Tihkal: The Continuation by Alexander Shulgin

by Alexander Shulgin

A continuation of the classic PIHKAL, TIHKAL focuses on the family of psychoactive drugs in the tryptamine family and provides a blend of biography, botanical facts, scientific speculation, and psychological and political commentary written by renowned psychopharmacologist Alexander Shulgin and his wife Ann Shulgin. Where PiHKAL focuses on a class of compounds called phenethylamines, TiHKAL is written about a family of psychoactive drugs known as tryptamines with TiHKAL being an acronym for Tryptamines I Have Known and Loved". Like its predecessor, it is divided into two parts. The first part of the book begins with the story of Alice and Shura, a fictionalized autobiography, which picks up where the similar section of PiHKAL left off. The book opens with the story about the DEA raid that occurred a few years after the publication of their first book, PiHKAL. It's a window into the DEA, the institutional aspect and human side of it as well, and the price that Shura and Alice pay for doing what they do, including exercising their first amendment rights. It then continues with a collection of essays on topics ranging from psychotherapy and the Jungian mind, to the prevalence of DMT in nature, ayahuasca, the War on Drugs, and even the Big Bang. It is a blend of travel, botanical facts, scientific speculation, psychological and political commentary. It is fascinating getting to know the mind of the man behind the compounds - his thoughts on science, technology, law, and society. And the mind of the woman who brought his work and their story into the light of the world. The second part of TiHKAL is "The Chemistry Continues". It is a detailed manual for 55 psychedelic compounds (many discovered by Shulgin himself). For each compound there is information on synthesis, effective dosage, duration of effects, and commentary on the subjective effects that were experienced. The Shulgin's' two big books span autobiography, organic chemistry, politics, ethnobotany and psychopharmacology and the cultural impact of these works has been profound and will continue to be so in the future.

Genres: Science, Drugs, Nonfiction, Psychology, Chemistry, Biography, Philosophy

Unknown Binding

First published September 9, 1997

About the author

Alexander "Sasha" Theodore Shulgin[1] (born June 17, 1925) was an American pharmacologist, chemist and drug developer.

Shulgin was credited with the popularization of MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, especially for psychopharmaceutical use and the treatment of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. In subsequent years, Shulgin discovered, synthesized, and bioassayed over 230 psychoactive compounds. In 1991 and 1997, he and his wife Ann Shulgin authored the books PiHKAL and TiHKAL on the topic of psychoactive drugs. Shulgin discovered many noteworthy phenethylamines including the 2C* family of which 2C-T-2, 2C-T-7, 2C-E, 2C-I, and 2C-B are most well known. Additionally, Shulgin performed seminal work into the descriptive synthesis of compounds based on the organic compound tryptamine.

Reviews

[Andrew C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome. RIP!

"As I exhaled I became terribly afraid, my heart very rapid and strong, palms sweating. A terrible sense of dread and doom filled me -- I knew what was happening, I knew I couldn't stop it, but it was so devastating; I was being destroyed -- all that was familiar, all reference points, all identity -- all viciously shattered in a few seconds. I couldn't even mourn the loss -- there was no one left to do the mourning. Up, up, out, out, eyes closed, I am at the speed of light, expanding, expanding, expanding, faster and faster until I have become so large that I no longer exist -- my speed is so great that everything has come to a stop -- here I gaze upon the entire universe."

~Shulgin re: DMT, 100mg (smoked) TiHKAL

[Jolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little heavy on the geriatric sex, but excellent chemistry and legal essays.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply amazing, just like PIHKAL. I am still in love with the Shulgins and I sorely wish I could meet them (although sadly I hear Alexander's health probably won't allow that).

I think Ann and Alexander are a perfect balance for each other, with him being far more scientific/analytical and she being more compassionate/spiritual. They are both absolutely brilliant and have evoked so many complex and powerful emotions in me through their writing.

I wish I understood more chemistry so that I could bask in Alexander's brilliance a little bit more, but hopefully one of these days I will be able to learn more about it so I can.

I recommend this book for anybody who isn't offended by the idea of altering one's consciousness through substances. It is beautiful and intelligent and powerful, and it should leave anyone feeling the right amount of wonder and just a little bit unsettled. This book certainly lit a fire in my belly.

