While I’ve previously written posts about toé (Brugmansia suaveolens), the infamous deliriant of the forest, there is an bottmless well of interesting folklore I keep running into and want to share.
Endemic to south eastern Brazil, this plant is now extinct in the wild. Different preparations of the woody shrub (bark, flower, root) are used across the Amazon basin for various purposes, mostly for spiritual initiations of the highest order. This plant is known for its unparalleled ability to quickly plunge anyone who consumes it into a lengthy (several day) bout of total disassociative delirium, nausea, and psychosis. Those who have mastered the use of ‘teacher’ plants (vegetalistas, shamans, etc.) can use this plant to see the connections and communications between all living things.
My friend and colleague, anthropologist Adam Aronovich just shared with me this Mexican tale and image (a retablo, inspired by folk Catholic devotional works of art) which I thought I’d share here. Below is the original Spanish accompanying it, and following that is my translation.
ESP: Juanita Díaz fue a lavar ropa al río y de pronto le entró mucho sueño y no se fijó que estaba bajo un árbol de floripondio, empezó a soñar cosas muy extrañas dentro de un sueño muy profundo, de pronto vio a la Virgen del Rosario que le dijo; "Despierta hija, trata de despertar, porque si no lo haces ahora puede que no lo hagas nunca", y escuchó el ladrido de su perro y despertó, da gracias de haberse salvado ya que dicen que el que se duerme debajo de un floripondio a veces no despierta." El floripondio del jardín está lleno de flores y por la noche huelen muy bien. ¿Será que alguna mañana ya no despertaremos?
ENG: Juanita Díaz went to wash her clothes in the river, when suddenly she became very sleepy and she didn’t realize she was under the floripondio tree [NB: another name of toé]. She began to dream very strange things in a very deep sleep. Suddenly, in this sleep she saw the Virgin of Rosario, who told her ‘Wake up, daughter, try to wake up because if you don’t now, you may never,” and she heard the barking of her dog and woke up, giving thanks for awakening, knowing that it’s said that the person who sleeps under the floripondio sometimes never awakens. The floripondio of the garden is full of flowers, and in the evening it smells very nice. Could it be that one morning, we won’t wake up?
To see more of Selva Prieto Salazar’s wonderful retablo-inspired folk art, go here!