ABSTRACT
Psychoactive substances are a rich analytical category for the study of historical and cultural processes. An understanding of their origins and patterns of use, whether transhistorical and comparative or within delimited historical periods and cultural settings, provides a unique insight into social and political life, as the essays in this volume demonstrate. We see these substances, first of all, as commodities that have similarities to other commodities studied by scholars; hence we have addressed issues relating to production, trade and consumption. Second, a better knowledge of these peculiar substances can contribute to the history of scientific and especially medicinal knowledge in different societies. Third, their study provides insights into the ritual and symbolic expressions of social and political order and thereby are related to issues of power and its distribution. Finally, the exploration of the history and anthropology of psychoactive substances opens a window into culture, especially religious expression and the process of secularization, as substances became popularized and disassociated from religion.
