Las Vegas Showgirls III

by Georgia Albert
with Jan Newton

February, 2004


Aphrodisac Cooking


Let us look in on the girls, Bambi Darlin and Candi Kane, at their Summer House.
Bambi is at the computer chatting with Georgia and Jan about their new assignment for Goddesschess.

show girls hindu goddess sword.jpg (24825 bytes)Candi enters the great room wearing a sheer black dress of Aubusson Lace, a floor length violet velvet cape with saffron yellow silk brocade lining, accented with Escher "Elephant and Turret"' trim.  Candi is shod elegantly, in black ankle-strapped stiletto heels, and she's carrying a beautiful double- edged sword with "the figure of the Goddess, shown seated on a throne, carrying in her hands a trishula-trident, a pasha-noose and a flower".  (Image right)

Bambi: Oooo la la! Candi, I love the new costume you designed. Wait there while I get the camera, so I can get pictures of you and your newly designed Elegant Yet Sexy Outfit for the new and improved on-line Goddesschess Catalogue, Autumn/Winter issue.

Candi: (While posing as Bambi snaps away with the digital camera) I am glad you like my new design. Move over Victoria's Secret....

Bambi: Candi, flip your long blond hair and show us those pearly white teeth with one of your famous, come hither boys, smiles. . . Now give me your famous "Enticement Look," the one you learned in your Kama Sutra class?. . . now take the sword out of the scabbard. . .that's it. . . now hold the sword like the Queen's piece from the Harry Potter Wizards' Chess Game. . . Great! Perfect! Now, throw the boys a big kiss. . . that should do it!  I'll get these off to Pimander, our Dragon Webmaster, right away, and have him do his magic with these pictures for the new edition of the catalogue.

During the impromptu photo shoot, a cute little Chihuahua dog, carrying a miniature stuffed toy Chihuahua in its mouth, trots into the room and sits down next to Candi, waiting patiently to be noticed.

Bambi: Candi what are you doing with this cute little dog?

Candi: Oh, Kasparov!  Come here, Kaspy, come to mommy.  That's it, baby! (Kasparov wiggles in delight as Candi gives him an ear rub).  I need him for an aphrodisiac cooking recipe.

Bambi: You need him for a recipe???  You're not planning on cooking the dog...Gulp...are you?

Candi: Goddess No!  I guess I should explain myself better. Oh, by the way, have you seen the ear muffs and rubber gloves? I know I laid them down in here somewhere. . . I need them for the recipe too.

Bambi: Ear muffs, rubber gloves, Aphrodisiac Cooking, a dog with a stuffed toy dog, and a sword?  I'm confused. What are you up to?

Candi: The Camelias, Gardenias, Jasmine, Lilies, and Lotus are blooming in our Garden of Pleasure. Ummm, the fragrances are intoxicating.

Bambi: Yes, I know our Garden of Pleasure is beautiful this time of year. I especially like the Hibiscus, Roses, Spikenard, and Chrysanthemums. But, enough of that, what are you up to?

Candi: I am having a romantic picnic in our Garden of Pleasure with my new sweetheart later tonight, and I want to try out a few of my new aphrodisiac cooking recipes with him. They are guaranteed to put a smile on any man's face, which in turn will put a smile on my face, if you know what I mean. . . giggle, giggle. That reminds me, I need the Satranji rug that our sweet Gerhard sent to us last year. I need it for the picnic this evening.

Candi Thinks:

Satranji rugs were very popular for hundreds of years, but fell off in export from India during the 1940's.  Now, this ancient art form is enjoying a resurgence of popularity:

SATRANJI: It is one kind of cotton carpets which are made in Indian since the medieval age. Archaeologists  says this was used as for playing chess as the chess board. The carpet is strong, soft and durable. People prefer this product because it is washable and relatively light weighted from the jute and coir product. The weavers of satranji works very laboriously to design new pattern and eye catchy color combination to fullfill the demand of the  customers. 

The English term cotton itself perhaps originates from the Sanskrit word for it viz. Karpasa. The Greek term Karpasos and the Latin term Carbasus have evidently been derived from Sanskrit.  "Karpasa", "Karpasos", "Kasparov", the name of my little dog.

