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2700 year old Alters found in ancient Israeli shrine reveal traces of cannabis -

Gypsy Nirvana

Recalcitrant Reprobate -
Administrator
Veteran
This is the first time cannabis has been identified in the Ancient Near East,' said lead author Dr Eran Arie, of the The Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

'Its use in the shrine must have played a central role in the cultic rituals performed there.'

Dr Arie claims the discovery is the earliest evidence of cultic use of cannabis in the world and the first known evidence of hallucinogenic substance found in the Kingdom of Judah.

Since no cannabis seeds or pollen remains have been found, Dr Arie and co author believe the plant was imported from distant origins and transported as dried resin, commonly known as hashish.

'Since the fortress at Arad is rather limited in size, and the courtyard of the shrine might have use for the gathering of all the population of the fortress, one can imagine that everybody who dwelt in the fortress took part in the religious ceremonies in the shrine,' he said.
'However, since the altars were found inside the 'holy of holies' of the shrine, we cannot say for sure how many people were affected from the hallucinogenic effect of the cannabis.'

Tel Arad, an archaeological mound in southern Israel's Negev desert west of the Dead Sea, was a major city and fortress.
Unearthed in the 1960s, it included an outer courtyard and inner 'holy of holies' – an inner sanctuary in the presence of God where animals were slaughtered for sacrifice.

The smaller alter again, from a different view. Both shed new light on cult practices in biblical Judah, suggesting cannabis was used here as a deliberate psychoactive, to stimulate ecstasy as part of cultic ceremonies

Past excavations revealed two superimposed fortresses, dating to the 9th to early 6th centuries BC, which guarded the southern border of the Kingdom of Judah.

Highly important Iron Age finds were unearthed, including a well-preserved shrine that was dated to around 750 to 715 BC.
The altars – the smaller of which is about 15.7 inches high and the larger around 19.6 inches – were found lying at the entrance to the 'holy of holies' of the shrine.

Dark organic material preserved on their surface has been scanned, almost six decades later.

The original 'holy of holies' of the shrine at Arad is on display in the Israel Museum, Jerusalem, where it was also sampled for this research

On the smaller altar, a range of cannabinoids – natural compounds in the cannabis plant – had been mixed with animal dung to help the drug burn.

Analysis identified traces of THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol), the psychoactive constituent that makes users feel 'high', as well as the pain reliever CBD (cannabidiol).

On the larger alter, meanwhile, they found chemical compounds indicative of frankincense, which had been mixed with animal fat to fuel its evaporation.

Frankincense is the resin of the Boswellia sacra – a small tree found in Oman, Yemen and Somalia.

Dr Arie said its presence at Arad also indicates the participation of Judah in the south Arabian trade much earlier than previously believed.
Arad also provides the earliest evidence for frankincense in a clear cultic context, according to the research team.

The fact only one substance was associated with each altar suggests that each was used over again for the same substance, indicating repeated use.

'The plants detected in this study can serve as an extra-biblical source in identifying the incense used in cultic practices not only at Arad but also those elsewhere in Judah, including Jerusalem,' said Dr Arie.

'The Bible only relates to incense for its agreeable fragrance – frankincense is mentioned as a component of the incense that was burnt in the Temple of Jerusalem for its pleasant aroma,' said Dr Arie.

'The presence of cannabis at Arad testifies to the use of mind-altering substances as part of cultic rituals in Judah.'
The findings, including a full list of chemical compounds found on the alters, have been published in the journal Tel Aviv.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/scie​nc...ish-temple-used-cannabis-an​alysis-shows.html
 

Ready4

Active member
Veteran
Ancient OG for sure ! : > )
Seems like many of the Old testament/torah stories were created by some very stoned folks ! lol
 

Kalbhairav

~~ ॐ नमः शिवाय ~~
Veteran
Not in the least bit surprised.
The modern concept of religion has a lot more boundaries and creeds than it used to. Tibet is another example. Before the monastic tradition took hold, the rites and practices were whole lot more shamanic.

Shamanic tribal practices involve a great deal of plant usage of many kinds. Taking any number of plants to slip past the veil is kinda normal in many early/ancient religions.

Great find Gypsy :)
 

MindEater

Member
Since no cannabis seeds or pollen remains have been found, Dr Arie and co author believe the plant was imported from distant origins and transported as dried resin, commonly known as hashish.

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In contrast to the claims of Herodotus: "when, therefore, the Scythians have taken some seed of this hemp, they creep under the cloths and put the seeds on the red hot stones; but this being put on smokes, and produces such a steam, that no Grecian vapour-bath would surpass it. The Scythians, transported by the vapour, shout aloud"

Appears absolutely none of that man's information was first hand!

I wonder if Cannabis was in Thieves oil, or those plague masks with the bird noses?
 

Cvh

Well-known member
Supermod
I wonder if Cannabis was in Thieves oil, or those plague masks with the bird noses?
That was all in medieval Europe if I'm not mistaken.

