HAOMA
/ HOM
Introduction
:
In Zoroastrian tradition, haoma is the chief among the medicinal
plants that can be pounded to extract their juice (Lesser Bundahishn
24.18, a Middle Persian Zoroastrian religious text states: "Haoma
which is out-squeezed is the chief of medicinal plants." While
haoma is the word used in older texts, hom is the word used in more
recent texts.) The strained juice is then consumed in very small
quantities. In addition to being the name of the main medicinal
plant, haoma is also the name given to the family of plant-based
medicinal and health promoting extracts made from haoma and other
plants.
In
Zoroastrian texts, haoma is associated with the baresman (haomayo
gava baresmana), a bundle of twigs from select medicinal plants
and trees. The method of preparing the haoma extract is preserved
in the principal Zoroastrian ritual called the yasna ceremony where
the central rite is the ab-zohr, meaning strength to water. Two
liquid extracts called parahom (from para-haoma meaning before-haoma)
and hom are prepared during the rite. The first parahom extract
is made by pounding of a mixture of three small twigs of ephedra
(described below), one pomegranate (Av. hadanaepata) twig, pomegranate
leaves and water. Cow's milk in Iran, or goat's milk in India, replaces
water in a second preparation.
Only
a few drops (see below) of the extract are consumed by the participants
of the ceremony or by anyone else. Even the most beneficial of foods
or cures can be harmful if consumed inappropriately or in excess.
A guiding principle in Zoroastrian practices is to consume only
that which promotes health, and only that which benefits both body
and mind - while refraining from consuming anything (or quantities)
that can cause harm.
The
ritualistic practice of mixing and pounding together the ephedra
and pomegranate twig and leaf to produce an extract preserves the
process of synergistically bringing together the beneficial properties
of the plants to promote physical health and healing. The ephedra
and pomegranate extract is consumed as a mixture. The plants' extracts
are not consumed alone or separately. In addition, bringing together
plant life, water and animal milk while reciting a manthra, a prayer,
promotes spiritual health as well.
In
our discussion on the baresman, we see that pomegranate is one of
several health promoting plants whose twigs make up the baresman
bundle of twigs. The other baresman twigs we have been able to identify
so far in the literature, are myrtle, laurel, pomegranate, tamarisk,
willow and juniper (the texts say there are thousands of healing
plants to treat thousands of aliments, the knowledge of which was
destroyed with the destruction of Zoroastrian texts). The haoma
twigs can be paired with different baresman twigs to produce blends
with specific healing and health giving properties.
In
ancient times, the haoma twigs were probably part of the baresman
bundle.
Haoma
and Baresman's Use in Ancient Health & Healing :
Rock
carving, Museum for Anatolian Civilizations, Ankara
Individual carrying a baresman bundle and haoma cup (?)
Zoroastrian
scriptural texts (Vendidad 3.1 and 14.8, and Ram Yasht 5) mention
that Zoroastrian priests carried with them the baresman, the mortar
for pounding and extracting the twigs' juice, and cups. The image
on the right appears to fit that description. It is a photograph
of a relief rock carving that now resides in the Museum for Anatolian
Civilizations in Ankara, Turkey.
Zoroastrian
priests, the magi, were renowned physicians and healers. The magi's
code of setting aside their personal needs in order to attend to
a person in need of medical help, made the magi respected throughout
the region.
The
magi frequently carried the baresman bundle with them, so much so,
that the baresman became the principle identifying symbol not just
of the magi, but of the Zoroastrian faith as well.
Carrying
a bundle of different twigs, the juices of which could be combined
in different ways to treat a variety of different aliments, was
in some ways the equivalent of carrying a modern-day physician's
medicine bag.
Uniqueness of the Zoroastrian Method of Preparing Healing Extracts
:
What sets the Zoroastrian method of preparing healing
extracts apart from other traditions is a combination of the following
features :
• The extracts are from tender branches and leaves. Using
tender twigs allows the plant to regenerate itself and does not
kill the plant.
• Ephedra is the base component. Ephedra twigs are crushed
along with twigs (and leaves) from another plant, thereby developing
synergies.
