Acoustic tonal driving of the DMT state - some reflections

[Bancopuma]

Hi All,

After recently attending and participating in All Things Fungi Festival, I crossed paths with Bruce Parry, and got to hangout with him and chat extensively at the festival, and following it. Bruce is a former Royal Marines commando, explorer, trek leader, Indigenous rights activist and documentarian, best known for his work on the BBC series Tribe (referred to as Going Tribal in the US). In one particular episode, who spends time with the Sanema, an Indigenous Amazonian tribal group in Venezuela. A central practice of this group is shamanic use of epená, a psychedelic snuff derived from the sap of a species of Virola, which harbours DMT and 5-MeO-DMT as its primary psychoactive ingredients. One of the supplementary practices that the group use to drive and expand the psychedelic state induced by the snuff is this tonal vocalising. Bruce described the sounds of their vocalising as not being particularly melodious, but that they would seem to systematically hum and tone using different parts of their sinus and airways. Due to being highly inebriated at the time, it took Bruce some time to figure out one of the group members was offering him to "borrow" his particular "song". Under the influence of the snuff, Bruce found that this practice of toning catapulted this psychedelic state to a whole new level. Bruce described entering a space of white light that he seemed to be sharing with the other members of the group ingesting the snuff and tonally vocalising.

This really caught my interest, as in my own explorations I have found that tonal vocalising or attempting throat singing has a significant potentiating effect on the DMT state. The first time time I discovered this was an LSDMT experience, vaping some DMT while on LSD on a fine's summer's day while sitting by a stream in the woods. Initially my friend and I were apprehensive about taking the plunge with the DMT, but we needn't have worried, as having one foot in the psychedelic realm via the LSD made the transition to DMT space much less jarring than it can be when vaping it from sober. My friend went first, and he started vocalising, doing some tonal throat singing. (It turns out a large interdimensional cuttlefish had appeared, enveloping him in its tentacles, which freaked him out, until it made its intent clear psychically that it came in peace and was merely curious). He suggested I tried it when it was my turn, and after initially feeling a bit sheepish, I started to tone, and very quickly I started to get results. The tonal throat singing started to rapidly shift, sculpt and expand the architecture of the DMT state. Not only this, but it allowed me to exert some degree of control and influence over the state, rather than being a passive observer or experiencer of all that was unfolding. Instead it was like the toning gave you a little space pod with which to explore the DMT space. It was interesting to experience the direct biofeedback the DMT state provided when toning, which would shift rapidly in response to the different tones being hummed. The toning also feels really good. The LSDMT experience was utterly beautiful and blissful, and the feeling after the DMT and throat singing session was one of very deep peace, serenity, contentment and refreshment.

This was just the first of many experiences where throat/tonal singing was used to augment and expand the DMT space. One of my more recent experiences took place at a wonderful spot by a river in Mexico one night with a good friend. This tonal throat singing was also found to powerfully synergise with ayahuasca (and pharmahuasca) and psilocybin mushrooms (but less so with other psychedelics such as LSD). I recall one experience with a high dose of liberty cap mushrooms where my friend's throat singing spilled over into the architecture of my experience (but self-generated tones are more potent). It might be possible to further refine one's game with the tonal throat singing by mastering overtone singing. Anyway I thought I would share this in case it might be of interest to any other psychonauts should they wish to experiment with this. I would also be interested to hear from anyone who is also acquainted with this practice about how it has influenced their own explorations. For an example of the kind of thing to aim for, check this out.

 

[Nydex]

Wonderful! I've heard about people using chants and humming during psychedelic experiences to modulate them. I think the first time I read about it was in True Hallucinations where Dennis McKenna started making that highly-pitched robotic noise while very inebriated on psilocybin mushrooms deep in the jungle in La Chorrera. Ever since I read that, my interest has been spiked.

Now with you reminding me of this, I'll make a mental note to experiment a bit during my future voyages. It will also be a convenient opportunity to deal with the fact that I never really liked my voice much. A moment of deep reflection on that might steer me in the right direction of acceptance and more self-love.

Could you please expand on the nature of the sounds that you've found work best? What pitch, what kind of patterns or durations? Do you have a link to something on YT that closely resembles what you've had success with?

Thanks for sharing, always lovely to see stuff from you. Much love

 

[northape]

Singing Kirtan is a norm for my ceremonies nowadays. I used to cast myself into deep waters and chant mantras to come back to the surface. From what I saw, it works wonders to rebalance the system and get out of some sketchy territory. My whole medicine journey changed for the better when I started singing.

@Nydex, I don't sing well and have some minor speech impairments. Just pronouncing the sounds the right way with the help of the medicine was healing for me in a number of ways. Plants like to teach you how to sing, too. They showed me how to pronounce Om the right way, and it was fun. I can't imagine a ceremony without singing at this point.