I think during that time in Europe only the European hemp was available. Not the drug kind.
I don't think much hash was brought into Europe in that era either.
 

trichrider

Kiss My Ring
Veteran
KANEH-BOSM

THE ROOTS OF KANEH-BOSM

The first solid evidence of the Hebrew use of cannabis was established in 1936 by Sula Benet, a little known Polish etymologist from the Institute of Anthropological Sciences in Warsaw.’
The word cannabis was generally thought to be of Scythian origin, but Benet showed that it has a much earlier origin in Semitic languages like Hebrew, and that it appears several times throughout the Old Testament. Benet explained that “in the original Hebrew text of the Old Testament there are references to hemp, both as incense, which was an integral part of religious celebration, and as an intoxicant.”
Benet demonstrated that the word for cannabis is kaneh-bosm, also rendered in traditional Hebrew as kaneh or kannabus. The root kan in this construction means “reed” or “hemp”, while bosm means “aromatic”. This word appears five times in the Old Testament; in the books of Exodus, the Song of Songs, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.
The word kaneh-bosm has been mistranslated as calamus, a common marsh plant with little monetary value that does not have the qualities or value ascribed to kaneh-bosm. The error occurred in the oldest Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint
in the third century BC, and was repeated in the many translations that followed.”


copied from another cannabis site...not gonna spam the link here.
 

funkyhorse

Well-known member
KANEH-BOSM

THE ROOTS OF KANEH-BOSM

The first solid evidence of the Hebrew use of cannabis was established in 1936 by Sula Benet, a little known Polish etymologist from the Institute of Anthropological Sciences in Warsaw.’
The word cannabis was generally thought to be of Scythian origin, but Benet showed that it has a much earlier origin in Semitic languages like Hebrew, and that it appears several times throughout the Old Testament. Benet explained that “in the original Hebrew text of the Old Testament there are references to hemp, both as incense, which was an integral part of religious celebration, and as an intoxicant.”
Benet demonstrated that the word for cannabis is kaneh-bosm, also rendered in traditional Hebrew as kaneh or kannabus. The root kan in this construction means “reed” or “hemp”, while bosm means “aromatic”. This word appears five times in the Old Testament; in the books of Exodus, the Song of Songs, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.
The word kaneh-bosm has been mistranslated as calamus, a common marsh plant with little monetary value that does not have the qualities or value ascribed to kaneh-bosm. The error occurred in the oldest Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint
in the third century BC, and was repeated in the many translations that followed.”


copied from another cannabis site...not gonna spam the link here.
I disagree with this. The meaning of kneh is cane, like sugar cane. I never heard sugar reed. Bosm means perfume. I find the kaneh bosem myth highly unlikely, it sounds like some way to call incense, but it could be any cane with some perfume.

I agree with this guy about this subject:
https://www.ancient-hebrew.org/studies-words/facts-about-kaneh-bosem.htm
 

funkyhorse

Well-known member
Maybe it took so long to load the page
Hi willi
Master SamS was talking about the Tel Arad shrine, I was answering what I think about the kneh bosm myth
This is what I think of the Tel Arad shrine:
Hi all
I hope you dont mind, I dont trust much in current 21st century peered review papers because the incentive is put on just publishing as much papers as you can and it is not really important or necessary to present proof, as opposed to the scientific method used in the 20th century. People are peer reviewing each other and it is not really reliable
This is the full article about the Tel Arad altar:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03344355.2020.1732046

They studied and described the content of the residue at the altar but didnt date it, I personally contributed to the contamination of all kind of biblical sites with hashish smoking and I certainly havent been the only one contaminating. Burn a piece of hash on the altar, cover it with a cup wait for smoke to fill the cup and smoke it at once. Hash is a very interesting and versatile substance that gives different highs depending on consumption method and this one smoking it pure on the cup is a trippy method, much stronger than smoked in a joint or bang mixed with tobacco.


Cannabis a a very mild entheogen, not the kind that will make you build temples in the middle of nowhere where almost nothing grows
They didnt need at the temple to import anything to get totally high and tripping or if they did, it was a small travel by camel of a few days
One of the few things that grow in that inhospitable area is
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyoscyamus_niger

In Sinai grows the variety Hyoscyamus boveanus
The paper refers to Sinai cannabis plants as Sinai rudelaris suggesting it has low psychoactivity because it supposedly has low amount of cannabinoids
A friend of mine has in Sinai january 2020 and reported quality is as decent as it was in the 80's, meaning it is the best variety of all the middle east and mediterranean area, which makes me doubt about the knowledge of cannabis of the authors of the article and the peers that reviewed it in exchange for peer reviewing their own
I quote from the article:
"...One cannabis strain, or variety, called Sinai Ruderalis is an Egyptian landrace strain cultivated in the Sinai Peninsula by the local Bedouins (Clarke and Merlin 2013). However, Ruderalis contains very low amounts of cannabinoids. Furthermore, pollen analysis carried out on samples taken from both altars by Dafna Langutt (Tel Aviv University) concluded that no plant material was preserved on the Arad altars. In fact, no cannabis seeds or pollen remains are known from archaeological contexts in the Ancient Near East, as opposed to northeast China or southeast Russia, where all parts of the cannabis plant and seed were found at different archaeological sites and contexts and were dated as early as 2000 BCE (Jiang et al. 2016; Russo et al. 2008; Russo 2014). Therefore, we suggest that cannabis female inflorescences may have been imported from distant origins and were transported as dried resin (commonly known as hashish).

Every people has a messanger, an entheogenic plant which will allow to perform rituals to a different level.
Hyoscyamus has many different names. Hyoscyamus boveanus is the source of the drug hyoscyamine (daturine).
 
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