Drug Use in Ancient Greece and Rome

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  • Опубліковано 13 тра 2024
  • The Ancient Greeks and Romans used opium, marijuana, and other narcotics to relieve pain and induce sleep. They may have also enhanced rituals and enlivened banquets with hallucinogens.
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    If you liked this video, you might also enjoy my book “Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants: Frequently Asked Questions about the Ancient Greeks and Romans.”
    www.amazon.com/Naked-Statues-...
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    / toldinstone
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    Further reading on ancient drug use:
    toldinstone.com/drug-use-in-a...
    Chapters:
    0:00 Introduction
    1:01 Of Scythians and cannabis
    1:49 Medical uses of opium
    3:18 Medical uses of cannabis
    4:15 The poppy goddess
    4:41 Drugs in Greek religious ritual
    5:23 The Eleusinian Mysteries
    6:01 Recreational drugs in Ancient Rome
    6:53 Problems of evidence
    7:21 Conclusion
    Thanks for watching!

КОМЕНТАРІ • 2,1 тис.

  • @Poodleinacan
    @Poodleinacan 2 роки тому +7796

    I don't have an addiction, I get high to honor my ancestors.

    • @irongeneral7861
      @irongeneral7861 2 роки тому +109

      At least you honor them somehow.

    • @youareright4917
      @youareright4917 2 роки тому +28

      Better than getting a fast tracked Fauci vax to prevent the Fauci virus!

    • @Poodleinacan
      @Poodleinacan 2 роки тому +57

      @@irongeneral7861 I was making a joke.
      To my knowledge, I don't have Greek nor Roman ancestry.

    • @b.a.k5367
      @b.a.k5367 2 роки тому +9

      @@youareright4917 better than getting euthanized by the nazi fow wow chee.

    • @youareright4917
      @youareright4917 2 роки тому +168

      @@Poodleinacan "I get high with a little help from my friends, Romans and countrymen." - Paulus McCartneyus

  • @ethanstaaf404
    @ethanstaaf404 2 роки тому +5244

    “Left the body dehydrated” i had never considered that thousands of years ago people were experiencing cottonmouth

    • @geoffmcgowan
      @geoffmcgowan 2 роки тому +143

      Such is life..

    • @mokkaveli
      @mokkaveli 2 роки тому +881

      the first guy who ever had cottonmouth and drank some fruit juice mustve been like YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

    • @YusuphYT
      @YusuphYT 2 роки тому +86

      @@3g0st my thought exactly. opioids leave you dehydrated, and leaves a dehydrated mouth feeling. cannibinoids leave cottonmouth sensation, completely unrelated and unrecognisable from extreme opioid dehydration.

    • @YusuphYT
      @YusuphYT 2 роки тому +12

      or even extreme dehydration in general, doesnt need to be the opioid extreme to prove my point. cottonmouth is saliva related, not the case with dehydration as dehydration is not local to a local saliva gland region.

    • @newonthewatcher2023
      @newonthewatcher2023 2 роки тому +54

      @@3g0st It might not be dehydration but it can still be perceived that way, especially by ancient people who had nowhere near as much insight on the subject

  • @joshuab4586
    @joshuab4586 2 роки тому +3380

    I personally really enjoy the often overlooked history of substance use in history/antiquity. People often like to think that “getting high” is a new phenomenon, but I often find it’s historically been used recreationally, spiritually and medically for millennia.

    • @SimonQuennevilleSim
      @SimonQuennevilleSim 2 роки тому +35

      @@user-er5yt8vl6v i would

    • @Okk030
      @Okk030 2 роки тому +19

      @@user-er5yt8vl6v yup

    • @ByeBaybe
      @ByeBaybe 2 роки тому +44

      I'm pretty confident in the idea of our sentience allowing us to enjoy being high. I remember giving my cat some benadryl for her allergies, and she did not know wtf was happening. She was scared.

    • @user-er5yt8vl6v
      @user-er5yt8vl6v 2 роки тому +34

      @@ByeBaybe that’s probably exactly the reason why some plants use psychoactive defenses to let animals know not to eat it, but humans happily enjoy eating it to hallucinate

    • @user-er5yt8vl6v
      @user-er5yt8vl6v 2 роки тому +10

      @@SimonQuennevilleSim already began making it ;)

  • @aliceinwavyland
    @aliceinwavyland 2 роки тому +1044

    'An absence of evidence shows that everyone was too stoned to record anything' Is what I thought he was going to say 😂

  • @italiangarbageposting
    @italiangarbageposting 2 роки тому +3279

    "Jessicus, time to start cooking shrooms."

    • @garliconionshallot
      @garliconionshallot 2 роки тому +100

      ego sum ille qui pulsat

    • @nkjoself2040
      @nkjoself2040 2 роки тому +4

      @UCBSlXYAn1YWzEGx5UgmURkg You have some massive amounts of information there. I think you are right on several accounts. But to combine ALL of these theories together is a bit far fetched.

    • @italiangarbageposting
      @italiangarbageposting 2 роки тому +58

      @@user-ud7ei6zv7i Sir this is an Applebee's

    • @hotgun2469
      @hotgun2469 2 роки тому +21

      @@nkjoself2040 bro what did i miss

    • @nkjoself2040
      @nkjoself2040 2 роки тому +9

      @@hotgun2469 i actually saved all of it. Let me paste it

  • @genociderjill
    @genociderjill 2 роки тому +2022

    they were doing opium mixed with WEED???? I need to try this now and I will rebuild Rome.

    • @auguste573
      @auguste573 2 роки тому +281

      They drank Wine spiked with opium, black tea, they was high as a mfr!

    • @fuzzytransmissionman
      @fuzzytransmissionman 2 роки тому +133

      weed=whooooaaaa, that's crazy....
      opium=whoa....................................................................................that's crazy.........................................................................

