Harmala Alkaloids

(Harmaline, Harmine, Tetrahydroharmine, …)

TrippyWiki score: 6.7/10

What are harmala alkaloids?

Harmala alkaloids (Harmaline, Harmine, and a few others) are psychoactive compounds found primarily in Syrian rue (peganum harmala) and caapi. In the human body, they work as Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). Although harmala alkaloids have psychedelic properties, they alone are not very potent but they can greatly intensify or change the effects of other psychedelics, such as LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, and DMT. These alkaloids are best known for their use in combination with DMT, forming drinkable Ayahuasca and smokable Changa.

Why take harmala alkaloids?

Harmala alkaloids…

Are relatively physically safe (although there is a known lethal dose in mice)
Are, when taken by themselves, gentle and unlikely to cause a terrifying experience
Are legal in almost every country of the world
Can be taken with other psychedelics to change the content of their experience
Can make some psychedelics, such as DMT, orally available

Long-term benefits & side effects

Many of the benefits will only occur if you follow the tips below.
Most (if not all) of the side effects are preventable and they will not happen if you follow the Safety checklist.

Harmala alkaloids…

May be useful for treating depression and PTSD
Can lower your levels of stress and anxiety, including social anxiety
Can be used to cure addictions
May help you form positive habits, such as meditation and exercise
Harmine specifically has anti-cancer properties
Can increase neuroplasticity
Make you more creative and open-minded
Help you look at your life from a different perspective
Allow you to heal your childhood trauma and forgive people who’ve hurt you
Will likely make you more conscious and loving
Can help you transcend the fear of death
Give you insights into the nature of reality
Connect you with your masculinity or femininity
Make you appreciate nature more
…

Are lethal at extremely high doses (when intravenously injected into mice, the LD50 of harmine is 38mg/kg.)
May not be safe when taken with certain herbs or caffeine
Can lead to self-harm by people who take them in an unsafe environment
Can cause HPPD and physical damage if you combine it with other substances (such as alcohol, opioids, DXM or stimulants)
Could cause you trauma due to bad set and setting
Might lead to drug-induced psychosis
Can lead to a cholinergic crisis if you combine them with cholinergics
Are likely neurotoxic, especially at high amounts
Can cause pregnancy issues
Might damage your liver and kidneys
…

Sources of harmala alkaloids

There are 2 main sources of harmala alkaloids: Banisteriopsis caapi and Syrian rue.

Banisteriopsis caapi

The plant is also called ayahuasca, caapi, or yagé.

Harmine: 0.31-8.43%
Harmaline: 0.03-0.83%
Tetrahydroharmine: 0.05-2.94%

Peganum harmala (Syrian rue)

The coatings of the seeds contain the largest amounts of harmine and other alkaloids.

Total harmala alkaloids of syrian rue seeds are at least 5.6% of dried weight.

Harmane: 0.16%
Harmine: 0.44%
Harmaline: 0.25%
Harmalol: 0.6%
Tetrahydroharmine: 0.1%
Vasicine (peganine): 0.25%
Vasicinone: 0.0007%

How to take harmala alkaloids

Administration

The easiest way to take harmala alkaloids is by mouth. Injecting or snorting them may not be safe.

They can also be smoked. When smoked with DMT, they act synergistically and create a gentler, longer-lasting high. The mixture is called changa.

If you suffer from nausea after you take harmaline or other alkaloids, you can also take them rectally. Just squat down and put a capsule as deep as you can.

While you could eat raw seeds of Syrian rue, the harmala alkaloids would not absorb properly. Grinding the seeds is helpful but the best way is to brew the seeds in water for 30 minutes. Make the water acidic by adding lemon water or apple cider vinegar into it.

If you don’t want to extract the alkaloids, simply grind the seeds and mix them with lemon water or orange juice. Use just enough liquid to dissolve the seeds but not too much because the taste will still be extremely unpleasant.

Once the liquid is ready, plug your nose so that you don’t have to smell it and chug it down as fast as possible.

Dosage

1-2 g = Light dose
2-3 g = Common dose
3-4 g = Strong dose
4-5 g = High dose
5+ g = Heroic dose

The doses above are displayed for Syrian rue seeds. If you have an extract, don’t forget to divide the amount.

Harmala alkaloids are usually not taken by themselves. You would have to take so much that it would make you feel sick.