While cotton was often used to weave satranji, wood and jute were also traditionally used.  Jute fibre is also woven on backstraps or pitlooms to make shopping bag (Domar bags) and Satranji (floor covering).  Jute is made out of hemp, and the importation of hemp is presently illegal in the United States.  After all, we can't have American chessplayers getting high from smoking bits and pieces of their jute satranji. Here is an advertisement (February, 2003) from a Thailand classified ad bulletin board advertising hand-made checkered jute carpets (Satranji) for sale:

Handi Crafts VILLAGE CRAFTS
100 % hand made jute checkered carpets(Satranji).
Email: bridgep@dhaka.net
Dated: February 2003

 

The art form of satranji spread to both western and eastern Asian countries, where the word "satranji" took on various local adaptations as a "loan word":

SATRANJI: This word, which is still used in modern Indian languages, is a corruption of the word Chaturanga. This is so as the game of Chaturanga was in ancient times played on a piece of cloth, in place of the modern chess board. These carpets called Satranji were exported from India in ancient and medieval times. The word: Sataranji has found its way into many modern foreign languages including English. The Oxford dictionary defines it as an 'Indian cotton Carpet'.  Interesting. . . it seems the Indian word "Chaturanga" (the ancestor of chess) was subsequently re-imported into the country a few hundred years later as "satranji", a Pahlavi (middle-Persian) word.

Candi Wonders:  In how many Middle Eastern and Asian languages can derivative words from "Satranji" be found?

Bambi: It's in my bedroom, next to the bed. I have been using the rug to meditate and do my yoga and Kama Sutra exercises. The cotton is soft against my skin and the Sriyantra pattern, with the lotus and the four gates, is really beautiful and the symbolism helps with my meditations.... I wonder.... maybe we can find some more of these Satranji rugs and sell them in the catalogue?

Candi: Keep that thought.

Bambi: The beautiful Satranji rug Gerd sent is also for our research on the Origins of Chess.

Candi: I also need the Kama Sutra text with the "64 Arts of Love Making".  By the way, did you notice the "64" -  8x8, a possible chess connection.

Sex in Ancient India

The sixty-four arts of love-passion-pleasure began in India.  There are many different versions of the arts which began in Sanskrit and were translated into other languages, such as Persian or Tibetan.  Many of the original texts are missing and the only clue to their existence is in other texts.  Kama Sutra, the version by Vatsyayana, is one of the well-known survivors and was first translated into English by Sir Richard Burton and F. F. Arbuthnot.

Sex in Ancient Persia

Persia was an acculturation between all the peoples in it and surrounding it.  Originally, Persia took directly from Mesopotamian deities and sexual culture.  Ishtar or Istar was called Nana. Anahit became Tanata.  These deities had the same sexual cults of their Mesopotamian counterparts.

The Persians also began to worship Ancient Indian gods and goddesses.  The Kama Sutra or the sixty-four arts was rewritten by the Persians with a new Persian twist and slight differences to each of the sixty-four arts.

Candi Thinks: 
The Indians played games on the "ashtapada" board (in ancient times, a woven cloth), which is composed of 8x8 squares.  Is it just a coincidence that there are 64-trantric lovemaking arts and 64-squares on the ashtapada board?  Remember, there are EIGHT Primary Angas in Yoga Tradition... Traditional historians say that chaturanga was exported to Persia, where it became chatrang, played on a 64-square "board".  Others, though, believe that chatrang was invented first, and was then introduced into India by the Arabs after the Arabs conquered Persia. The Mesopotamians and their predecessors, the Sumerians, played games on boards with symbols of the goddess Inanna (Ishtar).  The Persians borrowed freely from other cultures, and maybe they mixed elements from the Mesopotamians (goddess worship and board games) and the Indians (sexual practices and board games) into a unique blend that became chatrang.

