i am not surprised we pretty much agree.

you should always be careful with any substance and to be informed is the first step.
was i careful at 15 with double barrel purple mescaline?---->nope.i was 15.

but i think the argument is getting caught up in distinctions,which is common.
when i speak of psychedelics,i am talking about:LSD,shrooms,mescaline.
and while exstacy is considered a psychedelic,and it IS a psychedelic (and awesome btw),i also consider that drug to be more a "club" drug,a designer drug,and yes...it can be fatal because often it is NOT mdma/mda you're are taking but a cocktail of bullshit with a few experimental chemistry molecules thrown in...so your cautionary tale is not exactly unfounded..but i have never seen shagen even suggest mdma/mda but almost exclusively:DMT.

now,i am fairly cautious in suggesting DMT to the uninitiated due to the fact of its potency (even in small amounts).there is no small build up with DMT,it goes from first gear to 15th in 2.2 seconds,and for a newcomer that can easily overwhelm and frighten.

for psychedelics to produce a positive and healthy response there first has to be interest in trying psychedelics out.the worst thing you could EVER do is "hey man,i just filled your beer with shroom tea" (you would notice though,that shit tastes like concentrated ass).

the person should also be in the right frame of mind and be in a place and with people they feel comfortable with and trust (very important the first time).knowing the dosage is important but not as important as you would think,as long as you take things slow and with patient care..things will sort out nicely.

as for death and permanent brain damage.i am not familiar with any cases except for the movie they showed us in the 7th grade with helen hunt thinking she could fly,because she took acid.i know psychedelics can affect a personality permanently (usually for the better) but nothing life threatening.i know too high a dosage on a novice mind can cause a "bad" trip and leave an unpleasant memory of the experience.there have been cases of latent mental illnesses manifesting due to the psychedelics,but it didnt CAUSE the mental illness.

from my own personal experience and what i have read,psychedelics are pretty safe.they are not a toy.they are an extremely powerful psychoactive compound that should always be treated with respect and to ignore that can have consequences.

but i dont think death and permanent brain damage are on that list.

unless you decided to do something stupid while tripping,but that is evolution,not psychedelics.

i could always come to california and we could drink shroom kool-aid.hang out on the moutain-side and watch the sunset and by the time we are watching the sunrise we will have become blood brothers and watched the universe expand in glorious birth pangs and then collapse upon itself in its death throes.talked to stars and danced with super novas.find ourselves in a meadow,thinking we walked half the state only to realize we are a 1/4 mile from your back porch.

i promise good times my friend.good times indeed.

Yeah, I do talk about it a lot, I like talking about them - rarely do them. The moment has to be just right and just like Doug Stanhope says about DMT - there's hardly a "right" place/time to do it, it's just that amazing.

You should check out a new study about the topic: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/290461.php

"In fact, on a number of factors, the study found a correlation between use of psychedelic drugs and decreased risk for mental health problems."

Remember, just because you ingested a random drug and had a bad experience doesn't mean that many in the tryptamine family pose any health threats - which has been proven many times that they do not. I mean who knows maybe you smoked a shit load of PCP. No one should ever take something that they haven't tested on low doses, know exactly what it is that they are taking and then follow the set & setting rules. Otherwise, obviously - yeah there is potential that you could be doing something harmful to yourself - so don't do it.

I did shooms a couple times before the Emerald Dream opened up and welcomed me in. Also recommend doubling up on psychedelics if you're in it for more than just some breathing walls and lights flickering around.

People talking about its poor flavor in the face of cosmic awareness? Sometimes you gotta float out in the negative zone and wait your turn while the real shit gets done. But you need nega bands, motherfucker! You can't construct nega bands with 5 grams of some shitty questionable mushrooms. Complain after 3 times that, some weed, and I don't know, LSD? At least it's not peyote. Yuck. Shooms just taste like stale cheese crackers.

replying here to avoid hijacking another thread...but leaving it public in case others might be interested in my reasoning, or yours.

Perhaps at times he has advocated responsible use, but often (like this instance) it's nothing more than 'DMT is what you all need, take some'.

I also agree, some people may benefit from psychedelics...but some may have disastrous experiences that end in death or permanent brain damage, especially when not done with pharmaceutical grade substances (which is never mentioned here). You never know what you have on the black market, video's I've seen of testing being done on drugs bought at 'raves' and concerts showed that well over 50% were not what they were supposed to be, or had dangerous adulterants. Unless you pay for testing, you don't know what you've got (sometimes true even with pharmaceuticals, sadly).

I also see it that way, as proselytizing for a drug that can have life altering effects, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. That always leaves out the dangers and usually any warning on how to be 'safe' at all, which leaves some readers thinking there are no dangers. That's my main issue, if there was a clear warning with each advocating instance, I wouldn't complain (but might still disagree that it's good for all).

My point exactly, people are made differently and what works for one may destroy another. That's why blanketly advocating strong drugs is a problem for me.

I have a healthy respect for psychedelics and their effects, especially one's as strong as DMT, which is why I'm disturbed at the off hand, blanket promotion of taking them without clear warnings included.

