THE LOST MUTI

AN UNTOLD STORY OF FUNGI IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

About

could south africa not only be

the cradle of human kind,

but the cradle of spirituality too.

JOIN THIS INCREDIBLE PROJECT TO TELL

THE LONG FORGOTTEN HISTORY OF FUNGI

IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

TIME LINE

JULY 2024

GARNER MEDIA HYPE

SEP 2024

LAUNCH FUNDRAISER

SEP 2024

FIELDWORK CONTINUES

OCT 2025

BOOK IS COMPILED

FEB 2026

GLOBAL LAUNCH

WE ARE

CURRENTLY

HERE

There is a void in our literature, a gaping chasm of uncertainty - why do we turn to other nations and their

history of fungi when telling the story of mushrooms & man, we look to the Incredible Civilisations of South America, Europe, & Siberia but fail to mention the cradle, the birthplace of humanity, is it because our people don’t

and never have used mushrooms or more simply, is it because no one has taken the time to look. I have dedicated the last 5 years of my life to finding undeniable proof of the use of fungi by indigenous tribal people of Southern Africa. I have travelled thousands of kilometers, spoken to several hundred diviners and traditional healers, combed

through early settler diaries, and even pieced together ancient long forgotten manuscripts all to better tell the

story of what really happened here between Fungi & early Hunter Gatherers. Help me on this journey as we tell

the story of how modern tribal people use fungi for gourmet, therapeutic & entheogenic reasons in

Southern African , as well as unearth a

long forgotten secret, a hidden practice not written in books or letters, but painted on the walls of the past - and lost to the annuls of time

What the project will entail

OVER 300 NEVER BEFORE DOCUMENTED ROCKART DEPICTIONS OF FUNGI HAVE BEEN FOUND

A FIRST OF ITS KIND

BOOK DOCUMENTING

ALL FINDINGS &

STORIES

CREATION OF MONOGRAPHS ON SA FUNGI,INDIGENOUS NAMES, USES, RECIPES & MORE

CLICK TO SEE A 3RD IMAGE

NEW SPECIES

DISCOVERIES & COMPOUND FRACTIONATION WILL

TAKE PLACE

How the funding will be allocated

we need to raise $35k (R633,600)

for my team & I to spend the next 12 months

dedicated to documenting everything

we possibly can on the use of fungi in sa

ONCE OFF $15 DONATION (R266)

Basic to make this happen

Flight & fuel costs per month $281 (R5000)
Accommodation +- 7 days per month $196 (R3500)
Translator & offering costs per month $112 (R2000)
Website setup and hosting per month $16 (R300)
Salary for Cullen to create blogs, articles, papers & research/compile book $548 (R10 000)

= WE NEED A TOTAL OF $14,043 (R249,600)

ONCE OFF $30 DONATION (R533)

Above & Beyond

Accomplish all of tier 1
Salary for admin, accounts & social media manager per month $548 (R10 000)
Salary For Creative Manager per month $548 (R10 000) (photographs & videos)
Additional flight & fuel cost for creative manager per month $225 (R4000)

= WE NEED A TOTAL OF $30,246 (R537,600)

This would make my world

ONCE OFF $36 DONATION (R639)

Accomplish all of tier 1
Accomplish all of tier 2
We can increase translator & offering costs substantially every month $225 (R4000)
Chemistry R&D can be conducted on each species every month $225 (R4000)

= WE NEED A TOTAL OF $35,646 (R633,600)

For the love of Fungi

STRETCH GOAL

Accomplish all of tier 1
Accomplish all of tier 2
Accomplish all of tier 3

This final tier is a dream, but by no means necessary at this stage in telling this story.

Any additional funds will be used to bolster the project, to look closer, travel further and enquire more. I will be able to do multiple expeditions per month & visit areas not in my scope for cost reasons. Further funding will also be allocated to projects with a wider reach that can help teach the world about the fungi of SA, like the establishment of a simple culture library for SA medicinal species in the hopes of preserving valuable specimens for future researchers (allowing scientists in the future an opportunity to discover new novel medicines from wild strains). Perhaps even a fungarium or first of its kind (in SA) museum to display my findings or even orchestrating a 2 week fungal expedition for backers, walk where I walked and learn about these fungi in my homeland. I have many more ideas, but these will be figured out and announced should we surpass the $35K funding amount

Supporter Incentives

ACCESS TO THE BOOK BEFORE ANYONE ELSE

As an free E-Book or as an autographed copy

at a discounted price

this research is changing history

I was asked to participate on a landmark research paper, that would solidify the Basotho people as the first tribe documented to use psychedelic mushrooms to access altered states of consciousness .