Bambi: Oh Candi! You may be right. I'll get this info off to Jan and see what she thinks about the "64 Arts of Love Making". Now, let's get back to the mystery of the Aphrodesiac cooking, sword, satranji rug, a dog with a stuffed toy, Kama Sutra, rubber gloves, and the ear muffs. I still don't understand what you want with all these things.

Candi: Do you remember the movie "Harry Potter, and the Chamber of Secrets"? It all started with a scene in that movie.

Bambi: I remember the movie very well, but I can't remember anything about aphrodisiacs, Satranji rugs, or a Chihuahua dog. Are you sure about the Harry Potter Movie? Maybe you have it confused with one of your favorite X-Rated movies? "The Goddess of the Golden Lotus" maybe?

Candi: That is one of my very favorite movies, but I am serious, it all started with the Harry Potter movie, and the chess article we did about it and tessellations. Do you remember the hot house scene in the movie? It's where Harry and his buddies repot the Mandrake plants. They are all wearing rubber gloves and ear muffs, so they can't hear the cries of the baby mandrake roots as they are pulled out of the clay pots. And, do you remember the connection with Chess from the "Harry Potter and the Sorcorer's Stone"?

Bambi: Oh Yeh! I do remember the scene. If Harry or his friends hear the cry of the baby Mandrake roots they are supposed to become petrified. And I also remember the Chess connections. Ummm, I think I am beginning to understand what your getting at? But, what about the aphrodisiacs, sword, Satranji rug, and the Chihuahua dog?

Candi: Don't you remember that article that our dear Chief Sitting Bull, Ricardo Calvo, sent us, explaining that the Persian word "Chatrang" means "Mandrake". And that Chatrang was Persia's version of Chaturanga. And he also mentioned that some scholars believe that Chess originated from Chaturanga.

Bambi: Yes, I do.

Candi: The Satranji Rug sent to us by our sweet Gerd is connected with Chaturanga. The word "Satranji", which is still used in modern Indian Languages, is a corruption of the word Chatrang. After the Arab conquest of ancient Persia, the Arabs went on to conquer India, and they reintroduced the Persian game Chatrang, which they called Shatranj, to India, along with the Satranji!  Mandrake is also known as Mandragoras, which consists of 6 species from the Mediterranean to the Himalayas. The Greeks liked to use it for medicinal purposes, as did other cultures. The Chinese also used Mandrake as a local anesthetic.  Mandrake is also known as the "White Dragon".

Bambi: Wow! The White Dragon! I am working on an article about Dragons...There is a Norwegian Ridgeback Dragon in the Harry Potter Movie? Hmmm... But, what about the aphrodisiac cooking, dog with stuffed toy, and sword?

Candi: Eee Gads! I almost forgot! I need a Clay Pot for the Mandrake recipe.

Bambi: Why do you need a clay pot? Why don't you use the pots in the kitchen?

Candi: The mandrake was supposedly made from the same clay "Adam" was made from.

Bambi: Adam who? Adam West of "Batman" fame?

Candi: No, Adam as in "Adam and Eve" and the Garden of Eden, or the Adam and Eve of the Garden of Pleasure.

Bambi: Oh, our fellow nudists, cool.

Candi: Hey! Adam would be a good name for my dog. Here Adam! come here Adam!

Bambi: But I thought his name was Kasparov, for the famous chessplayer - or a derivative word from the Sanskrit "Karpasa" for cotton used in the Satranji.  I am confused!

Candi:  Hmmmm... He seems to like the name Adam better. Look at his tail wag.  Oooh, my cute little puppy.  Come here, Adam.  Bambi, another name for Mandrake is "Love Apple", and it supposedly has fertility and aphrodisiac properties. Hey, did we discover a connection to Adam and Eve and Chess?

Bambi: Maybe we did. There is a big serpent, the Basilisk, apples, and a willow tree in the "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" movie. And don't forget about that wooden game board with the entwined serpent motif discovered at Shahr-i Sokhta.  I'll bet good money there is a connection with the Adam and Eve story. Let's do some digging.

Candi: Bambi, I can't help you research right now.  I have a savory rice pilaf simmering on the back burner for tonight's picnic, I need you to watch it for me while I am gone so it doesn't dry out or burn.

