An Anthropological Study of Affective Relations between Humans and Hemp in Uttarakhand

Abstract

Hemp holds a significant place among the local communities of Uttarakhand through their traditional knowledge systems. The present study encompasses a plant-centered anthropological analysis of hemp cultivation in Uttarakhand through intimate engagement with the hemp plants, and at the same time, developing a feeling for or an ethics of care towards the hemp plants. In this study, the limits of conventional ethnographic study carried out from an anthropocentric perspective have been pushed and directed beyond the human towards the affective connection between human beings and hemp plants, which can equivocally socialise and sense as the humans. The chapter also delves into the intricate and multifaceted relationship among hemp plant, local peoples, and their environment through the concept of affective ecology. The legal restrictions or societal stigma on hemp may evoke feelings of frustration or defiance, while growing acceptance and legalization will contribute to positive affective experiences in the field study areas. The affective ecology between hemp plants and humans, despite of the existing legal restrictions and societal stigma, contribute to a deeper sense of connection with the environment.