Much love

 

[blig-blug]

I'll have to eventually try it. So far, the two times I tried it was more like an awful groan, I wasn't really able to in that state. And usually I can throat sing passable sygyt and kargyraa.

I don't have any good reference right now, but as I understand it, deep resonant singing stimulates the vagal nerve. So maybe that could be one of the mechanisms involved.

 

[Transform]

I've tried it now and then and these resonant vocalisations most assuredly have an effect on various aspects of the experience. I've only ever done it instinctively, as opposed to systematically, but for me the idea itself will have been primed from various sources.

The term "singing to the plants" doesn't exist for nothing!

 

[northape]

The thing is, plants are quite unique and respond to different vocalizations. Some are fine with normal singing, and others like something in the Icaro style.

You need to adapt to your particular medicine. If you have difficulty singing, Acacia is very good at opening the space for it. It's not a plant for a long-term relationship, but it has quite a few beneficial lessons to teach. You can always start with simple humming and maybe sing a few bija-mantras like Om, Ah, Hung (hoong) from the Tantric tradition.

Ram (raam) is an easy mantra and invokes wisdom fire energy that will burn everything resisting your evolution.
Simple well-known mantras could be the next step:

Om Mani Padme Hung
Om Namah Shivaya
Shri Ram Jai Ram Jai Jai Ram

Throat singing is beyond my current level. Maybe someday.
Just sing; it's simpler than you think.

All the best

 

[universecannon]

Ramping up the acoustics in sequence first before vocalizing or throat singing seems to work well with LSD and a bit of DMT on top. Particularly high frequency choir music on decent speakers (not headphones), followed by a quartz singing bowl.

I think our ancestors might have intentionally implemented a ladder of increasingly high frequency sympathetic resonance to pull psychedelic states into far greater coherence

Now if only I could figure out how to do circular breathing

 

[Jamie01]

Also one thing I notice is breathing can start to be more like purring from the back of the throat. I have heard other people do it in videos of 5-MeO-DMT trips.

 

[Bancopuma]

@Nydex - yes I recall the McKenna brothers experimenting with sound while deeply bemushroomed in the Amazon (there may have also been some B. caapi in the mix too I think), and I think their use of sound had a significant potentiating effect on their experiences. And they and other deep water psychonauts have also reported hearing insect like tones and clicks and other sounds in the deep tryptamine space. This clip demonstrating overtone singing I think provides a good demonstration of what to aim for, although this person is obviously somewhat experienced - and you certainly don't need to be able to perform overtone singing to make this work, attempts at simple throat singing/toning should yield results. A nice thing about doing this though is that while in the DMT/ayahuasca/mushroom space, it will likely feel a lot more intuitive than doing it from the sober state, as the psychedelic state will give you direct feedback on how your toning is sculpting the architecture of your experience. But feel free to experiment however you wish.

Another possible option might be to experiment with the Hu chant. The religious organisation Eckankar (considered by some to be a cult) has the chanting of Hu as one if its central practices, which they believe attunes you to God, and this is open to people of all faiths (or no faiths). It's simple to do, a demonstration of this chant can be found here, and a recording of thousands of people chanting it together can be found here.

@blig-blug, I think it would definitely be worth experimenting with, especially if you already have throat singing experience. If you're not really feeling it on DMT, then it should also work on ayahuasca/pharmahuasca or psilocybin mushrooms. I shared these musings on a Psychonaut community group on Reddit, and someone replied that what is occurring here might be the result of frequency following response (FFR), and that it is more than just the sound, but also the vibration itself influencing the neurons making up the brain and spine.

@northape, that's really interesting to hear of your use of chanting kirtan and mantras to go deep and return from the depths. I don't have any experience of kirtan (yet) but it has popped up a few times of late, and I would definitely like to have a go sometime soon.

@Transform, yes instinctive toning is definitely something that has cropped up for myself, my aforementioned friend, the McKenna brothers and others. But I also feel this toning can be applied as a means of modulating consciousness in these altered states.

@universecannon, interesting, thanks for sharing. I do wonder if certain practices or doing this in certain locations with good acoustics that allow for greater resonance could amplify this effect in interesting ways.

@Jamie01, interesting, yes this phenomenon does also crop up on 5-MeO-DMT for some people. Curiously, this third eye meditation technique makes use of a similar purring sound/vibration at the back of one's throat as an anchor for awareness during meditation (for a demonstration, check out 5:00 minutes in on the linked clip). A similar practice is intentionally used in yogic pranayama, referred to as ujjayi breathing.

 

[Nydex]

Thanks for sending those links, I'll bookmark them and practice a bit.

A nice thing about doing this though is that while in the DMT/ayahuasca/mushroom space, it will likely feel a lot more intuitive than doing it from the sober state, as the psychedelic state will give you direct feedback on how your toning is sculpting the architecture of your experience. But feel free to experiment however you wish.

