Archaeologists Identify Traces Cannabis in Ancient Jewish Shrines

Archaeologists Identify Traces Cannabis in Ancient Jewish Shrines(smithsonianmag.com)

23 points by lerie1982 5 years ago | 23 comments

nsajko 5 years ago |

The same research was discussed two days ago: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23387374

My understanding is that medieval Rabbis (notably the Maimonides) explicitly discuss cannabis consumption and its psychological effects. The plant also gets some discussion in the Talmud but in the context of its use in fabric and as candle wick. It is speculated that certain plants mentioned in the Torah refer to cannabis but these strike me as a little tenuous. At the very least the use of cannabis as an intoxicant does not seem to be explicitly mentioned in the Torah. So I wonder, if it was commonly used for that purpose in the ancient middle east, why little to no mention of this? I mean, there is a mountain of detail about all the other minutiae of ancient custom.

pochamago 5 years ago |

For some reason I was under the impression that cannabis was a new world plant, but apparently it hails from Asia.

grawprog 5 years ago | |

Yeah, it grows wild in many Asian countries and in places like Japan, they're mostly unaware the wild variety is the same as the illegal variety.

https://soranews24.com/2014/12/03/in-hokkaido-theres-weed-we...

And there's a reason why there's a strain called Hindu kush(or I guess any variety called kush) it's named for the Hindu kush mountain region. It's been a huge part of Tibetan, Nepalis and Indian culture for thousands of years.

Anyone who's interested in the cultivation of cannabis or the historical production of hashish in thoseareas and the middle east should check out these books

http://www.thegreatbooksofhashish.com/

Especially if they're interested in seeing amazing photos of forests of 12 foot ganja trees in the Himalayan mountains where monks produce hash by walking through the ganja forests and brushing their hands through the trees to collect resin in the way they have for hundreds of years. Or seeing regions of Afghanistan where hash production went on for at least 1000 years before Russia and America's invasions of them essentially destroyed a millenia old trade.

Looking at some of those photos really connects you with the near prehistoric connection people have with cannabis in a way I haven't seen many other things do.

It really is a great theft to humanity what's occurred in recent history with it.

TheSpiceIsLife 5 years ago | | |

> the wild variety is the same as the illegal variety.

The distinction being, of course: the wild variety becomes the illegal variety as soon as someone has it in their possession or cultivates it.

mrlonglong 5 years ago | | |

Hindu Kush! Nice mellow stuff.

kylek 5 years ago | |

A (rather infamous? I recall a ton of controversy about it) wikipedia article for you:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charas

flyGuyOnTheSly 5 years ago | | |

What is controversial about Charas?

jackcosgrove 5 years ago | |

I was too, but then I remembered that the Assassins (Hashshashins) reportedly used hashish in their rituals and were contemporaneous with the crusades.

toomanybeersies 5 years ago |

I've always had a pet theory that Judaism (and thus Christianity and Islam) had its roots in psilocybin mushrooms and cannabis, especially the book of Exodus. One of my Israeli friends always jokes that the story of Moses and the burning bush was actually about Moses smoking a joint, and if you imagine that Moses ate magic mushrooms when he walked up Mt Sinai, the story makes a lot more sense.