The Medicinal: Sacred Datura aka "Devil's Weed"
Location: crags and abandoned spaces of the southwest, these were found in Bandalier, NM. You see them often along the highway.
Ethnobotanical Use:
This is a highly toxic, psychotropic plant(chock-full of tropane alkaloids) that has been used for hundreds of years medicinally in ceremony by various indigenous nations living in the southwestern region of what is now the US. For it's immense power that extends into several dimensions, Datura is considered highly sacred and remains revered today...you kinda receive that sense on a vibratory level just from staring into the stunning beauty of both the flower and the jagged, heart-shaped foliage. I've been cautiously instructed that different parts of Datura can be used to bring about a visionary or delirious state of consciousness in order to treat psychosis and other psychological traumas. In much lighter dosages, it can be used as a painkiller (but never use it unless you are with a trained native medicine person!) Also, that big white bloom has been called a moon flower because it blooms primarily at night. I've heard putting it under your pillow can induce a lucid dream state...but again, even touching this guy is a big no-no. Despite its immense beauty, Datura is not a power to be messed with lightly. Improper approach to use of this plant can lead to blindness, paralysis, or even a very unfortunate and painful death! So let your eyes reap all the mysticism you need.
Check out the amazing spiral motion of a Datura bloom preparing to unfurl:
open heartedly,
cameron z.
Post Script,
Check out this sweet Kiva Ladder set up in Bandalier:
