Dimethyltryptamine commonly known as DMT is one of the strongest psychedelics available. It is found in many (sometimes unexpected) places in nature, the most commonly used being the root bark of mimosa or acacia trees. It can be taken in many different ways with experiences that vary greatly.

There are many ways to take DMT, all with their specific effect, which again varies from person to person. The complexity makes it hard to describe the effects. It tends to be more earthy, natural and primal than other substances. It’s usually heavily based on sensations. It feels like you are thrown in there. Reality is gone.

The most accessible and safest way of taking DMT is through an ayahusaca ceremony. It’s also the most costly so proceed at your own discretion. The ayahuasca ceremony is a traditional healing ritual from the amazon forest. The tradition is upheld and offered by shamans from various parts of the area (as well as some centers across the globe). It consists of a short moment of preparation followed by the ingestion of a beverage containing DMT and harmala. The journey is accompanied by chants (called icaros) taught to the shaman by the substance itself to allow him or her to help heal the participants. The session starts in the evening and ends about eight hours later. The process is accompanied by what is called the Purge which is an aspect of the ceremony that often worries newcomers. The healing offered by the beverage involves casting out the illness in a physical form. It can be vomiting or it can come out downward. It can also simply involve crying, sweating, bursts of emotions. The way ayahuasca works is based on a trick. I’m sorry to demystify it. It works as follows: You drink a black gooey root based drink that makes you sick. Then the DMT contained in the drink gives you visions of healing (remember the set and setting). You could  get visions of hospital for instance. Once you’ve Purged and the gooey drink is out of your system, you start having more pleasant experience that is often no longer related to healing. At this point it can and often does become mystical. The day following the ceremony, is usually held a session of integration to help the participant understand the healing they went through and offer them ideas of things they can do in the future to sustain the process.

The ayahuasca ceremony is different from the ritual proposed in this book. We are not trying to heal. We are aiming at a mystical experience to help our spiritual practice. Even though ayahuasca can give the experience we are looking for, having to go through the healing phase and dealing with the inconvenience of the Purge, which is only useful for healing, makes it inadequate for our purpose. However there are methods to suppress the Purge if you do it at home. I can only give you a vague indication which involves turning the drink into a form that is smaller and easier to ingest. I absolutely don’t recommend trying anything at home without proper research and understanding of the process and certainly not before going to a few ayahuasca retreats. Personal experience is of crucial importance. Don’t rely on what you read (including this website).

The most common method for taking DMT is inhalation. The substance is heated and the vapor is inhaled. It differs from smoking by the fact that the substance isn’t burned, it’s only evaporated. This method gives the strongest effect, but also the shortest. It can be overwhelming. You feel you lose control of your entire existence before being thrown on a rocket into another dimension. The loss of ego can cause the sensation of meeting what is now commonly called DMT entities. They are beings that appear to be outside of you, independent from you, as if they were living in that world, waiting for you. Whether or not that is true, I’ll let you decide. My only advice is this: don’t let yourself get carried away by the “people” you see while you are under the effect of a substance that alters your perceptions. Focus on the message, not the messenger.

Because of the loss of control and given that the effect only last a few minutes, inhaling might not be useful for your chosen spiritual practice. You won’t be able to meditate or pray as you can barely think and you have no control over your body. However, if you are looking for spiritual insight, this could be your best option. It might be the best choice for exploring your past lives, for example. It can also be used to experience what it is like to be something you can’t be in reality, like being an animal or anything that peaks your curiosity. Another obvious benefit is it won’t last all day like other methods would. It allows for a quick ritual every now and then. Bear in mind the shock is so overwhelming that it can be hard to decide to go back. Don’t expect to be able to do it often even if it’s shorter.

There is an intermediate possibility. You can modify the effect by taking harmala one hour earlier (see safety disclaimer about harmala in the Disclaimer section). The effect will be slightly milder and it will last about thirty minutes. The transitions between phases will be less jarring. You will have slightly more control. This combination could make it more adequate for your chosen practice. Mixing harmala and inhaled DMT gives a strong and long lasting afterglow that boosts the spiritual practice. It seems to push you forward and give you a glimpse of what the future of you meditation holds. Being there the time of a ritual allows you to study it and find new ways to explore. You can take those new ideas with you outside of the effect of the substance. You can inhale small doses in several times then ride the afterglow with an intense meditation practice where you focus on the hardest work (like attaining selflessness). The afterglow lasts about 2 to 4 hours.