Salvia is a genus of plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. Salvia is a consciousness-changing herb that can be used in a vision quest, or in a healing ritual. Salvia is also illegal for Military Personnel as it goes against AFI Regulation. The genus name Salvia is derived from the Latin salvare, meaning to heal or to save. If salvia is smoked the main effects are experienced quickly.

Opinions range from veneration of the plant as a spiritual sacrament or a gift from the gods to the idea of it as a dangerous threat to society, needing to be banned as quickly as possible in order to spare countless families the horror of losing a loved one to the relentless tentacles of drug abuse In a major ABC news report aired on July 11, 2007, the anchors are seen to exchange expressions of incredulity when referring to a salvia story with the following introduction: "Now an exclusive I-Team investigation of a hallucinogenic drug that has begun to sweep the nation.

Salvia occurs in nature, whereas LSD is a synthesized drug. The potency of a drug is defined as how much of the substance is required to achieve therapeutic effects. So if it takes 1 mg of a drug to cause an effect orally and 10 mg of another drug to cause an effect, the first is said to have '10 times the potency' of the second. There is no way to compare the 'power' of different drugs reliably.

Effects will come on within one or two minutes, reach their peak after 5-10 minutes and then gradually subside. The duration is much shorter than for some other more well known psychedelics; the effects of smoked salvia typically last for only a few minutes. The most commonly reported after-effects include an increased feeling of insight and improved mood, and a sense of calmness and increased sense of connection with nature though much less often it may also cause dysphoria (unpleasant or uncomfortable mood).

Many people find that untreated dried salvia leaf produces unnoticeable or only light effects. It may be taken diluted with water just before use, which may slightly reduce the intensity of its effects, but can also serve to lessen or avoid a stinging sensation in the mouth caused by the presence of alcohol.

Extracts reduce the overall amount of smoke that needs to be inhaled, thus facilitating more powerful experiences. The rise of the Internet since the 1990s has seen the growth of many businesses selling live salvia plants, dried leaves, extracts, and other preparations. Dosage for smoking typical 5x extract: Light: 1/20 to 1/10th of a gram Medium: 1/15th to 1/6th of a gramHeavy:1/8th to 1/4 of a gram. For more powerful extracts scale your dosage up according with a light 5x dose being a medium 10x dose.