When the Azarius website was created, way back in 1999, one of the first projects we embarked upon was to create an encyclopedia of all the products we were selling, as well as some psychoactives we didn't sell but were relevant to our customers (for example LSD). Because Wikipedia didn't exist yet, we consulted various books, including the Encyclopedia of Psychoactive Plants by Christian Rätsch. We also regularly consulted the excellent website www.erowid.org.
In this article, we will give a short overview of what you can find in the encyclopedia, as of November 2011.
First of all, the encyclopedia can be found at this web address:
http://azarius.net/encyclopedia/
As you can see, the encyclopedia has the following categories:
- Herbs
- Plants & Seeds
- Mushrooms
- Natural substances
- Synthetics
- Guides
- Files
- Growing
- Vaporizing
- Culture
- Psychonauts
Herbs
These articles include an entry on Cannabis, some herbs that are no longer available (Ephedra, Kava, Yohimbe, Khat and Sida cordifolia), and popular herbs like Damiana, Ginseng, Guarana, Catmint, Kola nut and Wormwood.
Plants & Seeds
Here you'll find entries on potent natural psychedelics such as the Peyote and San Pedro cactus, Hawaiian Baby Woodrose, Ololiuqui and Morning glory seeds, Ayahuasca and Salvia divinorum, as well as articles on Coca leaves and Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa).
Mushrooms
In this category we've included an interesting article on the Fly Agaric or Amanita muscaria (one of the mushrooms that in 2008 was banned in the Netherlands, so no longer available in our webshop), Magic truffles (sclerotia) which are still available, Psilocybe cubensis or magic mushrooms, which were also banned, but can still be grown using a simple grow kit.
Natural substances
Here you'll find articles on natural, but not necessarily legal, substances such as 5-HTP, opium, caffeine, and the psychedelics DMT, mescaline, LSA, ibogaine, psilocin and psilocybin.
Synthetics
These substances are illegal all over the world but will be encountered in many a nightclub and at various festivals. These include LSD, MDMA (Ecstasy), ketamine, GHB, methamphetamine (speed), DXM and mephedrone.
Guides
A variety of user guides. The MAOI guide is referenced throughout our website, especially in the sections dealing with ayahuasca, a brew from the Amazon basin that contains a natural MAO inhibitor. Also referenced in various places is the guide titled Using psychedelics safely, which is recommended reading for any new psychonaut. Other guides deal with the growing of cacti, the use of a bong, chillum or herb grinder. Guides we added recently are those on sex (discussing various natural aphrodisiacs), weight loss, after party & detox (how to quickly recuperate from a wild night or weekend), and the ultimate party guide: Party hard!
Files
In this category, we've included two files. On the page titled What are psychedelics? you can download a PDF file giving a description of these substances: DMT, LSA, LSD, mescaline and psilocybin. On the other page, titled Shrooms - legal status you can read about the current law in the Netherlands. Here you'll find an explanation of why shrooms are officially illegal, but truffles and grow kits are still being sold in Dutch shops.
Growing
This category is specifically about growing cannabis, either outdoors or under lights (using the Sea of Green or the Screen of Green method. This category also discusses the new autoflowering cannabis strains and provides a practical overview of the various cannabis seeds (Sativa, Indica, Ruderalis, haze, skunk, feminized etc.).
Vaporizing
Here you'll find two short articles on vaporizers and medicinal cannabis, with links to relevant web pages.
Culture
This is a category where we're discussing various aspects of the "Archaic Revival" that started in the late fifties and early sixties and continues to this day. An interesting read is the article titled The Internet and the psychedelic community, but you might also enjoy reading the entries on shamanism, entheogens, the psychedelic trance culture, and the so-called "War on Drugs".
Psychonauts
In this category, we pay tribute to some of the most important authors and researchers in this field. As time goes on we'll add more entries here. For now, you can read about the lives and writings of Ann and Alexander Shulgin, Albert Hofmann, Stanislav Grof, Alex and Allyson Grey, and the brothers Dennis and Terence McKenna.
We hope you find these pages interesting. We certainly had a great time compiling them!
