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Home , Michael Graziano

THE BIOLOGY OF CULTURE

The Biology of

From to Richard Schultes BY BRIAN D. FARRELL

“I am neither a theologian, nor a scholar ers). James thought broadly, and yet saw ley were a New York banker, R. Gordon learned in the history of religions, nor an that all human behaviors are probably Wasson and his spouse, Russian-born anthropologist. is the only ultimately grounded in biology. physician Valentina Pavlovna, who dedi- branch of learning in which I am particu- In offering some biological particu- cated time and resources throughout larly versed. To the psychologist the reli- lars, I wish to connect William James’ their lives to documenting the uses of gious propensities of man must be at least perspective on religion and conscious- mushrooms by cultures worldwide. In as interesting as any other of the facts ness with the work of another Harvard 1957, Wasson traveled to Mexico with pertaining to his mental constitution. It professor concerned with the particulars a photographer and recorded the Psi- would seem, therefore, that, as a psycholo- of human spiritual life, Richard Evans locybe shaman rituals, introducing the gist, the natural thing for me would be to Schultes, known as the father of ethno- term magic mushrooms, and revealing invite you to a descriptive survey of those botany. their effects on perception to the beat religious propensities.” —Williams James His lifelong work was documenting and counter-cultural movement through (On the Varieties of Religious . the indigenous uses of plants and fungi a popular article published in Life maga- Longmans, Green, & Co. 1902). throughout the Americas, including in zine. Substitute the word biology for psy- religious rituals. He began his Harvard The link between James’ “religious chology, and you’d have my consideration career with an undergraduate senior propensities” and the use of conscious- of consciousness—my own curiosity in thesis on the Kiowa peyote rituals in the ness-altering materials lies in the , writing about that subject parallels that southwestern United States, moved on so I will draw on recent work on the neu- of James about religion. His words, writ- in later years to identifying the species robiology of consciousness by Michael ten more than a hundred years ago, have termed Ololiuqui (morning glory seeds Graziano, Professor of Psychology and a sounding resonance with what and how containing LSD) and Teonánacatl (Psi- at Princeton University, I—as a biologist—have come to under- locybe mushrooms) by the ancient Aztecs Consciousness and the Social Brain stand the realms of consciousness: “In in Mexico, using images depicted in the (Oxford University Press, 2013). my belief that a large acquaintance with few remaining Aztec codices, and finally, One reason to be concerned with the particulars often makes us wiser than the spent many years exploring the Amazon biology of consciousness is the effect on possession of abstract formulas, however forests of Colombia and beyond, with our personal health. Remarkably enough, deep...” Therefore, in this work at least, shamans documenting ayahuasca rituals, the power of conviction, or positive William James, widely regarded as the and collecting tens of thousands of plant thinking, on health was also recognized father of American psychology, was what specimens now deposited in the Harvard by William James, who called this the some would today call a phenomenologist University Herbaria. -cure, and he attributed the remark- (a concern with observations, case studies Schultes wrote about his discoveries able longevity and vigor of a friend and the like that may be contrasted with in scientific articles, influencing popular stricken with breast cancer to her ebul- purely theoretical approaches). authors from Aldous Huxley and William lient approach to life and all around her. Trained in medicine, William James Burroughs to Carlos Castaneda and Tim- Today, we know that the placebo effect first taught physiology at Harvard and othy Leary, who would then introduce can be strong enough to produce results had absorbed Darwin’s view of evolution them through books, magazine articles close to those of treatment, as evidenced and in particular, the observation that and interviews to the popular culture for example, by control groups that ubiquitous random variation sometimes of the 1960s. Aldous Huxley (grandson receive sham surgery. As Jackson Pol- leads to evolutionary innovations. James of Darwin’s champion, Thomas Hux- lock responded when he was once asked was a scientist but did not favor what he ley), had perhaps the greatest influence whether he was inspired by nature, “I am termed scientism—the position of some through his book detailing his experienc- nature.” We are nature. fellow intellectuals who demurred from es with mescaline, the active compound Sometime around 500 B.C., Hip- discussing certain subjects (presumably in peyote, that had been described earlier pocrates proposed that the brain is the such as religion) as being outside their by a German scientist as useful in study- source of the mind. The term conscious- discipline, and unscientific (he named H. ing the . ness itself was later defined by the English G. Wells and Bernard Shaw, among oth- Probably nearly as influential as Hux- philosopher as the “percep-