    • @elcid9054
      @elcid9054 2 роки тому +23

      We need slaves for that

    • @pine1780
      @pine1780 2 роки тому +49

      Weed and Opium is still commonly used together recreationally , And I have dabbed while on my pain meds when I had root canals. It can get you slow asf. Also dangerous just stick with weed to be honest lol. it crazy drugs grow on trees.

    • @giulioluzzardi7632
      @giulioluzzardi7632 2 роки тому +6

      ..and I will do the mixing of the Ingredients while aslo mixing that lovely Roman concrete...labour wont be hard to find.

  • @brianshissler3263
    @brianshissler3263 2 роки тому +518

    "Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence."
    I absolutely love this quote. First time I have heard it.

    • @craigbhill
      @craigbhill 2 роки тому

      Coined by a killer, Donald Rumsfeld, to cya trying to convince bilked Americans not to convict the W admin for lying about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. It didn't succeed.

    • @detectif1061
      @detectif1061 2 роки тому +14

      its a rather dumb quote.

    • @brianshissler3263
      @brianshissler3263 2 роки тому +2

      @@detectif1061 your mom

    • @Gamerteamguy
      @Gamerteamguy 2 роки тому +1

      @@craigbhill that is not where it came from lmao

    • @oddishhonor
      @oddishhonor 2 роки тому +28

      Shoutout to the Boondocks show for using it once as well!

  • @okantichrist
    @okantichrist 2 роки тому +2848

    The Greek myths are so fantastic and bizarre that it’s difficult to believe no psychoactive drugs were involved in their creation .

    • @TheIrishAmish
      @TheIrishAmish 2 роки тому +321

      The Greeks had very sophisticated recipes for multiples drugs infused into wine and to use as inscence. The Greeks were high AF.

    • @b.a.k5367
      @b.a.k5367 2 роки тому +49

      cheese. Only thing I truly believe about the Greek mythology is the nephillim, dragons, and a few titans.

    • @whyjnot420
      @whyjnot420 2 роки тому +112

      Not that I am saying no other drugs were involved, but you might be surprised just how creative people can get when they are bored and have an ample supply of booze. Just look at the sagas that come out of Iceland for example. Those essentially originate from stories people told each other in semi-drunken or completely drunken states, while sitting around a fire during winter, since there was nothing better to do.

    • @marcdemell5976
      @marcdemell5976 2 роки тому +18

      Myths are some times real.

    • @whyjnot420
      @whyjnot420 2 роки тому +35

      ​@@marcdemell5976 There was a British archaeologist named Mick Aston who had 2 rules for all folk memory.
      1) All folk memory is wrong.
      2) All folk memory is right.
      The idea being that there are always kernels of truth in them, but they are surrounded by lots and lots of stuff that is not true. With the real key to understanding being able to suss out the truth from the myth.
      Myths are myths. They cannot be true in and of themselves, however they can contain elements of truth.
      Might I suggest that you are thinking of legends, not myths. People do tend to confuse or conflate the two terms. Like myths, legends are traditional stories that get passed down the generations, but unlike myths they are not for instance, stories about deities or whatnot. And unlike histories, they have little to no supporting evidence.
      A legend might later be shown to have likely originated in actual events, look at some of the crazy things we have discovered living in the oceans for instance, i.e. giant squid.
      btw, there is a term that is sometimes used by historians to denote stories which are a combo of myth and history, mythistory. This refers to stories that have a large amount of truth in them as compared to regular myths (which might only be true in terms of a moral being taught, or something abstract like that as compared to the story that is used to teach it), what percentage that is will differ depending on who uses the term, but as far as I have ever seen it used, it is as I just said. One example of this would be the fantastical stories about the king Gilgamesh.

  • @shoobymcdooberson7466
    @shoobymcdooberson7466 2 роки тому +538

    I honestly wouldn't be surprised if the reason we don't know a lot about ancient Greek and Roman recreational drug use is the same as why it took so long to figure out how certain tools were used; it could have been so commonplace that no one thought to write it down.

    • @peoplez129
      @peoplez129 2 роки тому +48

      Another factor could be that ritualism controlled drug use. And that in those times, resources weren't as plentiful. Drugs aren't really meant by plants as a desirable thing, they're meant as a deterrence. A wild animal gets high, they're more lethargic and open to predation. So back then, you needed to work hard to grow your crops and provide for yourself. If you were high all the time, the fruits of your labor would suffer. Today, we have 1 person capable of doing the job of what used to take hundreds of people, and the burdens were larger on the individual. If you're a farmer with a family, that's all you have. If your performance suffers by even 20%, just picture 20% of the field of crops gone. That's a big deal. So effort and time mattered greatly, because it had a greater effect.
      There was always more to do. Especially when preparing for the winter was a necessity. So you had 6 months of work needed to provide for 12 months, and even then the work wasn't done in the winter. In the modern world, no one really needs to prepare for winter anymore. You can just hop down to the store and grab some fresh food. The world was also much smaller, so it's not like you could just pop down to a drug dealer, a lot of these drugs were likely foreign imports that came through every now and then.
      Someone had to physically carry that stuff hundreds or even thousands of miles. That wasn't a quick distance back then. People take for granted the speed at which we can achieve things these days. Other things were more valuable for the time and effort spent. And think about how much they would have needed to transport if it was common place. We're talking hundreds of thousands of pounds of weed.
      Quality was also likely of issue. When you're transporting bundles of weed, they're not shrink wrapped and jarred. They're being put on the back of a wagon like hay bales. That means they quickly lose their aroma and potency by the time they even reach the customer. Just imagine how weed would look/smell/taste/feel after sitting on the back of an open wagon after a week of transport, after its changed many hands, distributed and redistributed. It's not going to be very good. And they also likely didn't strictly control the sexes of the plants they grew, so you'd end up with much weaker potency from the get go, before all of that transport time. Of course that means plentiful seeds to grow their own, and they likely did, but again, there were lots of factors that would have limited the desire for drug use.
      We're talking about a time when someone could shove a knife in your back at any moment. You needed to have your wits about you. There were no fingerprints, no DNA, no camera's....someone could off you and no one would know, or run away and never be caught. Even today, over 90% of all crimes go unsolved. Back then? 99.99999% probably. So people were much more vulnerable, which made things that made you vulnerable, less desirable.

