María Sabina was a Mazatec curandera (healer) from the small village of Huautla de Jiménez in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. She gained international recognition for using sacred psilocybin mushrooms in traditional healing ceremonies or “veladas.” The mushrooms were known as niños santos or “holy children” by the Mazatec people. During ceremonies, Sabina would enter a trance-like state, enabling her to communicate with the spirit world to seek guidance and healing for those attending the ceremony.