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Echinopsis pachanoi

TAXONOMY

Taxonomists disagree on the reclassification of Echinopsis pachanoi and other Trichocereus into the Echinopsis genus. Some researchers still utilize the traditional name Trichocereus in place of Echinopsis, citing DNA analysis in opposition of the move from its previous genus and into the wider Echinopsis. Echinopsis pachanoi and Echinopsis peruvianus have recently been collapsed into a single species, Echinopsis macrogonus, comprised of var. pachanoi and var. peruvianus, further dividing taxonomists.

There are over forty species of cacti in the traditional genus Trichocereus, but only twelve have been documented to contain mescaline, the principal psychoactive alkaloid for which E. pachanoi is prized.

Variations of the local name at the time of Spanish invasion were recorded as huachuma and achuma, which appear in many Colonial era documents. It is hypothesized that these variations have roots in the "Yunga" languages of coastal Ecuador and Peru, though little was recorded of them during colonization. As recently as 1920, a Yunga-speaking population near the coastal city of Chiclayo in Peru used chumay in reference to a state of drunkeness or dizziness. To this day, Spanish-speakers in various parts of Ecuador utilize the term achumado for an individual who is visibly intoxicated from strong alcohol. A modern Spanish alternative in southern Ecuador is aguacolla, and was attested to by the Spanish as agua collay in their Colonial documents. Some have hypothesized that it comes from the Spanish agua for "water" and the Quechua colla for "queen." This may be in reference to Ecuadorian mythology which tells of the cactus once being born a beautiful princess, and as such the aguacolla plant pays tribute to princesses, queens, and the moon. Others assert that it is rather an admixture of the Spanish agua and a Quechua word meaning "occult" or "hidden," perhaps in reference to the cactus acting as a portal into the interior world when utilized as an entheogen.

TRADITIONAL USES

The oldest evidence of anthropic psychoactive plant use in the Americas was discovered in Peru. Diagnostic analysis has shown that the mescaline-bearing San Pedro cactus was already in use as an entheogen among ancient peoples in the Andes by 8,600 B.C.E. The relative simplicity of the preparation process for E. pachanoi among indigenous groups in the Andes today likely reflects an uninterrupted tradition, whereby stalks of the cactus are harvested and sliced laterally before being boiled for several hours. Traditional healers, sometimes known by the Spanish title curanderos, may utilize other additives, such as the dust from ruins or a cemetery, powder from ground bones, as well as other plants that are held in high spiritual regard. However, the brew is most often consumed plain. Separate brews to induce vomiting may be administered also during the ritual. Growing awareness of the mescaline-bearing E. pachanoi cactus and its enduring legacy as an entheogen has led to the development of "psychedelic tourism" in some parts of South America. One such location in southern Ecuador has witnessed the supplanting of local entheogenic traditions for the sake of generating income off of travelers who wish to consume the cactus brew. There is growing concern over the subsequent increase in community conflict and the blatant over-harvesting of naturally occurring E. pachanoi specimens, too, which jeopardize the original practices that are many millennia old.

Evidence for the utilization of E. pachanoi as an entheogen in the ancient Andes is especially prevalent at the archaeological site of Chavín de Huántar in the highlands of northern Peru. The ceremonial center is decorated with iconography reflecting the hallucinogenic performances and rituals practiced by ancient peoples in the area. Excavations of the Circular Plaza in front of the Old Temple have unearthed a stone plaque referred to as the stela of the cactus bearer. The low-relief carving depicts the profile of a zoomorphic being, perhaps a warrior-priest, with fangs and claws, as well as a large stalk of E. pachanoi clutched in their hand. The winged being's hair appears as snakes while two serpents are wrapped around the figure's waist. Beneath the plaque is a series of spotted felines. Ceremonial use of hallucinogenic snuff is depicted at the Old Temple via carved stone tenon heads. Anchored into the walls, the heads are presumed to reflect different stages of zoomorphic transformation as perceived by the intoxicated participants during the ceremony. Excess mucus discharge is variably depicted, a physiological reaction to the irritation of mucus membranes in the nostrils by inhaling the snuff. Heads with profound zoomorphic features were also carved with the most pronounced mucus flows. While it is unlikely that mescaline-bearing cacti like E. pachanoi were utilized in these hallucinogenic snuff powders, the ingestion of multiple entheogenic substances at Chavín de Huántar, including San Pedro cactus brews, is likely.

Iconographic representations of E. pachanoi have also been found in Cupisnique pottery. At least thirty-two Cupisnique stirrup-spout vessels have been recovered with depictions of ribbed cacti and spotted felines on them, reflecting some continuity between the Chavín and Cupisnique cultures. Representations of San Pedro cacti have also been found on textiles. The archaeological site Garagay, located along the central Peruvian coast, has produced two figurines with San Pedro cactus spines on their backs. The ritual use of E. pachanoi as an entheogen is also evident at the site of Las Aldas on the north-central coast of Peru.

ALKALOIDS

Unlike other mescaline-bearing cacti of the region, E. pachanoi specimens have been found to contain higher concentrations of mescaline on average compared to those of E. peruvianus, the Peruvian torch cactus, and E. bridgesii, the Bolivian torch cactus. A study conducted in 2010 found that between five different samples of San Pedro cactus, the range of mescaline concentration in their tissues was 0.54% to 4.7%, showing wide variability but at consistently higher levels than E. peruvianus and E. bridgesii, each recorded as having an average mescaline content of 0.24% and 0.47%, respectively. This contradicts earlier reports that E. pachanoi contained the least amount of mescaline of all huachuma cactus varieties. More research must be conducted in order to better understand the influence of variables such as soil, season, and time of sampling.

Certain "companion" alkaloids, including pellotine and hordenine, found in other mescaline-bearing cacti are thought to influence the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of mescaline. However, these "companion" alkaloids do not present any pharmacological activity in the absence of mescaline.

References

• Cassels, Bruce and Patricio Sáez-Briones (2018). "Dark Classics in Chemical Neuroscience: Mescaline," ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 9 (10).
• Glass-Coffin, Bonnie (2010). "Shamanism and San Pedro through Time: Some Notes on the Archaeology, History, and Continued Use of an Entheogen in Northern Peru," Anthropology of Consciousness, 21 (1).
• Samorini, Giorgio (2019). "The Oldest Archeological Data Evidencing the Relationship of Homo sapiens with Psychoactive Plants: A Worldwide Overview," Journal of Psychedelic Studies, 3 (2).
• Sharon, Douglas (1972). "The San Pedro Cactus in Peruvian Folk Healing," Flesh of the Gods: The Ritual Use of Hallucinogens. Praeger Publishers.
• Torres, Constantino Manuel (2008). "Chavín’s Psychoactive Pharmacopoeia: The Iconographic Evidence," Chavín: Art, Architecture, and Culture, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology.
• Vamvakopoulou, Iona et al. (2022). "Mescaline: The Forgotten Psychedelic," Neuropharmacology, 222.