If we focus on the internal thespian drama of the hallucinogenic experience , we find that in traditional drug-using societies visions are culturally patterned. Th is phenomenon has been documented extensively in the anthropological literature (Dobkin de Rios 1973 b) and was first discussed by Wallace in 1959. Each member of a group in which hallucinogens are administered will have a set of visions which are shared among his fellows, evoked as it were by a shamanic guide whose role during the group experience is to create music, within a liturgical tradition , in order to summon culture-specific visions. The stereotypic visionary experience functions as an hallucinogenic script, at once individual and group derived. In addition, as mentioned earlier, many of the psychological and somatic effects of the plant hallucinogenic experience lend themselves to elaboration within the medium of drama. If, indeed, the use of hallucinogenic plants are as old as we surmise, the subjective effects of a highly expressive, emotional nature must have made some impact on the hunter, gatherer or incipient agriculturalist who valued direct personal revelation of the supernatural. Particularly, the polarities of emotional expression ranging from anguish to ecstacy reported so frequently in the literature should have been impressive. Certainly , some scholars have focused on the influence of plant hallucinogens on the origin of religion in general (La Barre 1972). It is difficult to take a position on this issue because the visionary experience induced by plant hallucinogens is closely related to specific beliefs, attitudes, values, expectations and images the individual brings with him to the experience. In all cases, hallucinogenic plant ritual among hunters and gatherers can be linked to a high valuation of one's capacity to manipulate and control supernatural forces rather than to submit to them .