Q: Aren’t Nightshades Like Datura Dangerous? - A Talk About the Idea of Ingesting Nightshades (video)
In this video I tackle what might appear to be a relatively simple question to answer, "Aren’t nightshades like datura and belladonna supposed to be dangerous?" In answering I try to share additional information and personal experiences to help the viewer get a (hopefully) better understanding of why in fact the question is more complex than it looks. I believe these nightshades we use could be one of the next waves in our cultures' recent acceptance of the therapeutic applications of certain psychoactive compounds and I discuss how I feel this may relate to the initial question as well.
Strengthening Our Connection with the Plants During Our Experiences
In order to get the most from our experiences working with the plants in these truffles, we must stay quiet & reasonably still to stay truly connected to them once we consume them. The same was true even with my many experiences with Peyote. In Peyote meetings you sit in the same spot for approx.12 hours & for the most part you say nothing. You are supposed to keep your eyes focused mostly on the fire in the center of the teepee. Looking around at others and even shifting your body around too much is considered rude and distracting but these ‘rules’ also keep you plugged into the experience 100%.
Unwrapping Our Spiritual Gifts
A friend/customer was asking if I could share information about a connection they heard of between Datura and a certain animal spirit medicine as they carry that animal spirit medicine themselves. “It's great that you get that from your personal relationship from Datura. If that's what Datura told you, it's part of your relationship and connection with the plant, but in general I am not a fan of making generalized associations or classifications of what a plant medicine is or isn't...just like animal spirits. Coyote means very different things to different people (and different tribes)...just like Datura means different things to different people (and tribes).
Sacred Plant Medicine as a Way of Life
Though they can be used for a singular healing session, for me I walk with them daily just as I walk daily with any and all of my other ancestors, family, helpers, and guides. This sacred plant medicine is a way of life. It is the road I walk. Daily they help me see things more clearly, and make connections more easily whether I ingest them or not. Ingestion is just a great way to get crash courses in doing this kind of work, and the more we understand what we are doing and why, the more dedicated that help and guidance becomes.
Gratitude (Truffle Prompt)
Gratitude. Even though I do see some people freely discussing the importance of gratitude, I think there are even perhaps more that struggle with the word and the concept. I believe this dichotomy of thought exists because of unhealthy connotations towards the idea of gratitude that so many carry from their own personal pasts.
Emporium Black’s New Clothes
A large print of Mucha’s La Plume Calendar hung framed by my bedroom door for the majority of my childhood and I always loved it. My bed was positioned in the opposite corner of the room so every night as I lay in bed I would study that incredible piece of art and when I awoke it would be one of the first things I saw. To this day I still see Mucha’s style reflected in my own taste and illustration style. Art influences our lives.
Discovering Meaning in Feathers: A Tale of Mindfulness and Connection
Today when I was taking out the trash I saw some small feathers floating in a pool of rainwater. Towards the edge I saw a slightly larger feather and I decided to pick it up and clean it off and bring it in. During that moment of mindfulness I happened to see a circle of white off in the courtyard I would have otherwise missed. Feather in hand I went to examine the white circle and…
Q: Will the truffles make me drowsy?
Q: Will the truffles make me drowsy?
A: The truffles do tend to slow people down and can have a calming and sedative quality. I think for many in today’s world who are used to pushing ourselves so hard, the plants in these truffles help us see just how exhausted we sometimes are and that maybe that is something we need to look at in order to take better care of ourselves.
The Calling of the Plants (My Own Road)
Mandrake was the nightshade that initially called out to me. One day, out of the blue, just became obsessed with it. Spiritually I come from a different background and wasn’t really familiar with the more Euro-based occult and witchcraft practitioners that had been working with it for years, so I did not have any prior information on it, accurate or not. I was never someone to watch movies or television series on such things either…
Good Self-Care
I know that I, as do many others who use these truffles on a regular basis, go through periods where we use them almost daily for two to three weeks in a row and everyone seems to agree that they only find benefit in doing so…
Drink from the Well
What does the world need right now? I asked this of plants and they answered that what so many people need right now is the permission to feel happiness and joy again. There is an important difference between the joy and happiness that start to emerge from shadow work, soul searching, and a willingness to confront one’s darkest truths vs the empty and false appearance of an assumed joy and happiness that is affected by sheer will, but absent of personal growth. The joy and happiness gained by pathwork may not be quick to come but they are as real as the pain and darkness that preceded them.
A Dream Reading With Datura
Hey! I know this is a little random but I was wondering if I could get some insight on a short dream I had regarding datura.. if you say no I totally understand and it won’t hurt my feelings at all.. I can wait and pay you when I get paid also.. it wasn’t while eating a truffle.. I just recently bought my first bby datura plant, and then I had this curious dream about it and you’re the only person I know to turn to regarding the spirit of datura…
Being Receptive to the Lessons
There are people we meet on our paths that, regardless of what they call themselves, we later realize they were our teachers. We end up learning things from them that forever shaped our walks.
The Puzzle of Who We Are
I can deeply empathize with the feeling of having one or two extra puzzle pieces that no matter how hard we try to figure out where they belong, they just never seem to fit in. Consequently, we never seem to feel whole or complete. Perhaps the reason we can't find where they fit is because we assumed we had put the rest of the puzzle together correctly. Perhaps the finished image is supposed to look different from what we assumed.
Reverence for Our Inner Voice
For me, a big part of working with these nightshade truffles and these plants is learning to tune in and trust our own inner voice and the guidance we are given from the plants and any other guides that are reaching out to us rather than having someone else tell us what something is or how something should be done. So many people are reaching out to their ancestors and other spirits and this is such a great way to wean ourselves off of a dependence on a middleman or books that may of may not be correct in what they are telling us.
Gentle Expansion Without Being Altered
As far as a fear of being ‘altered’, I have grown to having a very strong aversion to being altered myself. I don't drink or smoke pot and haven't for years. I no longer have any interest in using any entheogen that would make me 'trip' no matter how spiritual it supposedly is. That’s a big part of why I do love these truffles and these plants (nightshades). They really are that gentle. The amount is much more than a
Restoring Ancient Memories
For me, it’s more that these plants are one of the best facilitators out there to help us achieve the paradigm shifts needed to free ourselves from our learned outlooks on things such as education, teaching, academia, learning, higher consciousness, etc. Once we are free of them, we can start seeing how much that old thinking limited us….
On Knowing which Truffles to Choose
The truffles really do work differently for different people. Think of them as actual people…a bunch of elders and they each will have a different take on what you are working with but all of them are working in what is your best interest.
I encourage people to look at our various truffles with an empty mind and see if any jump out. They just stick in your head and memory. In my mind that is them calling to you subconsciously. The truffles really do work differently for different people. You could also try reading through our list of truffles and then writing down from memory the ones
The Humm of the Plants
The other day I happened to find this huge Shiva Lingam stone at Goodwill and have spent an awful lot of time holding it in my hands pondering dualities and balance and the like. I marvel at how different the stone’s energy feels in my left hand compared to my right and with all of this I keep coming back to my truffles and these plants I am using in them.
I put a truffle in my left hand, then in my right expecting something similar, but it felt the same. I held the truffle gently with both hands and placed it in front of my heart and then in front of my forehead...
Leveling Up
Try to at least temporarily let go of everything you may have already learned about a particular plant and its attributes and any other preconceived ideas about it, no matter how common the ideas may seem to be, before eating one of these truffles.
Preconceived beliefs and mindsets tend to confine potential experiences to fit into the parameters that accompany those beliefs and mindsets.