Entheogens along human history have been used in a ritualized context and their religious significance is well established and documented with anthropological and academic literature.

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Entheogens as we mentioned before have been used worldwide by indigenous peoples for thousands and thousands of years. In some countries there are legislations that allows for traditional entheogen use. However, in the mid-XX century, after the discovery of LSD by Alfred Hoffman, and the development of psychedelic therapy, the term entheogen (which was invented in 1979) became an ambiguous term used to include artificial drugs as well, some alternative medical treatment, and spiritual practices, regardless or not in a formal religious or traditional experience.

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Examples of traditional entheogens include psychedelics like psilocybin mushrooms, iboga, peyote, and ayahuasca; atypical hallucinogens like Amanita muscaria or Salvia Divinorum and; quasi-psychedelics like Cannabis; and deliriants like the dangerous datura (Datura Stramonium).