SANANGA Root Bark | Tabernaemontana undulata

Equipment

 

1x Precision pipette, 1x Plastic 50mm PE Funnel, 1x Filter Paper (medium), 2x White 50ml HDPE Bottles, 2x Clear 50ml PET Bottles, 5x 5ml Glass Bottles with Dropper, 5x Small Black Mylar Zip Lock Bags, 5x Sandwich Zip Lock Bags.

METHOD

2.5g of Sananga Root Bark makes approx 25ml of Sananga Eye Drops.

 

To extract the root bark, all you need is clean (boiling) water. Preferably natural spring water that is free of chlorine and fluoride. Use a stable, clean table and working environment and with clean hands and tools.

The following instructions show how to extract Sananga root bark in one extraction. For the first part of the process, you will need the white heatproof HDPE bottle and 2.5g of cut and seived Sananga Root Bark. The trickiest part of making the drops is filtering the liquid. To make it as easy as possible, we shave our organic Sananga Root Bark into fine consistent ribbons, free of fine particles. This makes the final filtering process much easier and produces a clean straw colored liquid.

STEP 1 - Preparation

 

Open the white 50 ml HDPE bottle and insert 2.5 grams of Sananga root bark.

STEP 2 - Extraction

 

This stage involves pouring boiling water into the 50ml white HDPE bottle. Begin by placing the bottle inside a mug to prevent the bottle from toppling over or the hot water scalding your hands. Bring some water to the boil. By using boiling water you will eliminate most of the bacteria and other microbes present in the Sananga Root Bark. Pour the water into the bottle while the water is still bubbling. Slowly and carefully fill the bottle until it’s almost full.

Firmly close the bottle. Before closing the lid, squeeze most of the air out of the bottle and take care, since the bottle will be very hot. Now the bottle should look like it has a deformity. The reason for the deformity is because when you shake the bottle when hot, the volume will expand.

Shake the bottle gently for a minute and set it aside still taking care not to scald yourself. Give the bottle a few shakes every 10 minutes for the next hour. Then swirl the bottle around a little so all the plant matter is submerged and not stuck to the side of the bottle. Put the bottle in a sandwich zip lock bag with the lid facing upwards in the fridge for 24 - 36 hours,  The longer you brew the Sananga the stronger it will be.

 

STEP 3 - Decanting

 

The following step separates the liquid from the infusion into the clear PET bottle.

After 24 - 36 hours of brewing, the plant residue will have settled to the bottom of the bottle. Remove the bottle from the fridge and take it out of the zip lock bag. Do this carefully, so as not to disturb the plant residue, which should remain settled on the bottom. Take the clear PET 50ml bottle and slowly decant the liquid into it. You can use the funnel if you like, but it’s not essential.When decanting, try not to pour any plant matter into the bottle. But don’t worry too much if a few small particles cross over. They will be filtered out later in the process.

Leave the wet plant residue in the white HDPE bottle. Patiently allow the liquid to drip from the residue. If the bottle is handled carefully, all residue should remain at the bottom.

You should now have approximately 25ml of strong (unfiltered) Sananga collected in the clear PET bottle.

STEP 4 - Filtering

 

The final stage is to filter your fresh Sananga drops. You will need the heatproof HDPE bottle again for the sterilisation process.

Slowly and carefully, take the Sananga bottle. If for any reason the mixture appears shaken up or only partially settled, put it back in the fridge for 4 hours and try again.

Assuming the liquid is clear, take a paper filter, put it into the funnel, and put the funnel into a one of the white 50 ml bottles. Place this empty bottle in a teacup to keep it steady. Open the bottle containing the liquid, making sure not to shake it, so any remaining plant matter or fine particles stay settled on the bottom. Then, fill the funnel once and watch how quickly it starts to drip, topping up as required.

If the funnel drips slowly, leave it for as long as necessary - whether this is a matter of minutes or a whole hour. When the dripping has slowed right down or all the liquid appears to have drained, replace the filter paper and repeat. This filtration stage can take some time and and requires great patience.