• The extracts are cold extracts and not teas. Heat can destroy
sensitive healing or health giving components.
• The combination possibilities are numerous. The texts state
that there are ten thousand plants to counter ten thousand ailments.
• The plants are not dried or ground into powders.
• There is no record of fruits of roots being used in the
extracts, presumably because fruits can be eaten whole and roots
may need cooking. Using the root of a plant kills the plant.
• Animal parts are not used and animals are not killed in
the process of seeking health and healing for humans.
Parahom
Preparation Implements :
![](mortar_pestle.gif)
Haoma mortar (hawan) & pestle (dastag/abar-hawan/labo)
![](surakhdar.gif)
Nine-holed haoma strainer surakhdar tasjta
The
ritual implements used to produce parahom are the mortar (hawan)
and pestle (dastag/abar-hawan/labo) for pounding and extracting
the juice from the plant, a nine-holed strainer (surakhdar tasjta),
and a bowl for holding the parahom.
A
priest who knows how to prepare various kinds of haoma extracts
and their benefit, is called a hawanan.
The ritual preparation of parahom is described in Mary Boyce's article:
Haoma Ritual at CAIS.
Haoma's
Identification in Scripture :
According to the Lesser Bundahishn 9.4, at the time of creation,
ten thousand healing plants grew to counteract ten thousand diseases.
From those ten thousand plants grew a further hundred thousand species.
At the centre of these healing plants is the chief among them: the
mythical white haoma tree or plant - the plant of eternal life called
the Gokard / Gokaren / Gaokarena (Vendidad 20.4). From a variety
of haoma, the yellow or golden haoma, the ancients cut stems when
making the baresman bundle (Vendidad 19.18-19).
The
following are further descriptions and references to haoma in the
Hom Yasht, chapters 9 - 11 in the book of Yasna, a book that is
part of the Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta :
Haoma's
Growing Range :
In scripture and religious texts, haoma was said to be found in
hilly or mountainous regions (Yasna 9.26, 10.3-4, 10.11-12), in
gorges and abysses (Yasna 10.11).In some passages, the Mount Alburz
range (Avestan Hara Berezaiti - stretching from the Pamirs to the
Caspian Sea) is mentioned as Haoma's habitat.
Haoma's
Characteristics :
Different haoma have colour that range from white (the mythical
supreme haoma - Yasna 10.12), to golden yellow (Vendidad 20.4, Yasna
9.17, Yasna 9.30,31,32) and yellow green (Yasna 9.16). Haoma has
shoots and stems (Yasna 10.3, 10.5). There are many kinds of haoma
and the growing range was the mountain ranges (Yasna 10.12, 10.21).
Haoma is fragrant (Yasna 10.4).
Yasna
9.16 mentions the term asu in connection with haoma. Several translators
of the Yasna describe asu as a characteristic of haoma and their
conclusions are varied. Dieter Taillieu translates asu as twigs,
Robert Wasson as stalks, Ilya Gershevitch as fibre or flesh, and
Mills as sprouts. Asu could also mean finger-like joints, a characteristic
used to describe the Hindu soma (see below), and which is termed
ksip.
The
term asu is also found in healing related inscriptions in tablets
from the library of Assyrian King Ashurbanipal (668 - 627 BCE) at
Nineveh. In these texts, translators feel that asu is the title
for a specialist in herbal remedies.
Haoma's Properties :
Haoma is nourishing (Yasna 9.4, 10.20). It improves health (Yasna
9.17, 9.22, 9.27, 10.7), stamina (Yasna 9.13-15,9.17, 9.22) and
strength (Yasna 9). It give strength to warriors before battle (Yasna
9.27). It promotes healing (Yasna 9.16-17, 9.19, 10.8, 10.9). Haoma
is stimulating and arouses sexual desire (Yasna 9.3-15, 9.17, 9.22,
10.13). It helps in the bearing of strong children (Yasna 9.7, 9.22),
something of particular importance in ancient times when infant
mortality could have been high. It helps imparts clear thinking
and thereby wisdom (Yasna 9.22, 10.13). It is good for the soul's
journey (Yasna 9.16). It has both physical and spiritual benefits.
