SYRIAN RUE Seeds | Peganum harmala

Growing from a perennial woody root, Syrian Roo is a bright-green, dense, herbaceous succulent. Although its smooth many-branched stems may have a spread of 1.2m or more, the plant is rarely over 60cm  tall and generally appears round and bushy. The leaves are two inches long, born singly and finely divided into long narrow segments.

Each year in Australia, between November and January, Syrian Roo produces many single white flowers. Measuring 2.5cm across, these relatively large and showy blooms have five oblong-eliptic petals as well as five narrow sepals of slightly longer length. Each flower has the potential to develop into a fruit, a leathery, three valved seed capsule that stands erect on the stalk. Each capsule measures about 1cm in diameter and contains more than fifty dark-brown, angular seeds.

Syrian Roo grows in semi-arid conditions. It originated in Central Asia, and is held in high esteem throughout Asia Minor as a medicinal, aphrodisiac and dye plant.  It is sometimes known as “ruin weed” since it often grows on the tells covering the ruins of ancient cities in the Near East. It now grows wild in Eurasia.

Syrian Rue is one of the plants that has been suggested to be the original Haoma plant of Persia. It may have also been used as a sacred plant medicine by the mystery religion that surrounded the god Mithras. In the Koran, it is stated that “every root, every leaf of Harmel, is watched over by an angel who waits for a person to come in search of healing.” Therefore, Dervishes in Uzbekistan are said to worship and use Syrian Rue for its effects.

In Iran, incense balls made of Syrian Rue seeds are burned in great quantities as offerings for the festival of Nouruz. The smoke is said to keep away all misfortune and the evil eye, and is also thought to dispel outbreaks of disease. In North Africa, Syrian Rue has been used as a magical tool and a medicine for thousands of years. The seeds are used as an incense to ward off the evil eye and dispel disease, and a combination of Syrian Rue seeds, Alum and Olibanum is burned on the wedding night to increase desire.

In the Himalayas, Shamans use Syrian Rue seeds as a magical incense, inhaling it to enter a trance state in which they can engage with divining goddesses, who are said to give them information and great healing powers.

Reportedly, an especially effective smoking mixture may be made from 15g of the seeds and the juice of a lemon. The seeds are ground with a mortar and pestle and then put into a boiling pot over an open flame with the juice of a lemon. This mixture is then boiled down until a resinous paste is left. It is then mixed with Mapacho (Nicotiana rustica) for a smoke that is both inebriating and a potent aphrodisiac.

In Morocco, the seeds are simply added to red wine to make Syrian Rue Wine or are powdered to make a nasal medicine that is supposed to cause a “clear mind”, according to some reports.

Since Syrian Rue is a powerful Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitor (MAOI), it can also cause serious reactions when combined with certain foods. Typically, when used as an MAOI, 3.5g are ground up and extracted into water. However, the seeds are rarely eaten. If you intend to work with Syrian Rue, please consult a list of foods which need to be avoided with an MAOI in order to avoid dangerous or uncomfortable effects.

In recent years, Shamans have been known to combine Syrian Rue seeds with various Spirit Molecule containing plants to create Vine of the Soul analogs. It is important to be very, very careful when doing such experiments.

As a medicine, Syrian Rue has primarily been used to ease the birthing process in women and to help with menstrual difficulties. It is usually administered as an incense. The smoke is also inhaled to treat all manner of other afflictions as well.

In Asia Minor, Syrian Rue seeds are used as aphrodisiacs and purifiers. The herbage is also sometimes used to treat skin disorders and a decoction of the seeds is taken for stomach troubles, heart troubles and sciatica. A very strong decoction also acts as a tranquiliser. Syrian Rue has been shown to be an antibiotic and the stems and leaves are abortifacients.

The seeds and roots of Syrian Rue contain a mixture of alkaloids. These unusual alkaloids are active derivatives of β-Carboline, When administered to humans, the alkaloids act as Serotonin antagonists, CNS stimulants, active agents and extremely potent, short term MAOIs.

The alkaloids in Syrian Rue occur in roughly the same proportions as in Vine of the Soul. 10g of Syrian Roo seeds provide about 400mg of total β-Carbolines, about the amount found in a typical dose of Vine of the Soul. The alkaloids may be extracted from the seeds and roots and purified as crystalline bases. French Chemist Hasenratz first described this process in 1927.

Syrian Roo seeds are said to have an anti-depressive effect and are also reported to stimulate the imagination. Dreamlike states are said to occur. The alkaloids in the seeds inhibit the enzyme Monoamine Oxydase, which metabolises neurotransmitters that are in the body but outside of the brain. Thus, working with Syrian Rue allows medicines such as The Spirit Molecule to be orally active, as in Vine of the Soul preparations.