Reality Sandwich | Divine Voyeurs: Salvia on YouTube by Rak Razam.
Phil’s sitting on a bed in a crashpad somewhere in the UK about to smoke Salvia Divinorum, an ancient Mazatec hallucinogenic herb. He’s a gangly lad in his 20s with shoulder-length dark hair, dressed in blue jeans and a dark t-shirt. As his friend hands him the bong he bites his lip in anticipation of this strange new drug he’s about to be filmed taking, which will later be posted on YouTube and broadcast to the world.
The background music is “Over The Line” by The Crystal Method from the Tweekend album, a chilled favourite of the salvia set. Phil’s friend lights the bong — it’s a 5x dose, not a massive hit but a decent sized pinch. Smoke curls up the chamber. Phil coughs, quickly holds his nose to stop any smoke escaping, then leans back against the wall as the effects start to come on. Within seconds he’s in another world. A smile breaks across his face and he keeps reaching forward like he’s grasping for something interdimensionally, trying to cut and open a door in the air with his hands.
“Ah, now I get it,” he says, his speech slurred and his body motor control impaired. He begins fidgeting around on the bed, gesticulating erratically. “Whooaww, whooaahhh” he says, over and over, waving his arms above his head like he’s at a rock concert. It’d be tragic if it wasn’t so funny.
Read the full story, excerpted from The Journeybook: Travels on the Frontiers of Consciousness here.