Middle
Persian Zoroastrian literature such as the Lesser Bundahishn 24.18
quoted above, point to haoma being the name of an eponymous healing
plant that lent its name to a family of healing plants which appear
to have been used in conjunction with the main haoma plant in the
manner preserved by the ab-zohr ceremony described above.
Identification of Haoma :
As we have noted above, tradition and the ab-zohr ceremony inform
us that the haoma plant was and is ephedra. in 1893, Joseph Bomrnuller
wrote about his encounter with a Yazdi Zoroastrian priest carrying
hom, the modern Persian / Yazdi name for the Avestan haoma. Bomrnuller
identified as the plant Ephedra distachya. Upon enquiring, Bomrnuller
was told that the Yazdi Zoroastrians shipped large quantities of
dried ephedra to Bombay every year (cf. W. D. O'Flaherty, The Post-Vedic
History of the Soma Plant 1968).
Scriptural
references tell us there were varieties of haoma with different
colours, of which white haoma was a very special if not rare variety.
The colour of ephedra stalks do change with variety, age and season.
Ephedra equisetina does have whitish stalks. It is also possible
that a white variety of ephedra is now extinct. The cut haoma stalks
gradually change colour as well, becoming gold and then brown as
it dries.
Some
translations speak of a haoma tree. Ephedra gerardiana is tree-like.
Zoroastrian
texts do tell us that there were various varieties of haoma. The
various varieties that we profile below are all haoma candidates
and in addition to being found in Iran, Pakistan, India and Nepal,
they also grow in the Central Asian regions of Tajikistan and Afghanistan
where Ancient Zoroastrianism - at the time of the writing of the
Avesta - may have had its home.
Other Indo-Iranian Names for Haoma / Ephedra :
The names of local varieties of ephedra in the traditional Indo-Iranian
Aryan lands all stem from either Hom or soma (the 'h' sound in
the Avestan languages changes to the 's' sound in the Reg Vedic
Sanskrit language).
The
Zoroastrian Yazdi (Central Iranian or Persian) name for ephedra
is hum (hom) or Hom.
In
Iran, ephedras are particularly abundant in the eastern provinces.
Significantly, despite lack of Zoroastrian influence in Eastern
Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan for nearly a thousand
years following the Arab invasion, the local names for various ephedra
varieties all stem from the words haoma - names such as hom (Central
Iran, Afghanistan, Brahui, Pashtu), hum / huma (Afghanistan &
Baluchistan), humb (Baluchistan), hum-e bandak (Afghanistan), oman
(Pashtu, Waziristan), omeh (Pashtu), omah / umah (Baluchistan),
um / umbar (Afghanistan & Kashmir), uma (Afghanistan & Baluchistan),
(w)uman / unan (Tajikistan-Badakhshan, Afghanistan & Pashtu),
uroman (Pashtu), xuma (Tajikistan-Zerafshan), yehma (Afghanistan)
and yumana (Munjan / Qom), yumena (Yidga).
The
root word for the local names for ephedra changes from Hom to soma
as we move into the traditional Aryan lands of the upper Indus river,
i.e. Hapta Hindu or upper Hind / Sind. Today, these areas form Nuristan
/ Kafiristan in North-Eastern Afghanistan and the eastern adjacent
districts of Chitral and Gilgit in the far north of Pakistan. The
Chitral and Gilgit districts lie south of the Afghanistan's Wakhan
corridor and the Hundu Kush mountains - the natural and traditional
border between the Iranian (Avestan) and Indian (Sanskrit) regions.
In
Nuristan we find ephedra called soma, then sumani in Chitral and
som in Gilgit. Moving southeast into Kashmir, we unexpectedly hear
ephedra called um and umbar. However, still further east along the
southern Himalayan slopes of Nepal ephedra is again called soma.
We
discuss the Indian (Sanskrut) soma below.
Relationship
of Haoma (Hom) to Soma :
Hindu
Soma Yajna Ceremony
The
soma variety of ephedra (vulgaris / distachya) is used in Hindu
ceremonies honouring the deva Indra, who in Hindu tradition, imbibed
soma for strength and vigour in battle. The photograph on the left
shows the Soma Yajna ceremony spread. The ephedra pieces can be
seen on the sheet.
