Recent digging activities, surrounding the construction of a railway line in the Netherlands, uncovered several graves dating back some 4200 years. One of these graves was found to contain pollen of meadowsweet and most probably, cannabis sativa. Meadowsweet is known for its fever reducing and analgesic qualities, which leads us to presume that the person laid to rest had been ill. The presence of cannabis pollen could hint at the medicinal use of cannabis. The oldest known literary reference to the use of cannabis for its medicinal properties comes from China. The mythical prehistoric sage and diving king, Shennong, who lived some 4500 years ago, is considered the father of Chinese medicine and agriculture, and he was responsible for numerous inventions that profoundly changed the life in China at the time. The great ruler developed irrigation techniques and wells, the plough, the Chinese calendar, herbal medicine, acupuncture and the refinement of taking pulse measurement for therapeutic purposes. Legend has it that Shennong's belly was shear, making it possible for him to eat different herbs and observe their effect as they passed through his intestines. His obsessive desire to know the power of herbs led to his fateful death when he ingested a flower which caused his intestines to burst before he could take the antidotal tea. Shennong is said to have recognised the power of the female cannabis plant. The plant was to be administered when Yin or the female force is lost, as in case of menstrual fatigue, gout, rheumatism, malaria, thiamine deficiency, constipation, and absent-mindedness. Another story from ancient China tells the tale of Emperor Liu Chin Yu, who accidentally discovered the healing powers of cannabis. He was cutting cannabis stalks in the field one day when he saw a snake. Seized by fear, he immediately shot the snake with an arrow. The next day, back in the field, Liu Chin Yu perceived the sound of grinding stones. Following the sound, he came upon two boys grinding cannabis leaves. When asked of their business, the two told the emperor that their master was injured by an arrow in the field a day earlier and explained that they were preparing the medicine for him. Years later, Liu himself suffered an injury and treated his wounds with crashed cannabis leaves. Cannabis was also used for anesthesia. The great Chinese surgeon, Hua Tuo, performed major surgeries, including the first known chest operation and organ grafts, without inflicting any pain. He used the blend of cannabis resine, which resembled the extract of the Cannabis plant we call hashish, wine, and the poisonous flower of datura plant. In Egypt, ancient pieces of hemp, a form of cannabis, were found in the grave of Akhenaten, dating back from 1350 BCE. Cannabis pollen was found in the tomb of Ramesses II, dating back to 1224 BCE. Some have speculated that shemshmet, a plant described in ancient Egyptian medical scriptures, is actually cannabis. The oldest of these medical scriptures, printed on papyrus leaves, dates back to 1700 to 1300 BCE. According to these and later scriptures, cannabis administration methods include introduction into the colon, topical use on the skin or eyes, and fumigation. According to passages, dating back to 1550 BCE, the hemp were thought to induce contraction during childbirth when mixed with honey and inserted into the birth canal or mixed with celery and left overnight on the ice. A more recent Egyptian medical text, dating back some 1800 years, describes the use of cannabis for inflammation. Around the 13th century, cannabis indica, growing in Egypt, was described by Dr. Ibn-Al-Baitar as an intoxicant. At that time, Islamic law treated cannabis with more leniency than alcohol in light of its analgesic properties. In Arabic medicines, seed oil and juice from female cannabis flower were used to treat ear pain, skin lesions, intestinal worms, vomiting, uterine contraction, lice, neuralgia, and fever. In ancient Persia, cannabis termed banga was used to trigger abortion. In the Middle East, evidence of the medicinal use of cannabis was reported in research excavation in Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem. And unearthed burial sight, dating from the fourth century AD, included the skeletal remains of a 14-year-old pregnant girl with a full-term fetus in her birth canal. The remains of cannabis sativa, fruits and seeds were found in the abdominal cavity. It appears that the girl's death, proximate to child labor, was likely caused by her inability to deliver the baby naturally. The use of cannabis, in this case, appeared to correspond with a historical use of cannabis in intensifying uterine contractions. In Greece, the celebrated doctor, Aelius Galenus of Pergamon, who lived from the 131 to 201 AD, described the euphoric effect of cannabis. He warned against overuse of that plant and claimed it could cause infertility. Despite these accounts, it is generally assumed that the Greek did not use cannabis in the classical and Roman times. In Western Europe, names of Scottish villages, such as Hemphill, Hempland, Hempriggs, and Hempy Shot, suggest the importance of hemp. Base form of cannabis was used for collage by Scottish fishermen and for medicinal purposes as testified by the presence of religious hospitals. Cannabis was recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Herbarium in the seventh century as an anaesthetic for numerous conditions, including gout, infection of the urinary tract, and problems during child delivery. The parts of the plant employed were usually the root and the seeds. Whereas nowadays, it is the flowers that are used. After gaining some momentum as a medicine, cannabis hemp bake came to an abrupt end in 1484 with the publication of the Summit Desirantes