Why do people take psilocybin?

Mushrooms have been taken in religious rituals in indigenous cultures in Mexico and Central America for thousands of years. Recreational users today take them as a hallucinogen that is considered gentler and more natural (less chemical) than LSD. Users report feelings of mild euphoria and tingling physical sensations. They also report increased sensitivity to music and visual sensations. Small doses (4 to 8 mg.) produce effects within half an hour which continue for 4 to 5 hours and may include mental and physical relaxation, tiredness, a sense of separateness from surroundings, feelings of physical heaviness or lightness, mood swings and perceptual distortions.