There
are similarities of the traditional Soma Yajna rituals using ephedra
with the Haoma (Hom) Yasna ceremony using ephedra, including the
mortar and pestle and references to extraction through crushing
using a mortar and pestle. These similarities indicate a consistency
in the orthodox ritual with perhaps one difference - ephedra in
Zoroastrian Yasna ritual is used together with pomegranate twigs
and leaves. However, similarities in orthodox, original, use does
not translate to similarities in use as the Zoroastrian and Hindu
communities separated. There are significant differences in subsequent
practice and there certainly no similarities between haoma and the
wild speculation of the Soma ceremony using materials other than
ephedra.
Speculation
About Soma & Haoma As a Hallucinogen :
After the Hindu migration south to the warmer areas of the Indian
sub-continent where ephedra did not grow, Hindu literature mentions
that despite efforts made to import ephedra from northern lands,
Hindus began to make substitutions for the original soma-ephedra
(cf. The Rgvedic Soma Plant by Rajesh Kochhar). In his paper, Kochhar
writes, "Satapatha Brahmalita (4.5.10.2-6) lists the substitutes
for use in the ritual, when Soma is not available", the southern
Hindus made frequent substitutions with locally available creepers
called soma-latas and soma-vallis which have leafless stalks with
fleshy stems. Some of the substitutions have lead to ridiculous
and unnecessary speculation about the original soma being a hallucinogenic
drug. Most regrettably, by extension, these speculations have been
extended to the use of haoma (also see Speculation About the Use
of Haoma in our page on Gonur, Turkmenistan). Other than fanciful
and unfounded translations of Hindu texts and deductions, there
is no tangible evidence of any use of traditional soma or haoma
as a hallucinogen. For the summary of a scholarly review of soma's
identification see the Hasan Javaid Khan's article, Closing in on
Soma.
In
the Avesta, there is no indication whatsoever that haoma was a hallucinogenic
drug, and there is not a single instance of it ever having been
used as such in Zoroastrian religious practice. On account of its
health giving benefits, traditional haoma extract was harmless enough
that a newborn was given a few drops to drink (cf. J. J. Modi The
Religious Ceremonies and Customs of the Parsees p.8) as part of
a religious ceremony celebrating the child's birth. The mother also
consumed the prepared haoma / hom juice as part of the ceremony.
This
speculation of haoma's use a hallucinogenic drug is of modern western
origin - promoted by certain writers who seek readership and notoriety
through sensationalism rather than scholarship. In promoting their
theories, these writers ignore the reality of actual Zoroastrian
practice - as well as references in the Avesta and traditional religious
texts (except when the meanings of words are skewed to help confirm
a previous bias induced by the speculation and fantastic translations).
Traditional Zoroastrian references exclusively point to haoma as
part of a health and medicinal system. We hasten to add that not
all western observations are speculative. Some responsible western
researchers, largely ignored by their colleagues, have recorded
Zoroastrian practice and tradition, and we note their observations
below.
Early Western Observations :
Houtum-Schindler :
Extracts from the article by A. Houtum-Schindler (see below*), dateline
Tehran, December 20, 1884 printed in Biographies of Words and the
Home of the Aryas edited by Friedrich Max Müller (edited here
for standardized spelling) :
"When
travelling in 1879 between Bandar Abbas and Kerman, and at an altitude
of over 7,000 ft. (over 2,100 m.), I was shown the hum (hereafter
hom) shrub, from which the Parsis (hereafter Zoroastrians) of Persia
get the juice hom or Hom, the Indian soma. ...growing to a height
of four feet, and having circular fleshy stalks of whitish colour,
with light brown streaks. The thickest stalks were about a finger
thick; the leaves that fallen off as well as the flowers, which
I was informed, were small and white; some seed adhered to the ends
of some stalks... .The juice was milky, of a greenish white colour,
and had a sweetish taste. The Zoroastrian who was with me, as well
as others in Kerman and Yazd, told me that the juice turns sour
after a few days, and that the colour of the juice, as well as that
of the stalks, turns to a yellowish brown (cf. Yasna 11.3, regarding
the mistake of keeping haoma and its spoiling)."