    • @shoobymcdooberson7466
      @shoobymcdooberson7466 2 роки тому +34

      @@peoplez129 No? Animals use natural drugs all the time to soothe aches and pains, mental trauma, and other ailments. Storage jars are old as hell, too, so I can't imagine understanding sealing things off from oxidizing would have been a foreign concept. Self-defense, either. Poisons and hidden weapons have always been useful, and it's not like people couldn't hire a guard for cargo.

    • @shoobymcdooberson7466
      @shoobymcdooberson7466 2 роки тому +18

      @@peoplez129 Do you have sources on any of that? You're talking like the study of plants and breeding crops and such aren't just common sense gardening. Although, you're kind of proving my point talking about all this like people didn't have the sense to work things out 😭

    • @janegarner6739
      @janegarner6739 Рік тому +18

      In the Americas (pre-Col.) many societies & civilizations were developed by peoples who used psychedelic substances over at least a millennia, with many formulas that by the 15th c. C.E. were used for fairly specific results. Little study has been done on the subject largely because of the laws & popular views re these substances in modern society. The first written studies of such drugs among the pre-hispanic Mexica (Aztecs & others of the region & period) wasn't printed until abt 1976, in work by the leading scholar Peter Furst. The subject has since then still been largely ignored in the field of studies of the Aztec/Mexica of the 14th-15th c as well as those of other native peoples in pre-Col. times.
      The ancient libraries of the Aztec-Mexica were intentionally destroyed by the Sp. invaders in the 16th c, with the living knowledge by Aztec-Mexica 'priests' also destroyed, as the invaders murdered all the surviving 'priests' at the seige of Mexico/Tenochtitlan (1521) & thereafter sought to hunt down & kill any who might have escaped. Similar tactics were used against the Maya in the following decades. With the Euro. invasion & colonization of these native peoples & others, the native religions were made illegal, with punishment of death being usual for any native found with anything (books, ceremonial objects, etc) from the old culture. This same pattern of destruction was carried out by the Europeans & later Euro-Americans north of Mexico. (The practice of native religions was illegal in the U.S. till the later 1980s when legalization was forced via U.N. resolution & the pressure by Euro. allies of the U.S.)
      This is much too complex a subject & history to go into here except for some very basic facts. The works of Peter Furst are still a good source on the subject re native civilizations of pre-hispanic Mexico, & there are more recent books on the subject re the prehispanic peoples of the Andes. And there is work available on various native peoples' historic use of psychedelic substances in what is now the U.S.
      But overall, the subject has been very under-studied & ignored. This is comparable to an attempt to study ancient Greece, Rome, & the history of western civilization while ignoring the use of wine (& other alcoholic substances) in the cultures & religions. In fact, hallucinogens might well have played a larger part in the development of Native cultures than wine/alcohol played in the west. This is not to say native peoples were simply misled or overly influenced by the use of psychedelics, not at all. Rather, the controlled use of psychedelics influenced many wideheld views found among these peoples, such as the generally held view that the earth & all 'parts' of the earth are living, as opposed to the western division into animate & inanimate & the view of humans as a superior species, etc.
      From what little such knowledge survived the 16th c destruction of the Mexica civilization & the following centuries of colonialism & further destruction of the native culture, some little information has survived, albeit often distorted by translation of the native language into Euro. languages, such as found in the Florentine Codex & similar sources. We know, for example, that in Mexico/Tenochtitlan the use of psychedelic substances & formulas was legally allowed only for certain ceremonial uses, their use strongly prohibited for private use except among the elderly, those past working & raising families. The use of alcohol was much more strongly regulated, with its use being a capital offense except for proscribed ceremonial use & by the elderly.
      The radically different effects of alcohol & psychedelic substances can be seen in the very different developments each had on societies, which is not to say either type of substance determined the cultural views of those peoples. But if one is familiar with the effects of, for example, peyote & distilled alcohol or strong wine, the very different effects are apparent. Peyote allows one to experience visions of the natural world that are commonly found in the traditional spiritual views of many Native peoples throughout most of the Americas in pre-Col. times, quite a few of these also still held by surviving peoples. The general view of 'Nature', of the place of human beings within 'Nature' as a species different from others but not superior, the view that each plant or animal is alive & has its own ways of living & its own part to play in the life of the planet as a whole--- these general views were developed over many millennia by peoples who had by at least 1500 BCE used such psychedelic substances as partners in developing spiritual views as well as more general views of life distinctly different than is known of in the development of western civilization. While forms of beer & such were also developed in the Americas, they didn't play such an important role, at least as far as we know, & they didn't have a major influence on developing religions & cultures as alcohol did in the "old world." While alcohol can help one achieve some spiritual and/or visionary experience, it also produces a deadening effect on the senses & the mind.