Affectibus, a Papal bull witchcraft circulated by Pope Innocent eight. The document labelled the cannabis of herbal healers, an unholy sacrament of satanic rituals. This immediately rendered the use of medical cannabis illegal. Hashish, known as Nasha in Central Asia, was known to be used with lamb fat to alleviate pain experienced by fresh brides with the loss of their virginity. Women in Uzbeskistan used a cannabis containing candy named Guc-Kand to get into merry mood. It was also given to boys after circumcision. In Nepal, medicinal use of cannabis stems from the Ayurvedic healing tradition, one of the world's oldest, holistic healing system originated in the Indian subcontinent. Ayurvedic cannabis as a medicine is used in combination with other herbs for treating diarrhea, cholera, tetanus, rheumatism, insomnia, and malaria. In this tradition, cannabis may be one of as many as 15 different ingredients of a given medicine and is usually washed with water multiple times before use to assure its purity. Children are also quieted down with cannabis to help them fall asleep and to keep them calm while the mothers labor in the fields. In Nepal, the elderly used cannabis to pass the time and as an analgesic against maladies of age. Overindulgence in cannabis according to Ayurvedic doctors may lead to insanity, loss of weight, and low semen count. In Jamaica, cannabis, also known as ganja, is consumed in the form of an herbal tea or tonic and is known to have both prophylactic and therapeutic properties. It is used as prophylactics to prevent colds, constipation, gonorrhea and other ailments. In children, it is believed to prevent undernourishment and disease. As a cure, ganja compresses are used for open wounds and for analgesia. The ingestion of ganja is thought to cure arthritis, stomach problems, and numerous other medical conditions. Ganja is assumed to strengthen certain moods or conditions like sleepiness, sexuality, hunger, and relaxation. It is also said to help people work longer, harder, and faster. The manner in which ganja is consumed is considered to be very important. According to a popular belief, the ingestion of ganja tea and its consequent absorption into the bloodstream help bolster the blood, rendering it more potent in combating illness, whereas smoking is believed to affect the lungs and the brain. Cannabis in Colombia has a history of use by coastal communities. It is smoked to diminish work fatigue as a prophylactic and to enhance sexual experience. Its leaves are crushed and used topically to relieve pain. The leaves are sometimes mixed with rhum or aguardiente and even rubbed in their pure form on joints and aching muscles. Babies suffering from colic or fits of crying are quieted using an elixir of cannabis boiled with water and raw sugar. Cannabis, however, as it is believed in Colombia, is not for everyone. It is believed that people who are mentally fragile, débil en la cabeza, should not use it as it can make them crazy. In Brazil, cannabis is medicinally used in the form of tea to relieve rheumatism, stomach ache, and menstrual pains. It is also stuffed in and around a sore tooth to help relieve toothache. On La Réunion, a French island in the Indian Ocean, cannabis locally referred to as zamal, is medicinally used in various ways. Its roots are cooked and given to vomiting infants and the tea of its leaves is used to combat fever. In veterinary medicine, zamal leaves in water are used as a prophylactic for chicken in the prevention on infectious diseases. To enhance agression, zamal leaves mixed with canine food in the case of dogs and with onions in the case of fighting cocks. One of the first known Western medical experiments using cannabis was conducted by the Irish physician Dr. William Brooke O'Shaughnessy in the 19th century. O'Shaughnessy was stationed in India and started experimenting the medicinal effect of cannabis on dogs and other animals. He continued his experimentation on humans. In one reported case, a grain of resin was given to an acute rheumatism patient. According to O'Shaughnessy description, the patient was becoming very talkative, was singing songs, calling loudly for an extra supply of food, and declaring himself in perfect health. After several hours, this same patient was found laying in his bed insensible. He was in a state described by O'Shaughnessy as cataleptic, showing a muscular rigidity and numbness to pain. O'Shaughnessy described the use of hemp for the treatment of tetanus, cholera, and juvenile convulsions. In case of delirium caused by the use of cannabis, O'Shaughnessy prescribed attaching leeches to the temples. Following O'Shaughnessy example, the British doctors started experimenting with the use of cannabis in various illnesses ranging from tetanus to preterm labor and in inducing labor. In approximately the same time, French physician Jean-Jacques Moreau de Tours experimented with the use of cannabis for the treatment of mental disorders. Soon after, in 1851, cannabis was included in the third edition of the Pharmacopeia of the United States. Subsequent revisions described in detail how to prepare extracts and tinctures of dried cannabis flowers to be used as an analgesic, hypnotic, and anti-convulsant. Growing concerns about cannabis resulted in the outlawing of cannabis in several states in the early 1900s, and federal prohibition of the drug in 1937 with the passage of the Marijuana Tax Act. In response to these concerns, in 1942 the American Medical Association removed cannabis from the 12th edition of the US Pharmacopeia. In 1985, pharmaceutical companies received approval to begin developing cannabis preparation for therapeutic use. As a result, cannabinoids were re-introduced into the armamentarium of willing healthcare providers.
