DOSE:	repeated	smoked	Lotus/Lily - Nymphaea nouchali var caerulea	(dried)
	25 g	oral	Lotus/Lily - Nymphaea nouchali var caerulea	(tea)
	repeated	oral	Lotus/Lily - Nymphaea nouchali var caerulea	(liquid)

BODY WEIGHT:

63 kg

Retrospectively Blue Lotus has been a very beneficial plant ally. Nine months ago I purchased 80g of lotus from an internet vendor having heard of its effects and researching it onLINE. My psychoactive experiences have been reasonably limited, being careful of substances I try, only natural ones that I’ve researched. My experience history is cannabis, mushrooms, salvia divinorum and other less powerful plants in the legal arena.

I received the blue lotus after a long wait and was anxious to try it once it arrived. It came in two large packs of dried flower material. I’ve tested it smoked in joints, through a hookah, in tincture form and as a tea.

The effects seemed to be similar to how I imagined from descriptions I had earlier read, an alert sedation. I noticed extreme muscle relaxation, a lift in mood and a stoned outlook. The effects are noticeable almost immediately, after one hit held for fifteen to twenty seconds and the familiar sense of well-being and sedation are accomplished. Often I would roll two joints of lotus for each of my friends after grinding it. The supply of lotus never seemed to waver either, the large amount I had lasted, as long as lotus is only smoked, a small quantity lasts a long while.

When blue lotus is smoked a gentle stoned feeling begins and even in the middle of college term, it takes me to a holiday zone. An uplifted feeling, distant troubles and a relaxed body, it gives me that holiday feeling, as best as I can describe. The only drawback of smoked lotus is that it seems to make me incredibly tired, incredibly quickly, which can be an annoyance. The lotus is noticeable and active at low doses, anywhere from 2 to 6 grams is enough to feel its effects.

The two exceedingly large bags of unground lotus arrived, I first noted the smell of the lotus, it was very weak smelling- I could barely smell it whatsoever, the vague fragrance is sweet though. The lotus also burnt well, in the hookah the lotus stays hot and the smoke is easy to continually smoke, the smoke tastes fine and after a while it even has an almost caramel quality.

I’ve talked to some friends about the effects of lotus and given one of them, T, some, after ‘sessions’ at my house. I would definitely say that lotus has an almost “anti-addictive” quality, it never jumps into my mind, I never get cravings or feel particularly like smoking some. Until of course I take a few hits of it, feel the effects- the positive effects and decide to smoke some more.

The effects of lotus also seems very synergistic with other plants and herbs. Cannabis and blue lotus seem synergistic in so much as the effects of cannabis are calmed to some degree. The difference between a cannabis experience and a cannabis and lotus experience is that there is a slower mental high. Often with cannabis it seems that my ideas flow too fluidly- once I almost finish one thought I am consumed by the next and have already forgotten the last. The addition of lotus slows down this process making the high much more tranquil. Lotus also makes me notice their environment more, so the cannabis has an expansive feeling attached to it, often it feels like my peripheral vision has been opened up, though this might be due to the dilation of pupils from the weed and the increase of awareness blue lotus results in.

The effects of this lotus also is interesting when combined with tobacco. I imagine the mind is like a line, to the left is sedation, to the right is stimulation. Lotus certainly is an effective sedative and tobacco is seen as a slight stimulant. When these are combined, there is a stretching of the position of my mind on the line and the result for me is the muscle relaxation achieved by lotus yet the mental ‘buzz’ of tobacco. This is a very good mixture for chilling out with, it is very stress relieving for me. This is interesting and sometimes preferable to lotus on its own due to its relaxing but nonexhaustative qualities, in my opinion.

Another two situations where the effects of blue lotus prove synergistic are when it is combined with calea zacatechichi or alcohol. Lotus and calea mix well because calea tastes very sour on the exhale, when mixed with lotus the taste is nullified. Also calea is mainly smoked for its dream enhancing effects and lotus undeniably induces sleep- which is welcome when linear and detailed dreams may follow. Blue lotus and alcohol synergise well for separate reasons, its effects on alcohol are similar to its effects on cannabis, it “cleans up” the high and calms it somewhat. The effects of alcohol are present after drinking it in a tincture and are calmer but more disorientating.

I have only made a tea with lotus once, I used about twenty-five grams but shared it with a friend. The effects of this lasted longer, it was weird actually, the tea (unfiltered since I made it at his house) was really difficult to force down but after half an hour I was feeling the familiar effects of lotus but with a new sense of warmth, we finished the tea around one and continued smoking joints of lotus well into the night (we were out of everything but lotus.) The effects were very strong though, we shared eight joints and after a few hours were really quite stoned. The strange part was that when we woke up to go into London, we were still both light, jovial and stoned.

A really relaxed and pleasant mood continued for hours. On the journey however I experienced effects I never had from blue lotus, a comedown, and a hard comedown at that, me and my friend T just sat on the train in silence, both staring blankly around the train, my thoughts were spiraling very negatively which is very rare considering my optimistic nature- especially around friends. I am sure that this was because of the tea, maybe through use of any method, smoked or drank, this dose would cause depression the day after.

Ultimately though, lotus is certainly a useful herb to have at my disposal, it is the master of synergy, I imagine it goes with everything really, except psychedelics, I have tried it with salvia and no difference was noticeable to be honest, I suppose its because psychedelics aren’t really on the ‘mind line’ that I mentioned, only partially sedating or stimulating, I cannot be sure though, some psychedelics might synergise with blue lotus, I’ve only attempted with salvia.

Exp Year: 2007	ExpID: 61451
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Jun 26, 2007	Views: 21,570
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Lotus/Lily - Nymphaea nouchali var caerulea (105) : Various (28), Depression (15), Retrospective / Summary (11), Combinations (3)