The Mucuna was grown from seed in an indoor growing area, but occasionally in my greenhouse. Over its life I collected a good amount of leaves. They have a very nice scent when crushed.
Most people know the plant for its seeds, but I was more interested in taking it in the exact way described by an anonymous user in The Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants:
“Smoking a joint the size of a cigarette will produce a general CNS stimulation (a pounding
“tryptamine high”). The ingestion of 3 grams of harmala [seeds of Peganum harmala] and two smoked mucuna joints led to a pounding in my head, accompanied by colorful geometric
patterns. A slight irritation developed within an hour to a delicate feeling (pulsating colorful
patterns moved around me in a spiral fashion, I felt a strong need to lie down. Very delicate and detached.). (Anonymous 1995, 33)” - Christian Rasch
The Garden of Eden has this to say about the contents of the leaves:
“Leaf [fresh] yielded 0.0064% DMT, 0.003%
DMT N-oxide, 0.0025% 5-methoxy-DMT, 0.011% bufotenine, 0.046%
unidentified indole-3-alkylamine, the other two unidentified compounds
above, and choline…. The stem-leaf has also reportedly yielded isoharmine
[6-MeO-harman] (Ghosal 1972), an MAOI (Shulgin & Shulgin
1997). ... leaflets have yielded the flavonoids cajanol, dalbergioidin,
genistein [MAOI (Hatano et al. 1991)], 2’-OH-genistein, kievitone,
maackiain and medicarpin ” - Snu Voogelbriender
By the looks of things, the leaves have less chemicals that interact with MAOIs than the seeds, I was only really concerned about the genistein and bufotenine, but I decided that I would take that risk, as my curiosity was like a monkey on my back.
So my plan was to take 3g of Syrian rue, and then smoke 2 joints of the dried mucuna leaves, just like the anonymous report suggested.
I took the Syrian rue in the form of ground up powder in gelatin capsules.
2 caps @ 10:30am
+2 caps @ 10:40
+2 caps @ 10:50
+1 caps @ 11:00
@ 11:30am I was feeling the effects of the seeds, which I had only taken with water on an empty stomach.
Now was the time I began to start lighting up those joints.
Set: Curiosity and ready-for-anything mindset
Setting: A comfortable private area with familiar music playing. (Watch Play Repeat by Warp, incase anyone is curious)
@ 11:35 I finished the first joint. About 30 seconds after I finished I felt a dizzying headrush and had to rest my head.
I saw a burning white star behind closed eyes and. I began the second joint, its rising smoke mesmerized me.
@ 11:40 I finished the second joint. And I realized that I felt quite stoned. I remember thinking to myself “I'm completely zapped and there isn't even any pot in these things”
I had to lie down, and as soon as I did I completely dissociated from my surrounding, like I was in a cosmic paint mixer, my body became a vibrating membrane of light in a star filled mental scape, when I wasn't focusing on the mental image of the physical feeling, I saw geometric shapes expanding from the center of my field of closed eye vision.
When I opened my eyes, I could see my body but it felt like a fuzz of light. I could only really feel my hands and the sides of my torso. My hands felt as if they were useless and abstract.
The OEVs at this point consisted of slight breathing of objects and walls.
That was the first phase of the experience, it was impossible for me at the time to tell for certain how much time had passed, but after that first wave, I had a moment of clarity in which I rose from the seat.
After I stood up I could tell that the experience peaked quickly but the plateau was the stage I was in now. Walking around the room I noticed peripheral shadow movement and grain, and objects would have sudden flashes of bright white light covering their surface. I attempted to read but words were difficult to comprehend and swirled around a bit. Flashes of vaguely colorful white light radiated from the pages of the book. ( which was the Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants).
I realized that I'm locked in now, and I'm gonna have to lay back down. The next hour were a circus of multicolored imaginative mental images. Morphing in and out of chaos and order. I remember seeing behind closed eyes a cartoon turtle give me a sassy look as if I had bumped into him on a walk. The welcoming warmth of the mental festival of hallucinatory thought was great entertainment.
I attempted to walk to my notepad but I was experiencing powerful nausea. I scribbled on my notepad “ incredible duration, 12:05”
For the next hour and a half, though it felt like much longer. I would drift in and out of the deeply entrancing mental imagery and dream-like state, filled with light and warmth, and opening my eyes and becoming entranced by the subtle movement of the blinds and the grain of the wood.
@ 1:12 I was still affected enough that I was briefly anxious, but that feeling quickly passed.
@ 2:30 I could tell that the effects were diminishing enough that I could walk around, thinking at a normal pace. I spent some time watching short films in a happy, reflective mood. I realized that the film Cat Soup 2001 really matched the tone of the experiences, especially the circus aspect.
@5:00 I am confidently back to baseline, and I eat the first and only meal of the day.
Reflection:
I would consider this a +++ experience for the first hour, fading to a ++ in the final hours.
I was completely shocked that not only did the experience alter my perception for a plateau of 3 hours, (though it felt much longer) but also that only two joints worth of dried leaves could allow me to peek behind the curtain, and trip at all. Vivid and clear mental imagery, that was barely controllable, and quite magnificent, as well as a body high so strong that
I only needed to close my eyes to feel as if I was floating down a cosmic space ride.
Obviously I didn't break through into hyperspace, the doors of perception were only left ajar, not blasted open. So that is why I'm not considering it my first steps into hyperspace of course, and that is why I'm posting here in open discussion. I will also likely submit this experience to Erowid. But the effect I received from this plant (with the help of MAOIs of course) was shocking and mesmerizing.
In the anonymous report the psychonaut “felt a strong need to lie down. Very delicate and detached“ This is something I definitely felt as well. However unlike that person, I didn't feel any “slight irritation”
I hope that this is enough information to be useful to any nexians studying Mucuna pruriens.
I still have two joints worth left, and I plan to take it in a silent pitch black room while also under the influence of hashish, in order to further explore the effects.
notes: the pleasant lemon like scent of the leaves carries through in the smoke. its scent lingers for a very long time, but its a nice smell.