Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Why I hate the phrase “Lotus eaters”?

Why I hate the phrase “Lotus eaters”?
 

I hate the phrase or metaphor lotus eaters.

There is no inherent reason except, I love all types FLOWERS of water lilies.


Are we lotus eaters?
 

In Greek mythology the Lotus-eaters, also referred to as the lotophagi or lotophaguses (singular lotophagus ) or lotophages (singular lotophage), were a race of people living on an island dominated by lotus plants. The lotus fruits and flowers were the primary food of the island and were narcotic, causing the people to sleep in peaceful apathy.

1. Lotus-eater or Lotus Eater Greek Mythology One of a people described in the Odyssey who lived in a drugged, indolent state from feeding on the lotus.

2. A lazy person devoted to pleasure and luxury.

If we take the above definitions this island fits nicely, especially after ex-president’s period.
 

The narcotic sales hit a zenith.
 

People were elated (especially with racial dogma) but lazy.
 

Expansion of temples all over the country needed large amount of water lilies for worshiping. 

Then of course, the people eat most of the  parts of the plant including the rhizome.
 

My gut feeling is these rhizomes concentrate arsenic and heavy metals which can be poisonous after about 30 to 40 years of eating.

Increase detection (I won’t use an epidemic) of chronic renal disease is relevant here.
 

Other relevant point is from C. P De Silva’s (1960s) time we had been importing and using poisonous pesticides and artificial fertilizer loaded with heavy metals.
The coal that we import from China will also be contributory where Coal Power Plants are located.
 


The name lilies is a broad term and many lilies can be poisonous to cats and dogs.

Below is a Reproduction
Quick warning:
No matter the circumstance, NEVER eat any plant unless you're absolutely sure that it's safe. This means either a) having bought it from a grocery store, or b) having it identified with all possible certainty (both as a particular species and as edible) by a reliable authority.
Don't just take my word for it!


That said... The word "lily" covers an astonishingly wide variety of plants, most of which are indeed poisonous.
I'll go over them a few at a time, by botanical categories.
True lilies (genus Lilium -- Easter lilies, stargazer lilies, etc.) are definitely toxic to cats.
My sources are more dubious regarding humans: they are at very least dubious. Numerous species are outright poisonous (if only mildly), while many others are inedible and bitter.
Do not eat.

Daylilies (genus Hemerocallis) are not at all poisonous -- in fact, they're lauded as tasty in numerous books of edible wild plants.
Apparently all parts of the plant are edible, and many are pretty good eating.

One plant sometimes referred to as "Easter lily" is also called the calla lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica): it is toxic.
All parts of the plant contain calcium oxalate, which causes swelling, burning, and highly unpleasant digestive symptoms.
Do not eat.
 

Lily of the valley (Convallaria majus) is highly toxic -- it's full of cardiac glycosides, to the point that merely handling it and then licking one's fingers could cause some symptoms.
Do NOT eat.

Water lilies (Nymphaeaceae spp.) are too large a group for me to say anything definite.
They seem mostly innocuous, but it'd be advisable to research any given species individually before trying to eat or plant it.

Sonia Barnett was delighted to receive a beautiful bouquet on Valentine’s Day.
But her joy turned to horror when the flowers poisoned and killed three of her beloved cats.
Miss Barnett did not know that ingesting any part of a lily can be fatal to felines, with even a small amount of pollen enough to kill them.

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