The Soma Plant
By Jogesh Chandra Roy
Summary
The article addresses the long-standing mystery of the Soma plant, a sacred substance in Vedic rituals. Early scholars equated “Soma” with the moon, leading botanists on a misguided search for a lunar plantfile:///home/oai/share/563015_compressed-185-361.pdf#:~:text=The%20Soma%20Plant%20Many%20attempts,name%20Soma%20which%20was%20applied. The author argues that the term originally meant “pressed juice” and secondarily referred to the plant whose sap was extracted. Based on textual and botanical evidence, he identifies Soma with Cannabis sativa (hemp). He notes that cannabis is not indigenous to the Punjab but may have originated in Central Asia, later spreading to the Himalayan region and Gangetic plains. The plant has male and female varieties; only the leaves of the female plant are used to make an intoxicating beverage called bhang, widely consumed during festivals and ritualsfile:///home/oai/share/563015_compressed-185-361.pdf#:~:text=It%20will%20%E0%AA%89%E0%AA%B9%20shown%20that,enocation%20of%20the%20word%20Sotma. Dhanvantariya Nighantu classifies bhang as antiphlegmatic, narcotic and capable of inducing sleep and hallucinationfile:///home/oai/share/563015_compressed-185-361.pdf#:~:text=Dbanvantariya%20Nighants%2C%20the%20eathiest%20dictionary,Its%20names%20are%20Vijaya%2C%20%E0%AA%A1%E0%AB%80. The article contends that descriptions of Soma in the Rig Veda—bright colour, hallucinogenic properties, ability to produce exhilaration and inebriation—fit cannabis better than proposed candidates like Ephedra or Amanita mushrooms. The author also discusses cultural associations: Soma was revered as a divine plant that conferred strength and immortality, and its consumption was regulated by ritual. The confusion arose when ancient commentators, misled by etymology, connected Soma with the moon, leading to speculation about lunar herbs. The article calls for re-examination of Vedic texts with botanical insight, positing cannabis as the most plausible identity of the Soma plant.
Conclusion
By proposing Cannabis sativa as the true identity of Soma, the article challenges long-held assumptions and shifts the focus of Vedic pharmacology from mythical lunar herbs to a known psychoactive plant. The female cannabis plant’s intoxicating drink, bhang, matches the descriptions of Soma’s effectsfile:///home/oai/share/563015_compressed-185-361.pdf#:~:text=It%20will%20%E0%AA%89%E0%AA%B9%20shown%20that,enocation%20of%20the%20word%20Sotma. Recognising that Soma may have been hemp underscores the practical and ritual significance of indigenous plants in ancient India and suggests that the sacred drink had physiological as well as symbolic power. The argument invites renewed interdisciplinary study of Vedic rites and botanical traditions.