not a pot head, just wondering

[Juergen Stowasser]

Due to the Codex Badianus (Martin de la Cruz, Libellus de Medicinalibus
Indorum Herbis, 1552) "yauhtli" had a magic iuse for crossing rivers:
"El
que quiera pasar con seguridad un rio, o agua, ha de humedecerse el
pecho
con un liquido de las plantas yauhtli y tepepapaloquilitl molidas en
agua.
Ha de llevar en la mano un berilo, una cabeza y entranas de ostra, una
sardónica y los ojos de un gran pez encerrados en la boca." (56r)The
commentator of the Badinao-edition by the Fondo de Cultura Economica
(México
1991) identifies "yauhtli" as the pericón (color verde obscuro-morado;
Tagetes esp). The botanist Reko classifies the plant as Tagetes florida
(although Sahagun differentiates between "yauhtli" and the Tagetes
"macuilxochitl" and  "cempoalxochitl").
Tagetes have been and are still used as incense but are also consumed as

spice, tea or are smoked with tobacco (maybe that for the comparison
with
the hemp which originates from India/Mesopotamia).There are various
refernces about the narcotic effects of the plant but - as i know - no
reliable toxicological study.
To yauhtli cf Ortiz de Montellano, Las hierbas de Tláloc, Estudios de
Cultura Nahuatl 14/1980 (he mentions also also yauhtli if I remember
well).

                                    ciao, Juergen
pd: any ideas about the etymology? I tried to consult Simeon but found
nothing (maybe a relation with "yauitl" (maíz negro) as a kind of
refernce
to the dark colour of yauhtli?)

Lucas Molina schrieb:

> i'm not a drug user or anything, but i came across the word "yauhtli"
in
> vaillant's "Aztecs of Mexico".  he called it indian hemp, but i
thought
> all hemp was indian?
>
> i'm also curious to know what everyone thinks about the trouble that's

> been going on at UNAM.
>
> thanks,
>
> Lucas Molina

--
Juergen Stowasser
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