Understanding Ayahuasca Analogs & Alternatives: Why I Prefer Soma Over Ayahuasca
DISCLAIMER: The plants and compounds mentioned in this post are illegal in many countries, and even possession can carry severe criminal penalties. None of this post constitutes medical advice or should be construed as a recommendation to use psychedelics. There are serious legal, psychological, and physical risks. Psychedelics are not for everyone—they can exacerbate certain emotional problems, and there have been, in very rare cases, fatalities.Hi, I'm Adrian Baker, a meditation and psychedelic preparation and integration coach. In this blog post, I want to delve into the fascinating world of Ayahuasca and fundamentally similar medicines such as Soma: a combination of Peganum Harmala (Syrian Rue; Esphand) with a DMT source.
Through this discussion, I aim to my offer my perspective on the similarities and differences between these two powerful medicines and to explain why I now prefer working with Soma over the traditional Ayahuasca brew.
If you're curious about this topic, feel free to check out my accompanying YouTube video where I delve deeper into these topics.
What is an Ayahuasca Analog?
Let's first clarify what an Ayahuasca analog is. Ayahuasca is a psychedelic brew, traditionally made from a combination of the Banisteriopsis Caapi vine and the Chacruna plant. The indigenous cultures in South America who brought forth this wisdom speak of Ayahuasca in both medicinal and spiritual terms.
The caapi vine contains harmala alkaloids, mainly harmine and harmaline, which are critical for making the DMT in Chacruna orally active. These alkaloids are also believed to offer numerous healing benefits by these indigenous cultures. My own view, in describing my subjective experience (not based on scientific data) is that the harmala alkaloids are critical to the medicinal properties of Ayahuasca and Soma.
An Ayahuasca analog, therefore, is a combination of different plants that contain the same basic compounds. Typically, this involves one plant rich in beta-carbolines (like Peganum Harmala, known as Syrian Rue) and another plant that provides a DMT source (this could be Chacruna, or other sources of DMT such as various forms of Acacia).
The Composition and Effects of Soma
As I learned about Soma through the facilitators with whom I work, Soma is in this context is an Ayhausaca analog, defined as a combination of Peganum Harmala (Syrian Rue) and a DMT-containing plant like Chacruna or various forms of acacia.
Please note: I am not making the assertion that this particular combination of plants is the composition of the famed entheogenic brew “Soma” from the Rig Veda. I am using this term because this is what the facilitators who introduced these medicines to me called it. Why they chose this term can be explored in another post.
Some practitioners also use Syrian Rue with psilocybin, but I personally distinguish between the two experiences, for in my experience, psilocybin and DMT offer different somatic and subjective experiences.
Soma mirrors the composition of compounds in traditional Ayahuasca, offering a fundamentally similar experience through the same sentient intelligence that facilitates healing.
Benefits of Peganum Harmala
Switching to Peganum Harmala (PH) has offered several benefits. The substance is easier to drink, less thick, and 20 to 30 times stronger, meaning a much smaller quantity is needed. Moreover, it feels lighter on the body, providing a more natural and better-suited experience for my body and mind.
Nausea is a common issue with Ayahuasca, and diet plays a crucial role in mitigating this. Consuming plain, simple, and healthy food, while avoiding chilies, garlic, and onions, helps prevent nausea. Sensitivity to beta-carbolines in the brew also contributes to nausea, and such sensitivity can vary substantially from one individual to another.
In my experience, it is much easier to mitigate issues of nausea with Soma relative to Ayahuasca. Not only is it easier to drink, but one can capsulize the raw seed of PH and avoid the taste entirely.
Another considerable benefit to working with Syrian Rue is that there are sustainability concerns with the caapi vine, given the strong global demand outside of the Amazon for Ayahuasca. Therefore, Syrian Rue could offer an attractive substitute for these sustainability reasons as well.
Purging vs. Persistent Nausea
It's important to make a distinction between purging and persistent nausea. Purging can be a vital part of the healing process facilitated by these substances. However, in my view, persistent nausea is not, and it often indicates issues like dietary incompatibility or excess beta-carboline consumption. It's crucial to listen to your body and adjust your diet and beta carboline levels to prevent persistent nausea, which detracts from the healing journey.
I cultivated insight into the proper beta carboline dosage for me personally through working with PH by itself. I have found great benefit in working with PH by itself.
I will repeat here: none of this is to be construed as medical advice. I am simply sharing my personal experience, knowing that many people are already working with these medicines or will do so anyways in the future. I offer this perspective as it may contribute to harm reduction and a safer and smoother experience that adults are choosing to undertake on their own.
Concluding Thoughts
Let me underscore: I am not asserting that Soma is “better” than Ayhausca, or that Peganum Harmala is categorically better than the caapi vine. In my opinion, Soma and Ayahuasca are similar medicines. Some people who have trouble with Ayahuasca may have a better experience with Soma instead.
In my view, it is evident that the same sentient intelligence is present in both Ayahuasca and Soma. However, as someone seeking a sustainable relationship with this medicine, I prefer Peganum Harmala combined with a DMT source over the traditional vine. This is just a glimpse into my experience with Soma and why it suits me better than Ayahuasca.
For a more detailed explanation and personal insights, please watch my YouTube video.
If you have any comments or questions about Peganum Harmala or Soma, feel free to leave them in the comment section of the video. Thank you for reading!
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