Very few psychoactive herbs have received so much attention as Salvia Divinorum or Diviners Sage. It is a member of the Sage genus and the Lamiaceae (Mints)family. It looks like most salvias growing to be about 3 feet tall with purple - white flower stalks. It is mostly grown from cuttings, since it produces very few seeds and these are to hard to get to germinate. A few gardeners in warm climate zones have heard of the plant and joked about smoking it. It is obvious that they do not have clue about the hallucigenic effects of this herb. It is not a party drug like marihuanna, since the effects are much more powerful.
Cultivated by the Mazatec and the Aztecs in Mexico because of it´s ability to alter consciousness and induce visions and gain personal and divine insight. Known by etnobotanists to be an enthogen: Creates God within. Leaves of the plant are chewed or smoked to get the hallucinogenic effects. When smoked the effects set in after 30 seconds - and last for about 2-5 minuttes.
- Uncontrollable laughter
- loss of control over body
- hallucinations - visions, dissociative states, experience of other dimensions and realities
Some people get very scary and unpleasant bad trips when smoking the leaves - scary for both the user and the persons watching them. This is one of the reasons it is not to be used as a party drug or a laughing prank by inexperienced dope-heads. People having bad trips are very unlikely to ever try using it again. For the adventurous who dare to try smoking this herb - there is one rule that is very important - have a person you trust next to you! (A sitter). The sitter must be present to make sure you do not harm yourself by falling or hurt your self in any way. If you do try smoking Salvia Divinorum follow these safety guidelines.
As much as I am very tempted to try smoking this herb myself (I imagine doing it with a friend on the huge soft park lawn, a summer evening when the sun sets) - I have decided I do not dare it. My mind is too fragile to handle a bad trip. Salvia Divinorum has become illegal here in Denmark and some other EU countries, Australia and in a few US states. I have tried smoking some weed - no not dandelions .-) .... and it does not do anything for me. I better stick to seeking and feeling the holy spirit and just be high on life in healthier ways. YouTtube - of course has many vidoes showing the effects of smoking Salvia Divinorum - Some are downright scary; showing intense bad trips. I did however also find this video of a gardener with some nice roses behind him. I must say I doubt I would get much gardening done if I followed his example of smoking Salvia Divinorum - take a look as he goes into another dimension for a funny pleasant trip lasting a few minuttes.
The Picture on top showing the plant is from the Wikepedia article on Salvia Divinoforum
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24 comments:
I have heard of "smoking salvia" and figured it was some rare species, not the cultivars most of us have in our gardens. The guy in the video kind of scared me. The idea of his brain tissue wasting away and him just lying there... The one upside is that it metabolizes fairly quickly. Anyway, thanks for the information. It's good to know what's out there to ensnare our young ones. I won't be going near the stuff. I'm weird enough already.
It's an innocent enough looking plant. Interesting to read they are not so innocent after all! Yikes, the artwork is enough to give one pause.
As a blogger, you learn new things every day.
This - though interesting - I don't think I'm going to try =).
Have a nice day.
/Helen
Heavy stuff, most fascinating story Niels.
Holy cow! That didn't look enjoyable at all...it almost looked paralyzing. I have heard of this plant being used as drug before and found this video interesting to watch. Certainly doesn't make one want to try it. I wonder what the blossom looks like? Salvia are one of my favorite flowers in the garden.
Karrita
LOL Grace - you seem to have a great sense of humor without smoking anything! I hope that people will be very careful if they should ever want to try smoking this herb. At least the effects only last a few minuttes.
Aeire-el: the artwork "Vision of God" is not as bad as some the bad description I have read from people trying this.
Helen J: I also think that we do not have to try everything!
Tyra: Smoking Salvia Divinoforum have become a trend among young people, who have heard of this herbs powerful effects
Karitta: In the Wikipedia article I linked to at the bottom of my blog post, you can see the flowers.
Actually the effect Eric experiences in this video appears pretty mild, compared to some of the other videos that can be found on Youtube. People screaming and acting almost psychotic, believing their hallucinations are real. We do see that he looses motor control and coordination and have to lay down. He laughs and appear to halucinate and try to grab things that are not really there. When he comes back he brake out a sweat which is very common.
I wrote this article because many have heard of smoking "Salvia". Luckily it is only this type of Salvia that has a hallucinogneic effect. I do not hope that any body uses this herb without knowing what they are doing and follow the safety guidelines.
In all cultures and ages people have been using substances that are mind altering. The worst substance is probably alchohol. Wine and Liguer is the greatest killer compared to other recreational substance. Legal everywhere and most people can handle using it responsibly. In 2007 8,724 alcohol-related deaths were recorded in the UK!
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=1091
Great information on an intriguing plant, Niels. I can't imagine smoking it myself - heaven knows I'm silly enough as it is. :-)
Niels, I can't tell you how food it is seeing you posting again. Welcome back - belatedly!
