Harmal
Harmal

Author: Ephraim Shmaya Lansky

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2017-10-06

Total Pages: 298

ISBN-13: 1351645048

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Harmal: The Genus Peganum is an in-depth treatment of one of the most commanding plants in the botanical kingdom. Humble in appearance, modest in its needs, Peganum harmala has been venerated for millennia as a Deity-manifesting entheogen and a powerful medicine. This book traverses harmal’s medicinal chemistry, its possible role in the origins of religion, and its employment from ancient times to the present in the therapy of patients suffering from infections, infestations, metabolic derangements, neurological degeneration, visual weakness, and cancer. Its peculiar indolic compounds, known as harmala alkaloids, are now appreciated as exerting profound effects on the mind and on the body. These effects are the result of the alkaloids’ interactions with, and binding to, serotonin receptors on the cell surfaces of neurons in the brain and lymphocytes in the blood, the latter constituting the diffuse structural basis of the immune system. This biphasic modulation by harmala alkaloids has led to a novel pharmacologic re-visioning presented herein for the first time, the concept of a "lymphoneuric syncytium" and its possible long term tuning via "somatodelic" as well as "psychedelic" effects. The scientific rationale underlying the use of harmal in the medicines of the past and the healing technologies of our future is developed through exhaustive and meticulous explorations in both ethnopharmacology and modern phytochemistry. The presentation is enhanced through appraisals of the effects of harmal in two clinical cancer case scenarios, and of intentional inebriation and "provings" by one of the authors and a psychiatric colleague. The noted and esteemed botanically-trained physician Dr. Andrew Weil states in his Preface that this "monumental" volume will become the standard reference work in the field. Harmal: The Genus Peganum will be an invaluable addition to the personal libraries of professional pharmacognosists, botanists, physicians, psychologists, neuroscientists, and all persons interested in the interrelationship of consciousness, medicine, and coevolution.

The Epic of Pabuji
The Epic of Pabuji

Author: John D. Smith

Publisher: Katha

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 188

ISBN-13: 9788187649830

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Pabuji , a medieval Rajput hero from the deserts of Marwar, is widely worshipped as a folk diety capable of proctecting against ill fortune. This book chorincles the epic narrative in English free verse as well as interesting details about the words , the music and the par itself.

From the Workshop of the Mesopotamian Scribe
From the Workshop of the Mesopotamian Scribe

Author: Jacob Klein

Publisher: Penn State Press

Published: 2020-09-24

Total Pages: 273

ISBN-13: 1646020995

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This volume presents first editions of a variety of cuneiform tablets from the Old Babylonian period belonging to the collection of the late Shlomo Moussaieff. It makes available for the first time three texts representing varying levels of Mesopotamian scribal education. The first is what the authors argue is the most complete copy of the first fifty lines of the standard version of the Sumerian epic Gilgameš and the Bull of Heaven. The second is a hitherto unpublished bilingual (Sumerian-Akkadian) lexical list of unknown provenance, similar to the Proto-Aa syllabary. Each of the 314 entries preserved on this tablet provides a pronunciation gloss, a Sumerian logogram, and an Akkadian translation. A unique feature of this list is that the signs are arranged on the basis of graphic concatenation: each sign contains one of the graphic components of the preceding sign. It also yields a great number of hitherto unknown, synonymous Akkadian translations to the Sumerian logograms. The final chapter contains an edition of two groups of lenticular school tablets, containing thirty-three elementary-level scribal exercises. With this volume, Jacob Klein and Yitschak Sefati preserve and disseminate important artifacts that advance the study of Sumerian literature, Mesopotamian lexicography, and ancient Near Eastern scribal education.

The Animal Names of the Arab Ancestors
The Animal Names of the Arab Ancestors

Author: William C. Young

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2024-02-06

Total Pages: 562

ISBN-13: 9004690379

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In the Arab world, people belong to kinship groups (lineages and tribes). Many lineages are named after animals, birds, and plants. Why? This survey evaluates five old explanations – “totemism,” “emulation of predatory animals,” “ancestor eponymy,” “nicknaming,” and “Bedouin proximity to nature.” It suggests a new hypothesis: Bedouin tribes use animal names to obscure their internal cleavages. Such tribes wax and wane as they attract and lose allies and clients; they include “attached” elements as well as actual kin. To prevent outsiders from spotting “attached” groups, Bedouin tribes scatter non-human names across their segments, making it difficult to link any segment with a human ancestor. Young’s argument contributes to theories of tribal organization, Arab identity, onomastics, and Near Eastern kinship.

Fragrance and Wellbeing
Fragrance and Wellbeing

Author: Jennifer Peace Rhind

Publisher: Singing Dragon

Published: 2013-10-21

Total Pages: 452

ISBN-13: 0857010735

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For thousands of years fragrance has been used, across many varied cultures, for altering mental and emotional states, and as part of spiritual practice. This book explores the impact of fragrance on the psyche from biological, anthropological, perfumery and aromatherapy viewpoints. Beginning with an exploration of our olfactory system and a discussion of the language of odour, the book examines the ways in which fragrance can influence our perceptions and experiences. It introduces us to a broad range of fragrance types – woody, resinous, spicy, herbaceous, agrestic, floral and citrus, as well as the attars that form part of Unani Tibb medicine. Traditional and contemporary uses and the mood-enhancing properties of fragrance types are presented. The book then provides an overview of the theoretical and philosophical frameworks that have been used to analyse how and why we choose fragrance. Finally readers are given guidance on how to cultivate their olfactory palate, which reveals a new dimension in the use of fragrance to enhance wellbeing. This book offers a wealth of knowledge on plant aromatics and the powerful influence of fragrance on wellbeing. It will be of particular interest to aromatherapists, perfumers, psychotherapists, ethnobotanists and anthropologists.

The Cult of Pābūjī
The Cult of Pābūjī

Author: Umberto Mondini

Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Published: 2018-12-12

Total Pages: 201

ISBN-13: 1527523209

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Pābūjī is a Rajput warrior prince from a small and insignificant kingdom, and a celibate ascetic who shuns the company of women, preferring instead to ride with his chieftains and perform miraculous deeds for Deval, an incarnation of the great Goddess. This book provides the historical and mythological background to the story of Pābūjī, the hero of a medieval epic poem which is still performed in India today by itinerant bards. Nuptial rites and Pābūjī’s own marriage are closely examined here, with parallels drawn with present day wedding ceremonies, which are essentially unchanged, and their impact on the modern day bride and groom. While maintaining high standards of academic rigour and thoroughness in the collection of data, this book renders the subject accessible, retelling Pābūjī’s exciting and often humorous adventures in its analysis of the epic tale.

The Ancient Near East
The Ancient Near East

Author: Amélie Kuhrt

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-11-25

Total Pages: 832

ISBN-13: 1136755489

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The Ancient Near East embraces a vast geographical area, from the borders of Iran and Afghanistan in the east to the Levant and Anatolia, and from the Black Sea in the north to Egypt in the south. It was a region of enormous cultural, political and linguistic diversity. In this authoritative new study, Amélie Kuhrt examines its history from the earliest written documents to the conquest of Alexander the Great, c.3000-330 BC. This work dispels many of the misapprehensions which have surrounded the study of the region. It provides a lucid, up-to-date narrative which takes into account the latest archaeological and textual discoveries and deals with the complex problems of interpretation and methodology. The Ancient Near East is an essential text for all students of history of this region and a valuable introduction for students and scholars working in related subjects. Winner of the AHO's 1997 James Henry Breasted Award.

Historical Dictionary of Iraq
Historical Dictionary of Iraq

Author: Beth K. Dougherty

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2019-06-15

Total Pages: 1065

ISBN-13: 1538120054

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‘Iraq, the land of Hamurabi and Harun al-Rashid, has played a long and unique role in the history of human civilization. The oldest civilization known to humankind evolved on the shores of its twin rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates. The great cities of antiquity—Uruk, Ur, Akkad, Babylon, al-Basra, Mawsil, and Baghdad—were major centers of high culture and political power for much of the course of human history. This updated edition offers new and expanded coverage of a broad range of political, economic, security, cultural, and religious topics, including the emergence of a sustained protest movement for reform, the war against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, and the Kurdish independence referendum. This third edition of Historical Dictionary of Iraq contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 1,000 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, politics, economy, foreign relations, religion, and culture. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about Iraq.

The Ancient Near East, C. 3000-330 BC
The Ancient Near East, C. 3000-330 BC

Author: Amélie Kuhrt

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 1995

Total Pages: 422

ISBN-13: 9780415167635

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A single-authored two-volume work which makes no claims to comprehensiveness, but selectively treats periods and areas usually studied in universities (treatment of Egypt is brief because of the availability of studies of Egyptian history at all levels). It is intended as an introduction to ancient Near Eastern history, to the main sources used for reconstructing societies and political systems, and to some historical problems and scholarly debates. The area discussed extends from Turkey (Anatolia) and Egypt in the west through the Levant (which includes Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria west of the Euphrates) to Mesopotamia into Iran. Volume I covers c.3000 BC to c.1200 BC; volume II, 1200 BC to 330 BC. The author is a Reader in Ancient History at University College London. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.