I'm on the Edge
Salvia divinorum
Citation:   Junior Birdsman. "I'm on the Edge: An Experience with Salvia divinorum (exp8669)". Erowid.org. May 13, 2004. erowid.org/exp/8669

 
DOSE:
3.0 g smoked Salvia divinorum (dried)
BODY WEIGHT: 150 lb
I have never taken a journey quite like this, and I yet at the same time I feel that I haven't quite taken the journey yet. There is something powerful to be said for subtlety; a rise that must push full force to be felt at all. The story begins a few minutes before though...

I loaded up a bowl of the Oaxaca, Mexico grown variety of Salvia Divinorum, ignited it and inhaled deeply. Nothing.. I finished the bowl with great expectations for the amazing loss of ego and freeness of the mind that I had read so much about, but I felt next to nothing. It was fairly dark outside at the time, slightly before night, but I had dimly illuminated the backyard with a few lights. I walked inside to fill the bowl again and noticed that the lights seemed unusually bright and colours as well seemed more magnificent than normal, much in the same way that one observes their surroundings during the come-down phase of mushrooms. There were no visuals at this time but I felt a subtle distortion of space; my outstretched arm seemed longer and thinner than usual.

I went back outside with the second bowl and this time, brought the bag of Salvia with me. Once again I lit the bowl and inhaled deeply, holding the smoke in my lungs for several seconds (around 15 or so). The feelings I began to get at this point were slightly stronger than the first, but not terribly so. I lay down on the ground and my field of view contained the tops of the trees surrounding me, and the dark, starry sky. I continued to look up and got a distinct sense that the tree-tops were some kind of wall which I could walk on. Like I was looking forward in a cylindrical hallway. I was not hallucinating, I was merely perceiving things slightly different. Think of looking up and not having a sense of gravity, it would be the same as looking forward, like you could just as easily walk up as you could walk forward.

At this point I would like to add that thus far, I had come to the realization that Salvia is a drug that must be played with, indulged. One can't simply walk around and enjoy its effects like one can with Marijuana; one must focus or rather allow the drug to take hold of them. If this sounds like bullshit at this point then you must realize also that Salvia does not work like any recreational drugs. Most other drugs can be enjoyed passively, as in, they work their magic on the brain while the user does whatever he or she wants, while still, able to enjoy the effects. Once I lost focus and got up, it was as if I was fine again. The whole state of mind, was lost and all that remained were mild mushroom effects such as space distortion and enhanced enjoyment of colour. But anyway, back to the story. This time instead of reloading the bowl, I pulled out my larger pipe and filled it with about twice as much Salvia.

For the third time, I ignited the stuff and inhaled. This time I could distinctly feel that I was approaching a peak. This time I knew for sure that there was much more to Salvia than the usual tryptamine-like effects I had experienced with other psychadelics such as mushrooms. I drew in a second deep breath and was drawn into a very different and rather borderline world. I could best describe this state as something extremely familiar, but in no way previously experienced. It was like something intrinsic to being a person but not something I had felt before in this way. I wasn't experiencing visual or auditory hallucinations, the senses were rather unstimulated but I could hear words in my head (much like when one is thinking), but these words were not born of my own will to think them, they simply came to me. Things that were very odd were being said, like 'You're halfway to hell'. Everything rhymed, complicated rhymes too, they flowed through my head automatically without me even having to think about them.

I took another pull from the pipe and I felt an exponential increase in my state of stonedness. I saw a spaceship (one for multiple passengers) loading and waiting at ready to take off. My mind was suddenly located somewhere between my body or the spaceship, not just somewhere, but everywhere between them. I could see the spaceship following an exponential curve path upwards in a great blur with the original ship still waiting for me. Everything took on the feel of something travelling along an exponential curve, faster and faster approaching infinity. Then just as I felt that I was being pulled up into space with the ship, the voices said I couldn't board yet and I ran back to reload the pipe. As soon as I got up, the profound pulling feeling left and I was left with fairly severe spatial distortions as would be induced by roughly two grams of mushrooms during the peak. I went inside to see what I looked like in the mirror but to my surprise, I looked fairly normal. I bared my teeth and growled, enjoying the feeling that I got from it. I was a beast, the beast. For the last time though, I once again loaded up the big pipe and attempted to surpass my previous climax which neared infinity.

After one large pull I was back but the spaceship was gone, I felt a dragging sensation like something was dragging me up and to the side. My shadow appeared to be bending in a similar manner. I finished off the pipe and sat there, this time with a realization that was similar to the first time I had smoked pot. Suddenly, out of the blue it hit me. I was tripping, harder than I had ever tripped in my life. The Salvia was so subtle that my state of mind came as a great surprise to me. I was completely absorbed in my surroundings. I wasn't really thinking as much as I was mentally interacting with my environment. There I sat for the next five minutes, relishing the strange familiarity of the state I was in. I would describe it as being a child again, perhaps similar to the time which we are too young to recall.

In any case, Salvia definately must be fed quickly. Unlike drugs such as Marijuana, Salvia peaks very quickly and baselines very quickly too. It is very difficult and painful to get enough smoke into one's system, fast enough to surpass that strange barrier I felt at the spaceship stage. The smoke must be inhaled in large amounts and fast to attain reasonable effects. Next time, I plan to start with a large bowl from the beginning, or use a standardized extract to get the effects with less smoke. I have not experienced the full effects of Salvia yet, but I have approached the point of no return, if crossed, will surely send one for the ride of his or her life. This drug is different than any other I have ever experienced before and very worth trying.

Exp Year: 2001ExpID: 8669
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: May 13, 2004Views: 6,836
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Salvia divinorum (44) : Entities / Beings (37), General (1), Alone (16)

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