Disclaimer

When Salvia was discovered, it was unregulated and unscheduled. It remained unscheduled in most countries and all US states until very recently.

Since it is unlike any other psychedelic molecule, in that it is not a tryptamine, phenethylamine or an amine, it did not fall under previously banned psychedelics. It is not an alkaloid because it does not contain any nitrogen atoms like the classic psychedelics such as LSD, Psilocybin, and DMT.

Salvia is an opioid receptor agonist unlike any other psychedelic substance that produces profound visions.

Salvia is no longer unscheduled. It has been banned in many US states. As the drug gained more popularity, it drew the attention of the authorities. It was first scheduled in Louisiana and banned for human consumption. The scheduling was promptly followed by Missouri, Tennessee, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, North Dakota, and Minnesota and now 29 states including the territory of Guam have banned Salvia.

Please, check the local laws and the legality of Salvia before proceeding. Salvia is now only legal in a few US states.¹

It is also advisable to avoid Salvia Divinorum if one has been diagnosed with mental illnesses or conditions, or if there is a history of mental illness in your family.

Read this entire article in full, as well as trip reports, and our article on What is Salvia Divinorum before using this substance. The more you know, the better you can do something and the more you can gain from the experience.

5 Important Tips For New Salvia Users

Newcomers to Salvia Divinorum tend to have questions about Salvia and how to use it properly and responsibly. This article contains a few key points which are most important for first time users.

1. Salvia is not a party drug. Salvia has been used by Mexican Shamans for hundreds of year for divination ceremonies, religious rituals, and healing purposes.

2. Read Salvia trip reports. Consume all the information you possibly can about Salvia before using the drug. It is important to familiarize yourself with how the substance takes effect in humans, to be able to gain the most benefit from it.

3. Have any easy mindset, and a safe and comfortable physical setting. Set and Setting are very important in Salvia. It is recommended to have a sober trip sitter who knows how to provide support, should the intensity of the trip make the user uncomfortable, and to keep the user safe.

4. You can smoke Salvia for a fast and quick trip. The smoked salvia trip is very short-lived, and only lasts a few minutes.

5. You can chew Salvia leaves for a longer and slower trip, to fully study its effects on consciousness.

The Salvia Trip

Salvia Divinorum (or Salvia for short) is one of the most powerful and strongest hallucinogens known to man. Its active ingredent, Salvinorin-Alpha is active in the microgram dosage level and is as profound as DMT.² Salvinorin Alpha is an oxygenated cyclic diterpenoid containing no nitrogen atoms.

Sometimes Salvia can send you back in time.

Salvia is being explored as a possible psychedelic psychotherapy tool in Western medicine.³

Salvia Is Not A Party Drug

If you have heard about salvia and that it can produce a short lasting high, and that you can have a few minutes of fun, this is not the plant for you. It is definitely not something to use as a quick getting high drug. This plant teacher is to be respected. Salvia is the tool of the philospher mind.

Jean B. Johnson in 1938 mentioned salvia for the first time, as he had heard of the Mazatec shamans making tea from the leaves of Salvia Divinorum that when consumed produced profound psychedelic visions.⁴

When you step foot into this teacher’s classroom, you must be humble and respectful, otherwise you can be severely punished. ⁵⁶

It is highly recommended that you approach this plant with respect. Salvia produces colorful visions, triangular patterns, and is known to make the user feel as if his sense of gravity and time have been drastically modified.⁷

Salvia Trip Reports

It is extremely important to treat this substance with the utmost respect and carefulness. Please read salvia trip reports at the following sites to get a better understanding of what you’re getting into. The more information you have, the better you can do something.

1. Erowid

2. Salvia.net

Salvia Divinorum Visions (art by Salvia Droid)

Set and Setting

Relaxed Mindset

Set refers to the mindset of the user. We recommend being in a relaxed and easy mood. Meditate and relax your mind and body beforehand. You want your experience to yeild positive results, and having any negativity on the mind might further the negative state of mind.

Physical Setting

Setting referes to the physical setting and environment of the user. The most important part of the Salvia Divonorum experience is physical setting. Please make certain that you are in a comfortable environment without distractions or noise. Light music is fine.

Salvia Trip Sitter

Many people would tell you that it is vital to have a sober trip sitter watching over you, as salvia has been known to make people act out in unorthodox ways. People might do things they normally would not, thinking that everything is normal.

Please ask someone to be a sober sitter for you, so that you can make sure you’re safe and comfortable. Make sure that they know how to be helpful and support your trip, and to create a relaxed atmosphere.⁸

Anxiety is a trip killer. However, before any psychedelic experience, fear and anxiety are always present. This is why meditation for a while is recommened before using Salvia. If you feel fearful or anxious, the probablity that the trip will amplify those negative feelings is high.

Make sure to be in a quiet, comfortable and familiar setting. The physical location should not cause any level of stress. Remove sources of fire, sharp objects, knives, weapons, and anything else that you might harm yourself or others with.

How To Smoke Salvia Divinorum

For your first few times, start with a small amount of a weakly prepared extract or plain dry leaf material. It is advisable to start small and work your way up to higher doses. Dose level is very important to consider, and until you’ve become used to handling the experience, it is wise to start off small.⁹

You can use a bong as well, as the water will filter out the bitter and harsh taste by quite a bit.

Get a butane torch lighter instead of regular flame lighter such as BIC. Salvinorin-A requires a significant temperature to properly vaporize.

While inhaling the salvia smoke, keep burning the salvia material evenly in the bowl by keeping the flame on it consistently the whole time.

Take a large hit, inhale the smoke completely, and pinch your nose shut and don’t let any smoke out, in case you should cough. Put the smoking pie or bong away. Sit back, relax and get ready for profound visions.

Try to hold your breath for as long as possible. If you should need to breathe, let out only a little bit of the smoke, and quickly breath, and continue to hold your breath. When you can’t hold any longer, exhale, and within 20-25 seconds you should begin to notice the effects.

The Salvia experience lasts anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Its aftereffects may continue to persist for 10-15 minutes after that.

In case you don’t feel anything, that’s okay. Just relax. Try again. Many new comers, using leaf material or low extracts, may not feel much of a change.

According to SageWisdom¹⁰:

Many people find it difficult to obtain a satisfactory level of effects when smoking Salvia divinorum leaf. Usually this is because of insufficient dose, improper smoking technique, or low sensitivity to salvinorin A.

How To Chew Salvia Divinorum

Salvia Divinorum can also be chewed. In fact, that’s how the Mazatec Shamans of Oaxaca Mexico use Salvia.¹¹

The effects of chewed salvia come on slowly, over the course of an hour, but last much longer, up to 3 or 4 hours. Cheweing Salvia is the traditional and Shamanic method.

The curenderos (or Shamans) wash the fresh leaves, roll them up into tight tubes, and chew on them, and hold the juices in their mouth until the trip begins.

Depending on the number of leaves chewed, the effects can be as profound as smoked salvia, though not as quick acting.¹²

If all you have is dry leaf material or salvia extract (Salvia soaked leaves), put them in a bowl of water for 10 minutes to 15 minutes to rehydrate them.

Use a significant amount of Salvia orally for it to be active. The Shamans usually use about 17-20 fresh leaves. Chew the leaves and then hold the juices in your mouth, under your tongue but do not swallow.

If the effects too mild and you don’t feel anything, chew more!

Have fun exploring the Salvia Universe!

Sources