Hempology 101
A peek at an inside page… Tree of Life
By Al Graham P.A.C.E. www.pace-online.ca
When I first got started in the cannabis community and wanted to learn about its history and its many uses I turned to a well known book written by Jack Herer. I don’t read a lot of books but I read Jack’s and it taught me a lot about cannabis and hemp. I found that Jack’s book involved a lot of the U.S.A. history on cannabis, as it should, but for me I also wanted to know more about the Canadian history as well. This was solved for me when Ted Smith the publish- er of Cannabis Digest released his new book Hempology 101: The History and Uses of Cannabis Sativa.
Throughout the main stream media there is some basic information that the general public knows about cannabis sativa. People know that you can make clothes with it and that many
people eat it every day in the form of seeds. When it comes to its history people look towards the stereotyped hippie or teenager that is out getting stoned. It makes you wonder if anyone really knows a lot about the real history of cannabis.
Ted’s soft covered book has eight chapters in it touching on everything from the beginnings of hemp to the future of cannabis.
As I read through the chaptered
titled “Hemp’s Beginnings” I found myself constantly
saying “wow” with- in
my head. Ted touches
on everything including a time well before ours. He ventures
into the Indus River Valley
that he calls “the cradle of cannabis” before moving onto its roots in Central Asia and Iran.
He writes about the Vedic Tradition and where the Vedic Texts, the Sanskrit hymns are the basis of the Hindu reli- gion that contained the first recorded references of cannabis. Within this section he also touches on how cannabis was involved in the Hebrew traditions and how it is referred to in the Hebrew Tanakh. Cannabis is described often in the Old Testament as incense to kana- bos, a term derived from the Scythian word cannabis.
I found out about the Mesopotamia which developed during the Indus and Egyptian civilizations and how cannabis figured prominently in the mythology and reli- gious traditions to how it would influence in every empire to conquer the Mesopotamia.
Ted also touches on the cannabis history around the Hellenistic periods, how it is used in Islamic tradition, The Hashishin and onto the middle ages.
From there we are taken on a journey to find out the his- tory and its uses within the wars of fiber. You will learn that cannabis was a vital part in the world’s economy and how it was so vital to world leaders which led to battles of war. Learn how important cannabis was to the indus- try and the economy as Ted touches on Hemp-based Economics.
When it comes to the medical part of cannabis the his- tory and the discoveries are all mentioned. He talks about some of the past government supported reports, not only the well known ones from around the world but also two very important Canadian ones. This would be the Le Dain report from the seventies as well as the one released in 2002 by a Progressive Conservative member led Senate committee. We learned about many of the medical conditions that cannabis helps with as well as different ways that it can be used other than smoking. Within this section you will find updated medical news as well as what the future may hold.
Within the covers of this book you will also learn about prohibition and its roots. You’ll learn about the 2500 years of religious oppression and the control and the fear that religion had on people. With subtitles such as “The Fear of God”, “Catholic Killers convert Rome “and “The Masters of Control” it makes one wonder if religion is really was as peaceful as some say.
Another very interesting part
about this book was the Counter Culture section and how LSD played a big part
in bringing cannabis back into the mainstream. Ted writes about how cannabis
was on the run for a few years and how its use slowed with the introduction of
psychedelic drugs. He even writes about the life of Timothy O’Leary and Abby
Hoffman and their big LSD tours.
While reading the book I was able to see where cannabis is in the world today and how politics and media are getting involved. We learn about the distribution of medical cannabis to Marc Emery and how we can overgrow the government.
One thing that you never see in books is all the informa- tion from a foot note. Instead of just telling you to look up a certain page number in a certain book, Ted has put that information right along with his writings. For me it gives the reader that information right away instead of forcing them to seek it out.
Hempology 101 isn’t a book full of coloured pictures but has small sketched drawings. It isn’t a book that has infor- mation that started in the sixties but is a book that is full of information that starts way back before 2000 BC, a time that people barely even know existed.
The book closes off with a chapter titled Cannabis in the Future. It asks if it will be legalization or bust, to why peo- ple need to put their money where their mouth is. Get yourself a copy of Hempology 101 and learn the truth and the uses of cannabis. Learn what you can do to help out. Remember as the last subtitle is appropriately named…..
Changes Come from Within.
You can find your copy athttp://hempology101store.ca