DOSE:

18 in

oral

Cacti - columnar

(tea)

BODY WEIGHT:

156 lb

Empathy being a pseudonym for intuition - perceiving others' emotional levitation, mood, actions and predicting their motions is a side effect I felt quite strongly last night after myself and a friend of mine (JackO) dosed on an unknown amount of San Pedro Syrup. We were amongst a group of stoned and drunk individuals in a smoke filled living room hovering in and out of socially dynamic situational jousts, ego-directed speech and programmed responses. The dullness of their banter was the bane and intrigue of my existence for quite awhile. We found ourselves predicting the next thing that was to be said (quite a few paces in advance) while sensing the reason any given response was said. The conversation was clockwork. It had become an attunement with every other ego in the room without our own. Empathy (Intuition) is the polar opposite of ego. Selflessness is the key to universal oneness and motionless existence despite the apparent chaos. Having no expectations is surrendering to bliss.

The day prior had started relaxed and meaningful. I had been taking care of some obligations when I suggested to JackO that we go to our favorite San Pedro retailer to obtain about 6-7 feet of ‘Cutting’ to prepare and then consume in the evening. Then we would go downtown with our Djembes and drum off some beats in the midst of a mescaline journey. And so first we prepared.

As of lately my roommate is hyper-sensitive to some of my teacher plant concoctions that I brew for consumption – if for no other reason then she doesn’t like the odor of San Pedro when it is boiling. A smell I quite enjoy, it reminds me of some sort of sweet nectarine mixed lilac memory, that I can’t quite pin-point. So because of this she feels it necessary to deliver a minor idle threat here and there. The result of this situation was my hurry in the boiling process of the San Pedro Syrup due to the fact I had to prepare the extract at a point in time in which she was not likely to come home.

I cut from the longer narrower San Pedro Cacti approximately 35 inches height (w/ a 3.4-4.0” diameter) cutting. JackO and I then preceded to cut the length into smaller (about inch thick) slices, creating what looked like 30-40 green stars, which we then proceeded to cut in quarters and the quarters were then cut into halves. In other words we took no time to prepare the cactus by removing spines, pealing-off skin or removing the high concentration chlorophyll outer layer beneath the skin from the white inner cylinder of the cacti. I have found there is little to no point in taking the time to prepare the cactus in any other way when I am making San Pedro Syrup, although when making Cacti Chips doing so is vital.

Into my stainless steel cauldron went all the cacti chunks, submersed in enough water to cover about an inch over the tops of the San Pedro mass in the pot. In one hour cycles I boiled down the water in the cauldron and then carefully poured the liquid from the cacti contents into another transparent stove-top pot. Inside the second pot the extraction was simmered further down in order to boil off excess, non-alkaloid water mass (I set the stove to medium-high). I repeated this step 5 times (for 5 hours) until the second pot was nearly full to the top with dark brown liquid. I then boiled this down to about 1 quarter of its initial volume. The end result was about 4 cups of San Pedro Syrup of which JackO and myself proceeded to split down the middle in 2 large cups.

And as always the taste of San Pedro Syrup is not for the ill at ease to sample. Quite honestly it’s horrid tasting, though I will admit I have had worse, i.e. Nutmeg. It took us both about an hour to finish our syrup. We used lemon-juice concentrate to mask the taste of the syrup after every gulp. The concentrate really helps to nullify the taste in my mouth and throat right after I have taken a swig. Plus it is my theory that drinking the concentrate which holds a much lower PH then the San Pedro Syrup (which is quite basic in alkaloids) has a neutralizing effect on the stomach. Since making it a point to get lime juices or concentrates every time I go on a San Pedro Journey I have experienced little to no nausea.

And so the liquid was buzzing its slow come-up in our stomachs while a friend of ours drove us down-town to observe the world around us while banging our drums. Many faces were there. Many people I recognized. I noticed a detachment growing in my own conversation about an hour and a half after we’d arrived. I was being pulled back, happily drifting into a sub-conscious state. At this point in time the feeling was very mild but noticeable. A friend of a friend’s car was stolen. I observed this person to be in a sour mood but I couldn’t comprehend why. The mood in my head was very excited to explore whatever possibility lay at the end of every situation. My social-dynamic had begun to change.

The end result of JackO and I going downtown was about 10-15 people going back to my apartment to “party”. When I invited them all I didn’t care, I wanted everyone to experience a good evening. The confusion and then understanding brought on by this event was unexpected. Drifting on the top of every person's conversation in the room, I began to realize the futility and immaterial conversations, facial gestures, defense mechanisms, and overall expressions we has humans use to protect and build our egos. I felt the connectedness and cycle of life. The visuals were phenomenal, organic as ever. Drifting colors warmly in and out of detail while fading texture through a kaleidoscope, open-eyed and closed.

I was no longer looking. My oneness with all was able to see past the construct of solid figures presented by the world and see the deeper meaning. Humans are losing an inherent connectedness with nature and each other, distracted by illusions of the modern world. The Internet, Television, Incessant Activities... Many of my friends (including myself at times) seem to be possessed by activity. It is an attribute subjected by our governments (to yield production) and by one another. It seems to be a much rarer event to find someone at peace with sitting with no external inputs, uninterrupted, unconcerned with thought, enjoying the clarity of calmness, motionless existence. I had obtained Nirvana, induced by the Mescaline catalyst.

JackO and I were awake after everybody else had left. The night faded into morning and my consciousness drifted into dreams. The experience solidified in my memory and onto paper.

Exp Year: 2004	ExpID: 34344
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Jun 14, 2004	Views: 18,395
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Cacti - T. pachanoi (64) : Large Group (10+) (19), Mystical Experiences (9), Preparation / Recipes (30), General (1)