Bambi: I didn't know that rice pilaf had aphrodisiac properties?

Candi: Ah...yes it does. The Saffron used in it is a famous aphrodisiac. In fact, it is the favorite of the Great Khans.

Bambi: You really did your homework on aphrodisiacs.  I am impressed with your scholarship,

Candi.  You are to be congratulated.

Candi: I leave no stone unturned when it comes to pleasure...giggle, giggle. That reminds me, I've got to get going and dig up some Mandrake. My sweetie will be here in a few hours.

Bambi: While you are hunting for Mandrake I will get on the computer and see if I can find some more links to the Adam and Eve Creation Story and Chess.
Aphrodisiac Cooking, Part 2:


Bambi: While you are hunting for Mandrake I will get on the computer and see if I can find some more links to the Adam and Eve Creation Story and Chess.

Bambi goes to her computer and does a search for Mandragoras aka Mandrake, and we eavesdrop in on her thoughts.

Bambi's Research:

Mandrake aka Mandragoras, aka The White Dragon, and Dragons Hoard....  So, Mandrake has a connection to the Dragon. There might be a cross-cultural connection to China, where the Great Dragon/Serpent is one of the four cardinal directions in the Heavens and acts as a bridge between that which is below, on Earth, and that which is above, in the Heavens.  This mirrors the "as above, so below" philosophy of the Ancient Indians that Bidev talked about being incorporated into the game of chess as secret esoteric knowledge, and is reflected to this day in our use of bi-colored chess pieces and game board...

show girls 2 lewis chess pieces.gif (38765 bytes)There was a Norwegian Ridge-Back Dragon in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" movie.  Howimage 9 snake board Shar i Sokhta.gif (37758 bytes) does Norway fit in all this? Hmmm, Scandinavia...The Lewis Chess set (image left) that was used in the Wizard's Chess Game that Harry played in the Great Hall...The backs of the primary playing pieces are all carved with serpentine scrolls, very reminiscent of the pattern inscribed on the Shahr-i Sokhta board (image right)...

...since that root seems to be a maker of love-medicines...  This explains why men would have been so fascinated with mandrake.  Things haven't changed very much - how many commercials for male erectile dysfunction medications were played during Superbowl XXXVIII...

The root contains an alkaloid which, belonging to the atropine group, is a narcotic and a local anesthetic. It is of the order Solanaceae, similar to deadly nightshade. From the old tradition that they excited amorous inclinations, mandrakes were called love apples. Hence Venus is called Mandragoritis, and the Emperor Julian, in his epistles, tells Calixenes that he drank its juice nightly as a love-philtre.

"Venus is called Mandragoritis"! Yippee! We found another connection to the Goddess and the game of Chaturanga -  Chatrang (Mandrake) - Chess!

...Here's the Love Apple reference Candi mentioned:  From the old tradition that they excited amorous inclinations, mandrakes were called love apples. 

Adam and Eve, and the Apple.  We don't know what type of fruit it was that Eve offered to Adam because it isn't mentioned in the biblical account; but perhaps it was the fruit of the Mandrake, and that is what facilitated Eve to subsequently conceive and bear children when she and Adam were kicked out of the Pleasure Garden. Circumstantial evidence exists for this hypothesis because of the biblical account of Reuben, Leah, Rachel and the Mandrakes (1):

The aphrodisiac properties of the mandrake are referred to in Genesis when Reuben, finding sweet yellow berries, each about the size of a small plum, took some of them to his mother, Leah. Rachel, Leah’s sister, seeing the fruit, said: "Give me, I pray thee, of thy son’s mandrakes". After some bartering, Leah complied with Rachel’s request...

Here is another reference to an ancient tradition mentioned many times in the Bible, the anointing with oil (2):  ...before drawing even the least potent of the magic roots, it was necessary to anoint the hands and face with oil, and during the process of uprooting to stand carefully to windward; hence, the mandrake, ‘Aphrodite’s plant’, demanded the employment of the greatest possible caution, and ultimately developed into the ceremony in which the dog received the inevitable death-blow from the lurking demons.