[Gerrit Gmel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is nowhere near as good as Pihkal, and I don’t recommend reading this for anyone who doesn’t have a very keen interest in the subject matter.

Where Pihkal had a beautiful connected narrative and a detailed exploration of the effect of psychedelics and their value, Tihkal is more of a collection of anecdotes, essays, and sometimes just rants. Some of these are better than others, and there were some powerful nuggets, but overall it pales in comparison to Pihkal.

[Mark Slee]

An excellent read, but lacks the narrative focus of Pihkal.

[Peter Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard going for the novice, but the content is unparalleled.

[sunherd · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were a couple of chapters that were GOLD (for different reasons), but in general, this is not as good as Pihkal. Most of the good stories have already been told so this is a bit different.

[Jonathan Lu · Rating 5 out of 5]

"All of the above cautions aside, these tools—the psychedelic drugs and plants—offer a much faster method than most of the classic alternatives for the accomplishment of the goals we seek: conscious awareness of our interior workings and greater clarity as to our responsibilities towards our own species and all others with whom we share this planet." [p15]

Quoting Woody Allen's graduation speech: “More than any other time in history, mankind faces a crossroads. One path leads to despair and utter hopelessness. The other, to total extinction. Let us pray we have the wisdom to choose correctly.” [p19]

Some stories that I took note of:
Invasion - All about the DEA backlash after publishing Pihkal and coming in with a "show me the man I'll find the crime" approach to searching his house and lab. Reminded me a bit of Jay Z's 99 problems, except in this case it's not clear what Shlugin did that broke the law and the DEA knew it hence the hunt to find something they could nail him on. I loved that while there were so many aggressive agents who were assholes because they could be, there were also so many who admired Shulgin and sought out his autograph for their copies of Pikhal. Made me think about the concept "if I was not a cop I would be a criminal" - not so much in terms of those who possess the capability must choose a side, but that so many with an interest in this subject matter that has been labeled as harem by regulators, the safest way for them to continue their professional passion is to join the regulator
What stood out is from this story is Shulgin's oft repeated caution about the banality of drug laws that is emblematic of power/control. Even with good intentions, the position of power becomes one of maintenance where nobody who wields it would ever say:
“We made a mistake. Certain drugs which are now illegal can be used by healthy adults with relative safety and no threat of addiction, but you have to know what their effects are and how to use them properly. These include most psychedelics. Other drugs can be used safely by most people, but could be habituating to a few. Those few must have access to good medical care if they get into trouble. Some drugs seem to be either harmful or addicting to most users, and we will do our best to inform you fully regarding their effects and track records, as we now do with prescription drugs. Drug education will be provided across the country and the teachers will no longer be police or politicians, but physicians, chemists and pharmacologists who specialize in this field.” [p36]

The Brazil Caper - Story of Brazil wealthy class visit, seemingly more for the purpose of addressing the curiosity of psychonauts with wealth and influence, and under the guise of coming to establish services needed in the country. What stood out most to me was Sasha and Ann's observations about their first visit to the 3rd world. Such enlightened and interesting people, with the pinnacle of wisdom and life experience… yet so naïve here.
Interesting observation from his first class flight: "I wonder why they offer alcohol with breakfast; maybe a lot of people who fly first class are alcoholics; successful, driven people who can’t relax unless they drink? And the airline wants those kinds of customers to feel that it’s okay to order wine early in the day without being embarrassed or defensive?" [p49]

Shrooms - while he clearly has plenty of experiencing taking plant extracts, full-spectrum or isolated, this was one of the unique chapters about his psilocybin experience. I appreciated this quote about diversity in thinking: "The verbal system can be quite independent of the visual system. There are people who use the verbal system most dominantly in their thinking processes, you know, and they’ll often do word puns and you know, I’ll miss those puns, because while they’re talking, I’m visualizing—“ [p72]
And something that struck a chord with me who can journal for 10 pages - the constant tension between recording what I've experienced and learned vs. experiencing. Not possible to do both at the same time:
'Sarah was saying, “—and at a certain point, I’ll ask them to verbalize, in order to stabilize the memory for later, and to integrate the mental functions. But during the experience, there has to be a whole period of time when they’re not verbalizing, because they have to be experiencing!” I said, “Okay. I see what you mean. Trying to force verbalization blocks me from really experiencing, and there’s nothing to be gained by all that effort, considering the fact that—eventually—the verbal ability returns, good as new.” Sarah reached across the table and patted my hand, “That’s the way I see it, yes.' [p74]

