Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: review by Jordan Klass

books:


	• The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: Ethnopharmacology and Its Applications Christian Ratsch Park Street Press, 2005 - 944 pages average customer review:based on 17 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

An exhaustive review of the psychoactive plants

Cristian Raetsch is a very famous author with great academic merit. He has written numerous books on psychoactive plants alone or with other writers. In this encyclopedia he creates and extensive and exhaustive review of all the phants with psychoactive properties that are kow today. The book is divided in sections including all plant kingdoms, including the fungi and some animal secretions (eg the toad bufo). Each chapter includes all the academic details that you will find in any botanical book, like where the plant growss, under what conditions etc, but also an extensive review of cultural or ritualistic usage. Usually, you will get much more than you would expect, for example a sample of discography for hemp usage, advertisements on psychactives used in he past, folk lore and myths around plants and their use in their most common natural setting etc. The book also includes uptodate information on not know plants and potions with psychoactive actions like kykeon, some and haoma, including detailed accounts of all the know theories and the authours authorative opinion.

The book is very easy to read and is full of great illustrations of very high quality. It is also full of colored information boxes.

Whether you have one book from this literature or thousands, you have to have this book!

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Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: review by Jordan Klass

Very detailed, comprehensive, well illustrated and accurate. A must have for any true psychonaut's home library. Job well done. I can't wait to try some of the plant preparations out myself! The only other source of information that comes close is [...]. Highly recommended!

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A MUST for any herbalist and/or ethnobotanist

I am a Certified Master Herbalist always seeking information in my field. To earn my degree and satisfy my personal quest for knowledge I've read over 100 books concerning the modern and historical use of herbs. This book is pure gold, not only for its pharmaceutical information, but for the historical and spiritual knowledge/wisdom it imparts. This is a book for any herbalist seeking to understand the history of their craft. READ THIS BOOK!!!!

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What can one say?

This is THE reference work on Psychoactive Plants. Christian Raetsch gives all of the necessary information needed to work in this area and leaves it to the reader to decide for themselves.

Save Money. Buy A More Focused Book

I feel so thankful to have ownership of any material concerning herbs so my first inclination is to give "The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants: Ethnopharmacology and Its Applications" a 5-star rating (just out of gratitude for the information's accessibility). At the same time, the manual should have been written much more tightly. It also desperately needs to be better organized.

Don't let the bulky size of this manual fool you. While so very many different herbs are listed - way too many of them do not adequately satisfy the claims of the title (as many herbs listed are not at all psychoactive -- but are much more appropriate for making a relaxing cup of tea).

Regarding the manual's organization: Instead of arranging the writing, after the header of each individual herb, the content merely jumps around from one willy-nilly topic to another and back again. There is no obvious order to make finding information easy {Example, tips on "growing" or "herb use" is spread sporadically throughout the pages instead of categorized under "gardening" or "uses"}. Also - the directions for dosage, when given, are not always clear or concise, if given at all. I also longed for better/more detailed photographs while reading this manual - so I used the Internet as an image subsidy-type resource.

Positives? I loved it when Ratsch included Shamanic uses (listing what tribe used the herb being studied and what was the plant's history, etc.). There are many other good things about this book -- but if you're on a budget, I'd spend my money on something that more specifically targets your interests -- as this seemed like a more generalized herb manual, over all.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4

The most comprehensive guide to the botany, history, distribution, and cultivation of all known psychoactive plants

? Examines 414 psychoactive plants and related substances

? Explores how using psychoactive plants in a culturally sanctioned context can produce important insights into the nature of reality

? Contains 797 color photographs and 645 black-and-white illustrations

In the traditions of every culture, plants have been highly valued for their nourishing, healing, and transformative properties. The most powerful plants--those known to transport the human mind into other dimensions of consciousness--have traditionally been regarded as sacred. In The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants Christian Rätsch details the botany, history, distribution, cultivation, and preparation and dosage of more than 400 psychoactive plants. He discusses their ritual and medicinal usage, cultural artifacts made from these plants, and works of art that either represent or have been inspired by them. The author begins with 168 of the most well-known psychoactives--such as cannabis, datura, and papaver--then presents 133 lesser known substances as well as additional plants known as ?legal highs,? plants known only from mythological contexts and literature, and plant products that include substances such as ayahuasca, incense, and soma. The text is lavishly illustrated with 797 color photographs--many of which are from the author?s extensive fieldwork around the world--showing the people, ceremonies, and art related to the ritual use of the world?s sacred psychoactives.

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