Not only will the direct feedback make it more intuitive, but being in the psychedelic state of mind also removes all of these little foolish insecurities that many people have. The tone and cadence of my voice is one of my insecurities, and I know exploring it deeper will unlock the healing for me. As @Koduckushi likes to say, "the only way out is through"

 

[northape]

A similar practice is intentionally used in yogic pranayama, referred to as ujjayi breathing.

Ujjayi breathing is a good technique to relax the body, warm it up, and get past nausea. I used it for all of these a number of times over the years. And you can use it as an object of meditation, as you mentioned.

Not only will the direct feedback make it more intuitive, but being in the psychedelic state of mind also removes all of these little foolish insecurities that many people have. The tone and cadence of my voice is one of my insecurities, and I know exploring it deeper will unlock the healing for me. As @Koduckushi likes to say, "the only way out is through"

In my experience, I needed to consciously work past my insecurities and blocks, but it was possible to do so, and I received sufficient guidance. Your voice changes on the medicine, and it becomes easier to modulate it even further. Locking onto a specific frequency could indeed lead into some interesting states. Sound could also be the red thread to get out of any mind loops.

 

[Nydex]

Ujjayi breathing is a good technique to relax the body, warm it up, and get past nausea

Do you think this particular breathing technique affects some neural pathway that reduces nausea specifically, or is the effect a proxy of your body and mind relaxing?

 

[northape]

Do you think this particular breathing technique affects some neural pathway that reduces nausea specifically, or is the effect a proxy of your body and mind relaxing?

I think it activates the vagus nerve. Ujjayi is the same breathing you can hear when someone is sleeping. It is this oceanic hum that people and other animals make (not snoring, hehe). So, it is the sound of relaxation. That is a good way to look at it.

Ujjayi breathing is widely recognized as a direct method for stimulating the vagus nerve, which in turn activates the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), or the "rest and digest" mode

 

[Nydex]

I can see it hitting the vagus, but I didn't know vagus stimulation decreased nausea. That's interesting, as there are quite a few ways to stimulate the vagus, meaning we might be much more well-equipped to deal with nausea than I thought.

 

[northape]

I can see it hitting the vagus, but I didn't know vagus stimulation decreased nausea. That's interesting, as there are quite a few ways to stimulate the vagus, meaning we might be much more well-equipped to deal with nausea than I thought.

When a nausea wave hits, one can use Ujjayi with as sharp a focus on it as possible. It will be like a meditation and will put your mind away from the nausea.
Relaxation is a bonus. I don't know if vagus activity plays any role there. AI tells me it does

At least, that's how I used it with good results

 

[blig-blug]

@blig-blug, I think it would definitely be worth experimenting with, especially if you already have throat singing experience. If you're not really feeling it on DMT, then it should also work on ayahuasca/pharmahuasca or psilocybin mushrooms. I shared these musings on a Psychonaut community group on Reddit, and someone replied that what is occurring here might be the result of frequency following response (FFR), and that it is more than just the sound, but also the vibration itself influencing the neurons making up the brain and spine.

I will try again at some point for sure. When I attempted to do it it was always with aya/pharma. I think the reasons I can't do it well in that state are idiosyncratic psychological reasons (feeling of unsafety), not the experience itself. So with patience I think at some point I'll be able to.

I didn't know vagus stimulation decreased nausea

This review about the influence of the vagus seems good. I haven't finished reading it yet. Vagus Nerve as Modulator of the Brain–Gut Axis in Psychiatric and Inflammatory Disorders - PMC

 

[Transform]

yes instinctive toning is definitely something that has cropped up for myself, my aforementioned friend, the McKenna brothers and others. But I also feel this toning can be applied as a means of modulating consciousness in these altered states.

I completely agree with you on this point! This one is earmarked for particular attention in future experiences. Fortunately, my repertoire of 'bizarre' vocalisations has been built up over the past couple of decades and your thread here makes a welcome impetus to explore things further.

(I often practice throat-singing in the shower while in a baseline state [or what comes closest to it, in my case].)

 

[blig-blug]

@Transform I like to harmonize to the microwave hum

 

[northape]

@Transform I like to harmonize to the microwave hum

It brings to memory one ceremony in the city, where DMT hit so hard that I needed to unplug all electrical devices in the house. Everything started to make a high-pitched sound. From that time, I've become very sensitive to all electrical noise. The same thing happened with small LED lamps. Blue LEDs in devices are an abomination

 

[Transform]

@Transform I like to harmonize to the microwave hum

When I was a tiny kid I would sing along to all sorts of mechanical noises. The vacuum cleaner was a firm favorite - it was especially fun to make my head vibrate by singing slightly out of tune and creating a beat frequency.

I would also gnash my teeth along with scissors while someone was cutting with them. This rapidly became inviable in the presence of other children outside of my home. It kind of makes one wonder what children might create if it weren't for the social conformity pressures that, frankly, made my life a misery about 50% of the time.