Back in the day, I might have tried Salvia, lol. Though I wonder. That sucker looks ridiculously strong. It's hard to imagine what other effects it might have, regarding heart issues, brain, etc. Nevertheless, that's an absolutely fascinating post and I appreciate it.
Niels,
I read your post last night and then watched some other You-Tube video's. I was actually very concerned about all of these kids, most of them looked miserable. It doesn't seem to be a pleasant experience, for the most part. A very bried feeling of euphoria, then it appears, more time in misery & sweating, sounds like a waste of time! And, a waste of braincells. Who knows what other negative consequences it might have? I have heard some college-age males talking about this. It really concerned me at the time. People will do what they want, however, with no concern for long-term problems. It 'appears' less problematic than LSD--but who is to say, down the road? Thank you for your post. It was intriguing and informative.
Thanks for stopping by Nancy, Steve and Jan ! Maybe we would have tried smoking salvia when we were younger? At least we are older and wiser now and don´t have to try every thing we hear about.
Many who smoke marihuanna and hash claim it is not harmful, but I have seen a few lives wasted due to these socalled harmless recreational drugs. Many people try it a few times when they are younger and that is it. Even former US Pres. Clinton admitted he had done it - but not inhaled!
It seems to me that people who actually own one of these water bongs for smoking it, like I have seen on YouTube also smoke something else than salvia. Many truly look like dopeheads.
As a hallucinogen Salvia is unique in that the effects only last a few minuttes unlike mushrooms and LDS. The blodpressure and heartrate increases and like Jan noted many break out a sweat too. But unlike e.i. alchohol it does not "damage braincells."
Considering how many people have tried smoking it, there has not to my knowledge been reported any cases of deaths or serious adverse effects besides from very scary bad trips. Salvia Divinoforum may also have some interesting medicinal purposes.
We have to realize that many of the videos of people smoking Salvia perhaps give a false impression - since people only post videos of Salvia having a very strong effect that make people look like raving psychotics for a few minuttes. I do feel for the young people being portrayed like that.
The news of the potent effects of smoking salvia has spread rapidly and as medical doctor and gardener interested in herbal medicine - I hope that at least those of you who read garden blogs have gotten more knowlegde about this herb.
And yes Steve - I am beginning to get better again.
I use to work with a man who was fascinated by this stuff. He said he chewed his salvia. I ask him how it taste and he said awful. He acted strange too. He could work really hard when he was high.
I can't see myself this out of control. No telling what I'd do. I'm sure it would be funny. I've already lost enough brain cells and can't afford to spare any extras.
My brother use to get high on something and he'd eat all the time. It was hilariously funny. He'd eat carrots like it was fudge.
It was fascinating though and I'm sure to look it up on youtube. Will you be showing us anything this good in the future? :)
Have you spotted the effect your post getting onto the Blotanical Picks page has had on the Adsense Ads on there? ;)
I blame the Miracle Gro he was talking about using!
VP - I DID! Are you buying any? LOL - Salvia Diviniforum is in most part of the world marketed as a "legal high".
Many gardeners heard of this and thougt that all salvia had this effect ..... I hope I have helped correct this misconception, so gardeners will not smoke their Salvie "Eastfriesland". I also hope everybody will be careful if they should ever experiment with this herb.
You got a point there Daffodil planter! Among organic gardeners Miracle Gro is sometimes called "Crack" for plants. Which of course is nonsense ...
I hope there will not now be a rash of Miracle Gro users!
After many decades of study and experience, here is my take on psychoactive plants: they are personalities to be respected. As with friends, you need to have a good relationship with them to get along well. And as with friends, not all of the candidates will be suited to you. I have found and continue to find plants to be very good helpers in my spiritual life. I don't ingest all the plants who are helpers, but I do ingest some, and am very grateful for their help, revelations, and companionship.
I'd also point out that what something looks like from watching a video and what it feels like from inside can be two very different things.
If you check out prehistory and anthropological records, you will find as Niels says that pretty much the first thing humans do when they settle in a place is to find or ferment some plant so consciousness is changed. I think this is a basic urge to understand our parts in this big world.
I am not for wholesale irresponsible drug ingestion, but it's good to remember that in industrial countries we all use a lot of plant-based drugs, many of which have a bad effect on our health when used without respect: coffee, tea, sugar, tobacco, to mention just a few. (That's not even getting into all the dangerous prescribed and OTC pharmaceuticals people take without looking into their effects.) And of course you're right Niels about alcohol being one of the most dangerous of all - though it can also enhance health if used by the right person in the right way.
Flowergardengirl: I think I will write about one other plant later (August) that is the most effective painkiller of all - but also has the ability to create a lot of pain, because it can be so addictive. Many herbs and plants have powerful medicinal purposes. Some plants even give a pleasant high! The smell of roses even makes me high!
