Changa is the colloquial name I gave to a smoking mix, containing naturally sourced DMT, Banisteriopsis Caapi and other herbs, which when blended together, have a synergistic effect. Very simply, Changa allows people to smoke DMT more easily and to get more from their DMT smoking experience.
"Dreamleaf" or just "Dreamtime" is perhaps a more official name that has been given to this material. Yet "Changa" (Chang-ah) is very definitely the Proper Australian slang name for this blend, which may make some Australian's wince and/or smile, and people from other countries to raise an eyebrow or two!
In order to make Changa, a blend of herbs are simply infused with the DMT, which is easily dissolved into alcohol or any form of ethanol.
It is true that a few people have been dissolving DMT into herbs for many decades for smoking, yet it is the combination of the DMT with Ayahuasca vine and the intelligent alchemy of this combination, similar to an Ayahuasca brew, which gives Changa its unique nature and power.
However, my preferred method is to melt the DMT on a plate or tray with a few dozen militres of high quality Vodka (such as “Russian Standard”), which the DMT then dissolves into.
The herbs are then added to the tray or the plate and stirred extremely well! This method dries quite quickly as well - whereas, dissolving the DMT into cold ethanol just takes more time to dry. However, the result is basically the same.
A basic and standard ratio for much of the Changa that many people make is around 25% DMT content by weight. So, within 1 gram of Changa, at this strength, there is 250mg of DMT; and within 4 grams of Changa, there is 1 gram of DMT. This equates to 30 light experiences, 20 pretty decent experiences, and 10 much stronger experiences.
However, a 30% blend is of stronger, with 40-50% being very strong - equating to, or exceeding the strength of smoking freebase DMT by itself.
This standard ratio of DMT within Changa was never designed to provide a fully immersive, "out of body" hyperspatial experience - although, as most people who work with DMT know, sometimes it only takes a little to really take you there.
The point of Changa is that the high dose DMT experience is something that people may only want to visit once or a few times in their life. With Changa, people can access DMT comfortably, in a way that is likely to be beneficial, but not require days or years of defragging!
However, for that fully immersive experience, most people generally need from 50mg to even as much as 150mg DMT - and most people find this sort of amount difficult to smoke in a freebase pipe.
For that fully immersive experience via Changa, I would recommend people either quickly smoke 2-3 successive bong or pipe hits or even 1 big pipe. It just depends on how much Changa people use in their pipe cone and how refined or coarse the herbs are.
If people are NOT using a 30-50% Changa blend, I generally recommend smoking DMT through a water bong, and wedge the amount of DMT they want to smoke between a layer of Passionflower and/or finely shredded Ayahusaca vine so the lighter flame does make direct contact with the DMT. And then they simply should smoke it all in one hit. The effaciousness of the DMT is dependant on getting the most DMT to the system in the shortest amount of time!
Many people around the world, are beginning to smoke Changa through a pipe device called a "Vaporgenie" This pipe is a simple and inexpensive way to vaporise smoking herbs in a small, regular looking pipe. The result is a smoother smoke that many swear is "the way" to smoke Changa.
The primary advantage of Changa over freebase DMT, is that the MAOI’s and the other herbs work together to give a longer lasting, smoother experience - which is easier and less harsh to smoke than smoking freebase DMT.
The key herb to be used in Changa is Banisteriopsis Caapi, which should consist of at least 25% of the herbs used in order to be effective. Both leaf and vine from the plant can be used, with leaf providing a smoother, "higher" smoke and the vine itself, providing an earthier, more potent effect.
The basic theory in using Caapi is that you are making something of a smokeable Ayahuasca brew - combining the vine, the DMT and other admixture plants into a whole that works to provide a synergistic effect.
The other admixture plants in Ayahuasca brews, are typically activated by the presence of the Caapi, which by themselves, say, are often not normally so potent.
We figure that any herb used in Changa is potentised by a factor of 10, say. So the herb Mullein, a potent lung herb, normally made up as a tea; when smoked in a Changa blend, has the potential to give the most fantastic and instantaneous lung healings. This sort of healing has traditionally only been possible with ayahuasca brews.
When available, I prefer combining leaf and vine in various ratios. It is important to shred the vine finely enough so that it burns properly, although powdered vine may often be too fine when combined with other herbs.
Good vine will provide a nice afterglow after the experience has worn off, whereas, vine leaf will not normally provide this. Cielo or Yellow Ayahuasca vine is recommended, although any type of Caapi will work fine as long as it is over 3-4 years old, and thicker than a humans thumb.
