Why do Santa's reindeer know how to fly?

The story of Santa Claus and flying reindeer may involve a hallucinogenic mushroom or 'magic' mushroom.

>>>Why Santa's reindeer nose is red

'Santa is a modern replica of a magician who often uses plants that can change his perception to speak with the spiritual world , ' said John Rush, an anthropologist and preacher. said Sierra College in Rocklin, California.

Under the assumption, the legend of Santa Claus originates from the group of magicians in Siberia and the Arctic region with visits to local homes in late December and a bag full of hallucinogenic mushrooms as a gift.

'A few hundred years ago, shamans and priests often collected Amanita muscaria (the Basidiomycete poisonous mushroom of the genus Amanita, famous for its hallucinogenic properties, with the composition of muscimol compounds), dried. they are used as gifts in winter solstice , "Rush said.

'Because at this time, the snow often falls very much, blocking the main entrance so they have to enter the house from the backup on the roof, the story of the chimney also originated there'.

But according to some historians, psychologists and experts study the effects of the fungi that once appeared in human society, which is just the beginning of the symbolic connections between Amanita muscaria and Christmas mushrooms. . Of course, not everyone agrees that the story of Santa is associated with an illusion.

In the book 'Mushrooms and Mankind' (2003), author James Arthur points out that Amanita muscaria is a native species in temperate and northern regions of the Northern Hemisphere, living under coniferous trees and birch trees. in symbiotic form, there are red spots of white spots.

This partly explains the presence of pine trees with red and white gifts underneath the original on Christmas day. Moreover, reindeer is a popular species in Siberia. Donald Pfister, a biologist specializing in mushroom research at Harvard University, says using this hallucinogenic fungus makes the Siberian tribe think reindeer can fly.

Santa's reindeer

Also in this book, Arthur wrote Santa's sleigh and reindeer as images of Norse mythology. For example, Thor had flown in a car with two goats. In modern-day stories, this image transforms into Santa's reindeer, in which the reindeer with the nose is like a red mushroom in charge of guiding other children.

However, there are many other historians who disagree with the connection between Santa and the magician or the magic mushroom, including Stephen Nissenbaum, the author of the book on the origin of customs on Christmas day, and Penne Restad, from the University of Texas.

They say that the 'mushroom - Santa' hypothesis is unfounded. 'If you look at the evidence of the Samaritan religion in Siberia, you will see that magicians do not walk by sleighs, the more they are unrelated to reindeer, rarely use mushrooms to hypnotize, nor There are red and white clothes'.