這種植物可能使維京人在戰(zhàn)斗前發(fā)狂

這種植物可能使維京人在戰(zhàn)斗前發(fā)狂

More than a thousand years ago, Viking armies knew a thing or two about instilling dread in those who would stand in their way.

一千多年前，維京人的軍隊就知道如何向那些阻礙他們前進的人灌輸恐懼。

Henbane may look demure in nature, but it's a powerful drug. (Photo: SakSa/Shutterstock)

Many of their victims lived in monasteries in the British Isles, a favorite source of slaves and plunder for raiding parties.

他們的許多受害者住在不列顛群島的修道院中，那里是奴隸和掠奪者的最愛。

Imagine what those pious, god-fearing men heard when a Viking force assembled outside their gate — especially with a few "berserkers" in their ranks.

想象一下，當(dāng)北歐海盜在他們的門外集結(jié)時，那些虔誠的、敬畏上帝的人聽到了什么——尤其是在他們隊伍中有幾個“狂戰(zhàn)士”的時候。

Like devils on their doorstep, they gnawed at their shields, foamed at the mouth, and bayed like blood-hungry beasts. Berserkers may have even convinced themselves they weren't human.

他們咬自己的盾牌，口吐白沫，又像餓血的野獸吼叫，好像站在門前的惡魔。暴怒者甚至可能認(rèn)為自己不是人類。

Apparently, they just were really high.

很明顯，他們真的很瘋狂。

Berserkers were so ferocious they often had trouble distinguishing friend from foe. (Photo: Fotokvadrat/Shutterstock)

Scholars have long puzzled over what kind of drugs these alpha warriors took to enter the blood-frenzied state known as berserkergang. Was it the mushroom A. muscaria — known for its hallucinogenic properties? Or a kind of bog myrtle northmen used to spike their own drinks? Or maybe they were just really angry drunks?

長期以來，學(xué)者們一直在困惑，這些阿爾法戰(zhàn)士是用什么藥物進入這個被稱為“狂暴之邦”(berserkergang)的血戰(zhàn)狀態(tài)的。是蘑菇A. muscaria嗎?或者是一種桃金娘北方人用來給自己的飲料加烈酒的沼澤?或者他們只是憤怒的醉漢?

In a recent paper published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, researchers say they've zeroed in on the berserker's drug of choice: henbane.

在最近發(fā)表在《民族藥理學(xué)雜志》(Journal of Ethnopharmacology)上的一篇論文中，研究人員表示，他們已經(jīng)鎖定了狂暴者的首選藥物:天仙子(henbane)。

Also known as Hyoscyamus niger or more appropriately, Witch's Drug, the plant has a long tradition as a painkiller and anesthetic in Europe. And depending on a person's state of mind, it can incite blinding anger.

這種植物在歐洲作為止痛藥和麻醉劑有著悠久的歷史。這取決于一個人的精神狀態(tài)，它能激起令人失明的憤怒。

"This anger effect can range from agitation to full-blown rage and combativeness depending on the dosage and the individual's mental set," Karsten Fatur, a professor at Slovenia's University of Ljubljana, notes in the study. "As this is perhaps the most defining component of the berserker state, this symptom is of central importance in identifying the potential causes and provides a very critical reason as to why H. niger is a more appropriate theoretical intoxicant for the berserkers than A. muscaria."

斯洛文尼亞盧布爾雅那大學(xué)(University of Ljubljana)教授卡斯滕·法圖爾(Karsten Fatur)在研究中指出:“這種憤怒效應(yīng)的范圍從激動到全面爆發(fā)和好斗，取決于劑量和個人的心理狀態(tài)。”“由于這可能是狂暴狀態(tài)中最具決定性的組成部分，這種癥狀在確定潛在原因方面至關(guān)重要，并提供了一個非常關(guān)鍵的理由，說明為什么尼日爾河嗜血桿菌對狂暴者來說是一種比麝香桿菌更合適的理論醉藥。”

For the ancient monks of the British Isles, a Viking raiding party must have seemed like a pack of bloodthirsty devils. (Photo: Nejron Photo/Shutterstock)

Here's how German writer Gustav Schenk describes the effects of henbane after sampling it for his 1966 treatise, "Brain & Belief: An Exploration of the Human Soul."

以下是德國作家古斯塔夫·申克(Gustav Schenk)在1966年的著作《大腦與信仰:對人類靈魂的探索》中對天仙子進行取樣后的描述。

"My teeth were clenched and a dizzy rage took possession of me … I was permeated by a peculiar sense of well-being connected with the crazy sensation that my feet were growing lighter, expanding and breaking loose from my body."

“我咬緊牙關(guān)，一陣頭暈?zāi)垦５呐鹁鹱×宋?hellip;…我被一種特殊的幸福感所感染，這種幸福感與一種瘋狂的感覺聯(lián)系在一起，那就是我的腳越來越輕，越來越大，越來越放松。”

Henbane is a heck of a drug.

天仙子是一種很厲害的藥。

In fact, berserkers were also known for being so disconnected from themselves that their fellow Vikings had to give them a wide berth in battle — the rage-addled warriors couldn't distinguish friend from foe. And then there's the Viking reputation for being able to cleave an opponent with a single blow.

事實上，狂暴者也以與自己隔絕而聞名，他們的維京同胞不得不在戰(zhàn)斗中給他們一個廣闊的空間——憤怒的戰(zhàn)士無法區(qū)分朋友和敵人。此外，維京人還以一擊就能將對手劈成兩半而聞名。

In modern times, henbane is more likely to be used as a medicinal extract than a hallucinogenic, but it's difficult to get that image of an axe-wielding Viking out of your head.

在現(xiàn)代，天仙子更有可能被用作藥用提取物，而不是迷幻藥，但你很難擺脫揮舞斧頭的維京人的形象。