![](kangar.jpg)
Collecting kangar (gundelia Tournefortii) in the mountains.
Image credit: dynamosquito at Flickr
"Of hom mixed with the juice of many (forty) plants, as mint,
thyme, asparagus, kangar (gundelia Tournefortii - a mountain grass
that is also cooked as a khoreshte i.e. cooked with sauce and spices)
etc., the juice of seven fruits and the urine of a young pure cow,
the purifying liquid nirang is prepared by the Zoroastrians. The
priests drink a few drops of this every two or three days... and
other Zoroastrians drink a few drops, never more than twelve or
sixteen, daily during their Bareshnum time of purification. The
liquid is also given as a remedy against sickness; a few drops are
poured into the mouth of a newborn child, and into that of a dead
person before carrying the body to the dakhma (towers of silence);
when taken in greater quantities, that is more than twelve or sixteen
drops, it is said to cause vomiting. The hom itself is used by Zoroastrians
in their religious ceremonies."
![](astragalus.jpg)
Astragalus
Racemosus
"The
plant is at present not very plentiful round about Kerman; and many
shrubs are being cut by woodcutters when collecting firewood, it
daily gets rarer. The mobeds of Kerman pay the woodcutters to preserve
ten or twelve shrubs yearly. The plant is also found in the mountains
near Yazd. ...The best plants - that is, those giving most juice
- were, however, certainly only found on mountains, exactly like
other Persian juice containing plants; for instance the astragalus
(see image right), which is common all over Persia, contains more
juice and exudes more gum (tragacanth) the higher it is found. The
hom grows also in the plains, but it is stunted and contains little
juice."
"Anquetil
says it grows in Gilan, Mazandaran and Shirvan (cf. Firdowsi, relation
of Afrasiab's fight with Hom in Azerbaijan). Spiegel says the Parsis
of Bombay get their Hom from Kerman and send their priests there
from time to time to get it."
*
Educated in engineering at Leipzig University, Houtum-Schindler
was recruited to Persia in 1868 by the Indo-European Telegraph Department.
Eight years later he became an inspector-general of the Persian
telegraph service, and acquired the honorary rank of general in
the Persian army.
Modi Quoting Dr. Aitchison :
J. J. Modi in his book The Religious Ceremonies and Customs
of the Parsees (Bombay, 1922) states :
![](periplocaAphylla.jpg)
Periploca
Aphylla
"Dr.
Aitchison, who accompanied the English Afghan Boundary Commission
of 1885 as a Naturalist, and to whom I had sent for identification
and inquiry in Afghanistan a few twigs of the Haoma plant used by
the Indian Parsis in their ritual, with an account of the plant
as given in the Avesta, said in his reply:— "The specimens
you sent me are the twigs of a species Ephedra (Nat. order Gnetaceœ*).
A species grows all over this country — Baluchistan, Afghanistan,
Kashmir, and Western Tibet — which seems to be identical with
the species received. This species is here, in all this country,
called hum (pronounced as the English word whom, also huma). In
Baluchistan, it as well as a totally distinct plant, Periploca aphylla**
is called hum. It grows equally on exposed hills and valleys consisting
of 'branches and sprigs,' one mass of upright twigs, each twig,
if you notice, being made up of joints like the joints of the fingers.
When covered with male flowers, the bush (from 1 to 2 feet) is golden
coloured, and the twigs are more or less so. This plant has no leaves.
It is all twigs and jointed. Amongst the Pathans of the Khyber Pass
and all over that country the twigs are with water made into a decoction
and employed very largely as a household remedy in sickness, and
are considered as possessing health-giving and healing properties.
Owing to a general likeness between the stiff rod-like growth, upright
and erect of the two plants, in Baluchistan, the natives equally
give both the same name. No one would mistake the jointed and true
hum for the non-jointed falae hûm, Periploca. The latter does
not exist here at all. The Ephedra here is only employed to mix
with snuff, being first of all burnt. The ashes cause the snuff
to be more irritating, whether applied as a sternutatory or to the
upper gum under the front part of the lip as is the habit here...