Higher doses could also be lethal. There is no report of anyone dying from harmine or harmaline toxicity but in mice, the LD50 of harmine was found to be 38mg/kg.

In his book TIHKAL, Alexander Shulgin recommends a dose of 150-300 mg of harmaline orally.

Leo Zeff, the legendary underground psychotherapist, has used harmaline in many of his sessions. This is what he has to say about the dosage:

“Harmaline goes with either acid or psilocybin. I generally give them 125 milligrams. I used to give them 250 milligrams and they’d get pretty damned nauseated by it. The 125 milligrams is sufficient for them. This is psychoactive material but it’s not psychedelic, and this amount does not add to the base level. They would take their normal amount of acid and just add this which does not increase the activity of the other psychedelic.” – The Secret Chief Revealed

Keep in mind that the higher the dose you take, the more important it is to be in a safe environment.

Also, some people are more sensitive than others.

Safety checklist

Maximize the benefits

Keep in mind that integration is even more important than the trip itself. Taking psychedelics would be almost useless if you didn’t retain any lessons in your day-to-day life.

What will help you the most is contemplating about the experience – be it by journaling, thinking about the trip, or sharing your memories with a trusted friend.

Distracting thoughts can get in the way, which is why you want to spend the day after your trip without TV, social media, and other distractions.

If you can, spend time in silence and solitude. Meditate, go for a walk, contemplate the experience.

Duration

You should notice the first effects within 40 minutes after you take the psychedelic
You will reach the maximum effect around the 2-hour mark
The whole trip usually lasts for 5-8 hours
At heroic doses, your trip may last for even longer
If you eat before your trip, the substance will take longer to kick in
When combined with DMT, LSD, psilocybin or other psychedelics, this chart does not apply.

The effects

Syrian Rue hallucinations are disorienting and dream-like. They include closed-eye geometry, morphing shapes, and abstract designs.

The effects of harmala alkaloids are somewhat psychedelic at high doses although they cannot be compared to any other substance.

Harmala alkaloids usually aren’t taken alone. People use them to enhance the effects of other psychedelics, such as LSD, psilocybin, and especially DMT.

These alkaloids are used in Ayahuasca brews since they make DMT absorbed when taken orally.

Together with DMT, harmala alkaloids can also be smoked. This mixture is called changa and combining the substances makes the DMT experience gentler, longer-lasting, and more connected to this reality.

Common short-term effects include:

Euphoria
Increased creativity and open-mindedness
Mindfulness, being present
Higher capability for love and compassion
Pain relief
Feeling one with all that is
Seeing life from a different perspective
Appreciating small things
Higher energy
Increased awareness
Stamina enhancement
Feeling your emotions more intensely
Memory suppression
Time distortion
Inability to sleep
Visual effects (enhanced colors, seeing patterns in everything, distortions, …)
Getting stuck in a thought loop
Confusion
Nausea
Headache
Inability to focus
Increased body temperature
Increased heart rate
Worse thermoregulation
Difficulty urinating
Anxiety, paranoia
Vulnerability

If you are interested in taking harmaline, read what Leo Zeff has to say about it from his psychotherapy experiences:

“I would put that (Harmaline) in the psychedelic one rather than just the psychoactive one without the psychedelic because we don’t take it alone, nobody takes it alone. It takes a helluva lot to turn on and you get so God-damned sick if you took enough to turn on that it’s horrible. We take it with acid or psilocybin and it puts a new dimension on the acid trip. Very primitive, you get right down to the primitive side of yourself. The men who take it find their real masculinity and the women who take it find their true femininity. As a matter of fact, some Indians when they take yagé and they have their religious ceremonies, the men take it separate in their own hogan, and the women take it separate in their own hogan. They do not mix, because for the women, it’s a woman’s medicine, and for the men it’s a man’s medicine.” – The Secret Chief

With all that said, it is impossible to accurately describe the experience through human language.

The psychedelic affects each individual differently and no two trips are the same. Therefore, there is virtually no way to know what your trip will feel like.

Syrian rue will not always give you a pleasant experience. Bad trips can happen but you can prevent them by following the tips below.

Bad trips

Bad trips mostly happen because people take the substance irresponsibly. If you take this psychedelic the right way, there is virtually no chance you’ll get a bad trip.

In case you still do, that’s good! A “bad” trip isn’t bad, it can actually be the most healing and insightful moment of your life!

