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Hashish
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Hashish (from Arabic: , lit. "dry herb", from hashsha "to become dry"; also Hash) is a preparation of cannabis composed of the compressed trichomes collected from the cannabis plant. It contains the same active ingredients but in higher concentrations than other parts of the plant such as the buds or the leaves. Psychoactive effects are the same as those of other cannabis preparations such as marijuana.
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Hashish (from Arabic: , lit. "dry herb", from hashsha "to become dry"; also Hash) is a preparation of cannabis composed of the compressed trichomes collected from the cannabis plant. It contains the same active ingredients but in higher concentrations than other parts of the plant such as the buds or the leaves. Psychoactive effects are the same as those of other cannabis preparations such as marijuana. It is sometimes believed that the effects are different, but those differences usually stem from variations between regionally different Cannabis specimens, that are more traditionally processed into Hashish.
Hashish is often a solid or paste-like substance of varying hardness and pliability, and will soften under heat. Its color can vary from green, black, reddish brown, or most commonly light to dark brown.
It is consumed in much the same way as cannabis buds, used by itself in a miniature smoking pipe, hookah, bong or bubbler, vaporized, hot knifed, or smoked in joints mixed with tobacco, cannabis buds or other herbs.
It can also be eaten alone (pure hash is described as having a spicy or peppery flavor depending on the type, there are different flavors with the different types of hash) as well as used as an ingredient in food (baked into cookies, brownies, or cakes, or added to stews and chocolate).
History
It is believed that hash first originated from Middle East, as this region was among the first to be populated by the cannabis plant, although the plant itself is thought to have originated in the Hindu Kush. More reliably, it may have originated in Northern India which also has a very long social tradition in the production of Hashish which is locally known as Charas. Cannabis sativa subsp. indica grows wild almost everywhere in the Indian sub-continent and special strains have been particularly cultivated for production of 'ganja' and 'hashish' particularly in Kerala, Rajasthan and the Himalayas. The earliest hashish was created without the use of sieves. The ancients would gently rub their palms and fingers on cannabis buds for hours while resin accumulated on their hands and then scrape that resin off. This sort of primitive harvesting is undertaken even today in the Cannabis growing farms of Manali, Naggar and Upper Himachal Pradesh. The earliest use of hashish was most likely from farmers scraping resin off their hands after a day's harvest of commercial hemp and at that time hashish was normally eaten, not smoked.
The word assassin may have been derived from the Arabic word ??????? (haššašin), or "Hashshashin". The Hashashin were allegedly inspired to commit murder under the influence of hashish. The legend of hashish-eating assassins began with a vague mention by Marco Polo, and was embellished by 19th century French and American writers, fascinated by orientalism and eager to present hashish as a menace. The legend gained great popularity especially through Charles Baudelaire's Artificial Paradises of 1857, just as the marketing of pre-rolled tobacco cigarettes was getting underway after the Crimean War (1853). Others argue that the term could have been created due to political reasons, in order to discredit the sect. It has also been suggested that if hashish were in fact consumed, it had been adulterated with stronger materials, the effects of hashish being well-known and easily recognizable at that time and place. No reports of a statistical linkage between hashish and violent crime have been published in known scientific literature, and instead has been found to generally inhibit aggressive impulses.
Consumption of hashish saw an increase in the 20th century, in Europe and America, associated with the hippie scene which promoted pacifism and introspection. Hashish use declined significantly in the United States starting in the 1980s for several reasons, including U. S. political pressures against Afghanistan and the ensuing Soviet invasion, the Reagan-initiated War on Drugs, a huge jump in price, and the success of marijuana cultivators in North America with new growing methods for increasing THC production, such as growing marijuana indoors.
Manufacturing processes
Hashish is made from tetrahydrocannabinol-rich glandular hairs known as trichomes, as well as varying amounts of cannabis flower and leaf fragments. The flowers of a mature female plant contain the most trichomes, though trichomes are found on other parts of the plant. Certain strains of cannabis are cultivated specifically for their ability to produce large amounts of trichomes. The resin reservoirs of the trichomes, sometimes erroneously called pollen, are separated from the plant through various methods. The resulting concentrate is formed into blocks of hashish, which can be easily stored and transported. Alternatively, the powder consisting of uncompressed, dry trichomes is often referred to as kief instead of hashish.
