Cannabis, Sacred and Profane

Focussing on the ways in which cannabis has been demonised, sacralised and normalised, Christopher Partridge analyses the complex and often difficult relationship Western societies have had with the plant since the nineteenth century.

After an introduction to cannabis and its uses, the book discusses how and why it was constructed as a profane influence and a marker of deviance. It then examines the emergence of medicinal cannabis, showing how this has contributed to its normalisation and even its sacralisation. Finally, there is a discussion of sacred cannabis, which looks at its use within modern occultism, Rastafari, and several cannabis churches.

Overall, Cannabis, Sacred and Profane provides a cultural history of cannabis in the modern world, which exposes the underlying reasons for the various and changing attitudes to this popular psychoactive substance.