PanSoph2 - Vivid dreams with sci fi story, like a universe that could have been written by Liu Cixin where all record of human DNA was purged like an afterthought by a machine, eliminating record of human existence. From taking alpha,o-DMT

Stamps - Learning about the past history of Marijuana stamps and the acronym of the "California Research Advisory Panel". I would love to see one of these marijuana stamps issued by the federal government that Shulgin once purportedly was granted to be able to legally possess the plant.

Places in the mind - throughout the book Ann shows her expertise as a therapist at connecting with people, helping them come to the core of their experience. These states of mind are a wonderful means of segmenting experiential possibilities:
- Inflation (the Priestess): euphoric bliss leading to a feeling of infinite wisdom and knowledge. Supreme intellectual arrogance
- Certainty & knowing: be cautious about making phone calls when you have this false sense of certainty
- The void: Feeling of hopelessness, know that you’re going through it and not yet at the end
- Paranoia
- Self-hatred
- The oceanic experience: feeling part of something magnificent with exquisite joy and gratitude to be alive
- Synesthesia
- Laughter: “Laughter, in child or adult, sometimes seems to be the result of this very rapid shuttling between fear and pleasure, or Yes and No.” [p101]
- The Beth State: experienced with Aleph-7. Aware of being altered but not yet sure of how, no sensorial differences yet
- Flooding: Bombarded by a torrent of images, thoughts, connections. Can make it hard to relax but this too shall pass
- Time distortion
- Out of body experiences - hard to define. Conscious experience separate from the body is common
- Hallucinations - actually rare. Altered visuals and textures are a change in perception. True vision of something that is not physically present is uncommon
- The Kali - wife of Shiva, blue female monster wearing a necklace of skulls dancing on dead bodies with a sword and bearded severed head. Representation of ego death
- Euphoria - prefix "eu" actually means normal or correct, opposite of "dys". In society feeling good now is not meant to be normal