    • @owfan4134
      @owfan4134 Рік тому +3

      @@janegarner6739 great post, thanks for writing. I've been watching Ancient America's channel a lot lately, and one thing that I notice isn't spoken of much is ritualistic plant medicine. that's not to say he doesn't mention it, because it obviously plays a part in the cultural traditions of the modern descendants of those people, but mostly the picture of the Mexica peoples he paints is always about sacrifices and bloodletting. I watched his episode on the Popol Vuh and was disappointed to find there wasn't much discussion of plant medicine involved, but there certainly were human sacrifices. The only video I've watched so far to talk about plant medicines was in his video on Chavín de Huántar; apparently it's likely that snuffs containing DMT were ingested by aspirants who, wandering in the labyrinthine corridors of the town's sacred temple, would have undertaken heroic journeys into the depths of the human psyche in pursuit of wisdom- perhaps elevating the town's legend to that of a bonified Oracle, or center of a mystery school.
      This isn't a callout or an attempt to be disrespectful to Ancient Americas, I'm just curious to learn where these traditions developed, and what the religious function of shamanic practices was for the common person from the ancient past until the arrival of the Spanish and Portuguese. He talks a lot about empires and wars and the feuds between states, but I honestly don't care all that much about violence and warfare apart from the clinical analysis necessary to form a holistic impression of a culture. Specifically, I was wondering if you could point me in the direction of some sources. I'd suspect that, as everywhere else on earth, the dominators and warriors would command the dictation of written history and leave out anything which didn't foster slavish obedience to blood gods and the vast empires those gods were likely invented to support.

  • @imslippykid8834
    @imslippykid8834 2 роки тому +131

    the first 5 seconds: “the tomb had already been looted”
    me: *“*gasp*”*

  • @latinhellas6383
    @latinhellas6383 9 місяців тому +26

    I appreciate how you distinguish textual and archeological evidence from contemporary speculation; in other words, you have the integrity to say that many things we simply do not know.

  • @APOLLINAIREBARTHOLOMIEU
    @APOLLINAIREBARTHOLOMIEU 5 місяців тому +218

    Psychedelics are just an exceptional mental health breakthrough. It's quite fascinating how effective they are against depression and anxiety. Saved my life.

    • @elizabethwilliams6651
      @elizabethwilliams6651 5 місяців тому +1

      Does anyone know any good source to get them? I put so much on my plate and it definitely affects my stress and anxiety levels, would love to give shrooms a try.

    • @steceymorgan814
      @steceymorgan814 5 місяців тому

      Yes, dr.sporesss

    • @twinfred3160
      @twinfred3160 5 місяців тому

      Dr.sporesss is the best, he's been my go to for anything psychedelics.

    • @elizabethwilliams6651
      @elizabethwilliams6651 5 місяців тому

      Is he on instagram?

    • @steceymorgan814
      @steceymorgan814 5 місяців тому

      Yes he is. dr.sporesss

  • @nijobot
    @nijobot 2 роки тому +747

    Damn, scythian sweat lodges sound like a fun time 😝

    • @StudSupreme
      @StudSupreme 2 роки тому +46

      Interesting how they so strongly resemble the Navajo sweat lodges.

    • @cptpayday2080
      @cptpayday2080 2 роки тому +126

      So they literally just Hotboxed thousands of years ago?

    • @_knightsbane_3615
      @_knightsbane_3615 2 роки тому +6

      @@user-ud7ei6zv7i Sweat lodges do be fun tho

    • @rambonatorrrr6694
      @rambonatorrrr6694 2 роки тому

      @@StudSupreme doubt it's related, otherwise there would be more traces to scythian culture.

    • @StudSupreme
      @StudSupreme 2 роки тому +7

      @@rambonatorrrr6694 I don't mean directly related, but still - up to the point that they settled near the Four Corners area, the Navajo had been nomadic. They were also very accustomed to living in steppe or semi-desert conditions. I bet there are some really interesting cultural similarities between the Navajo and the Scythians, in the same way that the Tuareg and the Bedu share certain general 'traits.'

  • @KeyserSoze685
    @KeyserSoze685 2 роки тому +478

    I think that as soon as early man realized eating some mushroom or the smoke from some planet gave a pleasurable experience...mankind had been getting high for a loooooooong time.

    • @habibsspirit
      @habibsspirit 2 роки тому +38

      It's not even about pleasure. Some of the drugs mentioned in wine recipes from that era do not give good trips, on the contrary. Humans, like most animals, when offered the opportunity to have lateral thinking, will do so. The reason is unknown, but I'm willing to bet it has to do with evolutionary game theory, curiosity, and experimentation.

    • @bobthebuilder6553
      @bobthebuilder6553 2 роки тому +40

      Not just mankind either. Pigs and Jaguars have been recorded, seeking out and consuming hallucinagetic plants.

    • @KeyserSoze685
      @KeyserSoze685 2 роки тому +4

      @@habibsspirit it might not have been about pleasure....but...they probably found it pleasurable lol

    • @LG141602
      @LG141602 2 роки тому +4

      Dolphins for example

    • @KeyserSoze685
      @KeyserSoze685 2 роки тому +3

      @@LG141602 yes....almost every kind of animal or person probably enjoys getting high EVEN if that's not what they think they are doing....lol

  • @thewaywardpoet
    @thewaywardpoet 2 роки тому +298

    Me, a history nerd who's currently stoned: *I'VE FOUND THE PERFECT VIDEO!*

  • @NickVenture1
    @NickVenture1 2 роки тому +107

    Thank you for this online class.

    • @GazB85
      @GazB85 2 роки тому +1

      It's not an online class! 😂

    • @Noah-pk7tf
      @Noah-pk7tf 2 роки тому +1

      You’re welcome

    • @vinslungur
      @vinslungur Рік тому

      @@GazB85 The guy is a literal doctor bro

  • @robertgiles9124
    @robertgiles9124 2 роки тому +222

    I get High With a Little Help from my Friends, Romans, and Countrymen!

  • @christhomasism
    @christhomasism 2 роки тому +696

    Hey Dr. Ryan let’s do mushrooms at Ostia Antica

    • @RAWNLEY
      @RAWNLEY 2 роки тому +88

      Can you imagine him calmly narrating as you melt into the earth?

