Also known as Aztec tobacco, mapacho tobacco, or rome, santo domingo is a plant used widely in shamanic ritual. Considered by various American tribes to be one of the oldest, most powerful plants on the planet, it is said to cleanse one’s life of negative energies. It is often used with ayahuasca. Santo domingo has a higher nicotine content than cultivated tobacco. Its flowers are bright greenish-yellow.
WHERE IT CAN BE FOUND:
Mexico, Central America, South America, Africa, India, Russia, Scandinavia, South Australia, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, Wisconsin, Ontario
PROPERTIES AND USE:
Antivenomous, antiseptic, antifungal, carminative, digestive, nervine, vermifuge, antispasmodic, antimalarial. Used to treat acid reflux, hemorrhoids, nasal polyps, hernia, constipation, epilepsy, respiratory infections, lice, wounds, hair loss, earache, negativity.
TRADITIONAL PREPARATION:
For all conditions, it is smoked by a shaman
or healer, who rolls dried leaves into a cigarette and blows the smoke on the affected area. For hernias, acid reflux, nasal polyps, anxiety,
gas, and epilepsy, dried leaves can be rolled and smoked like a cigarette. For snakebites, it
is chewed and then packed into the fang marks. This may also be done with fungus or wounds. For constipation or epilepsy, boil 3 dried leaves in 1 gallon water. Drink 1/2 cup as needed. Cooled, this decoction can be used as a nasal rinse for nasal polyps, and as a rinse for hair loss. For earache, roll a dried leaf and place directly
into the ear.
