Strange Seeds: Ethnohistorical Testimonies of the Clandestine Culture of Sacred Plants in Colonial Ecuador

The “plant turn” in anthropology, while controversial, has led to a renewed focus on how humans relate to different species of plants. In this article, I aim to contribute to our knowledge of human-plant relationships by analyzing how historical actors used sacred plants in past ritual settings. I s...

Description complète

Enregistré dans:  
Détails bibliographiques
Auteur principal: Corr, Rachel (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
Vérifier la disponibilité: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
En cours de chargement...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Publié: American Anthropological Association 2022
Dans: Anthropology of consciousness
Année: 2022, Volume: 33, Numéro: 2, Pages: 153-174
Sujets / Chaînes de mots-clés standardisés:B Ecuador / Ethnohistoire / Plantes / Expérience psychédélique / Chamanisme / Histoire 1700-1800
RelBib Classification:AD Sociologie des religions
AE Psychologie de la religion
AG Vie religieuse
KBR Amérique Latine
ZA Sciences sociales
Sujets non-standardisés:B Ecuador
B Colonial history
B Shamanism
B Plants
Accès en ligne: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Résumé:The “plant turn” in anthropology, while controversial, has led to a renewed focus on how humans relate to different species of plants. In this article, I aim to contribute to our knowledge of human-plant relationships by analyzing how historical actors used sacred plants in past ritual settings. I study criminal and civil cases involving shamans in late colonial Ecuador, with a focus on plant use. Legal records from 1782, 1793, 1800, and 1802 reveal information about the use of fragrant plants believed to have transformative properties, the use of entheogens for non-visionary purposes, and even the incorporation of the sacred wanduc (Brugmansia sp) into the punishment of one shaman. This plant-focused approach to the reading of ethnohistorical documents provides a history of particular plants as they were used by individual actors in specific geographic and historical contexts, and sheds light on people’s understanding of human-plant-spirit relationships.
ISSN:1556-3537
Contient:Enthalten in: Anthropology of consciousness
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1111/anoc.12149