Surma tribe by anthony pappone
Drinking Smoke
The origins of the water pipe have long thought to originate in the middle east or in Asia, but a water pipe technique from Africa may date far earlier…
Before the Europeans arrived in Africa, the locals were already “drinking smoke”. This term was changed to just ‘smoking’ in the 18th century almost erasing the trail to history…
The possible origins could begin in India where the term was first written in the Ayurveda Texts referring to “dhumrapana” dated 600-200 BC. ‘Dhumrapana’ literally translates to “drinking smoke” and gives possibilities dating to around 2000 years old although this practice was lost to history with the invention of the hookah.
Another possibility could be right in Africa where the ancient technique continued to be practiced and observed even in the 1900’s.. Before the first gourd water pipes showed up on the continent in Ethiopia between the 12th and 13th century’s, Tribes had another method to ‘drink smoke’…
Le Meschacébé, Louisiana newspaper, October 15, 1921
“He scoops a hole out of the hard ground three to four inches deep by three inches wide. A foot or so away from this he scoops another hole, and he then bores a small channel under ground from one to the other. There is thus a free air passage connecting the two little excavations.
He places some dried dagga leaves in the first hole, lights them and covers them over with moist clay. He pierces this clay with a sharpened piece of wood to allow a draught to go through.
Into the other hole he inserts a small hollow reed – this is the pipe stem – squeezes moist clay round it, and on his knees begins his smoke.”
Zulu tribesmen smoking Dagga (cannabis) using “The Earth Pipe”, South Africa
There seems to be a couple techniques to use the water in the pipe’s from these early stories. One like from the story above, uses water kept right in the mouth of the smoker almost like a human bubbler…
Another technique for the water is right in the second hole in the ground with another reed buried between the two making sure the tube in under the water line.
A third has the cannabis bowl on top of the ground going into the dug hole like photo above.
The Daggas Smoker by Anton van Wouw
We may never know the true origins of the earth bong with little surviving evidence besides a story or a straw. But from these early tales we have the evidence from history of ‘drinking smoke’ straight from the earth!
Who’s digging a hole today?
‘Drinking smoke’ in the Calahari desert