Anointing with oil....could this be Nard oil?...we suspect connections between rituals involving sacred aromatics and spices and some ancient board games...and "Aphrodite's Plant", the Goddess again...

Ibn Beithor, the Arab herbalist, refers to the mandrake as ‘The Devil’s Candle’, a title suggested by the plant’s glistening appearance at night. This luminosity is accounted for by the presence of numerous glow-worms at rest on the plant's ample leaves. The Moors, for the same reason, call mandrake ‘The Lamp of the Elves’. This is interesting.  One  of the Persian names for Mandrake is  istereng; ("istaranj, astarang" -Mandrake; may refer to the luminosity of the root ).  Could the ancient Persians have called the game Chatrang because the earliest game pieces, carved in the images of men and animals out of ivory, or perhaps white quartz, were luminous and glowed, just like the root of the Mandrake plant?...there may also be a shared root words between istereng/istaranj/astarang and sitranji...

...The forked root of the mandrake roughly resembles the human body, which probably accounts for its role as a magic plant, particularly with a sexual connotation. It has been used as an aphrodisiac in various cultures. Aphrodite, the goddess of love, was also the ‘lady of the mandrake’ and in some parts of Europe it was laid under the marriage bed. There was a medieval tradition that elephants consumed this plant to arouse sexual desire. Here is the Elephant connection with Chaturanga, and another connection to Aphrodite, "lady of the mandrake"... We know that in medieval times because the demand for mandrake was so great, people carved sweet bryony to look like mandrake, and these pieces were called "manikins".  Perhaps there is a connection with this tradition and the ancient Egyptians' use of marionettes in some of their religious rituals - sympathetic magic...

The true mandrake is native to the Near East...  Oh my! It looks like Candi is going to have to go to the Near East to find Mandrake, she's not going to find it around here. I hope she isn't too disappointed when she gets back.

I need to get this information to Jan. She is doing research on Mandrake and Chatrang too...  But first - I need to check the rice pilaf, so it doesn't dry out...Saffron is used in pilaf, and pilaf was a favorite of the Great Khans...Ummmm.... Kublah Khan laid out the city of Beijing in the pattern of the Chessboard...The saffron colored robes of some Buddhist sects - I wonder if the Kathin Ceremony may be related to the Sanskrit for "cotton"...  Genghis Khan gave the title "Dahlai Lama" to the Buddhist holy men of Tibet, which is in the Himalayas, and a species of Mandrake grows in the Himalayas....Saffron is an aphrodisiac, and it is very expensive, it is more precious than gold, in fact, it was used as a currency...I remember reading about Saffron being used by a King, he would dip his hand in saffron and place his saffron cover hand on a paper to make his signature, or seal...

Dragons and the Khans....I wonder if there is a connection...Mandragoras... Mandragon...half-Man, half-Dragon...There is the White Dragon-Headed Horse, that carried the books of knowledge across the waves of the Yellow River legend of the Ch'ing Dynasty...K'ang Hsi.., sounds a lot like Xiang Qi....and then there is Fu Hsi (2852-2738 BCE), the first of the three sovereigns of China, half-Dragon and half-human, who was the legendary inventor of the Chinese script. His prewriting device, called the Eight Trigrams, was a combination of straight and broken lines, apparently taken from marks on a turtle shell.  The I Ching connects the number eight and its subdivisions to divination, and the principles of divination were later reflected in the game of Chinese Chess, Xiang Qi, called "Elephant Game" or "Star Game"...


Candi: Bambi! Bambi! I need your help to carry the groceries in the house.

Bambi: Groceries??? I thought you were going to hunt for Mandrake.

Candi: I did! I went to "Euresis Discoveries" Health Food Store and got some mandrake from the herbalist Pedanior Discorides.

Bambi: How is our dear Pedanior?

Candi: He's fine. He seems to be ageless.(Image right) Dioscrides being handed a mandrake uprooted by a dog, which dies in the process.(3)

Bambi: Candi, I did some reading while you were gone, and I discovered, according to legend, one must sacrifice the dog that is used to pull up the mandrake root. Please tell me you weren't going to sacrifice Adam!