    • @davidec.4021
      @davidec.4021 2 роки тому +19

      I’m in

    • @based_prophet
      @based_prophet 2 роки тому +15

      Let's do dmt n shrooms blunts n a 18 year whiskey on Mount olympius

    • @jimc.goodfellas226
      @jimc.goodfellas226 2 роки тому +2

      @@RAWNLEY that sounds awesome tbh

    • @3.8roentgen
      @3.8roentgen 2 роки тому +5

      I would like to join as well

  • @pattheplanter
    @pattheplanter 2 роки тому +32

    According the the United Nations "Legend has it that Demeter, in despair over the seizure of her daughter Persephone by Pluto, ate poppies in order to fall asleep and forget her grief. According to Ovid, she supplied Triptolemus also with poppies in order to induce sleep."

  • @judeirwin2222
    @judeirwin2222 2 роки тому +7

    A clear and well-written script. So refreshing to find on UA-cam. Thanks.

  • @MaxwellAerialPhotography
    @MaxwellAerialPhotography 2 роки тому +114

    Still love the “inhaling hemp” scene from HBO’s Rome.

    • @Kosovar_Chicken
      @Kosovar_Chicken 2 роки тому +6

      Yeah I love that one too

    • @jtgd
      @jtgd 2 роки тому +2

      lol with a straw

    • @hoplite723
      @hoplite723 2 роки тому +4

      It's funny because in some countries that's how it's still consumed

    • @joe-gf6ir
      @joe-gf6ir 2 роки тому +1

      @@jtgd joe

    • @isaacsilverman5249
      @isaacsilverman5249 2 роки тому

      great show

  • @Neillan
    @Neillan 2 роки тому +455

    *Drug use has been and likely always will be an ingrained aspect of human society.*

    • @MnemonicHeadTrip
      @MnemonicHeadTrip 2 роки тому +91

      We as a society nowadays like to pretend it isn’t though. Ostracize even responsible drug use and pretend like making things illegal will stop people from getting them.

    • @dayhawkify
      @dayhawkify 2 роки тому +7

      @@MnemonicHeadTrip nah we just commercialized the drugs

    • @midshipman8654
      @midshipman8654 2 роки тому +30

      didnt the video just say that a lot of it was disputed and likely somewhat limited? going too far into one end or and other often leads to obfuscation.

    • @szurketaltos2693
      @szurketaltos2693 2 роки тому +35

      Human society likely exists in large part due to one particular drug - alcohol.

    • @markc17
      @markc17 2 роки тому +3

      @@user-ud7ei6zv7i Yeah man, far out.

  • @Pianoscript
    @Pianoscript 2 роки тому +183

    My ancestors were founders of the Hospital Brothers of Saint-Anthony who took care of ergotic patients from the 11th century on. They knew very well that ergot was an hallucinogen. People like Grunwald ( Isenheim Altarpiece ) is of this same family. I have researched this quite intensively.

  • @SonKunSama
    @SonKunSama 2 роки тому +52

    I happened to be in Heraklion a couple of weeks ago and there I visited the archeological museum. After the collapse of the palatial political structure there, people started moving inlands and worshipping that poppy-goddess. There were a whole bunch of those statues there with little variety, very interesting.

  • @dominiquepersechino3867
    @dominiquepersechino3867 2 роки тому +81

    I'd love to see a video on the Eleusinian Mysteries next!

  • @lincs4life
    @lincs4life 2 роки тому +21

    I've been waiting for this video, you don't hear much about drug use in the past but I find it a very interesting topic

  • @JustMe-ob3nw
    @JustMe-ob3nw 2 роки тому +9

    Just got my book today! Going to bed now with it! Yay! Can’t wait to read it! 👏🏻👌🏻😊

  • @blundy1
    @blundy1 2 роки тому +6

    Almost 100k. Well deserved and congratulations. Fantastic and informative content as usual.

  • @lilstarship34
    @lilstarship34 2 роки тому +82

    Love these Videos, thank you so much for your research. Genuinely thinking of picking up your book due to how much I’ve been enjoying your lectures.

  • @creepy7637
    @creepy7637 2 роки тому +11

    I thought of this exact topic earlier today and thought it was a video you should make. Thanks

  • @JonHuhnMedical
    @JonHuhnMedical 2 роки тому +5

    Oh my gosh, you're answering all the ancient Rome questions I never knew I had.

  • @science.and.beyond
    @science.and.beyond 2 роки тому +64

    This is an incredible topic that I've researched and failed to find clear answers on in the past. Thank you for the work you do.

    • @eg4441
      @eg4441 9 місяців тому

      @@ozzy541he's got a link in the description to his site with this video and sources on the topic below it

  • @madiantin
    @madiantin 2 роки тому +11

    Fascinating! You taught me something I didn't know I needed to know.

  • @feelthelove3725
    @feelthelove3725 2 роки тому +35

    This video makes me unrealistically happy

  • @SynACK244
    @SynACK244 2 роки тому +4

    Just got your book today! Loving it so far!!!

  • @leahc5333
    @leahc5333 Рік тому +5

    Man I love your videos so so so much. Been binge watching these. So informational and well researched. Props to you man I hope you are making a good dollar out of all this effort

  • @osterotto
    @osterotto 2 роки тому +6

    Man you're working like crazy! You put out a video every few days!!

  • @vikingdesigner1471
    @vikingdesigner1471 2 роки тому +4

    This channel is the best, much appreciated good Doctor

  • @susanhepburn6040
    @susanhepburn6040 2 роки тому +4

    Thank you for another interesting video!

  • @M4th3u54ndr4d3
    @M4th3u54ndr4d3 2 роки тому +42

    We need a part 2 of this - you have to talk about ancient egypt and the Blue Water Lilly (also called egyptian lotus).
    Maybe it was consumed in Babylon and Assyria too

    • @worldtraveler930
      @worldtraveler930 2 роки тому +3

      Most definitely especially as I've heard discussions that the blue Lotus was a more powerful viagra than modern viagra!!! 🤠👍

    • @mazrimtaim3107
      @mazrimtaim3107 2 роки тому +2

      Smoking it is relaxing, and brewing a tea with a dozen or so flowers is definitely sedating in my experience. Not sure about that viagra thing though lol

    • @lfrankow
      @lfrankow Рік тому

      “Should we build another pyramid?” “Nah, man. Let’s go do lillies “. “Haha, yeah. I’m down. Let’s go. “

  • @dootboye
    @dootboye 2 роки тому +3

    I was just at the archeological museum of Heraklion when you uploaded this video. Thumbnail scared the shit out of me.

