
Cohoba is a
Taíno
The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...
transliteration
Transliteration is a type of conversion of a text from one script to another that involves swapping letters (thus '' trans-'' + '' liter-'') in predictable ways, such as Greek → and → the digraph , Cyrillic → , Armenian → or L ...
for a ceremony in which the ground
seed
In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...
s of the ''cojóbana'' tree (''
Anadenanthera
''Anadenanthera'' is a genus of South American trees in the Legume family, Fabaceae. The genus contains two species, ''Anadenanthera colubrina, A. colubrina'' and ''Anadenanthera peregrina, A. peregrina''. These trees are known to the western wor ...
'' spp.) were used as a
snuff via a Y-shaped
snuff tube. Use of this substance produced a
hallucinogenic
Hallucinogens, also known as psychedelics, entheogens, or historically as psychotomimetics, are a large and diverse class of psychoactive drugs that can produce altered states of consciousness characterized by major alterations in thought, moo ...
or
entheogen
Entheogens are psychoactive substances used in spiritual and religious contexts to induce altered states of consciousness. Hallucinogens such as the psilocybin found in so-called "magic" mushrooms have been used in sacred contexts since ancie ...
ic effect. The ''cojóbana'' tree is believed by some to be ''
Anadenanthera peregrina
''Anadenanthera peregrina'', also known as yopo, jopo, cohoba, parica or calcium tree, is a perennial tree of the genus ''Anadenanthera'' native to the Caribbean and South America. It grows up to tall, and has a thorny bark. Its flowers grow ...
'' although it may have been a generalized term for
psychotropics
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, mind-altering drug, consciousness-altering drug, psychoactive substance, or psychotropic substance is a chemical substance that alters psychological functioning by modulating central nervous system acti ...
, including the quite toxic ''
Datura
''Datura'' is a genus of nine species of highly poisonous, Vespertine (biology), vespertine-flowering plants belonging to the nightshade family (Solanaceae). They are commonly known as thornapples or jimsonweeds, but are also known as devil's t ...
'' and related genera (
Solanaceae
Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...
). The corresponding ceremony using ''cohoba''-laced
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
is transliterated as ''cojibá''. This was said to have produced the sense of a visionary journey of the kind associated with the practice of
shamanism
Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into ...
.
The practice of snuffing ''cohoba'' was popular with the
Taíno
The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...
and
Arawakan
Arawakan (''Arahuacan, Maipuran Arawakan, "mainstream" Arawakan, Arawakan proper''), also known as Maipurean (also ''Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúre''), is a language family that developed among ancient Indigenous peoples in South America. Branch ...
peoples, with whom
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
made contact. However, the use of ''
Anadenanthera
''Anadenanthera'' is a genus of South American trees in the Legume family, Fabaceae. The genus contains two species, ''Anadenanthera colubrina, A. colubrina'' and ''Anadenanthera peregrina, A. peregrina''. These trees are known to the western wor ...
''
spp. powder was widespread in South America, being used in ancient times by the
Wari culture
The Wari () were a Pre-Inca cultures, Middle Horizon civilization that flourished in the south-central Andes and coastal area of modern-day Peru, from about 500 to 1000 AD.
Wari ruins, Wari, as the former capital city was called, is located no ...
and
Tiwanaku
Tiwanaku ( or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia, near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilometers and in ...
people of
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
and
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
and also by the
Yanomami
The Yanomami, also spelled Yąnomamö or Yanomama, are a group of approximately 35,000 indigenous people of the Americas, indigenous people who live in some 200–250 villages in the Amazon rainforest on the border between Venezuela and Brazil. ...
people of Brazil and Venezuela. Other names for ''cohoba'' include ''vilca'', ''cebíl'', and ''yopó''. In
Tiwanaku
Tiwanaku ( or ) is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site in western Bolivia, near Lake Titicaca, about 70 kilometers from La Paz, and it is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilometers and in ...
culture, a
snuff tray was used along with an inhaling tube.
Fernando Ortiz, the founder of Cuban Cultural Studies, offers a detailed analysis of the use of ''cohoba'' in his important anthropological work, '.
History
Cohoba is also known as yopo.
Historically, this narcotic snuff was prepared and used by the indigenous people living in South America and the natives of the Caribbean. Early accounts of it first appeared during the time of Christopher Columbus's exploration, with its first documentation written in 1496 by Ramon Pane—who travelled with Columbus in the second voyage. The name of "''cohoba"'' refers to the finely ground, cinnamon-colored snuff itself, as well as the ceremonial practice using it by South American tribes.
Cuiva and Piaroa people of Orinocoan descent commonly consume Cohoba. As a part of important shamanistic rituals, cohoba represents identity and sociality.
The blending step of the plant mixture determines the potency of ''cohoba,'' based on the quality of the ingredients and its preparation.
''Cohoba'' seeds are harvested once they mature, from October to February, such that ''cohoba'' can be prepared fresh by shamans throughout the year, when necessary. The bark of the ''cohoba'' tree is then collected, with its quality judged by the fineness and whiteness of the powdered ash after burning the bark. Meanwhile, the seeds of the ''cohoba'' plant are pulverized and skillfully blended with the powdered bark ash to create a dough resembling butter. Once the desired texture is achieved, the dough is flattened into a cookie and cooked over a fire. Traditionally, ''yopo'' is taken by deep inhalation through bifurcated tubes from a special apparatus resembling a slightly deep, concave wooden plate.
Symptoms
Though there are myriad somatic symptoms, ranging from violent sneezing to increased mucus production and bloodshot eyes, ''cohoba'' is appreciated for the altered, other-worldly state of consciousness it lends to the user. Even though ''cohoba'' is often snuffed with tobacco, it has pharmacologically intriguing properties distinct from tobacco. The active components in ''cohoba'' responsible for the hallucinogenic effects are DMT (''N,N-''dimethyltryptamine) and bufotenine (''N,N-''dimethyl-5-hydroxytryptamine).
The effects of DMT include kaleidoscopic visions similar to LSD that may lead to scenery hallucinations, accompanied by auditory hallucinations. The psychotic effects derived from bufotenine have been suggested to have resulted from central nervous system activity. Though ''cohoba'' usage is not as widespread as before, it is still taken up today by various localities of South America for the aforementioned rich, hallucinogenic properties.
See also
*
Hallucinogenic snuff
A hallucinogenic snuff, or psychedelic snuff, is a powder prepared from plants containing psychedelic alkaloids and insufflated (snorted) to produce hallucinogenic effects. Hallucinogenic snuffs have been used as entheogens by indigenous peop ...
*
Bufotenin
Bufotenin, also known as dimethylserotonin or as 5-hydroxy-''N'',''N''-dimethyltryptamine (5-HO-DMT), is a serotonergic psychedelic of the tryptamine family. It is a derivative of the psychedelic dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and of the neurotransmi ...
References
{{Psychedelics
Psychedelic drugs
Entheogens
Taíno