Valerian. Historical facts

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The healing qualities of feline maun in Russia have long been valued. Therefore, the plant was called shaking grass. There were other names - forty-stitched grass, a damn rib, averyan, Adam's rib, aromatic, earth incense, febrile root, overpowered, standing, damn potion. Broths valerian drank with toad disease (angina pectoris), insomnia, headaches, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Treated with shaking grass and epilepsy - epilepsy was called in ancient times. In domestic official medicine, this drug was introduced by foreign doctors. In the Russian translated herbalist of 1614 there is a chapter devoted to Valerian.

The beginning of industrial procurement of Valerian officinalis dates back to the 17th century in our country. According to royal decrees, it was necessary "to collect herbs, flowers, and roots that are suitable for medicine," as well as "ask all kinds of people who know medicinal herbs that would be useful for diseases in medicine by humans." Knowledgeable people notified the Pharmaceutical Order that, they say, grass fu in Greek, lyhinis in Latin, and in Russian shaking rooting, cat mown, a potion damn found in the forests near Moscow. Parties of herbalists gathered it and sent it to the capital. Valerian industrial preparations were carried out under Peter I to provide medicine for the regular Russian army. At the same time, they used the instructions of old manuals: “The grass itself and the root have a heavy spirit; cats rub against this grass, for this we preserve the grass that we want to put in greenery. We collect that root in the month of August. ”

The Italians believed that the herbs collected on the night before the feast of San Giovanni (it was dedicated to the summer solstice) gain special healing and love spells. One of the most valuable plants is valerian. It turns out that she expelled the diseases of the “body and soul”, scared ghosts, and served as a love potion.

In the monument of Indo-Tibetan medicine “Zeyzhar migzhzhan”, which describes the properties of 323 medicinal plants, the herb spang-spos (valerian) says that it “suppresses the chronic heat of poison, and is also used for the disease caused by the evil spirit“ gdon ”. Tibetan medicine, as you know, was closely associated with Buddhism, hence the religious, mystical layers of many of its provisions. For example, serious illnesses that could not be cured (these primarily included cerebral hemorrhages with paralysis, acute cardiovascular and mental illnesses) with incomprehensible reasons at that time were explained by the influence of supernatural forces - evil spirits. By “fever of poison” was meant intoxication at elevated temperature, inflammatory processes and infectious diseases.

In 1665, a certain doctor Samuel Collins presented a treatise on Valerian, in which he wrote: “Valerian grass, and in Greek fu, is decent: make vodka from that herb, and that vodka is good for full-time illness; Yes, the same grass overseas is put in an abalone (soup, ear and brew altogether) for all health and is eaten by the wind, and in which people’s liver will deteriorate and from any constipation and the female sex - from monthly constipation, and from water constipation. And cut the root of that grass into small pieces, cook in Renish or with birch sap, or in church wine, and rinse your mouth in which people in the company showered or some other disease or scurvy gums. Yes, take the same root from fire and from pestilence, and wounded people heal wounds; and in which people have bile on their faces. "

It is interesting to know that the Italian doctor Phoebe Columella, who lived at the beginning of the 17th century, experienced the effects of Valerian infusion on himself and recommended that his colleagues widely use this sedative. Apparently, then the modern name of the plant appeared.

It comes from the Latin word "valere", which means "to be healthy." A very apt name for medicinal herbs. It came to us from the west, with official medicine.

From the medical vocabulary, the name turned into colloquial speech and strengthened in scientific usage. Apparently, in the 17th century it only came into use, therefore, in herbalists and manuals on medicine, in order to avoid confusion, Greek, Latin, German and other names of valerian were indicated.

Already in the 18th century, valerian was included in the state pharmacopeias of many European countries as a sedative, antispasmodic. So they know him to this day.

It is quite possible that the Egyptians used Valerian root not only for religious and magic purposes, but also found a completely earthly purpose for it - they used it as a sedative. The aesculapius of Hellas and Rome knew about the influence of this plant on the central nervous system. Hippocrates mentions this plant. Dioscorides believed that valerian is able to "control" thoughts. Pliny attributed grass to thought stimulating agents. Ancient authors called Valerian the word "fu". Under this name, she appears in the "Canon of Medicine" of Avicenna.

The Greek name "fu" valerian was included in most medieval herbalists, medical supplies, medical treatises. In those days, it was known not only as a drug for nervous diseases, disorders of the digestive tract, but also as a magical tool against evil spirits. According to legend, on the day of the Assumption (August 15), it was necessary to collect elecampane, window sill, valerian, God's tree (a type of wormwood), bitter wormwood, tansy, tie them in a bundle and consecrate in the church. Then the plants had to be dried and on certain nights (Christmas, New Year and baptism) to fumigate with them bedrooms and stables.
Superstitious people believed that witches and brownies would not do any harm in the rooms so smoked.