Cannabis & Sex: A brief world history

The properties of cannabis

as an aphrodisiac are no secret – its ability to induce relaxation and euphoria, increase blood circulation and improve tactile sensations probably plays a role. In October 2017, a study in the Journal of Sexual Medicine surprised some and confirmed what others instinctively knew: Cannabis probably promotes sexual activity – in the study regular cannabis users had 20% more sex than non-cannabis users. In fact, sex and cannabis have a close relationship – one that goes back centuries.

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CANNABIS & TANTRIC SEX IN INDIA

Cannabis is in many ways strongly linked to Hindu culture – it has been a traditional folk medicine in India since the 4th century BC and is still widely known in this country as an aphrodisiac. The plant was used as early as 700 AD in tantric sex and yoga practices associated with the goddess Kali. According to Michael Aldrich, who published an article on tantric cannabis use in India, combining yoga, sex and cannabis was a way for participants to achieve a spiritual awakening.

That is why cannabis, which sharpened the senses and triggered euphoria, was an essential part of the ceremony. The plant also allowed participants to be aroused for a much longer period of time – some manuscripts describing these practices describe sexual rituals that lasted up to eight hours.

CANNABIS HAS THE STRONGEST APHRODISIAK IN EASTERN EUROPE

We don’t often associate Eastern European culture with cannabis, but people in this region of the world are also familiar with its healing and sensation-enhancing properties. In Serbia, for example, hemp is an important crop and has been used in folk medicine for centuries. Serbian men consider hemp seeds an aphrodisiac – so much so that they believe that wearing hemp can increase their sexual ability.

connection: CANNABIS USERS HAVE MORE SEX

In a 1975 newspaper, Polish anthropologist Sula Benet noted that a mixture of lamb fat and nasha, a Central Asian word for hemp, was consumed on their wedding nights by Soviet-era Russian brides to ease the pain of their first sexual encounters.

Sula also notes that Eastern Europeans cooked a “merry porridge” consisting of almond butter mixed with hashish, dried rose petals, daisy root, clove leaves, crocus bulbs, nutmeg, cardamom, honey and sugar. Apparently this mixture was considered the luxury cannabis product of its time and was sought after by men who believed it to be “the most powerful aphrodisiac”.

CANNABIS & THE LOVE-GODDESS FREYA OF THE VIKINGER

1903 a farmer in Norway came across an old Viking ship containing many artefacts from the 800s. Among the artefacts were the skeletons of two women and a strange leather bag with cannabis seeds.

It is believed that these seeds are associated with one of these women known as the Oseberg Queen. Many archaeologists, including the prominent Anne Stine Ingstad, believe that the woman is not only a secular queen but also a priestess of Freya, the love goddess of Nordic mythology.

Anne believed that cannabis seeds were used for rituals during this pre-Christian period in Scandinavia. The book Cannabis: Evolution & Ethnobotany states that Freya was associated with hemp seed and harvest festivals throughout Northern Europe and that “erotic rituals” were often held in her honour. It is believed that the female cannabis flower had erotic and love-generating powers and that those who consumed these flowers would be imbued with the joy and seductive tendencies of the goddess of love.

CANNABIS & ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION IN UGANDA

Although cannabis is technically illegal in Uganda, the authors of the study note that the plant is grown in the country to maintain men’s sexual health and that it is usually smoked.

freya-CBDCURE have products that are in demand in the modern cannabis industry. As cannabis science progresses it may confirm what many cultures around the world have discovered for themselves: that cannabis can and does improve your sexual experience.

If you are new to cannabis and would like to learn more, read our article on cannabis – hemp and 20 things you can do with it.