Mechanical separation methods use physical action to remove the trichomes from the plant. Sieving through a fine screen is a vital part of most methods. The plants may be sifted by hand or in motorized tumblers. Hash made in this way is sometimes called dry sift. Finger hash is produced by rolling the ripe trichome-covered flowers of the plant between the fingers and collecting the resin that sticks to the fingers. Yet another means of harvest is effected by having workers bustle through the cannabis fields wearing specially designed leather aprons, upon which the trichomes collect and adhere. Trichomes and resins can also be collected passively through cleaning of scissors that have been used to cut the plant, or containers like a kief-box used to store it.
Ice water separation is a more modern mechanical separation method which submerges the plant in ice and water and stirs the mixture. Trichomes are broken off the plant as the ice moves and the low temperature makes the trichomes so brittle they break off easily. The waste plant matter, detached trichomes, and water are separated by filtering through a series of increasingly fine screens. Kits are commercially available which provide a series of filter screens meant to fit inside standard bucket sizes. Hash made in this way is sometimes called ice hash, or bubble hash.
Chemical separation methods generally use a solvent to dissolve the desirable resins in the plant while not dissolving undesirable components. Solid plant material is then filtered out of the solution and sent to the compost. The solvent may then be evaporated, leaving behind the desirable resins. As THC is fat-soluble, it also dissolves in butter, which can then be used for cooking (see hash cookies and Alice B. Toklas brownies). The product of chemical separations is more commonly referred to as honey oil, hash oil, or just oil. Some believe that hash oil is best avoided, due both to the dangerous nature of its production and the fear of residual chemicals left in the oil by the solvent. By using the proper cooking and evaporing methods it is even possible to turn this oil into crystal form.
Quality
The main factors affecting quality are potency and purity. Different cannabis plants will produce resins with unique chemical profiles that vary in potency. Some forms of hashish are described as producing a "body stone" while others are more of a "head high." This depends on the genetic strain and relative amount of different cannabis plants used as well as the manufacturing process involved.
Tiny pieces of leaf matter or even purposefully added adulterants introduced when the hash is being produced will reduce the purity of the material. The THC content of hashish usually ranges from 15–20%, and that of hash oil from 30–40%.
Fresh hashish of good quality is soft and pliable and becomes progressively harder and less potent as it oxidizes.
Hash is generally said to be black, brown or blond. There is also hashish of greenish or reddish hue. A green tinge may indicate that the hashish is impure, has been cut with low-quality leaf or contains high quantities of chlorophyll. A yellow tint can indicate presence of cannabis pollen, which has a sandy color.
Low quality forms of hash often contain adulterants used as cutting agents added to exaggerate the value of hash by increasing the mass or including other cheaper drugs. Such forms usually possess a low potency, may have an unpleasant strangeness in taste and feel, and produce hard, dark "cinders" in the ash which should be soft and white. Adulterants in hash may range from waste material from the cannabis plant (generally not harmful) to products such as food oils and soap, hence the name soap bar. (Some say soap bar is so-called due to the way it is pressed into large, 9-ounce bars, resembling a large bar of soap; it is often cut with henna oil.)
A low-quality hashish product may lead users to smoke more to get the same effect, increasing exposure to carbon monoxide and adverse effects upon the lungs. Smoking hashish mixed with tobacco may make it more difficult for users to detect by taste whether the cannabis is adulterated, and lead to nicotine addiction.
A general rule of thumb is that good hashish produces effects which should be rapidly, unmistakably apparent, even with experienced users who have developed tolerance to THC; being unsure of the effects or wanting to use more within a short amount of time means the hashish is either very weak and/or, more likely, adulterated.
Some users have started boiling their hash in water for a few minutes and then drying it before smoking. This is thought to remove all water-soluble adulterants while the psychoactive cannabinols remain intact as the temperature is not sufficient to destroy them and they are not soluble in water.
