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-	{{Template}}	+	{{Template}} '''Kykeon''' (Gr. κυκεών, from κυκάω, "to stir, to mix") was an Ancient Greek drink made mainly of water, barley and naturally occurring substances. Mysteries say it was derived from ergot. It was used at the climax of the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]] to break a sacred [[Fasting|fast]], but it was also a favourite drink of Greek peasants.
-	'''Ergot''' is the common name of a [[fungus]] in the genus ''Claviceps'' that is parasitic on certain grains and grasses.	+
-	== History ==	+
-	Human poisoning due to the consumption of rye bread made from ergot-infected grain was common in Europe in the [[Middle Ages]]. The epidemic was known as [[Ergotism|Saint Anthony's fire]], or ''ignis sacer'', and some historical events, such as the [[Great Fear]] in France during the [[French Revolution|Revolution]] have been linked to ergot poisoning. [[Linnda R. Caporael]] posited in 1976 that the hysterical symptoms of young women that had spurred the [[Salem witch trials]] had been the result of consuming ergot-tainted rye. However, her conclusions were later disputed by Nicholas P. Spanos and Jack Gottlieb, after a review of the historical and medical evidence. Other authors have likewise cast doubt on ergotism having been the cause of the [[Salem witch trials]].	+
-	British author [[John Grigsby]] claims that the presence of ergot in the stomachs of some of the so called 'bog-bodies' ([[Iron Age]] human remains from peat bogs N E Europe such as [[Tollund Man]]) is indicative of use of ergot in ritual drinks in a prehistoric fertility cult akin to the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]] cult of ancient [[Greece]]. In his book ''[[Beowulf and Grendel (book)|Beowulf and Grendel]]'' he argues that the [[Anglo-Saxon]] poem [[Beowulf]] is based on a memory of the quelling of this fertility cult by followers of [[Odin]]. He states that Beowulf, which he translates as ''barley-wolf'', suggests a connection to ergot which in German was known as the 'tooth of the wolf'.	+	Kykeon is mentioned in [[Homer]]ic texts: the ''[[Iliad]]'' describes it as consisting of [[barley]], water, herbs, and ground goat cheese (XI, 638–641). In the ''[[Odyssey]]'', [[Circe]] adds some [[honey]] and pours her magic potion in it (X, 234). In ''The Homeric Hymn to Demeter'', the goddess refuses red wine but accepts kykeon made from water, barley and [[pennyroyal]].
-	[[Kykeon]], the beverage consumed by participants in the ancient Greek cult of [[Eleusinian Mysteries]], might have been based on hallucinogens from ergot, and [[lysergic acid diethylamide]] (LSD) is a potent [[hallucinogen]], which was first synthesized from ergot alkaloids by the Swiss chemist, [[Albert Hofmann]], in 1938.	+	It was supposed to have digestive properties. [[Hermes]] recommends it in [[Aristophanes]]' ''Peace'' (v. 712) to the hero who ate too much dry fruit and nuts. Aristocrats shunned it as a peasant drink. [[Theophrastus]] depicts in his ''Characters'' (IV, 2–3) a peasant whose [[thyme]] breath inconveniences his neighbours at the [[Ecclesia]].
		+
		+	In an attempt to solve the mystery of how so many people over the span of two millennia could have consistently experienced revelatory states during the culminating ceremony of the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]], it has been posited that the barley used in the Eleusinian kykeon was parasitized by [[ergot]], and that the psychoactive properties of that [[fungus]] triggered the intense experiences alluded to by the participants at Eleusis.
		+
		+	For more on the possibilities of the Kykeon's psychoactive properties, see [[Eleusinian Mysteries#Entheogenic theories|entheogenic theories of the mysteries]].
		+
		+	== Bibliography ==
		+
		+	* ''The Road to Eleusis: Unveiling the Secret of the Mysteries'' by [[R. Gordon Wasson]], Dr. [[Albert Hoffman]] (the inventor of [[Lysergic acid diethylamide|LSD]]) and Prof. [[Carl A. P. Ruck|Carl Ruck]]
		+
		+	* [[French language|French]] Armand Delatte, ''Le Cycéon, breuvage rituel des mystères d'Éleusis'', Belles Lettres, Paris, 1955
-	== See also ==
-	*[[Ergotism]]
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Kykeon (Gr. κυκεών, from κυκάω, "to stir, to mix") was an Ancient Greek drink made mainly of water, barley and naturally occurring substances. Mysteries say it was derived from ergot. It was used at the climax of the Eleusinian Mysteries to break a sacred fast, but it was also a favourite drink of Greek peasants.

Kykeon is mentioned in Homeric texts: the Iliad describes it as consisting of barley, water, herbs, and ground goat cheese (XI, 638–641). In the Odyssey, Circe adds some honey and pours her magic potion in it (X, 234). In The Homeric Hymn to Demeter, the goddess refuses red wine but accepts kykeon made from water, barley and pennyroyal.

It was supposed to have digestive properties. Hermes recommends it in Aristophanes' Peace (v. 712) to the hero who ate too much dry fruit and nuts. Aristocrats shunned it as a peasant drink. Theophrastus depicts in his Characters (IV, 2–3) a peasant whose thyme breath inconveniences his neighbours at the Ecclesia.

In an attempt to solve the mystery of how so many people over the span of two millennia could have consistently experienced revelatory states during the culminating ceremony of the Eleusinian Mysteries, it has been posited that the barley used in the Eleusinian kykeon was parasitized by ergot, and that the psychoactive properties of that fungus triggered the intense experiences alluded to by the participants at Eleusis.

For more on the possibilities of the Kykeon's psychoactive properties, see entheogenic theories of the mysteries.

Bibliography

• The Road to Eleusis: Unveiling the Secret of the Mysteries by R. Gordon Wasson, Dr. Albert Hoffman (the inventor of LSD) and Prof. Carl Ruck

• French Armand Delatte, Le Cycéon, breuvage rituel des mystères d'Éleusis, Belles Lettres, Paris, 1955