So the basic theory behind Changa, is that very small amounts of smoked harmine, even in the realm of 100 micrograms to 1mg, can effect as much as a 50% MAO-A inhibition and beyond. Furthermore, it is known that Caapi extract is is 100 to 1000 fold more potent than isolated harmine as an MAO-A inhibitor. (Schwarz et al. 2003)
This MAO-A inhibition appears to occur as instantaneously, as say, the effects of smoking freebase recreational drugs such as Cocaine or Methamphetamine.
This MAO-A inhibition enables what previously would be a three minute experience to become a 15 minute experience, or even an experience lasting half an hour to an hour.
Changa has been commonly reported to consist of simply Banisteriopsis Caapi Leaf and DMT, and this recipe of course works very well and has a very smooth quality to it, but it tends to lack a certain colorful alchemy and flavour of the other admixture herbs.
Any herb or plant can be used in Changa, and many are being used by many different people around the world, in many different ratios and blends.
It should be kept in mind that the Ayahuasca element activates the herbs used, and each new herb may not have the desired effect or an unpredictable effect. As an example, we have noticed that the addition of Skullcap at 20% of the herbs used, tends to put people to sleep after smoking Changa!
So, a "classic" and "original" Changa blend, which has lasted the test of time, looks something like this:
30% Ayahuasca Vine
20% Mullein
20% Passionflower
20% Peppermint
5% Calendula
5% Blue Lotus (both these last two flowers, must be added in after combining the DMT in order to preserve their colour and texture)
Mullein can also be substituted with Coltsfoot, another powerful lung herb, which tends to have more of an expectorant quality too. This can be good for people’s lungs; but can also become a bit involved, snotty and noisy for many people! In general, I prefer Mullein, because of its fluffy consistency and more benign effect.
The Passionflower provides another MAOI imprint as well giving a nice calming, sedative effect, which counteracts and balances out the awakening and brightening effect of DMT.
The Peppermint is added to smooth out the smoke and give the blend a more pleasant taste. In fact, a good blend should be like not smoking anything at all - it is that transparent!
Calendula is a classic nurturing and all round healing flower and is added for vibrational support of its qualities.
Blue Lotus or Lily (or any of psychoactive lilys or lotuses) gives the blend a "top note", and also adds a smoother taste, and can be used to up to about 20% of the mixture.
Damiana is also another herb that can be used, adding a pleasant warmth and euphoria to the blend.
When available, Justica Pectoralis, is very nice in the Changa blend, and is effective at around 10% of the herbal content. Justica seems to have a balancing and smoothing effect upon the bodies utilisation of tryptamines, and its flowers are traditionally added to tryptamine snuffs used in the Amazon.
All the herbs should be "groomed", so that all sticks and inconsistent stems and so on are removed. A coffee grinder can be used on "burst" setting to ensure that the herbs are consistently sized. Some prefer a very fine blend, so that more can be smoked in a cone. Some prefer a more full bodied blend, with larger herbal bits and pieces.
Some have reported that small amounts of Salvia Divinorum leaf in a Changa blend brings out the best of this plant.
In regards to adding Marijuana to Changa, I generally feel this plant is best left to people's individual relationship, rather than adding it to a blend that many may partake of.
Some people have been adding small amounts of Brugmansia or Datura flowers to their blend. Interestingly, this flower is added to the Ayahuasca brews in the Amazon and is said to increase the visual aspect of the brew. Most shamans would not even consider taking this plant on its own, and consider the usage of this plant in brews something that one must be very careful with, because if you add too much, the effects can be variously undesirable, though not likely dangerously so.
Definitely, 5-MEO-DMT should not combined with MAOI's at any point, at any stage, and again, 5-MEO-DMT is quite strong enough by itself!
I am yet to be convinced that any other research chemicals or additives in a Changa like blend are useful or "better" than natural DMT.
Personally, I feel the use of Syrian Rue is an un-necessary addition, and the seeds will largely be quite unpleasant to smoke. Although friends have reported that the addition of a simple Manske extract of crystalline harmaline has additional benefits - yet this may be too strong for many people, and I have never seen why this would be necessary.
Harmine and of course, Tetrahydroharmine, from the Banisteriopsis Caapi vine, are the key alkaloids in Changa which have a wondrous synergy with DMT in low doses. Friends have been reporting very pleasant effects, by soaking or heating up a solvent (such as Acetone or Ethanol) with shredded vine and/or leaf, and then making something like an 10X Ayahuasca Leaf blend, with the alkaloids, say from, 100 grams of leaf, infused into 10 grams of leaf. Although again, many find the resulting effect to be too strong.
