Aromatic perennial marigold native to the highlands of Mexico and Guatemala, with a strong anise-tarragon scent. Named yauhtli in the Aztec Florentine Codex, where it appears in ritual incense formulae alongside copal. Continues in contemporary Mazatec, Huichol and other Mexican ceremonial use.
Mountain meadows and oak woodland clearings at 1,000–2,500 m elevation in central Mexico.
The names this organism has been given by the cultures that have lived alongside it. Each carries an entire relationship — what is sacred is never simply translated.
- yauhtliNahuatl"cloud-flower"
- pericónSpanish (Mexico)
- Pre-Columbian Aztec ritual incense (yauhtli), often combined with copal
- Mazatec dream-work and cleansing rituals
- Folk-medicinal infusion for digestive and respiratory complaints across modern Mexico
Phytochemically dominated by thiophenes and the essential-oil constituent estragole. The psychoactive case is suggestive rather than well-characterised: ceremonial users report mild euphoria, enhanced dreaming, and visual softening, but no single identified molecule has been pinned down as the active.
- Siegel 1978
- Diaz 1979
- Florentine Codex