My research was paramount in discovering that this new mushroom grows in the highlands of Lesotho, and the local diviners & healers use it for diagnosing maladies, accessing transcendental spaces & as a therapeutic for many afflictions - this is a clear indication that there is knowledge waiting to be discovered, we need only look

I know that with your help & donations we can write many more papers on new undiscovered species & their uses

read the paper here

never before documented data

Throughout my travels i've recorded the most incredible information. For the longest time our academic literature has documented little to no uses of fungi in southern African tribal people - We're going to take up the mantle

Not only has this project brought to light dozens of previously unknown uses of fungi by healers & diviners, but we've also for the very first time documented Indigenous Names, recipes, Belief systems, Rituals & more

Your donation can help me and my team travel further, speak to more people, decipher early bantu records and discover knowledge locked away from the general public in archives & universities all around our nation

we were mushroom loving people

Perhaps the most extraordinary finding i've made to date is outlined in my hypothesis that our ancient ancestors that walk these lands revered fungi of all types. Perhaps they used them for food, for medicine, and to commune with the divine, to peer into the spirit world

In order to pass down their knowledge of these amazing mushroom allies our people needed to keep record, and what better place than rock that would stand the test of time. I believe i've found hundreds of depictions of potential mushroom iconography in our rock art dating back well over 11 000 years.

With your support I can travel and document these fascinating artworks in person and decipher once and for all if they do in fact depict fungi

we revered gold & maybe mushrooms

I've found potential artifacts resembling mushrooms whilst sifting through records of the ancient site called mapungubwe

There are also illustrations by the early excavators showcasing pottery & statues that too look extraordinarily similar to known fungal varieties that grow in this area

With your help we can go through these archives that are locked away to anyone other than researchers, we can shine a light on this 949 year old civilisation and see for certain if they revered not only Rhinos, Lions & Gold - But Mushrooms too

As part of my commitment to transparency and accountability, I want to assure all donors that this project will be conducted with the highest standards of integrity.

A dedicated company will be registered to oversee the project & all endeavours that transpire from this - It will be called "The Better World Foundry", this company will ensure that all funds are managed appropriately. The project’s bank transactions and financial statements will be made accessible to all donors, allowing everyone the ability to monitor the flow of funds and verify that every Rand is allocated to its intended purpose. This approach guarantees that your generous support is utilized effectively and that no funds are misplaced. Your trust is paramount, and I am dedicated to maintaining complete transparency throughout this journey.

Additionally all individuals responsible for contributing to the findings of the research ( healers, diviners, researchers, harvester etc..) will be recorded and listed within the final copy of the book to ensure appropriate gratitude for their knowledge, this ensure I am just the mouth piece for this work, the true appreciation should lay with these individuals instead - that is a priority.

SOME OF THE PIONEERS &
PUBLICATIONS THAT HAVE
SHARED MY WORK
(p.maluti/research), IF YOU'D LIKE
TO HELP ME STREAD THE
MESSAGE IN THE FORM OF AN
ARTICLE, INTERVIEW, PODCAST
OR MORE PLEASE GET IN
CONTACT

ADDITIONALLY, I CANNOT DO
THIS ALONE SO IF YOU FIND MY
WORK COMPELLING & WISH TO
ASSIST OR PARTICIPATE IN THE
FORM OF A PAPER OR ACADEMIC
ARTICLE PLEASE FEEL FREE TO
GET IN CONTACT, I'D BE OVER-JOYED TO COLLABORATE
& CO-AUTHOR

INFO@LOSTMUTI.COM

CULLEN TAYLOR CLARK

My story has wound from youth to adulthood with more that a few twists & turns, some bizarre enough that they would not be misplaced in a TV show, others difficult but perfect , all of them instrumental though in forging the man I am today.

Along that journey gifts were bestowed upon me that were pivotal in steering the course of my life. To name but a few: My 2 mother's & several maternal figures kindness for those in need. My grandmother igniting in me a love for nature. My Grandfathers devotion to knowledge acquisition left me eager for understanding and the 3 father figures that bore that duty, each taught me many things - boiled down they allowed me to glimpse the man I wished to be. I have lived many lives, and dabbled in a fair few professions - but it's all been underpinned by a single desire to do good, or better yet - to be a FORCE for good in this world.

I am one of the Co-Founders & the Visionary Head of Aether Apothecary, a bioceutical API manufacturer in South Africa geared to helping SMME's bring their natural medicine, food, beverage or cosmetic product to life, we are focussed on the establishment of new fungal based industry that can bring innovative products to market whilst uplifting the communities that make our work possible. I have brought several brands/products to fruition with many more on the way. Additionally my career has been blessed with the opportunity to collaborate with leading South African universities on projects like new compound identification as well as new fungal species discovery. This all culminates (I believe) in me being the ideal person to tell this incredible story, as my passions are diverse, my love for fungi unwavering, my character steadfast and my motives pure, as you come with me on this journey I hope you'll see that.

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