live perfectly normal lives before their drug of choice was criminalized, which only made things a whole lot worse (except for politicians on the search for votes). The drug question is an extremely complex question, and can therefore obviously not be completely summarized in a short book review.

All books about drugs are likely to be labelled in a negative way before people have even bothered to read them, and it's especially unfortunate when it happens to such a well-written and informative book as A Brief History of Drugs. Because this is NOT a sloppy "legalize it" book about drugs. Definitely not.

Instead it's the story about the human being and her development, misunderstandings between Western materialism and Eastern nature religions, political corruption at its very worst, and perhaps most of all the human weakness in fearing the unknown and accepting false truths without any scepticism whatsoever. A Brief History of Drugs will not turn the reader into a strung-out heroin junkie, but what it will do is start a debate and influence the reader into making his or her own decision. And isn't that what a successful non-fiction book is supposed to do?

The only negative thing about the book is the lack of a complete bibliography, something Escohotado himself mentions in the preface. He suggests the reader to look up the large work that this book is based on, but what good does that do to all of us who don't speak Spanish?

4.0 out of 5 stars Drug History, February 17, 2011

By 

Lester Burris "Lester" - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Brief History of Drugs: From the Stone Age to the Stoned Age (Paperback)

This is a very interesting read. It provides a nice history of abused substances over the course of time. For me, the middle section started to get a little dry, but once we got to semi-modern times (1700-1800's) it got really interesting. This book will challenge your thinking on the current way we regulate drugs. It is a great book.