Thursday, October 8, 2009
The natural way: Former graduate student Robert Bussinger became an herbalist — a researcher and seller of natural remedies — after trying Salvia divinorum, a hallucogentic plant that’s now illegal, in an attempt to find his long-lost keys.
Robert Bussinger was a graduate student in communications studies when he lost his keys. He couldn’t find them anywhere and at one point he decided to try out some Salvia divinorum, a potent psychedelic plant used for shamanic purposes. He had heard that the plant could help the user find lost items, and wanted to see if it was true. Bussinger found the plant at Persephone’s Journey, an herbs shop on Massachusetts Street that is now called Sacred Journey, and tried it out.
This happened two years ago, and Salvia is now illegal in Kansas. But Bussinger became interested in the sacred and medicinal uses of different herbs and plants and started doing some research on his own. Now, he works at Sacred Journey and helps people find the plant most suitable for their needs.
“I’ve probably eaten every herb and botanical we have in the shop,” he says.
Bussinger approaches plants from a shamanic perspective. He has trained with shamans from Gabon, Venezuela and in Mexico. He says that people should get to know each plant by itself, because they all have their own spirit and medicinal value.
One of the store’s most popular plants is the Kratom, which serves as a painkiller. Bussinger says that people who’ve tried it have reported positive experiences.
Oh, and those keys Bussinger lost? He found them a week after trying the Salvia.
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Comments
In the life of... an herbalist
It's great to experiment with different substances. Learning about Salvia Divinorum before it gets banned is a great idea. http://www.potentsalvia.com/blog has some excellant information. If all the officials had tried salvia before it was dismissed it probably wouldnt have thought it was so bad. It actually has beautiful possibilities they might discover.
In the life of... an herbalist
The very idea that Salvia divinorum can been made illegal is scandalous. There are just no evidences that it is a "drug", in the sense of addictive harmful product. The youtube videos constitute an overwhelming evidence that, even when consumed following the exact contrary of the way it is recommended to consume it, (that is in silence, in penumbra, in the spirit of self-enquiry), the worst which can happen are bruises and nightmares, things which can happen to sober people too. It seems also it does help in curing addiction too many other "real" drugs, so it may be the real tool for helping, and perhaps curing, severe addictions, from chocolate, tobacco, alcohol, to cocaine, heroin and crack. The salvia experiences are as interesting, and as dangerous, as dreams. Users write diary reports on this. The complains are statistically insignificant. Regulation? Sure. Criminalization? My opinion is that this would be a mistake in absence of any serious evidence that it causes any problems.
In the life of... an herbalist
I meant, to criminalize Salvia is a mistake, in absence of evidence of troubles. I belong to a state which has put Salvia in the same basket as heroin. This is a criminal idea.
It is good that Bussinger found his keys back!
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