Book Review: Uses and Abuses of Plant-Derived Smoke

We have always been fascinated by the idea of humans learning to control fire. It must have been pure magic to our early ancestors. The smoke would have seemed like a spirit to them, released by the burning plant. Smoke had many uses for humans back then, as it still does today. This book examines the following uses in the introduction: medicinal, ceremonial, recreational, pest control, perfume, flavoring, and preservation. This introduction is somewhat brief. The remainder of the book is a list of over 1400 plant taxa with 2,383 ethnobotanical uses from 125 countries.
We were quite interested in the "macro-religious/ceremonial use" section, where the authors discuss the Delphic oracles of ancient Greece.



"Plants may have been burned in the oracles' presence to produce pnuema enthusiastikons, or hallucinogenic vapors, that helped the priestess commune with gods like Apollo . . . All of Pythia's mantic sessions were held in a special chamber in Apollo's temple while seated on a tripod that was fastened to the omphalos, or "navel" stone. Below the tripod was a small hole through which vapors arose, shrouding the diviner in a dense fog of fumes."
They also mention Indigenous Australians who use plant-derived smoke "to strengthen babies and mothers during and immediately following childbirth." They describe a bed of smoldering ash, fragrant with the smoke of various plants, which the babies were passed through in order to keep them well protected from evil spirits.
The real treasure of this book is the extremely thorough list of plants which have been used by humans at some time for their smoke. Each entry includes the species name, common name, and a brief description of how it has been used and by whom. We were surprised to see that garlic was used by people in Hungary for it's smoke, mixed with pig excrement and burned in order to calm frightened children! A quick glance through this extensive list reveals many surprises.
Uses and Abuses of Plant-Derived Smoke: Its Ethnobotany as Hallucinogen, Perfume, Incense, and Medicine. Marcello Pennacchio/ Lara Vanessa Jefferson/ Kayri Havens. Oxford University Press 2010.