DMT is everywhere: "If there is a role for DMT to play as a neurotransmitter or valid ligand in brain chemistry, will this be easily explored in future research? Not in the United States, in our lifetimes, I fear." [p147]
- Marine world, brominated DMT derivatives, mostly sponges
- Mushrooms, whose taxonomy is constantly being revised. So many contain 4-HO-DMT derivatives (psilocin) but none have DMT itself. Mostly hydroxylated at 4-position. Amanita genus has 5-HO-DMT (bufotenine).
○ Claviceps genus has ergolines. 1L of C. paspali can produce hundreds of milligrams of LSA
- Frogs are mostly hydroxylated at 5-position: 5-HO-DMT (bufotenine), 5-MeO-DMT
- Grasses - Graminae family includes soft stems and hard reeds. DMT found in numerous types of Canary grass (Phalaris spp.) especially Reed Canary Grass (P. arundinacea) and Stagger grass (P. tuberosa and Papsilum dillitatum) that makes sheep stagger when they consume it (DMT, bufotenine, 5-MeO-DMT) - tryptamines not likely to be orally active, but because a fungus grows on it (Acremonium coenophialum) that contains the ergoline ergovaline. Mentioned as well by Andrew Gallimore.
- Legumes (Leguminosae or Fabaceae family) - pea family that includes trees such as Acacia genus, many of which contain DMT - A. baileyana that grows in Berkeley contains tryptamine and tetrahydroharman in the Spring, only tryptamine in the Fall, and no alkaloids in the summer. Also differ in the part of the plant (A. albida in the leaf, A. confusa in leaf, stem, and bark).
○ Close to Acacia genus are Piptadenia, Anadenanthera, and Mimosa. A. peregrina = yopo, bufotenine in the seeds, leaf/bark/root all contain DMT, NMT, tryptamine, bufotenine, 5-MeO-DMT, 5-MeO-NMT
○ A. columbrina, M. hostilis, M.verrucosa, M. scabrella, M.sominans, M. tenuiflora
○ Desmanthus illinoensis (Illinois Bundleflower) - 2% DMT in root, 25% DMT in bark. Many other tryptamines as well
○ Mescal from Maguey (from genus Agave) was mistakenly named as Lophopohra williamsii by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, so believed to contain mescaline. Mescal bean (Sophora secundiflora) may have psychoactivity itself (piperidines)
- Rubiaceae family - Coffee, tea, quinine, psychotria
○ 95% of caffeinated drinks come from Coffea arabica, C. canephora, C. liberica, and Camellia sinensis
○ Next are Paullinia cupana (guarana), Ilex paraguariensis (yerba mate)
○ Nicotiana tabacum, N. rustica, and Areca catechu (Betel nut) - arecoline source
○ Psychotria viridis most commonly used in ayahuasca that is not a legume (not a tree)
○ Corynanthe yohimbe (yohimbine) and Mitragyna speciosa (kratom)
- Ruaceae family (citrus)
○ Limonia acidissima, L. credulata (elephant apple, wood apple) stems used to make yellow face paint in Burma, also a high source of DMT
○ Zanthoxylum arborescens and Z. americanam used for treating arthritis and rheumatism contain DMT
○ Evodia genus (teas are very fragrant) have a long history of use in Asia. E. rutacarpa contains 5-MeO-DMT, Dutaillyea oreophila contains hordenine and 5-MeO-DMT, Pilocarpus organensis contains 5-MeO-DMT
- Malpighiaceae and Zygophyllaceae family (harmala alkaloids)
○ "harm" prefix means there is a carbon atom attached to the 1-position on the bottom-right hand of the pyridine ring of the tricyclic group.
○ "nor" prefix if there is no carbon atom on the 1-position of pyridine ring
○ B. caapi (Malpighiaceae), Diploterys cabrerana from the same family has DMT
○ P. harmala (Zygophyllaceae)
- DMT first synthesized, not discovered in a plant source until later. Is it "natural"?
○ "If there is a role for DMT to play as a neurotransmitter or valid ligand in brain chemistry, will this be easily explored in future research? Not in the United States, in our lifetimes, I fear" [p135]
- Only 4 plants named in the 1970 controlled substances act: peyote, marijuana, opium, coca. Rest are compounds
○ Tabernanthe iboga and Catha edulis (khat) got listed
- Tryptamine chemistry
○ Indole = fused benzene (phenyl) ring and pyrrole ring
○ beta-Carboline = Indole + pyridine ring (hexacyclic ring with 5-C, 1-N)
○ Tryptamine = indole group with 2-aminoethyl group at 2nd carbon (NMT = N-methyl tryptamine)
§ Tryptophan has carboxylic acid (COOH) group attached to aminoethyl group of NMT
§ DMT has dimethylamino group instead of aminoethyl group off tryptamine
§ Psilocybin is 4-phosphoryloxy DMT (4-PO-DMT). Phosphoryloxy coming off the phenyl ring is POHO3(-1). O-P-OH, other chains to P are =O and -O(-1)
§ Psilocin is 4-hydroxy DMT (4-HO-DMT) Psilocybin phosphorylates, phosphoryloxy group comes off as POHO2(-1)
§ Bufotenin is 5-HO-DMT. Tryptamine with 5-HO group and dimethylamino instead of 2-aminoethyl off of indole
§ Serotonin is 5-HO-NMT. Tryptamine with 5-HO group