During a “bad” trip, negative emotions are coming up from your subconscious mind. They have always been there whether you are aware of it or not. They have been damaging your life and a difficult trip is an opportunity to process these traumas and unpleasant feelings and let go of them.

The more painful the experience, the more you can heal.

So instead of calling bad trips bad, call them challenging.

If you understand that bad trips are awesome in the long run, not only will you feel more comfortable diving into these challenging states, it will actually excite you!

Why they happen

The most common reasons for getting a bad trip are:

Tripping in an unsafe environment (in public, at a party, even nature doesn’t feel safe if you take higher doses)
Facing difficult times in your day-to-day life (a break-up, death of a loved one, …)
Rejecting to let go and trying to hold on to your ego and control the state
Being afraid of the trip (either because of the stigma around psychedelics or because you are not sure how pure your substance is)
Mixing the psychedelic with alcohol, weed, or other drugs
Expecting a bad trip (it can easily become a self-fulfilling prophecy)

How to cope with a bad trip

Do not perceive this experience as something bad, remember that facing these difficult emotions is extremely healing
Fully surrender to the experience, do not try to feel good
If you’re alone, call a trusted friend to come over and keep you safe

How to end a bad trip

In case you are not ready to face your inner demons yet, there are a few ways to end a bad trip.

One possible way is to put on music that is familiar to you. Another way is to switch up your location and move from one place to another. This can completely change your train of thought.

In case the trip becomes extremely challenging and there is no one around you to keep you safe, consider ending your trip with a trip killer.

Using a trip killer usually is not the best idea because the bad emotions will stay unresolved and you will get little to no benefits from the experience. With that said, using a trip killer is smarter than harming yourself.

The 2 best options that you have for ending a bad trip are Phenibut and benzodiazepines.

Phenibut is generally safer. The downside is that it can take hours to kick in.

So to end a trip, use benzodiazepines but only do this if you completely have to.

Interactions

Green tea
Tea makes you both more alert and calm at the same time. It also contains neuroprotective antioxidants, such as EGCG.
CBD
CBD has a calming effect.
DMT
Combining DMT with harmala alkaloids makes DMT orally available, creating a drink called Ayahuasca. DMT and harmala alkaloids can also be smoked together as changa, which may be more beneficial than smoking DMT alone.
LSD
This combination has been used by Leo Zeff in his psychotherapy sessions and can lead to synergistic effects.
Magic mushrooms
The substances act synergistically, some people prefer this combination instead of taking the two individually.
Other psychedelics
Combining these alkaloids with 5-MeO DMT, for example, can be dangerous..
Caffeine
The combination may not be safe, especially if you suffer from heart problems.
Certain herbs
Stay away from herbs that have a powerful effect on your brain before you take Syrian rue.
Dissociatives
Combining dissociatives with Syrian rue may and may not cause you harm but it can be confusing and lead to bad trips.
Other drugs
Never combine harmaline and harmine with alcohol, DXM, stimulants, opioids, and other drugs.
SSRIs
Not only will these antidepressants greatly decrease the intensity of your trip, but they can also lead to long-lasting side effects.
Lithium
Combining psychedelics with lithium significantly increases the risk of seizures and psychosis.
Cholinergics
Harmaline and harmine are acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs). AChEIs combined with cholinergic substances can result in a cholinergic crisis.

Legality

Syrian rue and harmala alkaloids are legal in every country, except for Canada, Australia, and France.

FAQ

Becoming addicted to harmala alkaloids is virtually impossible, nor will you develop a tolerance to the substance. Technically, you could take it every day.

With that said, taking harmine or harmaline or regular basis can cause neurotoxicity and damage your kidneys and liver.

Most importantly, you want to trip in a safe place where there are no strangers around.

Whether you should take Syrian rue at home or in nature will depend on your priorities.

Tripping at home is safer and better for personal growth while taking psychedelics outside will help you develop a strong connection with nature.

Try both and see which one you like more.

The taste of Syrian rue is bitter and unpleasant.

Keep the substance in a cold dark place, preferably with no air.

It’s best to stop eating 2-4 hours prior to taking the substance because of its nauseating effects.

Pregnant women
Those who prioritize their long-term physical health
Immature people who are not willing to follow the safety guidelines
People who suffer from psychosis
People who have a familial history of schizophrenia
Those who suffer from HPPD
People who are going through a manic phase of bipolar disorder
If you’re going through extremely challenging times, you can take psychedelics but the trips might be unpleasant, beware of that

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