Intentions / Connection
Substances that may foster feelings of connection or empathy
Ayahuasca is an Amazonian brew that pairs the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with DMT-containing leaves to produce one of the most profound psychedelic experiences known, used in healing ceremonies for centuries.
Banisteriopsis caapi + Psychotria viridis
Hallucinogenic · 4-8 hours · Intense
Cannabis is a resinous flowering plant whose cannabinoids interact with the endocannabinoid system, producing effects from mild relaxation to perceptual shifts depending on variety, dose, and context.
Cannabis sativa / Cannabis indica
Relaxant · 1-4 hours (inhaled), 4-10 hours (oral) · Moderate
Coca is the sacred leaf of the Andes, chewed for millennia to sustain altitude, nourish ceremony, and carry prayers, often misunderstood globally yet central to Andean identity.
Erythroxylum coca
Stimulant · 1-2 hours · Mild
Kanna is a South African succulent used for centuries by Khoisan peoples, producing mood elevation and mild empathogenic effects through serotonin reuptake inhibition.
Sceletium tortuosum
Empathogen · 1-3 hours · Mild
Kava is a Pacific Island root whose kavalactones calm the nervous system and induce a state of sociable relaxation without intoxication, central to ceremony across Polynesia and Melanesia.
Piper methysticum
Relaxant · 2-4 hours · Mild
Peyote is a small, spineless cactus from the Chihuahuan Desert, sacred to Native American peoples, containing mescaline and used ceremonially for thousands of years.
Lophophora williamsii
Hallucinogenic · 10-12 hours · Intense
Blue Lotus is a sacred Egyptian water lily revered for millennia, producing gentle euphoria and dream-like states through nuciferine and aporphine alkaloids that act on dopamine receptors.
Nymphaea nouchali
Relaxant · 2-4 hours · Gentle
Psilocybe cubensis is a family of fungi containing psilocybin, used in Mesoamerican ceremony for millennia and now at the center of a renaissance in psychiatric research.
Psilocybe cubensis (and 200+ species)
Hallucinogenic · 4-6 hours · Moderate
Sinicuichi (Heimia salicifolia) is a Mexican shrub historically used in Aztec medicine, said to produce mild euphoria and unusual auditory effects, with research on its alkaloids still emerging.
Moderate
Yopo is a South American tree whose seeds are ground into a powerful DMT and bufotenine-containing snuff, used in ceremony across the Orinoco basin for centuries.
Anadenanthera peregrina
Psychedelic · 1-2 hours · Intense
Amanita muscaria is a crimson-capped mushroom from northern forests whose compounds muscimol and ibotenic acid act on GABA receptors, producing sedative, deliriant states unlike classical psychedelics.
Amanita muscaria
Dissociative · 4-8 hours · Moderate
Henbane is an ancient Mediterranean nightshade used in oracles and witchcraft, whose deliriant tropane alkaloids blur the line between sleep, vision, and waking consciousness.
Hyoscyamus niger
Deliriant · 6-12 hours · Intense
Iboga is a Central African rainforest shrub whose root bark contains ibogaine, producing an intense, multi-day experience used in Bwiti initiation and studied for addiction interruption.
Tabernanthe iboga
Hallucinogenic · 24-36 hours · Intense
