Cannabis and culture

Authors:Vera Rubin (Editor), International Congress of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences

Summary:"This volume assembles de novo social science reports providing material for comparison. Archeological, biblical, botanical, and linguistic evidence of the antiquity of cannabis and the possible courses of its diffusion are discussed in several of the contributions. Cannabis has had several streams of ethnohistoric diffusion, probably dating from neolithic times. Two major cultural complexes, differing in form and function, can be distinguished: the first is a folk tradition involving both sacred and secular multipurpose use, called the 'ganja complex' in India. The second stream relates to cannabis use in the Western world and encompasses both commercial production of the plant for fiber and use of extracted substances in the search for psychedelic experiences, this latter termed the 'marijuana complex.'" -- Dust jacket notes