Dear Phytoalchemy friends. A happy announcement. Today I am celebrating the publication of the first edition of my new book: African Psychoactive Plants. If you are interested and would like to purchase the book I would be happy to autograph and send the book couriered to you. About the book: Psychoactive plant use research has […]
Psychoactive plants are generally a misunderstood subject in western society. The word ‘psychoactive’ is often associated with harmful drugs like cocaine and heroin and the 60’s cultural revolution. The fact is that most of what we eat is psychoactive. A psychoactive substance is by definition any substance that effects how we think, feel and act! […]
There has been increased interest abroad in South African psychoactive plants and dream plants. (oneirogenics) This is mostly owing to more research having been published in the last 20 years on Southern Africa psychoactive plant species and their role in healing psycho-spiritual conditions (Sobiecki, 2012, 2014,2017). One species that has gained considerable attention has been […]
Having apprenticed and spent over a decade with a African (Northern Sotho) Traditional Healer I came to understand the importance of psychoactive shamanic plant medicine in the learning process traditional healers undergo-very similar to that of South America Curandero healers and shamans. I also learnt and experienced as part of the African traditional medicine initiation […]
Imagine this story appearing in the news headlines in the near future:“Once, not too long ago, psychoactive substances were seen as a threat to society; now, scientists are scrambling to find out how a traditional African psychoactive medicine called ubulawu can open ones intuitive capacity and self awareness. This in the face of an epidemic […]
Jean-Francois Sobiecki* Khanyisa Healing Gardens Organization, Johannesburg, South Africa *Corresponding author: Jean-Francois Sobiecki, Khanyisa Healing Garden NPO, Johannesburg, South Africa. E-Mail: phytoalchemist@gmail.com Abstract Much has been written on how Ayahuasca heals and its role in shamanic healing. Yet, there appears to be a broad lack of attention in the West to the role of […]
The use of psychoactive plants in southern African traditional medicine has been a neglected area of ethnobotanical research. However, recent reviews have demonstrated the significance of psychoactive plant medicines in the healing practices of the southern African traditional healers, and ethnopharmacological studies indicate numerous species of southern African plants with psychotro- pic activity for treating […]