I use DMT from different Acacia species, such as the rather common Australia wattle trees species - Acacia Obtusifolia and Acacia Acuminata. Obtusifolia is quite strong and visual in its effect and Acuminata is more gentle and relaxed.
People from outside of Australia will generally be using Mimosa Hostilis Root Bark, although a friend said to me once, said he thought using this tree in Changa would be like "kissing your sister!"
Synthetic DMT could be used, although naturally sourced DMT we find to be richer, have a smoother and more integrated imprint of a living organism, which tends to align with our living organism and provide the most relevant informational interchange. And then, each source of DMT is entirely different, with different qualities and "teachings" - simply because each plant species has a different spirit and communication.
Changa is largely a way that makes DMT more accessible and available to people. It is not addictive, as DMT is not addictive. And it is largely safe; I have not heard of anyone running into any real trouble with it. (whereas, inexperienced and normally uninformed people can sometimes scare themselves by smoking too much pure DMT)
Some people tend to keep reaching back for it, but most people tend to not persue it on a regular basis. I feel Changa is best smoked irregularly to get the most out of it. For some, Changa remains purely recreational... yet we find that, just with DMT, it will take you deeper and deeper. Some amount of respect is required to get the most out of it, which many learn in response to using it.
My personal experience is that there is a limit to the number of times I can smoke Changa in a row, usually about 3 or 4, and after that the experience tends to experientially degrade (although it will still be working just as well), although this does not appear to be at all an issue of physical tolerance, with some people able to keep smoking for many hours on end, without any lessening of effects.
When smoking by oneself, it is good to sit up or lie down and just experience the state.
When smoking with other people, it is best to be silent and just experience the state. Although dancing or singing is highly appropriate behaviour.
For most people, the initial state will be a feeling, an expanded state of awareness, similar the state of LSD or any psychedelic.
For many, the next step into the experience, will consist of geometric patterns and colors.
Others will have visual experiences, which tend to be coherent and appear to arise from an "alien realm" rather than being a mere projection of the individual body or mind. For some people, this may involve contact with entities not ordinarily visible to the human eye. These experiences tend to be highly vivid, and possibly very transformative, representing one of the more liberating possibilities of smoking DMT.
I believe that smoking DMT in this form is particularly beneficial to the few cultures where the existence of other realms or planes of being is generally not considered "real".
The general effect of Changa is normally healing - in which the mind, the body and psyche are integrated. DMT, as a "meta-neurotransmitter", allows the transmission of more information between neurons. The mind is stilled and the body quietens, and contact with the ineffable is often bridged. All this generally works to clear the mind, align the psyche and fulfill the spirit. People are then able to get on with their lives, with more perspective and perhaps more motivation.
It is quite common for people to give us decades long addictions to Crystal Meth or Cocaine after smoking Changa for the first time. Other individual reports of benefits are quite varied and vast.
Toxic effects from taking an MAOI is generally overstated as a "danger" within the west. In rare instances, people will report feeling ill from smoking Changa, with no known MAOI contraindications. However, people who have taken MDMA or those who are taking an SSRI may wish to avoid Changa, as there is the possibility of "Seratonin Syndrome" - which occurs when the body is overwhelmed by too much seratonin, and has some very unpleasant effects and in very rare instances could be life threatening if not treated.
Changa does tend combine well with many basic psychedelic substances such as LSD and it will also help a weak Ayahuasca brew "kick in" (likely due to the MAOI's) although I would suggest people who rely on Changa for a boost to their ayahuasca experience should simply increase the amount of DMT they are using in their brews.
Smoking Changa is probably no more or less detrimental than any other form of smoking, yet I would highlight this as a possible negative aspect which people should be very well aware of.
That being said, DMT is a powerful catalyst of change. Many people will have their eyes opened in a way that they may not feel they have been prepared for. There is normally no way to go back to the previous way of viewing the world once a new way of perceiving the world has become apparent.
Changa can open people's eyes and allow them a special and novel experience - but it is over the few hours that Ayhauasca or other DMT and MAOI preparations lasts, where often the greatest amount of inner work can be carried out.
Nonetheless, this DMT preparation is indeed quite special, and represents a user friendly medium which allow access to visionary states of great personal value and the medicinal power of plant alchemy.
- "The Chocolate Beast"