The smoke and ashes of burnt hash should be light-gray or white in color. The ash (which is edible) should be soft enough to break apart easily, taste good, and contain no hard "cinders". Dark, acrid smoke and poor ease of inhaling smoke signify that the material is contaminated. It is always best to compost any such unacceptable hashish rather than continue using it in hopes of achieving a high.
Hashish by region
Production
Hashish is traditionally produced in warm conditions. It is traditionally found in a belt extending from North Africa, Egypt to North India and into Central Asia . The primary hash-producing countries are India, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Morocco, Lebanon and Egypt in that order.
Charas is the primary product. Charas, a substance that is hand-rubbed directly from the cannabis plant, is generally produced in Afghanistan and Pakistan primarily; and to a smaller extent the rest of the subcontinent (ganja). Today, the word charas is common word for hash in a majority of the subcontinent, despite the fact that different methods may be used other than the hand-rubbed method.
The most popular and sought after form of charas is produced in the tribal areas of Pakistan bordering Afghanistan. Popular destinations include the tribal areas themselves as well as adjacent Pakistani states Peshawar etc. The charas produced in this area is specially known for its fresh relaxing feeling.
A visitor to the Rif Mountains and the town of Ketama in Morocco in December 1976 described the production of hashish. In unheated huts, each worker placed his hands and arms inside a fertiliser sack (these are the same bags familiar on farms all over the world, holding one hundredweight or 50 kg of ammonium nitrate or similar). The depths of the bag was filled with leaves of the cannabis plant. In the mouth of the bag was a plastic washing-up bowl, over which was stretched a sheet of "zero-zero" grade muslin. The worker rubbed the leaves of the cannabis plant against the muslin, resulting in a fine powder falling into the bowl. 100 grams (just under 4 ounces) of the powder would be wrapped in more of the same fine "0-0" muslin, put onto a heated metal plate, and rolled down with a bottle. This process produces a slightly sticky solid brown mass in the form of a rectangular slab, quite a bit smaller than a paperback book and 5 mm thick. The block was then wrapped in cellophane. (A bulk order of the product is multiple slabs, eg 10 of them comes to 1Kg, 2.2 pounds-weight). Sellers of this Moroccan hashish pointed to the imprint of the muslin on the surface of the block, and declared it proof that the product was "zero-zero", top quality.
In Afghanistan there is a method of making hash that resembles charas. First, cannabis resin is placed on a large heated mortar, then the resin is threshed with a heavy object. The result is a very gooey, sticky black hash. This method is mostly used in villages around the Hindu Kush mountain region. After the suppression of hashish production in Afghanistan through United States foreign policy since the 1970s, Afghanistan has become the world's largest supplier of heroin with over 90% of the market.
Hashish is also produced now in the deserts of northern Mexico; however, demand and production are both insignificant compared to those for "fresh" Mexican marijuana, especially into the lucrative North American market.
Consumption
Hashish was always the variety of preference in Europe , although this preference is slowly changing towards the buds of the plant. It is basically the dominant form of THC in the Middle East and was widely available in North Africa and parts of Asia. It is generally less preferred by cannabis users in the US. Hashish is more compact than marijuana, it keeps better, and is easier to smuggle than marijuana. When it has been smuggled by amateurs, it often suffers from long periods of bad storage, so the quality can vary considerably. Older hashish can easily be recognized as it is hard and has no smell (heating with a lighter is a common test).
By the 1990s, the use of marijuana in the developed world was increasing, as more potent versions were being grown. The Cannabis Cup held every year in Amsterdam attempts to evaluate the quality of the latest varieties.
In France and the German- and French-speaking parts of Switzerland, hashish is known as Marocain (Maroc meaning "Morocco" in French). In Ireland its is known as "Hash","smoke" and "Ganj" . In Germany it is known colloquially as "Piece". In Spain it is called Costo, Chocolate, Grifa or Hachís. In Great Britain,
hash, resin, draw or solid. In the Netherlands, it is called Hasj or Assi (although coffee shops will maintain a wide variety of types, i.e.: Polm, Blond, Tempel Bol, Isolator, Zero-Zero or Waterwerks, generally relating to either the method of production, country of origin or type of marijuana used.). In Brazil, it is commonly called haxixe. Also, there is a branch of nearly white powder hash (pollen or kief hash) that is the result of not pressing the raw material for the more common compressed hashish.