  • @michaelhoffmann2891
    @michaelhoffmann2891 2 роки тому +282

    Something that occurred to me to request as a future video: what of today's customs, traditions and manners, specifically in Italy otherwise it might get unwieldy, go back - at least - to the Roman Empire? Having recently done a bit of a deep dive into Petronius' Satyricon and its description of commoner life, there were a few passages where I went "wait, don't they *still* do that in Italy?)

    • @toldinstone
      @toldinstone  2 роки тому +131

      That's a very interesting idea. I'll add it to my video topic list.

  • @jaybee9269
    @jaybee9269 2 роки тому +2

    Great content, my man!

  • @DowntownPaco
    @DowntownPaco 2 роки тому +1

    Another excellent video Dr. Ryan.

  • @gregsg2351
    @gregsg2351 2 роки тому +3

    Another concise video my friend I thank you for it.

  • @AnyoneCanSee
    @AnyoneCanSee 2 роки тому +4

    Thank you, very interesting. I love your videos. More than any other they give me a feel of what it might have been to be there. There are so many things I knew nothing whatsoever about.

  • @GreedyOrange
    @GreedyOrange 2 роки тому

    i ackschully googled that about a year ago!i didnt find anything good about it,
    so its very nice to see it in my feed,thanks for making it :3

  • @jonathaneffemey944
    @jonathaneffemey944 25 днів тому

    Thanks so much for posting

  • @malachitucker3234
    @malachitucker3234 2 роки тому +7

    What a good idea I never even knew I’d be interested in this

  • @justinbellotti7838
    @justinbellotti7838 2 роки тому +3

    OK, I shall subscribe. This video got me "hooked" on this channel.

  • @kitparsons4733
    @kitparsons4733 Рік тому

    This is a fantastic, informative, concise video. Bravo

  • @szurketaltos2693
    @szurketaltos2693 2 роки тому +29

    The Romans also managed to destroy the last supply of what they considered an aphrodisiac, silphium. Kind of a recreational drug of sorts.

    • @mikesully110
      @mikesully110 2 роки тому +7

      I always wondered what the Lotus Eaters were taking, it sounds a little like Opium, but the drug grew on a Lotus Tree, and opium is a poppy not a tree. Whatever this Lotus Tree produced it sounds a lot stronger than Opium if it existed!

    • @szurketaltos2693
      @szurketaltos2693 2 роки тому +1

      @@mikesully110 at least a stronger sedative, not necessarily a stronger narcotic in my reading

    • @gloriamontgomery6900
      @gloriamontgomery6900 2 роки тому

      I thought sulphium was a form of birth control?

  • @Chris-ki7rt
    @Chris-ki7rt 2 роки тому +20

    Brian Muraresku's 'The Immortality Key' is great on this topic. Thanks toldinstoneguy, love your work.

  • @BrennanDemarest
    @BrennanDemarest 2 роки тому +7

    Another great video. Please don’t stop making these, they’re all fascinating.

  • @leemosher5513
    @leemosher5513 2 роки тому +1

    Super fun video! Love learning new things.

  • @thekingwalrusc4026
    @thekingwalrusc4026 2 роки тому

    Great content, great channel, keep up the amazing work!!

  • @cgavin1
    @cgavin1 2 роки тому +163

    Male plant: Strong and versatile.
    Female plant: Intoxicating.

    • @scottyd2262
      @scottyd2262 2 роки тому +16

      A lot like humans

    • @bezahltersystemtroll5055
      @bezahltersystemtroll5055 2 роки тому +11

      you use both types for the fiber though, not just males 🤔

    • @jonathanwells223
      @jonathanwells223 2 роки тому

      @@bezahltersystemtroll5055 but what happens if a clothing shop catches fire and you only use the female fibers?

    • @felix1998041
      @felix1998041 2 роки тому +2

      @@jonathanwells223 the same as with the male fiber. The psychoactive drug is in the buds and not in the stem. Or have you ever seen someone walk down the street puffing on a hemp stem?

    • @karigrandii
      @karigrandii 2 роки тому +1

      Thats mysogonistic man…

  • @backalleycqc4790
    @backalleycqc4790 2 роки тому +111

    Now I know why this channel is called "Told In Stone" = "Told While Stoned" 🤔

    • @genociderjill
      @genociderjill 2 роки тому +2

      Amen

    • @roberttelarket4934
      @roberttelarket4934 2 роки тому

      Back Alley: Very very very clever!

    • @wolff.
      @wolff. 2 роки тому +4

      na its a typo lmao its "Told I'm Stoned"

    • @backalleycqc4790
      @backalleycqc4790 2 роки тому

      @@wolff.
      🤣🤣🤣
      Yup, yours is better than mine 🌞👍

    • @wolff.
      @wolff. 2 роки тому

      @@user-ud7ei6zv7i bot

  • @lizjoyce4846
    @lizjoyce4846 2 роки тому +2

    Extremely interesting thank you for this video

  • @nickhartman6372
    @nickhartman6372 3 місяці тому +1

    This was a fascinating video, I enjoyed every moment of it! Sometimes I wish I had pursued my love of history more and found a related job, it's the one topic that just never gets old for me. I pretty much immediately subscribed, I feel a binge coming on 😅 thank you for the excellent content!

  • @JustMeJH
    @JustMeJH 2 роки тому +3

    Wow! Love the insights into the past.

