A History of Cannabis Use in Different Cultures and Parts of the World

The discussion surrounding cannabis and its merits has become a global phenomenon. The United States seems a lot more open to the legalization of marijuana, with several states having already decriminalized or outright legalized the practice.

In Europe, the situation is much the same. There are several countries where marijuana is free to use, recreationally or for medical purposes. However, the question we’d like answered is this; for how long have humans been using cannabis, and what were the different reasons?

The Origins of Cannabis

It is difficult to say exactly which regions of the world cannabis is native to. Many scientists, botanists, and historians believe that the plant’s origins can be traced to Central Asia, particularly the regions of Mongolia and Siberia. Archeologists with a particular interest in these regions have discovered some evidence, suggesting that the plant was first cultivated and used over 12,000 years ago.

It is impossible to know what all of the uses for cannabis were during this time. It is only recently that most western nations have legalized the use and growing of cannabis. With modern tools to help home growth, we can start to uncover all of the different uses for the cannabis plant. However, it can be tough to determine what the uses were thousands of years ago.

Still, archeologists have managed to uncover at least some of the different uses. For example, we know that in the Altai Mountains of Central Asia, tribal and nomadic societies used the plant in a mourning ritual. Piles of cannabis would be placed on a grave, and then burned. The smoke might have been seen as the spirit of the departed being released.

Cannabis in Rituals

The use of cannabis in religious or spiritual rituals continued throughout history. Even today, many smokers claim that they’ve experienced “spiritual awakening” while partaking in marijuana usage. Though we know that Central Asian tribes used it in mourning, there is no evidence to suggest that they would inhale the smoke, in an attempt to get to some sort of religious epiphany.

The evidence of that being the case, however, comes from India, where cannabis played a role in a variety of religious rituals and practices. The Atharva Veda, a sacred Hindu text mentions “bhang” (the ancient Indian word for cannabis) as one of the five sacred plants, associated with the Hindu deity Shiva. India is also the first civilization where we can find written evidence of marijuana smoking.

Evidence of cannabis being used in religious or mystical rituals can also be found in the Middle East, during the early years of Islam. Sufi mystics would regularly partake in smoking the plant, called Hashish, which is the origin of the modern slang term “hash.” However, cannabis use in the Middle East was much more widely associated with social pleasantries, which we will get to further in this article.

Cannabis as Medicine

The de-stigmatization of marijuana in the modern world can largely be attributed to the studies proving that the plant can help with certain physical and mental illnesses. Medical marijuana, for example, has shown to have a positive effect on persons suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, different forms of cancer, and mental disorders such as social anxiety, clinical depression, etc.

While many believe that these discoveries are entirely new, the truth is that humans have known about the medicinal power of the plant since the ancient world. In fact, evidence of marijuana being used medicinally comes from China, where it was used to treat different maladies, from joint paint to migraines.

It is worth noting that there is no direct evidence that cannabis was smoked in China. Rather, it was applied as ointment on the skin, or was ingested in the form of tea. The evidence for such uses of the marijuana plant can be found in the ancient Chinese text, Shennong Bencaojing, a medical text dating back to the first and second century.

Even today, marijuana is used frequently in the pharmaceutical and medical industries. Before its legalization, a strain of the plant was used to create creams and ointments, meant to treat joint pain. The strain used for these creams involved the removal of THC, which is the chemical in marijuana that results in a feeling of “high.”

Recreational Cannabis

We hinted before that the first evidence of cannabis being used recreationally comes from India. Not only did the ancient Indians drink cannabis tea, they also smoked the plant in pipes. The truth, however, is that there is no real evidence that they did so recreationally. Perhaps the pipes were used during specific rituals, and the tea was ingested only on certain holidays.

On the other hand, we are quite aware that, during Islam’s early years, Middle Easterners would frequently partake in hashish during social gatherings. The plant would be smoked from а hookah, or a waterpipe. Today, some might draw a parallel between the hookah and the bong, and find that there is quite a bit of a similarity.

Arab traders brought marijuana to Africa and to Europe. In Africa, “dagga” is still being smoked to this day by tribal people medicinally and recreationally. In Europe, marijuana was introduced during the Middle Ages, thanks to trade routes established with the Moors. However, during this time, the plant was not used recreationally.

It wasn’t until the 19th century that the Europeans discovered the recreational use for cannabis, by observing colonized people in North Africa, India, and the Middle East. On the mainland, smoking marijuana quickly became a popular pastime. The famous “Hashish Club” formed in Paris during this time, which saw members like Charles Baudelaire, a famous French poet of the era.

The Prohibition on Cannabis

The early 20th century saw a rise in prohibition movements surrounding both alcohol and marijuana. Of course, we all know how prohibition on alcohol went in the United States. However, the prohibition on marijuana managed to stick, and there are still plenty of countries to this day that ban any and all marijuana use.

However, a recent rise in anti-prohibition movements seems to be quite effective. Three countries in the European Union have legalized cannabis for personal use, and plenty more have decriminalized smoking the plant. We may just see a future where marijuana is free to use worldwide.

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