Rejecting arguments that the elusive philosophers' stone of alchemy and the Hindu elixir of life were mere legend, ethnobotanist Clark Heinrich makes a strong case that Amanita muscaria, the fly agaric mushroom, played both of these roles in world history. He traces its use in Vedic and Puranic religion-then shows how the same mushroom symbols found in Hindu scripture correspond to the symbols of ancient Judaism, Christianity, the Grail myths, and alchemy. With three 8-page color inserts; 40 b/w illustrations. September.