. Before your letter and specimens came, I had made up my mind that
the Ephedra was the nearest to the 'Soma' plant that I had got to,
but as it was stated that the Parsis employed the twigs of Periploca
it rather put me out. Your specimens are all on my side."
*
Gnetaceœ or Fam. Gnetaceoe used in conjunction with Ephedra
vulgaris Rich.
**
Periploca aphylla is recognized as a ephedra substitute in preparation
of the Hom extract (cf. The Botany of the Afghan Delimitation Commission
by James Edward Tierney Aitchison; The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South
Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity by George Erdösy
and Biographies of Words and the Home of the Aryas by Friedrich
Max Müller, p. 241). The individuals quoted state that Periploca
aphylla and ephedra look alike except when in bloom and that locals
call the entire group of these plants that look alike ("with
naked leafless stems and branches") - hom. Periploca aphylla
grows to heights of 1,000 m. in areas with ephedra too can be found.
Its fragrant flowers taste like raisins.
K.
F. Geldner & O. Stapf :
Jan E. M. Houben of Leiden University, Netherlands in the E. Journal
of Vedic Studies Vol. 9 (2003) Issue 1c (May 5)] states: "In
the introduction to his translation of the ninth mandala of the
Rig Veda (Geldner 1951, vol. III), K. F. Geldner says that the Soma-plant
"can only have been a kind of Ephedra." Geldner (1853-1929)
worked on the translation of the ninth and tenth mandalas in the
last years of his life. He justified his view by noting that a sample
(apparently of a plant used in the Haoma-ceremony) given to him
in Bombay by Parsi priests was identified as Ephedra by the renowned
botanist O. Stapf...."
Harry Falk :
Jan E. M. Houben of Leiden University, Netherlands also writes,
"That the Soma was not a hallucinogen but a stimulant, probably
from a species of Ephedra, was the view elaborated and defended
by Harry Falk in 1987 at the World Sanskrit Conference in Leiden.
In his paper (1989)... emphasizing the Vedic indications for a stimulant
effect of Soma which contributes to staying awake all night, he
concludes that Soma-Haoma must again be identified with Ephedra.
To establish his position he not only points out the properties
of Ephedra and places in Vedic literature indicating wakefulness
and aphrodisiac effect in connection with Soma, but also argues
that the Rig Veda contains no references to hallucinations, not
even in Rig Veda 10.119 that is normally taken in that sense."
Ephedra
:
![](equisetina.gif)
Ephedra
Equisetina
The Zoroastrians of Yazd, Iran, use the ephedra plant, which they
call hum or Hom, in religious ceremonies that require haoma. The
Zoroastrians of India import ephedra from Yazd, as well as Ephedra
procera from the Hari River valley in Afghanistan, when available,
for use as haoma.
Ephedra
is reputed to be the world's oldest medicine and has reportedly
been found buried in a 60,000 year old Middle Eastern Neolithic
grave in Shanidar (Iraqi Kurdistan; please see our page on the Cave
Dwellers in Old Iran). If the plant was intentionally placed in
the grave, that might indicate a familiarity with its health uses
and that the people of that time may have ascribed to ephedra spiritual
properties that could assist the dead. This is speculative. What
we do know, is that in Zoroastrian texts the method of haoma preparation
imparts to the extract spiritual properties in addition to its healing
properties.
Ephedra
has been used in this manner throughout the ancient world. Ephedra
is found in southwest North America, where it and has been used
by aboriginal peoples as traditional medicine. Ephedra sinica has
been used for 5,000 years in traditional Chinese medicine. The Chinese
also exported the plant to other lands as a medicine.
Ephedra's
widespread use and consumption around the world is reflected in
the various common names people have given the plant and its extracts.
For instance, ephedra is called Mormon, Brigham, Desert, Squaw or
Mexican tea among various other names.
Ephedra Varieties :
Ephedra plants are shrubs, measuring between 0.2 and 4 meters in
height. They have numerous green, yellowish or almost leafless stems.
