David Arnold begins his book with an impressive but brief survey of historic references to poison in India’s past. Poisons were widely known in ancient India. For example, in several ancient Indian texts appears the legend of vishkanya or poison-maiden, a woman whose body had been impregnated with poison as she took incremental doses of poison. Any physical intimacy with her could be fatal. As Sushruta Samhita mentions, ‘if she touches you, her sweat can kill, if you make love to her, your penis drops off like a ripe fruit from its stalk’ (p. 18).
The poison-maidens were most likely used to kill political rivals and enemies, and this use of poison, to eliminate political rivals, continued during the medieval times. The Mughal Emperors, as European travelogues of the times reveal, killed their political rivals with the help of ‘killer khilat’. This special khilat (robe of honour) was impregnated with poison, so that its wearer died a miserable death. The Mughals also eliminated their political rivals by forcing them to drink post (a concoction of raw opium).