Hoasca vs. Ayuhuasca
- Portuguese vs. Spanish? Or "hoasca" is proprietary to UDV? Hoasca used in Brazil, Ayahuasca everywhere else?
- "Hoasca is quite simply the decoction that remains after the aqueous extracts have been decanted from the insoluble residues, and boiled down to a brown sludge" [p139]
- Santo Daime - "hinario" is the ritual, "daime" is the tea, "bailado" is the synchronized dance
- P. harmala commonly used in US hoasca because of prevalence in Indian/Arab retail stores "esfand incense". Shulgin also claims Tribulus terrestris (same Zygophyllaceae as P. harmala) used in US for its beta carbolines
○ Question he brings up which is the same that we have been investigating ourselves "
This brings up a vital question: "If P. harmala can directly contribute to the action of another drug by some process other than that of potentiation or synergism, or by simply allowing this other drug to become orally active due to its presence, then it would have a pharmacological action in its own right. What is the action of P. harmala all by itself?" [p154]
- Shulgin agrees with David Flattery that Soma is P. harmala and not A. muscaria like Gordon Wasson believed
○ Shulgin attributes Wasson's theory to his biased love for mushrooms. Cites meeting him at a conference and Wasson ignored that a stone statue with two half-spheres would have been used as a mold for rubber balls by the Aztecs and that there was no question it's a mushroom
○ References David Flattery's "Haoma and Harmaline" - has done a lot of GCMS studies and found vasicine and vasicinone.
○ Vasicine (aka peganine) name comes from "Adhatoda vasica. Remove -OH group and becomes desoxypeganine that inhibits acetylcholinesterase - excess of acetylcholine leads to parasympathetic toxicity.

MGS - abbreviation for Morning Glory Seeds (ololuiqui)

What Big Bang? - an intellectual masturbation chapter that has no relation to the rest of the book. Shows Shulgin's objective mind as a scientist eager to question everything and point out fallacies even in science itself. Is belief in the Big Bang not as much a leap of faith that cannot be proven as belief in a religion? I appreciate his mindset here, but not his understanding of astrophysics.

Barriers to Research - The bureaucracy of Academia and relationship-based favoritism usurping merit for publication is one of the reasons he cites, but drug law is the biggest. Particularly the 1986 Controlled Substance Analogue Enforcement Act which very broadly loosens the criteria in which the DEA may go after you. While passed for efficiency since the DEA could not keep up with all of the different drugs being created by clandestine chemists on the street, the unintended consequence is that it gave the DEA carte blanche to "show me the man, I'll show you the crime" by virtue of the "substantially similar" clause. What does it mean to be substantially similar? Any tryptamine is similar? Any substance with an amphetamine group, or indole group? Or substantially similar in function meaning any compound that has stimulant properties even if very low in intensity?

Cui Bono? (Who benefits?)
"My thesis is this: The war on drugs has little to do with drugs and drug users. It exists and is promoted largely as a means to accumulate power in the form of money and in the gaining of control over individual citizens." [p188] I agree with that, not as skeptically in terms of intent, but certainly result (which is what matters as where the rubber meets the road)

Skipping my notes from the tryptamines index...

Appendix on Current Drug Law
Describes the counterproductive effect of drug laws - Mexico has almost no drug abuse problem (not sure if this is still true) and legal complications just as a result of relationship with the US - similar to where the US was 100yrs ago. No Federal drug law, just racism-driven social views of drug use (anti-Chinese opium, anti-black cocaine). "The non-medical use of drugs was, although legal, deemed to be improper, and it was rather well contained by social pressures." [p233]
Similar to China pre-Tang dynasty. 13 drug control acts passed in the US between 1906 and 1988 that have led to consistent increase in the power of authorities and penalties imposed upon the offenders - while making abuse worse and drug trafficking worse.

Appendix on Histamines
3 natural neurotransmitters in the brain derived by decarboxylation of amino acids and contain an aromatic ring separated by 2 carbon atoms from a nitrogen atom
- Phenethylamines, from phenethylalanine
- Tryptamines, from tryptophan
Histamine, from histidine - believed that there is a rich world here to be researched

[RN_Hpesoj · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were some sections of this book that I found quite extraordinary and insightful. I really got what I was looking for about the effects of psychedelics/tryptamines and how they can be used as a tool to understand the mind and the human experience. There is truly a lot of good information contained in the "fictional auto-biography".

However, there were sections of the book that were actually quite boring and I didn't care about. The sections I didn't care about were generally their life adventures, because it wasn't really about drugs and not what I was looking for, a chapter that is basically just a list of where DMT is naturally occurring in nature, and a chapter about a vivid dream that was brought on by drugs. I just didn't care.

I love the second half of the book that includes the qualitative comments about the effects of the drugs at different dosages with different routes of use.

