This book review describes an edited volume on the ritual use of ayahuasca, a psychoactive brew used in religious and healing contexts. The collection, spanning 686 pages, brings together multidisciplinary scholarship on the history, ethnography, pharmacology, and legal dimensions of ayahuasca rituals, particularly in Brazilian and global settings. The review notes the book's comprehensive coverage of indigenous and syncretic traditions, such as Santo Daime, and its relevance to debates about drug policy and cultural heritage.
The reviewed volume provides a broad, interdisciplinary examination of the ritual use of ayahuasca, covering historical, ethnographic, pharmacological, and legal aspects.
Abstract
Book review of O uso ritual da ayahuasca. Beatriz Caiuby Labate & Wladimyr Sena Araújo (editors). Campinas (São Paulo, Brazil): Mercado das Letras / FAPESP, 2002. 686 pp. ISBN 85 85725-91-5.