Bhang
Encyclopedia
Cannabis indica
Cannabis indica is an annual plant in the Cannabaceae family. A putative species of the genus Cannabis, it is typically distinguished from Cannabis sativa. Schultes described C. indica as relatively short, conical, and densely branched, whereas C. sativa was described as tall and laxly branched...
, smoked or consumed as a beverage in the Indian subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
.
India
Bhang has been used as a cheap intoxicant for centuries in India. Bhang is distributed as a religious offering during Shiva festivals like "Mahashivratri". It has now become synonymous with the HoliHoli
Holi , is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United...
festival, to the point where consuming bhang at that time is a standard practice.
It is also available as Bhang golis (balls) which is just freshly ground hemp with water. Apart from this, sweetened bhang golis are also widely available. These are not considered a drug, but a traditional sleeping aid and appetizer. Bhang is also part of many ayurvedic medicinal preparation, i.e. bhang powder is available at ayurvedic dispensaries throughout the country.
Bhang Ki Thandai (Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
) also known as Shardai is a drink popular in many parts of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
which is made by mixing bhang with thandai
Thandai
Thandai is a cold drink prepared with a mixture of almonds, fennel seeds, magaztari seeds , rose petals, pepper, vetiver seeds, cardamom, saffron, milk and sugar. Could be easily found in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan - mostly in Peshawar. It is native to India and is often associated with the Holi...
, a cold beverage prepared with almond
Almond
The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...
s, spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s (mainly black pepper), milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
and sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
.
History
Bhang was first used as part of the Hindu rite in India around 1000 BC and soon became an integral part of Hindu culture. The herb was devoted to Lord Shiva on Shivratri, a Hindu festival.Sadhus and Sufis use Bhang to boost meditation and to achieve transcendental states. Bhang or cannabis is also used amongst Sufis as an aid to spiritual ecstasy
Religious ecstasy
Religious ecstasy is an altered state of consciousness characterized by greatly reduced external awareness and expanded interior mental and spiritual awareness which is frequently accompanied by visions and emotional/intuitive euphoria...
.
The nihang sect of the Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
community are one of the consumers of bhang and in their terminology, it is called Sukhnidhan.It started as an ayurvedic medicine wherein, the main use for the Nihangs was to aid in reducing pain from battle wounds, and digestive assistant.
Preparation
The tradition of consuming bhang during Holi is particularly common in North India where Holi itself is celebrated with a fervor unseen elsewhere.Bhang is heavily consumed in Mathura, an ancient town of religious importance to the Hindus. Here the practice is believed to have been introduced by the followers of Lord Krishna
Krishna
Krishna is a central figure of Hinduism and is traditionally attributed the authorship of the Bhagavad Gita. He is the supreme Being and considered in some monotheistic traditions as an Avatar of Vishnu...
and has stayed over since. The Choubey community or the Chaturvedi
Chaturvedi
The Mathur Chaturvedi Brahmins, or sometimes just Chaturvedi are an endogamous Brahmin community found mainly in western Uttar Pradesh. A Brahmin family name indicating that the title bearer's forefathers were proficient in all of the four Vedas...
's of Mathura have a long history of consuming Bhang on a daily basis. They begin the preparation by Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
chants and recitation of prayers to Lord Shiva. Some people from Mathura take Bhang to work up their appetite while others do it to relieve themselves of stress. But the hub of bhang use is Varanasi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
or Banaras, the Land of Shiva, where the bhang is prepared on its famous ghats
Ghats
As used in many parts of South Asia, the term ghat refers to a series of steps leading down to a water body, usually a holy river. In Bengali-speaking regions, this set of stairs can lead down to something as small as a pond or as large as a major river....
.
Anywhere on the ghat
Ghat
Ghat is the capital of the Ghat District in the Fezzan region of southwestern Libya.-History:In historical times, Ghat was a major terminal point on the Trans-Saharan trade route and a major administrative center in the Fezzan...
s, one can find large number of men engaged in the process of preparing bhang. Using mortar and pestle, the buds and leaves of cannabis are ground into a green paste. To this mixture milk, ghee
Ghee
Ghee is a class of clarified butter that originated in South Asia and is commonly used in South Asian cuisine....
and spices are added. The bhang base is now ready to be made into a heavy drink, thandai
Thandai
Thandai is a cold drink prepared with a mixture of almonds, fennel seeds, magaztari seeds , rose petals, pepper, vetiver seeds, cardamom, saffron, milk and sugar. Could be easily found in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan - mostly in Peshawar. It is native to India and is often associated with the Holi...