PB:
I totally agree. So many plants have useful medicinal purposes. Used correctly and in moderation they can be great helpers and improve health and wellbeing. Think of St. John's Wort as antidepressant, Valerian root for anxiety and insomnia, all the great properties of Aloe Vera and Chamomille. But just because they are natural does not mean that they do not have sideeffects. Foxgloves or digitalis like you write a great series of post about now - is extremely toxic just a little topleaf can be deadly! But it was one the first known heart medications. But the use has been abandonded since it is very difficult to know how much active digitoxin or digoxin plant parts contain.
When it comes to psychoactive plants like tea and coffee - moderation is the key. A cup of coffee a day has been shown to have great health benefits - but 3 is perhaps too much. I also drink green tea because I like it and because of the content of flavanoids. And only little caffeine so it does not make me jitterish.
I am not against a limited amount of alchohol - red wine especially because it contains resveratrol. People are free to enjoy alcholic drinks they like if they enjoy the taste and psychoactive effects of ethanol. But overused alchohol causes problems. I do not want to preach abstinence - but I do find it hypocritical that Salvia Diviniforum becomes banned, when I think of how many people die from alchohol abuse and irresponsible use like DUI. I also beats me that smoking tobacco is still legal, considering how overuse damages peoples health. In very limited amounts ( a few times every year will not make me raise an eyebrow - but 20 a day ?). Nicotine is the most addictive substance known. It is a natural insecticide!
The very potent psyactive plants like coca leaves and opium poppies are probably not so bad in their natural form - like chewing a few coca leaves or ingesting a little raw opium. Again knowledge and moderation are the keywords. But the chemically altered forms - cocaine, crack and Heroine must be avoided. There is a reason why they are totally illegal in modern societies. The negative ripple effect of these drugs are devasting, not only on those using them but on society as whole.
Used with knowledge and in moderation many psyactive plants are interesting. History has shown us that we can not ban all plants that can make people high or addicted. Grapes (Wine) and Tobacco
are deadly plants, that can be bought legally everywhere and kills more people every year in the USA than the number of people who have been killed during the war in Iraq - while other herbal based "drugs" that are far less lethal are illegal.
Niels .. I'm surprised to see such a conservative gardener post such a radical venue to enlightenment ?
Just a slight wafting of humour ..
It is amazing how many very innocent looking plants can truly invade your brain and sanity momentarily or not .. but information is the key .. I don't smoke anything but I don't crusade against a little pot here and there .. liquor can do much more damage to the body and yet it is "legal" .. Oh well .. such is life .. you have to take responsibility for your own actions and yet have some fun too ?
I absolutely love this post. I never expected to find a blog post about S. divinorum, but this is a total brainstorm! ;-) I had no idea that it had become illegal in the EU, it is still freely 'devoured' in the Adriatic. I have never tried it myself either, but that was possibly for having witnessed the effect it had on some people. Or perhaps for always preferring to grow plants rather than chew on them. And until then I though that Datura was 'le fleur du mal' par excellence! One of the loveliest Adriatic islands has one of its wild slopes totally covered in this divine plant. No wonder the islanders are thought of as the mad men of Adriatic. It's good to be back and run into such a great, mindblowing post. To think just how many mindblowing plants grow in our gardens, in a total obscurity, and are completely legal , I wonder how cannabis ever got to be so infamous. Not that my opinion counts anyway LOL ...
P.S. Your advice on slugs, Ferramol, was a total hit. Our Bauhaus garden center finally imported it in midsummer and well, just wanted to say thanks for saving my crops and perennial border. Cheers!
I have heard about this in the news. Especially in the Southwest U.S. Teens purchase the herb from Mexican religious shops. It was quite an epidemic a few years ago.
I would love to grow poppies. They are so beautiful, but I don't dare. I am afraid a policeman would drive by and think the wrong thing.
Very interesting to see people commenting on how its going to "ensnare" our young ones and such bs as that. These are the comments of the uninformed. As said earlier (with a little research) salvia is not known to have ANY harmful affects whatsoever. Sounds interesting and would love to try it sometime in a controlled environment. If the effects of this drug scare you, I wonder what the effects of alcohol make you think...(by the way, I don't believe that you automatically start losing brain cells because you get high, it depends on the substance being used...never assume)
nice page if you or anyone you know if looking for a Salvia Divinorum Cutting they can check out the Salvia Divinorum Mass Distribution Project Here
Salvia is not dangerous at all. Also It is impossible to grow addictive to you - the experience, although brief, is too intense to be repeated often.
I have tried it four times in the last six years. It was always an incredible, mind bending experience, if only for the realisation (or better, for the actualization)that what we see everyday is only the result of complex calculations of our brain. With the proper compound, what we look and feel can change completely in one milisecond.
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