Ballad of the Dreaming Weavers: Cannabis and Culture Summary and Analysis

The cannabis has been a part of human culture longer than any other plant. It was introduced in Africa, but made its way over the land bridge into the new world. Its broad geographical range and adaptability resulted in its large impact in human society. An intoxicating substance, hashish, is created from collecting the cannabis resin into black sticky balls. Cannabis is known by a variety of names in hundreds of different languages.

Hashish is several thousands of years old, although smoking cannabis is a relatively new ritual. The previous method of intoxication was through ingestion; however, smoking was discovered as the quickest and most efficient way to experience its effects. It is unclear when smoking first began, and if it was a new behavior or an...