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Tumbling Towards the Elephants
Salvia divinorum
Citation:   Gavin. "Tumbling Towards the Elephants: An Experience with Salvia divinorum (exp69784)". Erowid.org. May 22, 2017. erowid.org/exp/69784

 
DOSE:
0.5 g smoked Salvia divinorum (extract)
BODY WEIGHT: 185 lb
I had been reading up on Salvia D. for years and I’d never had the opportunity to try it. I wasn’t exactly thrilled by the idea of ordering the stuff online and it’s not something (I thought) you can easily find in any smoke shop. Luckily for me, I live in Oakland, right next to Berkeley, California and I scored a gram of the 7x extract earlier this afternoon without much trouble. While the first shop I went to didn’t seem to have any -- or know where to find any -- the one next door had plenty. Anyway, I headed home and decided to try the stuff, seriously doubting all the hype and mystique. I’ve tried a lot of drugs, although I wouldn’t consider myself to be a regular drug user. In any event, I am completely amazed by my first experience and I’m very grateful I decided to follow up on my curiosity.

Call me skeptical, but when I’d heard people boasting about what a powerful hallucinogen Salvia was, I doubted it would be that intense. It actually took me about 3 bowls of the stuff for it to actually work, but once it did...BAM. While I was doubtful one hit would propel me into an alternate universe, I decided to err on the side of caution anyway and made my first bowl a bit skimpy, just in case. The first two or three hits made me feel odd; not quite stoned, but not unaffected either. It was like someone had turned a key inside my brain, but it hadn’t quite hit the cylinder yet. Everything looked and seemed real, but just through a different lens. I knew I hadn’t crossed the threshold yet because I was still coherent enough to tell myself to pack a fatter bowl and hold in the next big hit for as long as possible. I took in a monster hit on my third bowl and then things suddenly began to change very, very quickly.

I stared at my hands while I held the smoke in as something began to click inside my brain. I felt my heart begin to beat a lot faster and it reminded me of the emotional state of excitement you feel as you descend down the first hill of a huge rollercoaster. I was elated because I instinctively knew my field of vision was fading into obscurity. In a circular motion, my consciousness was wiped away from me, kind of like when you're watching tv and the scene fades away into another. It was an incredibly cool sensation, yet my body felt extremely hot at the same time.

I placed the bowl and lighter down and stared up at the ceiling which was now rolling towards the ground, kind of like the crest of a wave as it washes down on to a beach. As I exhaled the smoke looked thick, black, and sooty yet the wave in front of me was a series of rainbow colored lines. As I continued to stare at this wave, my eyes kind of seemed like they were zooming in to see the microscopic details of the rainbow. Behind me, I heard the voice of a lady who kept saying something about ‘the elephants’ and how the children were on their way to the circus.
Behind me, I heard the voice of a lady who kept saying something about ‘the elephants’ and how the children were on their way to the circus.
Immidiately, I burst into laughter. I have no idea how long I laughed or why it was so funny, but the lady’s soothing voice made me focus on the rainbow lines. They were elephants after all, marching in a row of the same color, but each row being a different color. The rainbow colored elephants were rolling down to the ground in a crazy spiral. It was the coolest fucking thing ever.

I think this was the peak of my trip because I remember standing up from where I was laying down on the bed and walking into the bathroom. The elephants had disappeared and so had the voice of the lady who kept saying ‘the elephants’ over and over again. I stared in the mirror and saw my face, but it didn’t look anything like a person I’d seen before. I wanted to see the elephant spiral again, but now I kept thinking the ‘monkeys are at the zoo, and so are the elephants’. I know it sounds completely insane and nonsensical, but I actually sat back down and stared at my hands hoping they would shift back into the crazy shapes and forms I’d seen earlier. It was like I was trying to direct the trip now, but the Salvia, elephants, and woman’s voice were gone.

It was like I was descending back into reality again, I knew what I had just seen wasn’t real, but I wanted to see it again. At this point, I tried to load up another bowl and jumpstart my earlier trip, but I was having an extremely hard time putting the leaves in the bowl. While I was ‘conscious’ and aware that I was under the influence of Salvia, my body was not in sync. Once I finally was able to spark up another bowl, I took in a deep hard hit, but I immediately began coughing and I couldn’t hold the smoke in. I tried again a couple times, but it felt similar to being too stoned and trying to take a bong rip -- no fun and nothing but coughing. I managed to take a fairly weak hit and held it in for as long as I could, hoping it would propel me into the alternate universe I had just briefly visited. Sadly it didn’t work, and something told me to put down the pipe, rest for a minute and close my eyes. My brain kept telling me it would all over soon, and my body was gradually reuniting with my spirit. This descent was one of the most peaceful, relaxing, and soothing experiences I have ever felt. I felt calm, refreshed, enlightened, and very blessed to be just lying there. It almost felt like the afterglow of sex, just much more mental.

All of this happened like less than an hour ago. I never have written a report like this, but something told me I needed to put into words what I just experienced so that I can make sober sense of it. Salvia is not like ANY other kind of drug. Period. It’s an experience that slingshot me into the recesses of my creative mind and let me visit with nonsensical beings and concepts just for a brief instance. It’s like the most brilliant and vibrant dream you’ve ever had, only it seems so much more meaningful and real. It’s not the type of drug or experience I could do on a daily basis or just for the sake of tripping out. It’s a profound and moving experience that has left me almost speechless. This isn’t a drug I would wanna do with a bunch of friends after a night of drinking. This is something to be done in solitude with the understanding that I'm exploring my lack of understanding. I know that sounds like hippy bullshit, but seriously. Salvia means business.

While I had an incredible voyage with waves of elephants that lasted for a total of perhaps ten minutes, I still think that this shit is completely crazy and only to be used for profound soul searching and enlightenment. This isn't like doing an eighth of shrooms and hanging out on the beach with friends for spring break, this is more like checking your brain at the door before entering the nightclub of the comic universe. In other words, yeah this stuff is fucking awesome and it rocked my world, but I have no idea how crazy its effects are in other people. The things I saw and felt were things I don’t think anyone else will ever have. I guess you should try it for yourself to see where it takes you, but you honestly have no fucking clue what I saw and don’t even THINK you’ll ever know what to expect on Salvia.

Exp Year: 2008ExpID: 69784
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: May 22, 2017Views: 3,121
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Salvia divinorum (44) : Alone (16), Entities / Beings (37), First Times (2)

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