21 MAY 02: SACRED BANANA
BEER AND OTHER RECIPES

Sacred
and Herbal Healing Beers : The Secrets of Ancient Fermentation

by Stephen Harrod Buhner

“Book Description

In the folktales of tribal
Africa, there is a myth similar to the Greeks

Pandora’s Box. Instead of
the gift of hope left to mankind at the bottom of her

box, the African Pandora
finds a gourd of beer. This story is only one example

of Stephen Buhner’s exploration
of the appearance of sacred fermented herbal

beverages throughout human
history. He tells us about the role beer has played

in the past, its healing
and sacred properties, the opposition that fermented

beverages face today, and
why his views are politically incorrect.

In SACRED AND HERBAL HEALING
BEERS: THE SECRETS OF ANCIENT FERMENTATION, Buhner

proposes that fermentation
and plant use are part of the exploration of what it

means to be human. From
humanity’s ancient involvement in the magic of

fermentation to the popular
home-brewing trends of today, Buhner gives us an

opportunity to view beer
as a shared tradition passed down since the beginning

of time.

The sacredness, mystery,
and folklore of ancient fermentation are explored

through the healing power
and spirituality of 200 plants and hive products.

Included are 120 recipes
for ancient and indigenous beers and meads from 31

countries and six continents.
For example, throughout Africa, Asia and South

America, the banana (or
plantain) is used in fermentation, as medicine in sacred

ceremonies and for food.
The banana fruit is known everywhere, but the plant’s

medicinal properties are
little recognized outside traditional communities. The

fresh juice of the stem
is a powerful diuretic and the root is strongly

astringent and homeostatic.
The fruit itself is a reliable medicinal. Long used

in its ripened form as a
tonic and nutritive food for babies and invalids, the

banana possesses a number
of other medicinal properties. The fruit is reliable,

mild and a antibacterial.

As well as being considered
a healthful dietary supplement and medicine

prescribed for certain ailments
and fevers, banana beer is a customary sacrament

used to consecrate new homes,
garden sites and houses. It also plays a

significant ceremonial role
in births, baby naming, twin ceremonies, lineage and

clan succession ceremonies
and funerals.

Banana Beer

Ingredients

2 quarts very ripe bananas

yeast

5 quarts water

3 quarts malted millet or
barley

Mash the bananas and cook
without water

Cool mixture, add yeast
and ferment in a wooden pot for 4 days

On the fith day add the
5 quarts of water

On the sixth day take the
coarsely ground millet or barley and pour enough

boiling water to make dough

Strain the banana mixture

Combine the mixture very
gradually with the millet or barley

Let it stand covered, 24
hours.

Drink it. It is considered
a food/drink and the whole is consumed

SACRED AND HERBAL HEALING
BEERS is a grand and thorough history of the sanctity

of fermentation and the
impact it has had on the world for centuries. It is also

a dictionary of herbal and
brewing terms with step-by-step recipes for both

master brewers, herbalists
or those simply curious.”