The plants are fairly common in the hills and mountains of Central
Asia, Western China and Iran. The varieties growing in mountainous
regions have the highest ephedrine content. For instance, 3% of
the Ephedra equisetina stem is ephedrine.
The
varieties growing in an around Central Asia in general, and Tajikistan
in particular, are of special interest to our examination of Zoroastrian
heritage and customs, as this is where the plants described in the
Zoroastrian scriptures, the Avesta, likely grew. The principle varieties
that grow in this region are :
•
Ephedra ciliata :
Growing elevation: 700 - 2,300 m
Habitat: fairly common trailing plant with slender branches
•
Ephedra distachya :
See Ephedra vulgaris/evulgaris/distachya below
•
Ephedra equisetina :
Growing elevation: 800 - 3,000 m
Plant height: 1 - 1.5 m
habitat: dry and rocky places
colour: blue-green or gray-green
![](equisetina.jpg)
Ephedra
equisetina
•
Ephedra fedtschenkoae :
Growing elevation: 1,900-3,800 m
Plant height: small to 10 cm
habitat: dry and rocky slopes
•
Ephedra gerardiana :
Growing elevation: 3,700-5,300 m
Plant height: 20-120 cm
habitat: dry and rocky slopes
colour: dark green, later brown
stem diameter: up to 15 cm (tree-like)
![](gerardiana.jpg)
Ephedra
gerardiana
•
Ephedra intermedia :
Growing elevation: 800-4,600 m
Plant height: 1 m
Habitat: grasslands, deserts, river valleys, flood plains, sandy
beaches, cliffs, and other dry, sandy or rocky places Colour:
green, blue-green or yellowish
![](intermedia.jpg)
Ephedra
intermedia
•
Ephedra pachyclada :
Growing elevation: 2,700 -4,100 m
Plant height: n/a
Habitat: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils
Colour: small whitish rigid branches
•
Ephedra procera :
Growing elevation: above 1800 m
Plant height: up to 2m
Habitat: ghabitat: n/a
Colour: heartwood red-brown
![](procera.jpg)
Ephedra
procera
• Ephedra
przewalskii :
Growing elevation: 300 - 3,800 m
Plant height: 2.4 m
Habitat: dry and sandy places
Colour: dark green, later brown
•
Ephedra regeliana :
Growing elevation: 700-3,800 m
Plant height: 8-15 cm habitat: rocky slopes, flood lands and sandy
place
Colour: dark green, later brown
![](regeliana.jpg)
Ephedra
regeliana
•
Ephedra sinica :
Also called ma huang locally growing elevation: 700 - 1,600 m
Plant height: small to 40 cm
Habitat: waste, sandy and desert-like places, plains and mountain
slopes, mainly China
Colour: dark green, later brown
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Ephedra
sinica
• Ephedra
vulgaris/evulgaris/distachya :
Fam. Gnetaceœ or Gnetaceoe also called somalata locally
growing elevation: 2700m to 3600 m
Plant height: small to 40 cm
Habitat: Drier regions of temperate zone and alpine Himalayas.
The plant has stamens and pistils on separate flowers. Fruit has
two carpels with a single seed in each and erect with small leaves.
![](distachya.jpg)
Ephedra
vulgaris/evulgaris/distachya
Haoma's
Medicinal & Health Properties :
It is commonly assumed that the beneficial health properties of
haoma stem from the ephedra component and further that it is the
ephedrine contained in the ephedra that determines any medicinal
and health giving properties of the haoma extracts. This is probably
not the case. Synthetic ephedrine or extracted ephedrine would never
deliver the medicinal and health properties of the blended haoma
extracts.
The
haoma extracts using just the few barsom family of plants identified
in these pages contain a host of chemicals and subtle variations
that probably work together synergistically. We have described some
of the known medicinal and health giving properties of the individual
barsom plants (namely, myrtle, laurel, tamarisk, pomegranate, jujube,
willow, juniper, chenar or plane, camel thorn, esfand or harmala)
in our page on the barsom.