Soft hash is usually dark brown to black in color and goes under the name black in France, squidgey or soft black (named due to the color and properties of the hash) in Great Britain. The very potent Paki Black is so named because it originates in Pakistan. Soft, dark hash in the Netherlands is often referred to as Afghan. Common Kashmiri brands are Citral and Fungus.
Hashish use is experiencing a resurgence in parts of North America (especially the Pacific Northwest) with the use and commercial availability of ice-water extraction kits.
Preparation and methods of use
Like ordinary cannabis preparations, hashish is usually smoked, though it can also be eaten or vaporised.
Hash is sometimes prepared for smoking by heating it with a flame for a couple of seconds, producing some bubbling or sizzling. It then softens and can be sliced with a sharp knife, crumbled into tiny pieces or formed into shapes to obtain maximum surface area when burning. The resulting lower burning temperature permits more THC to be released in its active form.
Vaporization
Used with hashish as with any cannabis, tobacco or other herb material, a vaporizer can extract cannabinoids at a temperature of 140°C., protecting against loss of this ingredient which occurs in burning, and eliminating carbon monoxide and other combustion toxins. Since hashish is solid, its surface area may be enlarged by cutting slices or breaking into small crumbs to achieve maximum cannabinoid vaporization.
Screened single-toke utensil
The next lowest temperature is achieved with a narrow-diameter mini-pipe such as the traditional kiseru or midwakh, or a long-stemmed piece hand-made from a 1/4"/6-mm. inner diameter socket wrench or hose nipple, preferably with a mesh-40 (i.e. having 1/40" or 0.6-mm. windows) pre-shaped screen nested snugly in the crater, permitting the practiced user to draw air slowly through a long draw-tube (an art akin to pranayama yoga) and control the burning temperature, whereby the cannabinoids in any part of the hashish have time to vaporize out prior to combustion, being heated by an already burning adjacent part of the hashish. For this purpose a razor knife (hashish hatchet) may be used to cut very thin slices or sticks of which about 25-mg. worth are then gathered in the crater for a single serving.
Semivaporizer technique
Prevaporization is assisted by holding a lighter flame near the outside of the (metal or glass) crater wall on various sides, eventually heating contents of the crater prior to their catching on fire, while always continually sucking slowly through the draw-tube.
Herbal helpers: auxiliary herbs
Of herbs, if any, to use as an aid to this minimal burning technique, hops (Humulus lupulus) flowers, ground to a fine particle size in a mesh-16 screen strainer, are the most delicate and interfere least with perceiving the taste of the hashish. Eucalyptus leaf also has a low combustion point but adds a strong flavor, as does oregano. Mild species include various flowers, basil, catnip (Nepeta cataria), damiana, dandelion, ginseng (leaf), lemon balm (melissa), marjoram, parsley, savory, tarragon, thyme, uva ursi (kinnickinnick).
Dabous
A piece of hash may be ignited by cigarette coals or other means and placed inside a container, such as a plastic bottle. The smoke that collects inside can then be inhaled. Dabous or Khabour, but most commonly "shi-sha" (glass in Arabic) is a North African technique. This technique is commonly referred to as "Bots" or "BTs" ("Bottle-Tokes") or simply "Ts/Tees" in Canada.
See also
Further history
Further reading
- Hashish by Robert Connell Clarke, ISBN 0-929349-05-9
- Artificial Paradises by Charles Baudelaire; first edition 1860
- The Hasheesh Eater by Fitz Hugh Ludlow; first edition 1857
- Indoor Marijuana Horticulture, by Jorge Cervantes, ISBN 1-878823-29-9 ; 2001, reprinted 2005
External links
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- . (Updated to include article abstracts.)
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