Why Reindeer Fly
Oh. So THAT's the reason. (The Bus 4.25)
Welcome aboard The Bus!
The Stop
At this time of year, it’s a ubiquitous image: Santa, in a sleigh filled with presents, being pulled across the night sky by a team of flying reindeer. Whether on greeting cards or on posters, in movies or television shows, in poems or in songs, for many people this image is one that shouts ‘Christmas!’ the loudest. But in a season where reason gets replaced too easily with magic and superstition, the origin of this objectively ludicrous image has an unusual - reasonable - history. It just happens to originate in indigenous northern Scandinavian shamanic beliefs … and the use of a very special fungus.1
The origins of Santa’s flying reindeer are linked to the Saami reindeer herders of northern Scandinavia.2 Recognising the reindeer’s strong affinity for the red-with-white-specked Fly Agaric or Amanita muscaria mushroom, the herders discovered sprinkling pieces of the fungus on the ground would allow them to guide the animals in any direction they wished. Containing the natural hallucinogens muscamol and ibotenic acid, along with the potent toxin muscarine, the reindeer became intoxicated by the mushroom and - at peak effect - would ‘leap about, giving the impression of flying'.3
It wasn’t only the animals who were flying, however, as shamans would use the powerful hallucinogenic properties of Amanita muscaria in their religious ceremonies. A ‘combination of healer, spiritual leader and psychologist, all rolled into one,’ a shaman would eat the mushroom and enter a ‘trance-like state of heightened awareness.’4 The ceremony would then begin in earnest by placing a stick upwards through the smoke hole of the shaman’s hut, in order to keep a clear passage for the shaman’s spirit to exit and enter.5 The shaman would also distribute pieces of the mushroom to his followers, dispensing them from a leather sack. According to some sources, the ‘association between these rituals and the mushroom was so strong that shamans decorated their fur clothing with red and white, the colours of the mushroom.’
Full ingestion of the mushrooms was never widespread because of their relative scarcity. Thus, when they were used, it would be for special occasions, usually around the winter solstice. At these times the ‘well-to-do’ would participate in the shaman’s gifts and then relieve themselves in the snow. The reindeer - already keen consumers of the mushroom - would be attracted by the yellow snow and 'vigorously’ lap it up, competing with the less-well-off natives who would collect the tainted snow, melt it, and drink the liquid as a way to enjoy a ‘magical experience’ while they ‘communed with nature on the night of the solstice.’
The result is pretty clear: (1) combine a cheerful man, in red and white fur, carrying a sack of gifts, with (2) hallucinating reindeer leaping and jumping around, witnessed (3) by people who themselves were under the influence of the Amanita muscaria. It certainly doesn’t take much effort to see how they might ‘hallucinate flying reindeer beneath a beautiful night sky in December.’ Over time, these beginnings of a ‘jolly old Santa and his ‘flying’ entourage,’ would mix with other beliefs and traditions to produced the ubiquitous image we know so well today.
The Detour
Today’s Detour is to an episode (19:06) of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert, this time showcasing the Icelandic musician Laufey. A classical musician who has started to release her jazz works, it’s a stunning production by a voice you feel you’ve known forever. If Icelandic music means only Björk or Sigur Rós, consider this a new adventure altogether. Definitely worth a watch - and then adding her to your playlist.
Laufey (NPR Tiny Desk Concert)
The Recommendation
Today’s Recommendation is - of course - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964). First aired on 6 December 1964 and a holiday staple ever since, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a stop-action animated television special based on the lyrics of the eponymous song from 1949 by Johnny Marks which was itself based on a 1939 poem by Marks’s brother-in-law, Robert L. May.6
Synopsis:
Santa's lead reindeer, Donner, and his wife have a new fawn named Rudolph - and are surprised to discover he has a glowing red nose. To help his son fit in with the others, Donner uses a fake nose to cover what he sees as an embarrassment. Unfortunately, during the reindeer games where the new fawns learn to fly and hopefully get chosen by Santa for sleigh duty, Rudolph’s excitement at being called ‘cute’ by Clarice, a young doe, causes his fake nose to fall off - and he’s mocked by the others and expelled from the games. This leads Rudolph onto a journey in which he meets Hermey, a misfit elf who wants to be a dentist, and Yukon Cornelius, a prospector. A run-in with the Abominable Snow Monster causes them to end up on the Island of Misfit Toys, where unloved or unwanted toys reside. Worried his nose is going to endanger his friends and the toys, Rudolph slips off on his own.
