Soma is both a ritual drink and a god in Vedic religion. Pressed from an unidentified plant, filtered and offered in the fire sacrifice, it was praised for granting vigor, insight and a sense of immortality. The entire ninth book of the Rigveda is devoted to it, and its Iranian counterpart, haoma, remains part of Zoroastrian worship.
Soma at a glance
| Tradition | Vedic religion; cognate haoma in Zoroastrianism |
|---|---|
| Main source | Rigveda, especially Mandala 9 (Soma Pavamana) |
| Name | From an Indo-Iranian root meaning "to press" |
| Botanical identity | Unknown; ephedra, fly agaric and others proposed |
| Later identification | The moon (Chandra) in post-Vedic Hinduism |
Soma in the Rigveda
Few subjects receive as much attention in the Vedas as soma. The ninth book of the Rigveda consists entirely of hymns to Soma Pavamana, "Soma purifying himself," composed to accompany the moment when the juice flows through a woolen filter into vessels. Many hymns in other books also praise soma, and it is closely associated with Indra, who drinks it before battling the serpent Vritra.
The word refers at once to a plant, the juice pressed from it and the god who embodies it. Hymns describe soma as a king, a poet, a bull and a bright drop, and credit it with inspiring the seers, strengthening the gods and bestowing long life. One well-known hymn (Rigveda 8.48) has the worshippers declare that they have drunk soma, become immortal and gone to the light.
The soma ritual
Soma was the most prestigious offering in the Vedic sacrificial system. According to the ritual texts, the plant stalks were soaked and pounded with stones, and the extracted juice was poured through a strainer of sheep's wool, then mixed with water and sometimes milk. Portions were offered to the gods and drunk by priests and the patron of the sacrifice. Elaborate soma sacrifices, such as the Agnishtoma, required several priests and lasted days.
By the time the Brahmanas were composed, the original plant seems to have become hard to obtain, and the texts permit substitutes. Priests in some South Indian communities still perform soma rituals using locally available plants, keeping the ceremonial form alive even though the identity of the ancient plant was forgotten.
Haoma: the Iranian counterpart
Soma has a direct counterpart in ancient Iran: haoma, a word from the same root. In the Avesta, haoma is both a sacred plant and a divine being, praised in a section of the Yasna liturgy known as the Hom Yasht. The parallel is one of the clearest signs of the shared Indo-Iranian inheritance also seen in pairs such as rta and asha.
Haoma is still prepared by Zoroastrian priests in the Yasna ceremony, where twigs of ephedra are pounded and mixed with water and other ingredients, and the consecrated liquid is offered in honor of Ahura Mazda. For Zoroastrians today this is a living rite rather than a historical curiosity.
What plant was soma?
The botanical identity of soma is one of the longest-running debates in Indology, and it remains unresolved. Proposals include:
- Ephedra, supported by its use in Zoroastrian haoma rituals and by some archaeological and philological arguments; scholars such as Harry Falk favored it.
- Fly agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria), proposed by R. Gordon Wasson in his 1968 book Soma: Divine Mushroom of Immortality, which attracted wide attention but also strong criticism.
- Harmal (Peganum harmala), psilocybin mushrooms, cannabis and other plants, each argued for by individual researchers.
The hymns describe effects that range from exhilaration to poetic inspiration, but they are religious poetry, not pharmacological reports, and any identification involves interpretation. Most specialists therefore state simply that the plant is unknown.
Later meanings and legacy
In post-Vedic Hinduism, Soma became identified with the moon, Chandra, imagined as a cup of the drink of immortality that the gods consume as it wanes and that refills as it waxes. Monday (Somavara) is named after him. The idea of a divine drink of immortality also connects soma with amrita, the nectar churned from the cosmic ocean in later myth.
In the modern West, soma became a symbol of chemically induced bliss, most famously in Aldous Huxley's novel Brave New World (1932), where it is a state-issued tranquilizing drug. Writers on psychedelics and on the origins of religion have repeatedly returned to it, sometimes with more enthusiasm than evidence. For comparable ideas of sacred substances, see the entries on the alchemical elixir in alchemy and on Ameretat, the Zoroastrian immortality.
Soma in comparative and esoteric thought
Comparative mythologists have long linked soma with other drinks of the gods, such as Greek ambrosia and nectar and the mead of poetry in Norse myth, as possible echoes of an older Indo-European theme. These comparisons remain speculative. In esoteric writing, soma has often been read symbolically, as an inner nectar or a state of illumination rather than a physical drink, an interpretation that has parallels in later yogic ideas of a nectar flowing from the head.
Related entries
Frequently asked questions
Was soma a hallucinogen?
Nobody knows. The hymns describe exhilaration and inspiration, and some researchers have proposed psychoactive plants such as fly agaric or psilocybin mushrooms. Others favor ephedra, a stimulant rather than a hallucinogen, pointing to Zoroastrian haoma practice. The identity of the original plant remains unresolved, and most specialists avoid firm claims.
What is the difference between soma and haoma?
Soma is the Vedic Sanskrit name and haoma the Avestan name of the same inherited sacred drink and deity. Both come from a shared Indo-Iranian root meaning "to press." Soma rituals largely faded in India, while haoma is still prepared by Zoroastrian priests, using ephedra, in the Yasna ceremony.
Why is Soma associated with the moon?
In later Hindu texts Soma was identified with the moon god Chandra. The moon was pictured as a vessel of the drink of immortality that the gods drink as it wanes and that fills again as it waxes. This lunar identification is post-Vedic and does not appear clearly in the early Rigveda.
Sources and further reading
This entry replaces an article from the original Mystica encyclopedia (online since 2001). It was rewritten from the sources above by The Mystica Editorial Team under our editorial standards. Last reviewed: September 30, 2026.