  • @michaelhoffmann2891
    @michaelhoffmann2891 2 роки тому +246

    On another note: seeing as the Kurgan culture shown in the beginning is now increasingly considered the place where horses were first ridden, it would make sense that the first person to get on an untamed horse that could run at 50kmh and extinguish your life with a single kick, would have had to have been stoned out of their gourd! (a case of "hold my mushrooms")

    • @petersack5074
      @petersack5074 2 роки тому +9

      ? opium IS NOT mushrooms = (Psilocybin)

    • @michaelhoffmann2891
      @michaelhoffmann2891 2 роки тому +24

      @@petersack5074 There's always one isn't there? The "I bet you're fun at parties" guy? You think I don't know that? I was not aware that YT was a peer-reviewed platform. "Hold my opium-laced steam infused sweat-tent" just didn't have the same ring. Neither would sticking to the original "hold my beer". HTH. HAND.

    • @michaelhoffmann2891
      @michaelhoffmann2891 2 роки тому +9

      @Stanky Pankey Holy crap! I've ridden for 30 years, fallen off enough to spend time in hospital and rehab. The horse must have been a saint. Even at a full gallop! It's not the gallop that kills you, it's the sudden stops or leaps/turns where you part ways and prove Newton right yet again. Or your friend should have taken this as a sign for a hidden talent brought out by acid: he should've gone pro! 😆🏇

    • @scotth6814
      @scotth6814 2 роки тому +4

      When Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole had to ride camels in a big battle scene in "Lawrence Of Arabia", they admitted that they both decided to get drunk first (in order to build up the courage for it, I guess).

    • @michaelhoffmann2891
      @michaelhoffmann2891 2 роки тому

      @@scotth6814 Having ridden camels a couple of times, it could also be to loosen you up enough to be able to sit that insane motion! 😆

  • @grittykitty8005
    @grittykitty8005 Рік тому

    Enjoyed it , Thanks for uploading ,

  • @bernardocoto8519
    @bernardocoto8519 Рік тому

    Great video, this is a topic rarely mentioned

  • @Gremlin4498
    @Gremlin4498 2 роки тому +7

    Oddly enough this will be very useful for my Minoan inspired Dungeons and Dragons game...

  • @Kid_Ikaris
    @Kid_Ikaris 2 роки тому +6

    Great summary of the general agreed upon history. It's worth pointing out that there's been a lot of recent scholarship, especially around the Eleusinian mysteries, including the discovery of a picture of a vase (that was later destroyed I believe) depicting a woman holding what is unambiguously a mushroom, possibly to spike the wine also present in the picture.
    Nothing definitive (although truly little in History is) yet but it's an absolutely fascinating frontier of classicism.

  • @PickleRick65
    @PickleRick65 Рік тому +2

    THANK YOU for pronouncing "Scythians" CORRECTLY

  • @toddgamble3453
    @toddgamble3453 2 роки тому

    very cool compilation of data on a fascinating topic.

  • @autumnalscholar9453
    @autumnalscholar9453 2 роки тому +109

    FYI: There's an excellent book on the subject. "The Chemical Muse"
    Well worth a read.

    • @matthewjswider
      @matthewjswider 2 роки тому

      Author?

    • @quorthonsinferno5119
      @quorthonsinferno5119 2 роки тому +2

      @@matthewjswider Here
      www.amazon.com/Chemical-Muse-Roots-Western-Civilization/dp/0312352492

  • @Latinarama
    @Latinarama 2 роки тому +19

    Love how the thumbnail looks like a guy raving

  • @btetschner
    @btetschner 2 роки тому +1

    Thank you for the video.

  • @Soulixs
    @Soulixs 2 роки тому +1

    Amazing content!

  • @Lucius1958
    @Lucius1958 2 роки тому +16

    An early exploration of ancient ritual drug use may be found in Robert Graves' essay, *"Centaurs' Food"* , which has some interesting insights...

    • @MrInterestingthings
      @MrInterestingthings 2 роки тому

      Robert Graves is great . So Long to all That was a great read too !

  • @tothboy01
    @tothboy01 2 роки тому +8

    Nice that you mentioned the Eleusinian Mysteries, because ancient mystery cults are closely related to ancient farming cults of dying-rising vegetation gods, like Attis (originally a Phrygian god but later adopted by the Greeks and Romans), the Egyptian god Osiris, and the Greek demi-god Dionysus. Mystery cults are also similar to Gnosticism and Hermeticism. There is a link here between vegetation gods, consuming a hallucinogenic herb/drug, and having visions (i.e. hallucinations). Such visions may have been interpreted as "seeing the future", so there is also a link here to the belief in prophecy, divination, and oracles.

  • @chinesecabbagefarmer
    @chinesecabbagefarmer 2 роки тому

    You're welcome. Thank you for making it!

  • @handsomeshea7942
    @handsomeshea7942 2 роки тому +2

    This is the video we all did not know we needed

  • @craigsurette3438
    @craigsurette3438 Рік тому +12

    For an excellent deep dive into the use of mind altering substances in Antiquity, i highly recommend the Appendices on the subject in George Luck's excellent book on religion in the ancient world, Arcana Mundi
    Pharmakoi were brewing up all sorts of interesting stuff

  • @theroadhomefromwrestling1788
    @theroadhomefromwrestling1788 2 роки тому +10

    I’ve been waiting for this information my entire life. Thank you. Drugs and Ancient History forever.

    • @matthewjswider
      @matthewjswider 2 роки тому +1

      Read graham Hancock’s books. You’ll thank me later.

  • @ChimpityChoo
    @ChimpityChoo 2 роки тому +1

    The video was excellent. Thank you

  • @patrickf2671
    @patrickf2671 2 роки тому

    Very good video Mr Ryan !

  • @BrownGeorge-pw2xo
    @BrownGeorge-pw2xo Місяць тому +15

    Heroin addiction actually destroyed my life. I started doing drugs since my teenage, spent my whole life fighting heroin addiction. I suffered severe depression and mental disorder. Not until my wife recommended me to psilocybin mushrooms treatment. Psilocybin treatment saved my life honestly. 8 years totally clean. Much respect to mother nature the great magic shrooms.

