María Sabina, Woman of the Spirit

María Sabina is a Mexican indian. She was born in 1894 according to the church records Huautla, Oaxaca. Huautla is inhabited by Mazatecan indians. They preserve the ancient religious ritual of eating mushrooms in nocturnal ceremonies. These are provided by a shaman. Shamanism has existed in Mexico since pre-Colombian times. María Sabina is a shaman. She uses mushrooms to communicate with tribal gods. R. Gordon Wasson discovered her in 1955. She has given rise to a new discipline: ethnomycology. (KG)