The long and the short: Rudolph eventually returns home and rescues his parents and Clarice from the Abominable Snow Monster. A massive snowstorm forces Santa to cancel Christmas, but when he sees Rudolph’s shining nose he asks him to lead the sleigh. Rudolph agrees, and their first stop is the Island of Misfit Toys, where Santa collects them all and delivers them to children around the world.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964) Trailer
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer streams on multiple platforms. And might even be broadcast on television at some point this season.
The Sounds
Today’s playlist is a selection of five great, atmospheric Christmas-related tracks: ‘A Christmas Song’ (Jethro Tull, 1968), ‘That’ll Be Christmas’ (Thea Gilmore, 2009), ‘I Believe in Father Christmas’ (Greg Lake, 1975), ‘Run With the Fox’ (Chris Squire, 1981) and ‘Christmas is Merry’ (Kate Rusby, 2019).7 Enjoy!
The Thought
Today’s Thought is from the British philosopher, mathematician, logician, and social reformer, Bertrand Russell:8
‘A hallucination is a fact, not an error; what is erroneous is a judgment based upon it.’
If you have a thought on this Thought - or any part of today’s issue - please leave a comment below:
And that’s the end of this Stop - I hope you enjoyed the diversion!
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Until the next Stop …
Though for some scholars the jury remains out with regard to completely verifying this theory, it has been gaining traction over the recent years. Sources for today’s Stop include Ancient Myths and Psychedelic Mushrooms (The Independent), The Origins of Santa ... Maybe (McGill University), The Interesting Connection Between Christmas and Mushrooms (Fantastic Fungi) and We Need to Talk About Rudolph (The Guardian).
For more information about the Saami, see: Saami (Britannica).
For more information about the Amanita muscaria, see The Bus Issue 1.43 (1 September 2022). It’s currently paywalled, but this will change from Christmas Day. On another note: this particular mushroom family contains - in addition to this hallucinogenic one - some of the world’s deadliest, so please don’t try to become a modern day Saami shaman. Unless you truly know what you’re doing, because in that case …. Seriously, though: some mushrooms can kill you, and the ‘death cap’ (Amanita phalliodes) and ‘destroying angel’ (Amanita virosa) will. NEVER eat a mushroom unless you know EXACTLY what it is - and this requires a knowledge of mycology you can’t get from books - much less webpages and mushroom-identification apps - alone.
Shamans held ‘generations of practical knowledge and years of experience. They believed they could use the mushrooms to travel to the spirit realm in search of answers to local problems, such as a sudden outbreak of illness.’ The active effect of the mushroom ‘gave the impression of flying out through the chimney of the shaman’s abode and travelling to the spirit world where they could seek advice.’
There is some evidence that it wasn’t just the shaman’s spirit that would enter through the roof, but the shamans themselves would enter ‘snow-blocked homes through an opening in the roof.’ Hmm.
May was an advertising copywriter for Montgomery-Ward and was tasked to produce an animal-based children’s book that could be given to shoppers and the result was Rudolph. It was an immediate hit with shoppers, and though copyright ownership proved a problem, May eventually convinced his brother-in-law to write a song which, once Gene Autrey decided to sing it, launched the story as we know it.
I say Christmas-related as the Greg Lake track wasn’t written as a Christmas song, but as a commentary on the commercialisation of Christmas with lyrics that reflect the loss of innocence and childhood belief. For further context, the B-side was ‘Humbug’. And as for the Jethro Tull track - I can’t believe I barely listen to them. The world needs more Tull.
For more about Russell, see: Bertrand Russell (Britannica).
Flying reindeer and a round, jolly man dressed in red and white and carrying a goody bag is only explainable by its shamanic mushroom ritual roots!