    • @KicksConceptsshoes
      @KicksConceptsshoes Місяць тому

      Amen God bless people. Save your health save your mind. Life is better without heroin, cocaine, alcohol and cigarettes. And you have more money in your pocket. God bless everyone who has rejected the devils intentions to be addicted to alcohol and cigarettes etc which can cause so much damage to health.

    • @Bastianbishops
      @Bastianbishops Місяць тому

      Can you help me with the reliable source 🙏. I'm 56 and have suffered for years with addiction, anxiety and severe ptsd, I got my panic attacks under control myself years ago and they have come back with a vengeance, I'm constantly trying to take full breaths but can't get the full satisfying breath out, it's absolutely crippling me, i live in Germany. I don't know much about these mushrooms. Really need a reliable source!! Can't wait to get them.

    • @DonnHowes
      @DonnHowes Місяць тому +1

      YES very sure of Dr.benfungi. I have the same experience with anxiety, depression, PTSD and addiction and Mushrooms definitely made a huge huge difference to why am clean today.

    • @Malikrooney-hq5jj
      @Malikrooney-hq5jj Місяць тому +1

      I'm really happy for you that your wife decided to help you...I hear about alot of family members or so called friends shutting an addict out of their life, which since most addicts do it to mask emotions to me is the worse thing someone can do to an addict.

    • @LuisaSweden-rf3ke
      @LuisaSweden-rf3ke Місяць тому

      How do I reach out to him? Is he on insta

  • @metalhigh0043
    @metalhigh0043 2 роки тому +19

    I remember reading somewhere that some wealthy ancient Romans would occasionally eat a species of toxic fish that would make them trip out, but it was more poisonous than psychedelic.

  • @jaiiskii2262
    @jaiiskii2262 9 місяців тому

    Beautiful video 🖤

  • @geinikan1kan
    @geinikan1kan 2 роки тому

    Excellent discussion.

  • @MCrane81
    @MCrane81 2 роки тому +15

    Anyone who enjoyed this would really enjoy reading The Immortality Key. There actually IS quite a bit of truth and evidence that Dionysian ceremonies involved hallucinogens

    • @f.u.c8308
      @f.u.c8308 2 роки тому +3

      What is the evidence?

  • @robertsansone1680
    @robertsansone1680 2 роки тому +8

    Very interesting. Thank You. Incidentally, this is the first time I've heard that hemp reduces the sex drive.

  • @visded777
    @visded777 2 роки тому +1

    Great vid bro

  • @floydoroid
    @floydoroid 2 роки тому

    gotta find it funny how out of all of toldinstone's videos this is one of the most popular videos of his, if not *the* most.

  • @adamwelch4336
    @adamwelch4336 2 роки тому +6

    Imagine digging up a 1000 year old bong! I bet that guy got made fun of!😂😂😂

  • @Tsumami__
    @Tsumami__ 2 роки тому +57

    I ritually purify myself in marijuana smoke every time I watch one of your videos, it’s an excellent accompaniment.

    • @drakonidesthevigilant5155
      @drakonidesthevigilant5155 2 роки тому +6

      I can see your lips wrapped around the end of that joint and it's a good sight

    • @ivang7164
      @ivang7164 2 роки тому +15

      @@drakonidesthevigilant5155 damn bro lmao

    • @revenone1077
      @revenone1077 2 роки тому +22

      @@drakonidesthevigilant5155 my man is STARVING

    • @mr.k7457
      @mr.k7457 2 роки тому +2

      @@drakonidesthevigilant5155 lmao the white knight goes black

    • @jacobjonesofmagna
      @jacobjonesofmagna 2 роки тому +3

      @@drakonidesthevigilant5155 oh this man down bad huh

  • @FreeTerran
    @FreeTerran 10 місяців тому

    What a good video. Thanks a lot.

  • @stlcardinals380
    @stlcardinals380 2 роки тому

    Thanks for the narration bird person!

  • @domonator5000
    @domonator5000 2 роки тому +15

    The most fascinating drug use to hear about in ancient times for me is psychedelics

  • @liamp2869
    @liamp2869 Рік тому +7

    ‘The Immortality Key’ by Brian Muraresku, fluent in Sanskrit/Ancient Greek etc and an ex-attorney provides a plethora of evidence for religious and recreational drug use in Ancient Society.

  • @bighairman
    @bighairman 2 місяці тому

    These videos are so great

  • @DavidGalvanwiz
    @DavidGalvanwiz 2 роки тому

    I was just wondering this and thought of asking you lo' and behold one of the first things recommended to me

  • @jelkel25
    @jelkel25 2 роки тому +18

    Seem to remember reading that cannabis was brewed into beer waaaay back. It would make sense, cannabis grows like a weed so you can just leave it to do its thing if you're nomadic or semi nomadic. I'd imagine that hunter gatherers observed deer eating the magic mushrooms (then drinking each other pee) so someone will have had to try them eventually pee drinking or otherwise!!!

    • @youareright4917
      @youareright4917 2 роки тому +5

      The Aztec and Native American leaders would eat peyote and their followers would drink the urine to get high before taking it themselves. Found that ritual in a book published by the University of Chicago.

  • @perunlowtuned
    @perunlowtuned 2 роки тому +4

    Ancient Egyptians also got high. Cocaine, marijuana and tobacco are found in those (in)famous "cocaine mummies", but most of all the plant called 'blue lotus'. We still don't know for sure what the effects were, but it was wide spread, which means not too expensive (unlike the aforementioned three). The higher the status you are, the higher you get!

  • @stonesmcgee1666
    @stonesmcgee1666 2 роки тому +1

    I really enjoy your voice!

  • @browningautomatic2393
    @browningautomatic2393 2 роки тому +1

    great video !