Salvia divinorum is a psycho-active herb that is used in a variety of vision questions, meditations, and healing arts performed by the Mazatec shamens in Mexico. The herb name translates as diviners sage, and is used traditionally in healing and divination.

What makes salvia popular is its concentration of Salvinorin A, a very potent molecule with hallucinogenic effects. This unusual molecule makes salvia divinorum a very powerful naturally-occurring hallucinogen, as opposed to synthetic hallucinogens such as LSD found in several street drugs.

It was discovered by the modern world when Jean Basset Johnson was studying the Mazatec shamens in 1939, where he published information on salvia as part of his research. However, the hallucinogenic effects were not fully explored by Daniel Siebert many years later.

Salvia divinorum induces a hallucinogenic state, causing you to see vivid imagery, but unlike synthetic hallucinogens, it affects all of your senses, not just vision. This might range anywhere from a complete psychedelic experience (such as travelling to other dimensions) to very mild experiences (such as feeling extremely relaxed and seeing your couch dance in front of you).

Other usual effects when smoking salvia include:

• Out-of-body experiences
• Happiness and the desire to laugh excessively
• Visualizing ghosts and other supernatural creatures
• Feelings of being joined with the universe
• observing events from the past and future

Depending on the user and the concentration of the salvia, the experience can range anywhere from a few minutes to over an hour. How you use salvia divinorum is also a major factor in determining the length of the experience (smoking salvia is the most common method however).

It might come as a surprise, but yes salvia is legal. Salvia is not classified as a drug or controlled substance. Countries and states have raised concerns about salvia, however it has not yet been declared dangerous nor is it banned in any country in the world. You can be assured that you will not face any trouble with the law if you smoke salvia.