I thought that this book wasn't quite as good as its predecessor PiHKAL, but that's a tall order.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Modern day spirituality delves deep into a realm of more lies, and deception. Lying to ourselves is no path for enlightenment. This is the first door yet discovered, other than "stalking the wild pendulum" by Bentov that is a self discovery of the truth of the universe, and the experience of existence.

All phenomena is a change through chemical reactivity.
All that can be experienced, and all the experiencer is.

Organic Chemistry.
No story line or beliefs necessary.
Just trusting in the experience of NOW.

[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Shulgins have provided an absolutely priceless gift to humanity with Pihkal and Tihkal.

[Arthur Heymans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a love story like Pihkal but a very interesting read nonetheless.

[Kieran Forster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes if u are interested in psychopharmacology as a psychiatrist or patient, well worth the deep dive

[Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its just not as romantic and dreamy as the first book!


There are abt 200 known psychedelics

2 principle neurotransmitters in the brain are dopamine (a phenethylamine)(ex. Mescaline, MDMA) and seratonin (a tryptamine)(ex. Mushrooms, DMT, LSD)

In the mind there is life perpetuating Eros as well as the death instinct - Thanatos. The unconscious seperates them from our awareness. Alchemy was an attempt to synthesize these through distillation, sublimation in order to unite the physical and spiritual worlds

What we dont allow ourselves to confront and acknowledge in our minds may kill all of us.

Every drug opens a different door. An explorer should do this safely in time with guidance from veteran explorers

If your energy level is very high, perhaps MDMA cant take you anywhere

If you are stuck in a psychological mental paralysis, focus on a single point and you can break out of it. Ex. How many inches are between my fingers

When in some altered state, you are going through a process, best not to get in the way

The core self is not a personality, or definable, or stable. It is spiritual energy

Drugs/plants contain no experience, they can only open doors through which experience can occur. But the only thing you encounter is part of yourself

The observer- the non emotional part that watches

When under the influence, do not make a phone call. Enjoy the inflated state if it happens and then leave or shut up

If on a psych and you encounter the meaningless Void- you are lucky, it will pass. It is not the totality, it is only part, like hitler is only part of humanity. If there, focus on Buddha or Christ, or a newborn, on beauty, compassion.

Call upon the Observer if you are paranoid. It knows that you have taken a drug and your old Survivor part is still living in the jungle thinking danger is everywhere. Your perceived hostility of the world is a projection of negative judgements abt yourself externalized. Some part of you thinks you are bad, worthy of punishment. Allow the paranoia to be a teacher.

If on a psych and you feel self hatred, its usually part of the initial transition phase. Keep asking yourself, “would i think so poorly of a friend? I deserve as much compassion as them”. A sitter here can help you through self destructive patterns if you need it

If on a psych, you may feel oceanic. That all life including you is part of a tapestry, that love and sorrow diffuse it all

Flooding is more common at too high level a dose. Your sense of identity may be hard to maintain. Stand up and focus on what your body is doing. Try to smile or laugh at yourself. Some people praise ego dissolution. By what definition? Persona dissolution is great and necc to grow. But your core self is a piece of God. It should always be your anchor. The place from which you launch, and the place you return. Sometimes flooding can happen without a drug. If it goes in for over 24 hrs, you prob have psychosis and need professional help

Rules for a trance or psych state says the sitter. Anger cannot be acted out physically agains me or my possessions. You should talk abt whatever fantasy comes up but you cannot act it out. If you see the opportunity to die, you will not take it. Not here with me.

A beast-survivor takes shape in a child when the child feels that not only his behavior is bad but that he is bad. His repressed feelings assume the shape of a thing in his unconscious. If hes Christian, his shadow may assume the form of a devil. He will deny he has those feelings. Spiritual growth involves a confrontation with the beast-survivor.

The shadow is not all of you, its part of you. When the beast-survivor anticipates its possible destruction, it may result in a complete lack of response to a drug

Here is a tool- imagine your rage, pain,grief is lava in a volcano. You are in the sky over it, you can let out as much or as little as need be. It will burn some trees but they will grow back.