When you place a new filter in the funnel, be sure to fold the used filter very tightly and exerting gentle pressure slowly squeeze the remaining liquid into the new filter so as not to waste any of the Sananga. This technique works whenever there is still some liquid left in the filter. Make sure to have clean hands or gloves on when handling the filter. Repeat the process until all the liquid has been filtered.

STEP 5 - Sterilisation

 

This step involves bringing the liquid to the boil for long enough to eliminate any bacteria and to maximise shelf life. Take the white bottle containing your Sananga liquid. Do not use the clear PET bottle because it will not survive the heat. Open the lid of the HDPE bottle and squeeze most of the air out of it, then seal the lid tightly. Now the bottle should look like it has a dent. Bring a pan of water to the boil, then put the bottle in, so it floats on the bubbling water. Put the lid back on the pan and keep it on for a full 15 minutes, before using a spoon to remove the bottle from the pan. Allow it to cool. Your Sananga is now sterilised. Do not open the bottle yet. As long as it is not opened, it will remain sterile even without being refrigerated. Label the bottle. To be on the safe side, store it in the fridge inside a Zip Lock bag for future use.

STEP 6 - Filling Dropper Bottles

 

Take your Sananga from the fridge and open the bottle. Use the pipette to extract some liquid from the bottle and fill your dropper bottle. Immediately seal your bottles and place them in the fridge in a Mylar Zip Lock bag. Your 5ml dropper bottles of Sananga are now ready to use. Enjoy!

The indigineous peoples of the Amazon use Sananga both for herbal medicine and spiritual usage. Sananga has been reported to remove ‘Panema’, which is like a spiritual sickness in the body. It is believed by the natives that someone who drinks too much Vine of the Soul or consumes too much Mapacho Rapé will develop a black sludge in their stomach, which must be purged with Kambo or in another way. MJ is also a culprit plant which puts this type of energy in the body.  ‘Nisun’  is another name for this type of spiritual sickness and is emphasised for those who do not conduct proper Dietas. Sananga is used by the natives as an effective way to remove these bad energies.

The latex obtained from the plant is used for removing 'Mosquito Worms' from the body, and is placed on cotton plugs for insertion into aching tooth cavities. It is also used to treat Munuri Ant (Pariponera clavata) bites and sore eyes. The latex obtained from the petiole is applied to the penis as a treatment for gonorrhoea. The root is used to treat headaches. The grated bark is used in a plaster as a treatment for headache, and as a resolvent for treating small abscesses. The macerated leaves are used as an eyewash to remedy conjunctivitis. Macerated in rum, they are applied to swollen feet. The plant is used to soothe bites, skin irritations and snakebite wounds.

 

Headaches are one of the original uses of Sananga. It is the most universal remedy for headaches across many tribes. Native peoples of the Amazon will take Sananga in their eyes to treat their headaches.

 

Pain in the eyes or pain in the head can be caused by many different reasons. If the reason is related to inflammation or infection, then Sananga seems like a sound solution for that according to the indigenous customs. However, eye pain and head pain can be caused by other, much more serious reasons and as such Sananga may not work for all headaches.

The most immediate effect that someone feels when they apply Sananga eye drops to is an intense burning sensation. It is most probably unlike anything a first-time user has ever felt in their life and may liken it to wasabi in the eyes. This burning sensation lasts a few short minutes and then subsides into a feeling of euphoria.

 

To clear vision for hunts. The native peoples believe that usage of Sananga will bring clarity of sight to improve vision and contrast between many shades of green which is useful in the forest when you are hunting and being hunted at all times.

 

While Sananga was never known by native Amazonian usages for addition or tolerance or habit-breaking purposes, some reports have revealed that people consuming Sananga have noticed a total reset of tolerances on their body over a period of a few days after use. Additionally they noticed a habit reset.

There currently is no evidence of any specific contraindications regarding Sananga. However, if you are prescribed another eye drop for a specific purpose or are using Sananga while suffering from an eye condition, the eye medicine that you are using could interact with the sananga in either a positive or negative way. Additionally, if you are in preparation for or recovery from eye surgery, it is recommended not to use Sananga.