Goddesses, Elixirs, and Witches: Plants and Sexuality throughout Human HistoryFrom the earliest times, the medicinal properties of certain herbs were connected with deities, particularly goddesses. Only now with modern scientific research can we begin to understand the basisand rationality that these divine connections had and, being preserved in myths and religious stories, they continued to have a significant impact through the present day. Riddle argues that the pomegranate, mandrake, artemisia, and chaste tree plants substantially altered thedevelopment of medicine and fertility treatments.The herbs, once sacred to Inanna, Aphrodite, Demeter, Artemis, and Hermes, eventually came to be associated with darker forces, representing theinstruments of demons and witches. Riddle's ground-breaking work highlights the important medicinalhistory thatwas lost and argues for itsrightful place as one of the predecessors |
Contents
| 1 | |
| 2 | |
| 5 | |
2 Pomegranate as Eves Apple | 33 |
3 Mandrake the Love Apple and the Worlds Religions | 54 |
4 Artemisia the Mother Herb | 79 |
5 The Chaste Tree | 113 |
6 Hermes Herbs Elixirs and Witches | 128 |
Notes | 149 |
Bibliography | 185 |
Index | 207 |
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Goddesses, Elixirs, and Witches: Plants and Sexuality throughout Human History J. Riddle No preview available - 2010 |
Common terms and phrases
abortifacient absinthe absinthium accessed action Adam ancient antiquity anzû apple Artemis artemisia plants artemisia species artemisinin Assyrian Babylonian Bible biblical Cambridge chapter chaste tree Chinese circumcision classical compounds contraceptive culture cuneiform date palm Demeter Dioscorides disease drink drug Dumuzi early eating Ebers Ebers Papyrus effects Egypt Egyptian elixir Ereshkigal female fertility fever fruit Galen Garden Genesis Gilgamesh God’s goddess Greek Hebrew herbal Hermes Hermetica Herodotus Hippocratic History huluppu tree humans Ibid Inanna infertility Jewish Jews John Latin Leah legend Lilith London magic malaria male Mandragora mandrake mandrake’s materia medica meaning medicine medieval Mesopotamia modern mosquito mugwort Myth Oxford period Persephone pomegranate pregnancy prostitution recipes ritual Roman root scholars seed Selinus serpent sexual Soranus sources southernwood story Sumerian symbol tablets temple translation tree of knowledge tree’s Underworld Uruk Uruk vase Vitex vols wine witch witchcraft woman women word wormwood writing wrote York