Ken Kesey beat you to the cult of acid by what, 47 years or so, at least according to Tom Wolfe. (Electric koolaid acid test)

@newtboy
while i agree that shagen tends to get downright biblical in regards to psychedelics,i have never seen him suggest taking them irresponsibly or in an abusive manner.

in fact,i have seen him on multiple occasions lay out proper procedure to have a safe and enjoyable trip.

i actually agree with shagen the positive benefits psychedelics can have on a person,having experienced them myself on multiple occasions,over a span of decades.

the difference between shagen and i,is that i see trying to sway someone who has never ingested psychedelics into taking them in the very same vein as trying to sway an atheist into believing in jesus.

it is never going to happen,so why would i waste my time?

it is like trying to teach a blind man the color blue,or a woman what it is like to have a penis.

certain people have certain personality traits that may lend them to experiment with psychedelics.other people do not.one should not be judged greater or lesser than the other,because both represent personal choice.

personally i love psychedelics,for many of the reasons shagen posts.you may not,for your own reasons.totally fair in my book.
you will never see me at your door asking "having you found the joys of chemically induced hallucinations yet?"

maybe i should.....
i shall call it the "cult of acid".
let the doorknocking BEGIN!

My colleague, Roland Griffiths, was the lead author on the study cited at 1:38. It's been said that his research kicked off what is now being called a "renaissance" of clinical trials involving psychedelics that has increased in number in the last few years.

A few of my friends and colleagues have been using psychedelics in their research and practice, both in the white market, as well as the black market, for about a decade now. I'm excited for the changes in the use and exploration of these compounds that we'll see by 2025 or even sooner.

While I cannot know what many experience - I have been the sitter for over 40 people. They tell me what they experience, when they come back their eyes say it all. They could never have imagined what had happened to them was possible. None of them had negative experiences. Though, for a strong "teaching" psychedelic like DMT a negative experience is not always "negative" there is a story to it. I should know, I would say that one of my "breakthrough" trips was the most terrifying experience I have ever had hands down. But, I learned from what that experience wanted me to experience and what I was taught has had long-lasting positive components in my life.

I think you are confusing DMT/ayahuasca with other psychedelics, salvia, mushrooms, LSD, MXE... etc etc. Show me ONE story where someone has committed suicide from taking DMT.

While, I would not say I am a drug riddled person, I almost never take them.
I have "experienced" substances out of curiosity. I've taken many different kinds and all of the big psychedelics, LSD, shrooms, mescaline a few times. I learned that the propaganda around these substances has no merit. Obviously, a person needs to take them seriously and with respect so that nothing goes awry. And no, DMT does not compare at all.

But,I am very well versed on the topic (DMT), I researched all of the negative/positive effects for about six years before I actually did it myself. I was very careful, since if you have ever read a decent trip report it sounds absolutely crazy. There is no way anything could take you to places like that, to meet creatures of a bizarre sort, it's just not possible I thought. Well, I found out, it's similiar to decent trip reports X 1,000,000. As Joe Rogan says - it's "mushrooms + aliens x 1,000,000". But, nothing in the human language(s) could ever prepare anyone for it and no one can express even 1% of what it is like.

I think you are over-exaggerating the negative effects while shunning the reality of what this molecule is, it is a mystery that can only be understood after having experienced it firsthand. It only lasts 5-10 minutes (2 million years) what are you waiting for?

These two ideas go hand-in-hand. It's very nice for us to sit around and swap stories of our experiences with psychedelics, but we have to recognise that we have enemies who want to steal these experiences from us. You can't on the one hand believe that drugs are fine and people should take them if they want to and on the other say, "oh hey, here's this guy who thinks everyone who uses drugs should be kidnapped and locked in a box for years; that cool - live and let live." Is that thinking really something we can even recognise as human? I don't, and we have a right to defend ourselves from it, by say, stringing its advocates up from the nearest tree. So what do we call something subhuman that deserves to be lynched?

You're notice I'm not so much of a one for universal love and brotherhood.

It's absolutely insane not to want to experiment a little with your consciousness and perceptions. It's crazy. Your mind is what you are; why would anyone insist on locking themselves into one way of thinking for their whole lives?

Ultimately the best way to expand your mind in a cumulative way is reading. You get to experience the world through thousands of other people's eyes, more than eyes - brains. It's great, but presumably nothing beats psychedelics for a quick dose of perspective.

Unfortunately we live in a world of niggers who want to ban everything.

Sam Harris: Can Psychedelics Help You Expand Your Mind? has been added as a related post - related requested by enoch on that post.

these are the instances where harris always shines in my opinion.everyone should experience psychedelics at least once in their life,and as harris pointed out,there are caveats but it is so worth it.

the dissolving of the ego can be frightening for some but it can bring you to a truth,about yourself and others,that is quite hard to accomplish without assistance.

i find it interesting that this video is going to be sifted while trances video on the healing nature of psychedelics has been downvoted.

ah sift...you are a fickle mistress.

*related=http://videosift.com/video/This-is-Life-with-Lisa-Ling-Jungle-Fix-Ayahuasca

I really liked how he handled this. He sees psychedelics as a tool to reach what's already natively there, albeit hard to reach with our modern thought processes.

I also like his assertion that we all have the potential to be like Jesus, or another religious figure that taught the oneness of man.

No. Once it's been vaporized, the leftovers have no psychedelics left. The THC and CBN, along with most other volatiles are vaporized at relatively low temps, so you're left with cellulose and other non active plant material. You could bake with it, but it won't get you 'high' a second time.