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it. is therefore a more or less rough sketch of , apparently evolved for processing complex and com- peting signals. Consider the cacophony of sounds around you right now—sounds of traf- fic, footsteps, air-conditioning or fans— depending on where you happen to be. We pay little attention to most of these, much of the time, and none at all in the moment that a voice calls our name or the phone rings. A familiar video of selective attention shows that onlookers watch- ing players passing a basketball do not even notice a gorilla dancing in the back- ground. The diversity and range of our human senses are just what is required to make our way. We have no particular need to see ultraviolet light as does a bird or butterfly, or to sense electrical impuls- es like a fish. Nevertheless, even within our limited ranges of detection, the infor- mation from any one of our five senses, if unfiltered, would quickly overwhelm our attention. Focused attention allows us to direct our neural resources towards processing one source at a time, enhancing depth of analysis, though at some evident cost of breadth of perception. One way to mini- mize this cost, of course, is to ignore some important stimuli only at the moment, but save the memory for processing later. Graziano believes that conscious- ness emerges from the neural machin- ery for selective attention. Recently, he Richard Schultes with a Shaman examining plant materials in the Colombian Amazon. has developed the (AST) that posits that animals tion of what passes in one’s own mind.” our senses, and of our bodies and memo- have evolved selective attention through Long the domain of philosophers, the ries, and we know we are aware of these sophisticated mechanisms for deep pro- concept has since expanded to include things. We are also aware of the cessing of some signals while ignoring the fields of psychology, neurobiology of others. There is nevertheless much others, and that consciousness is the and behavior. All these disciplines agree that is , however, things of result of the gradual evolution of such a that consciousness draws on our senses which we are not aware, and this is what system. Many examples of selective pro- for information about the world outside William James viewed as psychology’s cessing can be found at all levels in the of our minds, a world that provides the greatest discovery. As Graziano observes, nervous system, and overwhelming evi- context for imagining our own place awareness is a description of attention, dence now exists that consciousness is within it as well as the minds of others. and attention is a data-handling feature present in varying degrees across a wide As William James noted, consciousness of neurons in a brain. We can also pay range of animals, from frogs and lizards is not a thing but a process. attention to input without necessarily to birds and mammals. Awareness is an important aspect being aware of the act, in that our neu- Even in simple nervous systems, Gra- of the process of consciousness. We are rons are continually registering infor- ziano points out, neurons operate like aware of the information coming from mation without our being conscious of candidates in an election, each shout-