Candi: Sacrifice our dear little Adam, how could you think I would do such a horrible thing to an animal? That's why I bought the stuffed toy dog. I had planned to put the stuffed dog in the hole after the root was pulled out, instead of our precious Adam, just to be on the safe side.

Bambi: That's a relief... By the way Mandrake doesn't grow in this area. You would have to go to the Near East, or to Lama Land in the Himalayas to find the mandrake.

Candi: The Near East?? You mean I would have had to go to Martha's Vineyard, or Palm Beach?

Bambi: No, Further East, much further East. Oh, Never Mind.

Candi: Bambi, will you get the Blue Lotus out of the cooler and start soaking it in the Champagne for me please?

Bambi: Why do you want to ruin good champagne with a flower?

Candi: On the contrary! It will enhance the Champagne. You see, The Blue Lotus is a famous aphrodisiac used by the Egyptians, just like Mandrake. The priestesses would soak the lotus in wine to extract the active ingredients, and then give it to their lovers. It enhances love making, which enhances the champagne...giggle, giggle.

Bambi: Look at the time! Your sweet heart will be here in a couple of hours and you are not even ready.

Candi: Would you put the groceries away for me please while I slip into a perfumed bath? BTW~ Call up your handsome hunk and invite him to dinner, there is enough for all of us.

Bambi: Ummm, I think I will, Chaturanga is a game designed to be played with 4 players...

Footnotes:
(1) Here is a retelling (from the Midrash) of Reuben finding mandrakes in the field.  The biblical account can be found at Genesis 30:14-17.  Interestingly, it was Leah who became pregnant (with Issachar) as a result of the bartering for the mandrakes, not Rachel.  Rachel conceived her only child, Joseph, only after Leah bore Jacob two more sons (Issachar and Zebulun) and a daughter (Dinah), so it was doubtful that mandrakes had anything to do with Joseph's conception.  However, the account graphically demonstrates Rachel's belief in the efficacy of mandrakes as an aid to fertility and conception.

(2)    Biblical references to "anointing with oil" (not an exhaustive list):  Exodus 28:41 - cross-reference Exodus 29:7: "And you must take the anointing oil and pour it upon his head and put the holy sign of dedication upon the turban"; Leviticus 8:12: "Finally he poured some of the anointing oil upon Aaron's head and anointed him so as to sanctify him"; 1 Samuel 16:12, 13: "Accordingly he sent and had him come.  Now he was ruddy, a young man with beautiful eyes and handsome in appearance.  Then Jehovah said: "Get up, anoint him, for this is he!"  13 Accordingly Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers.  And the spirit of Jehovah began to be operative upon David from that day forward. ..."; Psalms 45:7: "... That is why God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of exultation more than your partners"; cf. 1 Hebrews 1:9: "You loved righteousness, and you hated lawlessness.  That is why God, your God, anointed you with the oil of exultation more than your partners."


(3)     Pedanior Discorides a/k/a Pedanios Discorides a/k/a Pedanius Dioscorides. Pedanius Dioscorides (c. 40 in Anazarbus, Cilicia - c. 90) was an ancient Greek physician, pharmacologist and botanist who practiced in Rome at the times of Nero. He was a surgeon with the army of the emperor so he had the opportunity to travel extensively seeking medicinal substances from all over the Roman and Greek world. Dioscorides is famous for writing a five volume book De Materia Medica that was a precursor to all modern pharmacopeias. In fact it remained in use for as long as until about 1600. All that was written was a mere commentary on Dioscorides' work with minor additions from Arabian and Indian sources.  Mandrake has served as an excellent restorative for Pedanior, the Show Girls' friend, as he is 2000+ years old...

Further Reading:

(1) Images of the Basilisk - an interesting blend of bird and serpent:

(2)  Information on Saffron, known to the ancient Egyptians, Hebrews and Greeks:
http://health.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1162963.cms(scroll down to entry for saffron)

(3)  Information on Nard (aromatic oil):

 

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