A healer needs to feel that oceanic kinship with all living before they can feel love for a patient

If something is concievable, in infinite time and space it becomes inevitable

You cannot prove safety, you can only fail to demonstrate danger

Temple of the true inner light in NYC does DPT 100-250mg 2-4hrs

ETH-LAD 40-150micrograms 8-12 hrs

LSD-25 60-200micrograms 8-12 hrs

5-MeO-DMT 6-20mg 1-2 hrs

DMT 60-100mg -1hr

Psychedelics let us see the trail through the dark forest of the mind, most stay on the well lit path

[Sue Dounim · Rating 5 out of 5]

How I rate this book is on a scale of 0 to awesome. But that doesn't mean it is without flaws or strangeness.
Like PIHKAL, this huge book contains meticulous descriptions of synthesis of tryptamine consciousness altering chemicals, extensive notes of their effects from users, etc. However, it also contains long essays on Shulgin's philosophy, the legal landscape of synthesis and use of these drugs, personal reminiscences germane to the topic and much more, including the oddest essay where he passionately argues that astrophysicists who espouse the big bang theory are basically just religious zealots, since it's clear (to him) that that cannot possibly be the way the universe originated.
This shows how even a great mind can talk itself down the overgrown, weedy path of crackpot science. He starts the essay by commenting that when he's listening to the radio in his lab, he sometimes goes off the standard boring stations and listens to the fundamentalist Christian one. One of the topics they cover is creationism. Shulgin then starts discussing the Big Bang as if it's literally an article of religious faith, with its own cult, amongst scientists. He shows an embarrassing and completely misleading understanding of what a scientific theory actually is. It's incredible that a person of his brilliance, working with scientists all his life, can be so completely brainwashed by creationist arguments as to end up here.
Briefly, the "creationist" arguments against cosmology always rely on the same cherry picked observations, disagreements in the details of the theory, and every manner of special pleading, and dishonest argument.
Sorry to go way off the track there, but in a nutshell, anyone interested in consciousness altering substances should buy and read as much of this (and PIHKAL) as they can stand. A view into a truly unique and precious brain.

[Benjamin Mastripolito · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite entry: DIPT, I'll just let the "qualitative comments" speak for themselves:

"If I were deaf, this would've been an inactive compound"
"All familiar sounds became foreign"
"Music was rendered completely disharmonious although single tones sounded normal"
"No effects were noted with respect to clarity of speech"
"Children sounded like they were talking through synthesizers"
"The voices of people were extremely distorted"
"...no changes in vision, taste, smell, appetite, vital signs, or motor coordination"

[Eyes with Mouth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel as though I’ve lost grandparents to whom I was youthfully nasty and I’d be eternally guilty if that were at all appropriate. Instead, I profess my gratitude to two beautiful elders of a most important work. The line of inquiry still calls, and we’ll see how far we can take it.

The Earth is the center of the universe, and anyone who says otherwise is a heretic and shall be imprisoned; all drugs that can expand consciousness are without medical or social justification, and anyone who uses them is a criminal.

[Lukas Lazdauskis · Rating 5 out of 5]

kai psichadelikai/drugs bus legal abejos knygos(PIKHAL ir TIKHAL) bus kanonines ir jas skaitys mokyklose. Shulginas buvo chemikas genijus, kuris dar ir puikiai rase, turbut sias abi knygas perskaitysiu ne viena kart, o savo draugam ir pazistamiems, kurie nori apsisviesti apie psichadelikus/drugs ir ju veikimo principa ir kas tai yra, kvieciu skaityti, sios knygos nera "sausos" ir pakankamai lengvai skaitosi

[Tetrijeb · Rating 4 out of 5]

another classic for every serious psychonaut, one star less because of tedious and corny love story and as other reviewer mentioned - geriatric sex. a bit distasteful and unnecessary really. the psychedelic part is pure gold though.

[Simon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't read all of this - some of the anecdotes were interesting. The musings on psychotherapy I struggled to get through. I had a flick through some of the experimental procedures and responses but not all.