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ing its message, trying to suppress the brain layer called the cortex. The main others; only a few winning signals end difference between the tectum and the up influencing an animal’s behavior. For wulst/cortex is that tectum points the example, selective signal enhancement in sensory organs towards a stimulus while the retinal cells in the eyes of most ani- the wulst/cortex permits focused atten- mals permit detection of edges that in tion without necessary action. In a 2002 turn enables distinguishing the outline of Scientific American article, “The Problem forms. Receptors involved in touch and of Consciousness,” (noted hearing use signal enhancement in simi- for co-discovering the DNA double helix) lar ways. called this the spotlight of attention. The To enable selective attention among wulst/cortex can shift our attention from signals within and between senses, verte- ourselves to a bystander, a jet flying over- Taino stone zemi representing the god of cassava, Yucahu. The zemis would some- brate animals have a special brain area, head or any thought we wish, without times be planted in fields in ceremonies for called the tectum, that is a central con- overt movement on our part. In other crop productivity. troller, coordinating and orienting the words, the wulst/cortex permits virtual various sensory organs, eyes, ears and movement of attention from one thing to physiology through exercise, meditation, nose, towards important stimuli—per- another. exposure to outside stimuli or ingesting haps a loud noise or sudden movement, The attention schema, using Graziano’s substances with physiological effects. and enabling what is called overt atten- parlance, are the neural machinery used Indeed, much research on consciousness tion. To control the head and eyes, the for modeling the attentional state of oth- has involved evaluating the effects of such tectum constructs an internal model of ers as well as ourselves. The cues used can influences. the world, a simulation that allows input be body language, gaze direction, facial As Schultes observed, indigenous peo- and enables predictions. The tectum per- expressions, location of salient objects ples have been manipulating consciousness mits directed control of the major limbs and prior knowledge. Our inner experi- since prehistoric times, usually in the ser- and keeps track of where they are with ences of attention are like a moving image vice of divination or religion. On Hispan- respect to the outside world. When a frog projected on a monitor. The portrayal is iola, writing in 1496 on Columbus’ request, moves its head, it expects the perspective real enough to allow us to navigate but is Fray Ramón Pane recorded that the Tai- of the outside landscape to move as well. not the physical reality itself. Magritte’s no would use a snuff of ground, toasted It’s like a virtual reality simulation in the realistic painting of a pipe entitled “This is cohoba seeds (Anadenanthera peregri- brain that allows a frog or fish to control not a pipe,” is a famous recognition of this na), in ceremonies of healing or supplica- its movements in the environment. Fish duality. According to Karl Friston of Uni- tion to gods represented by carved stone and frogs know where they are in the versity College-London, the brain works zemis. This snuff is called yopo through- world. The energy cost in processing so by limiting our perception so as to per- out South America where it is still used much information is high, but evidently mit focus and attention. Perception and by indigenous peoples, including in the worth the price in terms of catching prey evaluation, then, are intertwined—we region from where the Caribbean Taino or avoiding predators. As Graziano points usually see what we expect to see (some- originated near the Orinoco River some out, the frog has a pretty good internal times quite literally—at the retinal blind four to six thousand years ago. Schultes model of itself, and, or course, we are spot that fills in from adjacent signals). reported its use by the Incas and archeo- more than frogs in many ways. Magicians take advantage of this and fool logical evidence of use from throughout The first vertebrates to fully colo- us through distraction into either seeing Central and South America. nize dry land were reptiles, including what is not there or not seeing what is in In the Doors of Perception, Aldous the ancestors of birds, and these added plain sight. We do rely on sophisticated Huxley’s 1954 influential volume, Hux- another brain layer, the wulst, on top internal models of the world that can ley suggested that perception is widened of the tectum as an enhanced controller. therefore be fooled but we can also learn. by psychoactive substances, permitting Rather than simply allowing a bird to Culture is ultimately biological because access to a wider range of information react to outside stimuli, such as pinpoint- we are biological beings with memories concerning the world, and in particular, ing a sudden sound or movement, the recorded by neurons, and conscious- setting the stage for a return of the sense wulst allows lizards and birds to register a ness, attention schema and perceptions of awe, a sense that is key to William stimulus while also permitting a range of shaped by experience and influencing James’ conception of religion. Indeed possible responses, such as fleeing, ignor- behavior that, in turn, can be remem- MIT Professor of Divinity Huston Smith ing, or just remembering the moment for bered. Humans (and some other animals) wrote that Huxley’s volume accurately future reference. can also manipulate consciousness with depicted the use of psychoactive sub- Mammals have added a similar new behaviors that influence our internal stances in ritual and religion by people

