From: Linda
Is wolfsbane similiar to Deadly Nightshade?
No. Wolfsbane aka aconite aka monkshood is quite different from deadly nightshada aka belladonna. However (thanks Michelle) according to Stephen Pollington's Leechcraft: Early English Charms, Plantlore and Healing:
"Aconite (known as Monkshood or Blue Rocket) is known to have been collected for use both fresh and dried (mainly the root) for many centuries and is now used in very dilute form as a pain-killer. However, it is such a fierce and deadly poison that it is unlikely to have been used so successfully in ancient times. Under the name Wolfsbane it formed a poisonous bait for wolves. Aconite is also believed to have been an ingredient in witches 'flying ointment', a potent blend of stimulants and narcotics that may have induced 'out-of-body' experiences. Monkshood (aconitum anglicum) is peculiar to the British Isles, confined in the wild to the western counties." p. 95-95.
Many years ago I started making notes for a novel I'll never write about the Old Religions, about women and goddesses and witchcraft. I developed a nifty theory about flying ointment and broomsticks.
Think about it. Women living together, using unguents and ointment to 'fly' on their 'broomsticks'--and one of the best ways to deliver something like belladonna is via the mucus membrane. Please don't make me draw a picture. (I did draw a picture for an editor once who, reading the first sex scene in "Yaguara," said, 'That's impossible'! I said, 'Nope, here, look...')
I'm just not convinced that wolfsbane would have been used--its active ingredient reduces sensitivity and makes you sweat, among other things, as well as being massively, dangerously toxic, whereas belladonna makes your pupils enormous (very attractive to the other witches), gives you hallucinations, delirium, and a kind of spacial disorientation--a big, huge rush, in other words. (It can also give you a big, huge rash, apparently, but it's not as scary as aconite and, hey, some sacrifices might be worth it.)
Anyway, it struck me as a fun theory.
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I took both on repeated occasions when I was growing up in Mexico. The dosage was micro-milli small, of course. Aconitum helped get rid of the common cold. Belladonna eased the chronic ear infections I got from swimming. And the combination probably made me grow up to be a witch and fall in love with women. Yei for flying broomsticks and deadly pretty flowers!
ReplyDeleteProcessing is much better these days; you can take aconite derivatives without worrying too much about lethal toxicity. Did it really help with a cold? Wow. That would be v. useful.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's one of those "get much worse for a day and be cured by the next" remedies.
ReplyDeleteYou can also make a cold-cutting bomb out of: ginger tea (but you must slice the raw root and boil it, no bags or stash), lime juice and grind, a handful of radishes (very important), a cup of caffeinated something (coffee or *ugh* coke/pepsi), Aspirin and Sedalmerck (I don't include this last one in mine, but according to my sister it's the real boosting ingredient). And drink hot water all day. And you also feel like a slug ready for the saltshaker for about 24 hours, then the cold is gone.
Sometimes, though, I just decide to sit the thing out for its natural course of a week or so instead of shocking it out of my system.
(I did draw a picture for an editor once who, reading the first sex scene in "Yaguara," said, 'That's impossible'! I said, 'Nope, here, look...')
ReplyDeleteBarbies can help with those situations, too.
Have you read Dark Sister by Graham Joyce? Flying ointment plays a major role.
ReplyDeletekarina, oof, when a person has a cold, how on earth can she be bothered to do all that work??
ReplyDeletessas, in the editor's case, only if they're anatomically correct...
stephanie, no, I haven't read the Joyce. Did you enjoy it?
Yes, I liked Dark Sister a lot. Not my favorite by Graham Joyce, but still a great read.
ReplyDeleteThe trick is to get someone else to do the heavy lifting while you have a cold. God of the blog and Master of the universe won't have a problem with that, I'm sure.
ReplyDeletestephanie, thanks, I'll check it out
ReplyDeletekarina, it depends if the entire household is down with the same virus or not...