Many
other traditions make a tea or consume a dried powder and it is
possible that heat can change the chemical composition and thereby
the extract's properties. They are the result of a few thousand
years of experience and knowledge. The ancient magi were the doctors
and physicians of their time and had probably developed a great
deal of experience in these matters, knowledge that has not been
recorded and is probably lost.
As
we have noted earlier, only a very small amount of haoma extract
is consumed in traditional Zoroastrian practice. Further, ephedra
used is not used alone but with other plants and milk as well. The
Zoroastrian age-old customs were designed to maximize the benefits,
minimize the risks and develop synergistic blends with ephedra as
the base component.
We
describe the properties of ephedra below. There is no work done
on determining the medicinal or health properties of possible haoma
extracts.
Ephedra
Properties :
Ephedra is an evergreen and its cut twigs are resistant to decay.
These two properties are associated with Amertat and Haurvatat respectively.
The plant has a pine-like fragrance.
While
the properties listed below are common properties, it appears that
the ancients recognized that different ephedra varieties had different
property sets, and that one variety in particular, white haoma,
was a very special and rare variety. It is possible that variety
is now extinct.
Ephedra's
active chemical, ephedrine, is found in its stem bark, and forms
part of the liquid extract that is released when the stems are pounded
or crushed. It is significant that the ancients did not try and
exclude the stem wood in order to increase the ephedrine content
of the extract. [The plant's fruit or buds can be eaten raw and
have a very mild sweet taste, though the fruit or buds of some varieties
are reported to be poisonous.]
The
common extract is used in herbal remedies as an anti-viral (particularly
against influenza), a diaphoretic, a blood purifier, a diuretic
and a tonic.
In
addition, ephedra's extract has been used to treat colds, flu, coughing,
wheezing, nasal congestion, fever, hay fever, chills, headaches,
edema, hyperhydrosis, and bone pains.
Since
Ephedrine acts quickly to reduce the swelling of the mucous membranes
as well as dilating the bronchioles (bronchial vessels) in the lung
by stimulating beta-andrenergic receptors. These properties help
it to serve as an antispasmodic and as a treatment for asthma.
Ephedra
acts as a stimulants by causing the release of adrenaline from the
adrenal glands. Adrenaline effects the central nervous system.
Ephedra
causes thermogenesis (increase heat production) in the body. This
in turn causes the body to burn its fat and resulting in reduced
body weight. Ephedra is aided in this weight reduction function
by its property as an appetite suppressant and is therefore used
in weight reduction programs. It is aided in this function by the
consumption of caffeine.
Ephedra
constricts the blood vessels and indirectly acts on sympathetic
nerves resulting in a speeding up the of heart and nervous system.
In ancient times these properties would have benefited soldiers
going into battle by helping them to stay alert and aggressive over
longer periods than normal. In modern times, Ephedrine has been
used as a athletic performance enhancer though it is a banned substance
for athletes in many internationally recognized sports.
Ephedra
reportedly acts as a sexual stimulant - especially for women.
External
applications include treating allergic skin irritations, insect
bites and stings.
In
addition to Ephedrine, other constituents of ephedra include calcium,
phosphorus, proteins, flavones, saponins, tannins, and volatile
oils. There is a possibility that the myriad chemicals associated
with the ephedrine produce synergies that cannot be realized by
consuming isolated Ephedrine or a synthetic substitute. Ephedra
chemistry is examined at American Journal of Botany and Genetics
and Molecular Research.
Unlike
using isolated or synthetic ephedrine, using the plant, with its
many constituents, judiciously and with care is far more effective
and rarely gives rise to serious side-effects. This is true of most
plant medicine and especially true of ephedra where other plant
constituents help buffer or improve the actions of the main or active
ingredient(s). Nevertheless, ephedra / ephedrine can be fatal or
cause hyper-stimulation if taken in excess or incorrectly. (Warnings:
See: Care Group, Drug Digest & Amazing Nature).
The
roots and leaves are reported to have therapeutic effects that are
almost the opposite of the stem. For instance, the root extract
is hypotensive while the stem extract is hypertensive.
Source
:
http://www.heritageinstitute.com/
zoroastrianism/haoma/index.htm