[Hoffmann Bellako · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is more gooddless

[Eldal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serotonin is an important chemical endogenously produced by animals for a variety of combinatory uses including anti depression, mood regulation, and pleasure, essentially ancient and important for survival, and communication. Its chemical structure is 5-hydroxytryptamine, a tryptamine skeleton with an oxygen on the five carbon, which is derived from the amino acid tryptophan - that therein being a benzene ring fused to a nitrogen containing pyrrole ring, together known as an indole ring. This indole molecule is also heavily aromatic, being found in feces and flowers as well as having use as a scent in chemical sprays, having a particular smell. But it apparently has use as a base for molecules that are basically drugs, and psychedelic, just put some carbon or oxygen and some nitrogen on it and it'll be active, smokeable, or can be taken orally, or injected intravenously or muscularly for effect.

If there's one carbon atom on a substance it's called meth or a methyl group and it will have three hydrogens on it which just fit in where they can, so if you have amphetamine and put a carbon somewhere on it it'll be a methamphetamine, but if there's two carbons it's an ethyl group, similar to the ethanol alcohol. LSD is just DMT except there's more carbons stacked on it and one methyl group on the other nitrogen, and two ethyl groups on an amide instead of two methyls on an amine. The American name for LSD is METH-LAD because of that, so they chose to substitute the 6 position nitrogen's carbon for other alkyl groups and give them designated names, like ETH-LAD for having an ethyl or AL-LAD for having an allyl group. There's also PRO-LAD and PARGY-LAD. LSD lasts 12 hours and psilocybin, the active component in mushrooms, which is just DMT with an oxygen on the 4 carbon, can last four to six hours whereas DMT can last from thirty minutes to an hour. DMT is just serotonin without the oxygen on the 5 position and that can pass the blood brain barrier because its polarity reduced from the addition of some carbon. Melatonin is similar to 5-Methoxy-DMT except it has an acetyl group on the tryptamine N. Melatonin puts you to sleep while 5-MeO-DMT and other visionary entheogens can put you in a "sleep-like" state at high doses. No one knows what melatonin does in the body but in gerbils with calcified pineal glands they hit puberty faster than controlled gerbils. The pineal was calcified with fluoride, but there's no indication besides skeletal fluorosis that F can destroy the pineal, leading to weakened conscious states in man or the animal.

Besides the plethora of more research still to be done, what more is there to say about this book? Read it if you want to further understand some of the naming conventions for some of the most popular chemicals out there.

A harrowing tale that picks up nearly where the prequel left off. It is notably shorter in duration, unfortunately. It examines some of the issues with the law system today including how they are slowly taking away our liberties. Through some run ins with the law (Shulgin frequently worked with them, in fact) he highlights this - intrusion of property and if convicted - forfeiture of assets. But still. Fascinating insights into how the mind works is here, even if the book reads like a standard text on the physical, quantitative properties of the chemicals which allow this to happen. Essential reading for anyone. I will keep this as a reference for who knows how long.

[Sumanth Ƀharadwaj · Rating 5 out of 5]

A real achievement! Brilliant! Being a neuroscientist I naturally put the Shulgins on a pedestal. But still, few have achieved this level of understanding in an entire lifetime. It astounds me how the Shulgins simply continue to bear Fruit uninhibited by this great achievement like a vine whose sole duty is to fill the trellis with ripe grapes. +++++ on the Shulgin scale! =)

[mojca · Rating 5 out of 5]

a fantastic book for anyone interested in psychedelics and/or the culture and stories around it. The precision of doses, levels graded from baseline are really good and might be a sensible way to adopt within the psychonaut community.
It is a worthy book following Pikhal. Remember to stay safe, respect set and setting and always know your source.

[Lysergius · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found myself thinking that it would be really interesting to try some of the compounds discussed in the book. Then I realised that these are exotica, they are not for general consumption, all that you can have are the shared subjectivity of the writer. Oh Pooh!

[Rafael Quintero · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most educational/thoroughly written,and fun to read(not to mention easy to read!Another Sulgin I highly suggest acquiring and readingis Pihkal......both IMHO could NOT had been better written,and the price in this era,is extremely cheap.Enjoy reading folks!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chemical reference book.

[Nguyễn Nam · Rating 5 out of 5]

H

[Salomon · Rating 5 out of 5]

the shlugins are amazing. Lerned a few new things about psychedelic theraphy and life... good find!