Every human society in history has either created an alcoholic beverage or found some substance to alter our mood. We seem to know/love the idea of "getting high."

I guess that thousand of years ago it was more of a steep learning curve with regard to the hallucinogenic effects of plants which came to play a part in early religious rituals.

Carlos Castaneda Opens the Door

The first introduction to the Toltec mysteries for many readers was the book by anthropologist and author Carlos Castaneda, The Teachings of don Juan—a Yaqui Way of Knowledge, published in 1968. Ten more books followed, based on Castaneda’s experiences with the Nagual don Juan Matus in the desert of northern Mexico. Since then, many authors have written about the Toltec tradition, some from direct experience, and others from past lives, apprenticeships, or other connections. As the Toltec wisdom leaves the realm of the secret mystery schools and enters into the light of modern culture, it is both enhanced by other traditions and diluted by individual teacher’s personal opinions. Some teachers have been seduced away from the power of the teachings by the excitement of using psychotropic plants, while others may be attracted to accumulating power and forgetting their original desire for freedom.

Of course they have.

They might have known something...