A review / reccomendation on some ethnobotanical books on cacti

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Nopaltzin
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A review / reccomendation on some ethnobotanical books on cacti

Post by Nopaltzin »

Hi everyone ,


Just thought I would mention/ review a couple of books I read last year on the ethnobotanical relationships of cactus with human civilization's in the America's , it might be of interest to someone.


1. Peyote Hunt: Sacred Journey of the Huichol Indians (Symbol, Myth and Ritual) : This book from the 1960s is an account written by an anthropologist of the religious pilgrimages that the Huichol indigenous peoples (The use of Peyote likely originated with this ethnic group ) of Central Mexico make to the valley of Wirikuta, a site sacred in their cosmovision. It's a very interesting book because it describes the central role that Lophophora williamsii plays in their religious conception of existence and their world view , along with the white tailed deer and maize. I actually found this book very moving because the Huichols view the Peyote cactus with such evident love and affection , its quite a beautiful thing that their pilgrimage centres around the sustainable consumption of this cactus. I highly reccomend reading it for any fans of the peyote.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Peyote-Hunt-Jo ... 0801491371

2. Plants of the Gods: Their Sacred, Healing, and Hallucinogenic Powers : This is also a book written in the 1960s by ethnobotanists , anthropologists and the famous Albert Hoffman (The discoverer of LSD). Only two of the species mentioned in the book are cacti : Trichocereus pachanoi and Lophophora williamsi. However the information included on the pharmacology and ethnobotanical use of these plants by indigenous people in Mexico/ United States and Peru/ the Andean region is quite interesting and I learnt some things that I didn't know for example: In certain areas of the Andean regions of Bolivia and Peru , the San Pedro cactus is planted in gardens because it is believed it has the abilities of a guard dog and will bark to warn owners of intruders and will let out blood curdling screams to deter them ( Anyone with a san pedro able to comment on whether they are effective burglar alarms? :lol: ) . Well worth a read.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Plants-Gods-Sa ... 0892819790


3. Flesh of the Gods: The Ritual Use of Hallucinogens: This anthropology book explores the use of entheogens/ hallucinogenic plant and fungi in the ritualistic context of indigenous shamanism. Once again there are only two chapters on the cacti species: Trichocereus pachanoi and Lophophora williamsi. However there is some interesting information here especially on San Pedro in Peru and its worth a read to understand the ritualistic context of their usage.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flesh-Gods-Rit ... V81APHRGW4


4. Hallucinogens and Shamanism: Another ethnobotany book , this is an amazing read and I highly reccomend it. There is actually only one chapter on the historical use of Peyote by the Apache tribe , however its a very interesting text and it goes into detail about why this ethnic group discontinued the use of the cacti due to negative impacts which contrasts starkly with the Huichol use which has brought about positivity.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hallucinogens- ... 53QH8MJMG9


5. Icons of Power: Feline Symbolism in the Americas : This is not actually a book on cacti or ethnobotany and is an ethnozoological study of the religious significance of felines such as the Jaguar and Puma to the indigenous cultures and civilizations of the America's. However there is a kind of relevance to cacti because there is frequent mention of the association between the historic religious association of the San Pedro cactus to animals such as the Jaguar and Puma by civilizations like the Moche , Chavin and Inca in Peru. Well worth a read.

https://www.amazon.com/Icons-Power-Feli ... 0415153271



Well, hope this might be useful to someone :D , Thanks for reading !
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johnmarl
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Re: A review / reccomendation on some ethnobotanical books on cacti

Post by johnmarl »

Thanks for the review with recommendations ! I think that will be very helpful if you make it in a way of a post at the social networks with pictures, If you have not it done yet. I had the problem of searching valuable materials when I had a college assignment, but good to me I had library subscription. I have just checked, there are not so many sources on the web on this topic that really worth attention and almost no articles with such information. Then your article would have a value not only to the members of cactiguide community.
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Nopaltzin
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Re: A review / reccomendation on some ethnobotanical books on cacti

Post by Nopaltzin »

johnmarl wrote: Fri Jan 26, 2018 2:47 pm Thanks for the review with recommendations ! I think that will be very helpful if you make it in a way of a post at the social networks with pictures, If you have not it done yet. I had the problem of searching valuable materials when I had a college assignment, but good to me I had library subscription. I have just checked, there are not so many sources on the web on this topic that really worth attention and almost no articles with such information. Then your article would have a value not only to the members of cactiguide community.

Hi John ,

No problem , glad you liked it. Do you mean photos of the book covers ? Sorry , I'm not sure what you mean.
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