Mandrake (Mandragora spp.) and sīmiyāʾ (10th-17th centuries)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3989/alqantara.2024.764

Keywords:

Mandrake, Mandragora spp, sīmiyā’, white magic, natural magic, Arab– Islamicate magic

Abstract


This article explores the history of some of the myths and superstitions about mandrake (Mandragora spp.) that were in circulation in the Arab-Islamic world between the 10th and the 17th centuries and analyzes the magical uses of the plant in that context. More specifically, it analyzes how and for what purpose mandrake was used in the framework of white or natural magic (al-sīmiyāʾ) operations, relating its uses to the different sciences or arts (ʿulūm) involved in the definition and practice of this form of magic. The results of the research indicate that mandrake occupied a very prominent place in the vegetable pharmacopoeia used in white magic practices, as shown by the ointments, amulets, talismans, incenses, fumigations, inhalations and mandrake filters documented in Arab sources and which were intended for very different purposes. The results also indicate that the magical beliefs about the plant present in the Arab-Islamic tradition have their origin in the myths and superstitions of Greco-Latin and Eastern Antiquity; at the same time, they show a close parallelism with the complex of beliefs and practices in force in Christian Europe of the period under study.

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Published

2024-07-10

How to Cite

Lozano-Cámara, I. (2024). Mandrake (Mandragora spp.) and sīmiyāʾ (10th-17th centuries). Al-Qanṭara, 45(1), 764. https://doi.org/10.3989/alqantara.2024.764

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