, an alternative to alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
; this is often referred to casually, if inaccurately, as a "bhang lassi" (lassi being a better-known and similar drink). Bhang is also mixed with ghee and sugar to make a green halva
Halva
Halva refers to many types of dense, sweet confections, served across the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Malta and the Jewish world.The term halva ,...
, and into peppery, chewy little balls called 'golee' (which in this context means candy or pill in Hindi).
In Azad Jammu Kashmir, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
a common preparation for bhang consists of first boiling the leaves and flowers of the female cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
plant for a short time. Once the plant matter has become soft, it is mixed with khas khas or white opium poppy seed. The two ingredients are pulverized with a mortar and pestle for 30-60 minutes (adding a few drops of water now and again to keep the paste moist). The paste is then mixed with water by hand and the mixture is poured through a straining cloth to remove all excess plant matter. The remaining green water is known locally as "bhang" and consumed as is. The usage of oil-rich seeds allows THC
THC
THC commonly refers to tetrahydrocannabinol, the main active chemical compound in Cannabis.THC may also refer to:* Tan Holdings Corporation...
, the fat-soluble psychoactive chemical from the cannabis, to be extracted into the poppy oil so that potency can be retained in a water-based mixture.
Culture
Being so ancient, bhang has become an integral part of Indian tradition that it has become symbolic for many things.It is associated with Lord Shiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
, as the cannabis plant is regarded as holy by Hindus.
In some sections of rural India, people believe in the medicinal properties of the cannabis plant. If taken in proper quantity, bhang is believed to cure fever
Fever
Fever is a common medical sign characterized by an elevation of temperature above the normal range of due to an increase in the body temperature regulatory set-point. This increase in set-point triggers increased muscle tone and shivering.As a person's temperature increases, there is, in...
, dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
and sunstroke, to clear phlegm
Phlegm
Phlegm is a liquid secreted by the mucous membranes of mammalians. Its definition is limited to the mucus produced by the respiratory system, excluding that from the nasal passages, and particularly that which is expelled by coughing . Phlegm is in essence a water-based gel consisting of...
, quicken digestion
Digestion
Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into smaller components that are more easily absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism: a breakdown of large food molecules to smaller ones....
, appetite
Appetite
The appetite is the desire to eat food, felt as hunger. Appetite exists in all higher life-forms, and serves to regulate adequate energy intake to maintain metabolic needs. It is regulated by a close interplay between the digestive tract, adipose tissue and the brain. Decreased desire to eat is...
, cure speech imperfections and lisping, give alertness to the body.
In Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, on the day of Hindu festival Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivratri or Maha Sivaratri or Shivaratri or Sivarathri is a Hindu festival celebrated every year on the 13th night/14th day in the Krishna Paksha of the month of Maagha or Phalguna...
, bhang is taken in different forms such as smoke, mixed with sweets and drink. Offering bhang to lord Shiva is a common practice during the festival.
See also
- KiefKiefKief, keef or kif refers to the resin glands of cannabis which may accumulate in containers or be sifted from loose dry cannabis buds with a mesh screen or sieve. Kief contains a much higher concentration of desired psychoactive cannabinoids, such as THC, than other preparations of cannabis buds...
- Legality of cannabis by country
- Spiritual use of cannabisSpiritual use of cannabisSacramental, religious and spiritual use of cannabis refers to cannabis used in a religious or spiritual context. Cannabis has an ancient history of ritual usage as an aid to trance and has been traditionally used in a religious context throughout the Old World....
- CharasCharasCharas is the name given to a hashish form of cannabis which is hand-made in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal and India. It is made from the resin of the cannabis plant...
External links
- Weed Milk Recipe, from theCannabisChef.com
- Bhang Ganja Charas, Thandai Chai Lassi, IndiaCurry.com
- "A Bit about Bhang"
- Recipe: Bhang Lassi
- Hot-Buttered Bhang Recipe
- "A Word from the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission" A 19th century British report on Bhang
- Special Featured Article on Bhang
- "Recipe for Bhang-Elixir of life"
- Bhang news page - Alcohol and Drugs History SocietyAlcohol and Drugs History SocietyThe Alcohol and Drugs History Society is a scholarly organization whose members study the history of a variety of illegal, regulated, and unregulated drugs such as opium, alcohol, and coffee. Organized in 2004, the ADHS is the successor to a society with a more limited scope, the Alcohol and...