In this article, I am going to take you through the historic journey of marijuana in various parts of the world namely; Netherlands, Egyptand India. Great acknowledgement goes to those who have researched and developed an understanding of how Cannabis can be a pharmacy in a plant.
Marijuana, also known as cannabis among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the Cannabis plant used primarily for medicinal or recreational purposes. The history of marijuana as a painkiller is dated all the way back to ancient times. Medicine men back then would mix cannabis into medicine,in most parts of the world to treat pain and other ailments. 19th century, cannabis was introduced for therapeutic use in Western Medicine. Since then, there have been several advancements in how the drug is administered.
Initially, cannabis was reduced to a powder and mixed with wine for administration. In the 1970s, synthetic Tetrahydrocannabinol was created to be administered as the drug Marinol in a capsule. However, the main mode of administration for cannabis is smoking because its effects are almost immediate when the smoke is inhaled. Between 1996 and 1999, eight U.S. states supported cannabis prescriptions opposing policies of the federal government. Most people who are prescribed marijuana for medical purposes use it to alleviate severe pain.
Netherlands
In 2007, a late Neolithic grave attributed to the Beaker culture (found near Hattemerbroek[nl], Gelderland; dated2459-2203 BCE) was found containing an unusually large concentration of pollen. After five years of careful investigation these pollen were concluded to be mostly cannabis along with a smaller amount of meadowsweet. Due to the fever-reducing properties of meadowsweet, the archeologists speculated that the person in the grave had likely been very ill, in which case the cannabis would have served as painkiller.
Egypt
The Ebers Papyrus (c.1550 BC) from Ancient Egypt has a prescription for medical marijuana applied directly for inflammation. The ancient Egyptians used hemp (cannabis) in suppositories for relieving the pain of hemorrhoids. Around 2,000 BCE, the ancient Egyptians used cannabis to treat sore eyes. The Egyptologist LiseManniche notes the reference to “plant medical cannabis” in several Egyptian texts, one of which dates back to the eighteenth century BCE.
India
Cannabis was a major component in religious practices in ancient India as well as in medicinal practices. For many centuries, most parts of life in ancient India incorporated cannabis of some form. Surviving texts from ancient India confirm that cannabis ‘psychoactive properties were recognized, and doctors used it for treating a variety of illnesses and ailments. Theseincludedinsomnia, headaches, a whole host of gastrointestinal disorders, and pain: cannabis was frequently used to relieve the pain of childbirth.
In conclusion, Cannabis was commonly believed by ancient civilizations to help with glaucoma, chronic pain and inflammation. Modern medicine confirms that they were correct in believing this. History also offers evidence that it was common practice by the Ancient Greeks and Romans to use cannabis medically.