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around the world and throughout history with other humans. Our status as a pre- Princeton, and those such as Harvard’s and that it is possible that some religious eminently social species may have long Yun Zhang and Bence Olveczky who views had their origins therein, long since determined a peculiarly human degree research other animals, are building forgotten. To experience such religious of awareness. Indeed, E. O. Wilson has bridges between psychology and biology. revelations firsthand, Smith and beat suggested that ethics and morality are The brain science discoveries are writer William Burroughs participated evolutionary outcomes of natural selec- exciting to be sure, but are just the first in the experiments with hallucinogens tion for sociality. Our senses of right and scientific expeditions into territory first directed by Timothy Leary and Richard wrong, he suggests, correspond to acts mapped by the humanities. The concepts Alpert, then of the Harvard Department that benefit others over the self, a form of the arts, including social and political of Psychology. of altruism that would be highly benefi- sciences, highlight phenomena of human The use of plants and fungi in altering cial in a society comprised of small social culture and social interactions that sci- consciousness in religious and shamanic groups that depend on cooperation for ence would not be able to predict. The rituals no doubt operates through alter- survival. Certainly our ability to gauge future may hold an integrated approach ing the cortex control of these filters of the emotional states of others—drawing to understanding, incorporating the perception. Regardless of whether they on gaze, body language, tone of voice and approaches and phenomena today fall- actually enhance receptivity of clues prior knowledge—bespeaks an organism ing into one of the two great domains of helpful in diagnosing illness or are other- adept at social interaction. knowledge, but at present we can strive wise useful in interacting with the world, Shared cultural values, such as stan- to send each other messages in a lan- their use together with the sights, sounds dards of beauty (in symmetry, color guage that is understood by both sides, a and scents of ritual would be a powerful and proportion, for example), quality of lingua franca. reinforcement of belief by the partici- music (e.g., emotional content of minor We come back, in the end, to William pants. and major keys), as well as allegiance and James’ view of pragmatism. The mind William James viewed such strength identity with any group from the family and the world are inter-related to such a of belief as the basis of religion, a dimi- to tribe, neighborhood, country or ethnic degree that it is challenging to describe nution of self and adoption of an attitude group, for instance, all reinforce iden- one independently of the other. James’s of respect for the universe with a degree tity and the social aspects of awareness. view is that beliefs might better be judged of conviction that is, in itself, empower- There is increasing evidence that the neu- by their “fruits, not by their roots.” In oth- ing. James thought this faith was the rological basis of empathy may underlie er words, James was an experimentalist power of religion rather than the veracity our great sociability. Empathy is thought and thought that beliefs could be judged of a doctrine or particular truth or model to involve mirror neurons, neurons in an by their usefulness, just as any other about the universe. He felt that this con- observer that fire in response to aware- hypothesis. viction was shared by other ness of another’s activity (involving the “All models are wrong, but some are that also subjugate the self in service of same neurons), such as music, dance or useful.” So observed the pre-eminent a larger body, enterprises as disparate as sports. Mirror neurons also operate in quantitative modeler, George Box. I military service, music participation (see birds to coordinate duet-singing. Some might add that models can be useful in ReVista, Fall 2015) or scientific investi- animals, such as dogs, goats, crows and two ways, first as successive approxima- gations. Viewed this way, the soldier has dolphins can judge the emotional states tions to the truth, but also in provid- something in common with the religious, of others, including humans, by watch- ing a compass that lends overall direc- scientific and the artistic mind, each with ing the gaze, enabling them to ask for tion through the world, a path forward. a sense of awe of something grander than assistance in some tasks, for example, or George Santayana, a contemporary of the self, a sense that is empowering. returning to move a coveted object that William James, criticized what he felt Graziano suggests that awareness they are aware another may have seen was James’ uncritical promotion of arises from the interaction between self them hide. superstition because believing was the and other, via the attention schema; this Understanding consciousness is one most important thing. I think he missed is the process of consciousness according area in which the humanities and the the point. Nevertheless, awareness of to William James. Because the number sciences may do best to work together the biological roots of the mind, con- of such relationships are as many as there on research. Each side may discover and scious and subconscious, may also serve are things of which one is aware, one’s describe phenomena that may also be us well in empowering our own lives of self-awareness is a moving point in a approachable by the other. In this way, discovery. hyper-dimensional space of interactions. William James brought consciousness However dimensional our personal from a subject only of philosophy to one Brian D. Farrell is Professor of space of awareness in terms of objects, of psychology. Researchers in human Organismic and Evolutionary Biology it is multiplied by our relationships neurobiology like Michael Graziano at at Harvard University.

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