Jungle Fever: Smoking Paraphernalia & Legal Highs

Herbal smoking is growing in popularity and is currently enjoyed by many people around the world. This legal activity requires the smoker to inhale the fumes of various herbs as they are burned. The inhaling is done through pipes and bongs, sometimes called chillums, or through filled and rolled cigarette papers. In addition to pipes and bongs, herbal-high vaporisers are used by people who are sensitive to smoke. Vaporizers are also used for inhalation therapy, when treating respiratory illnesses, such as asthma.

Generally, the herbs consumed in herbal smoking are legal to possess. A herbal high is pleasant, and much less intense and brief than a cannabis-induced high. Herbs that are used for legal smoking are also commonly used in teas and often in cooking. Some of the herbs used in herbal smoking to achieve legal highs are hops, salvia divinorum, chamomile, ginseng, damiana, wild dagga, kava kava, passionflower, and there are more. When herbs are combined, smokers often use a substance called mugwort powder that acts as binding material to hold together the mixture. The herbs are then put into the pipe, bong or chillum, where they are lit and smoked.

Many of these herbs come from Hawaii and Mexico, where they are grown. However, no matter what the country or area of origin is these herbs can be purchased over the Internet. Herbs, bongs, rolling paper, instructions for smoking and all the information you can possibly need for obtaining a legal herbal high can be found online.

The chillum is a thin, long funnel, usually made of clay, wood, glass or stone and is used for smoking tobacco and other legal herbs. The most essential component of the chillum is the filtering stone, without which the herbs will fall in the user’s mouth; many people also use a cloth to hold the chillum as it can get very hot and become difficult to hold.

Because of its elongated shape, the chillum is probably the hardest to clean of all smoking accessories; it is also hard to clean because it is one piece and the stem cannot be separated from the bowl. Despite the difficulties, however, chillum users have to clean the chillum often, and thoroughly, in order to produce a safe and enjoyable legal high.

To clean the chillum, take a toothpick and first remove the large pieces of debris and the big clumps that are stuck in the chillum bowl. Wooden toothpicks are preferable to metal knives or other metal tools because although toothpicks are small and working with them is painstaking, metal is abrasive and it can easily scratch the surface of the chillum. After you loosen the debris with the toothpick, gently tap the chillum on a surface to release the dirt; this process should be repeated until the chillum is clean. Use a pipe cleaner – the kind that is often used in arts and crafts – to clean the body of the chillum even more thoroughly and to dislodge pieces of the herbs that may have become more firmly embedded.

The next step is to pour isopropyl alcohol into a receptacle and to soak your chillum in it for at least two hours; then rinse the chillum under cold water to wash off the alcohol. After you have let the chillum dry completely it is ready for your next herbal smoking experience.

Smoking accessories now come in so many varieties to make smoking herbs most enjoyable and satisfying. These variations are not only come in type but also in the materials used. Two of the familiar tools used are pipes and chillums.

Pipes are masterpieces which are traditionally carved from hardwood. This handmade art comes in many forms and styles. It is sometimes accessorised with stone bowls and has a plastic mouthpiece and tar remover.

A quality pipe should have thickness that suits its size and it should be without cracks. The reciprocal size-to-thickness of a pipe is essential in keeping the smoke cool. The position of the hole within the bowl and the swiftness of the mouthpiece in getting moist are the other characteristics that distinguish a quality pipe.

Chillums are a cone-shaped tool that has a bowl on one end and a hole that is drilled across its length. Similar to pipes, it is also made of wood, although a chillum can be made from medium to hard varieties of wood. Chillums were traditionally used by Hindus for spiritual purposes. It is imperative that chillums be of good quality and be properly maintained, otherwise they can cause grave damage to the lungs.

In terms of getting high, pipes and chillums differ in this aspect. Whereas pipes will require a lot of passing and toking for users before they get “there,” chillums give-off full-bodied smoke which enables herb-users to get high quickly.

A tip for those who will purchase their pipes and chillums for the first time: Don’t go for those that look really good. Tools like these are meant to be shown-off and not burned. Go for the quality tools that will surely serve their purpose of helping you get comfortable.

A chillum is cone-shaped pipe used as smoking paraphernalia. For those who are interested in purchasing a chillum, here is the lowdown on this important accessory.

Chillums are made from a cow’s horn and are used by people who want to have a smoother, mellower smoking experience. Its body is short, ensuring that all smoke you inhale is still hot. Hot smoke doesn’t adhere as much to the lungs, thereby lessening the effects of whatever you smoke on your brain.

Chillums were used in the past during rituals where herbal highs were attained for relaxation and meditation purposes. Indian Sadhus and Rastas used them particularly to eliminate the harmful side effects brought on by the herb’s strength in their raw form.

Materials like herbal mixtures or tobacco – or even a mixture of both – are ground and placed in the bowl. The chillum’s mouthpiece is gripped by both hands so that it acts as an extension of the pipe. A person inhales in a way that his mouth doesn’t touch the mouthpiece and instead he breathes using his cupped hands. Though etiquette in smoking through a chillum is not practiced these days, it used to be an important part of ancient Indian and South American cultures wherein violating etiquette resulted in clan wars.

The first man-made chillums were made of wood, stone, and fired clay. The earliest evidence of their existence was found in South America as well as in India.

The smoking of herbal mixtures or tobacco can be done in several ways. Traditionally, these herbs are rolled into a piece of paper, but now there are several types of smoking paraphernalia available on the market. Vaporizers, pipes and chillums are examples of these types of paraphernalia that are distributed legally, especially on the Internet.

A chillum, also spelled as chilam, is basically a pipe used by the new religious movement, Rastafari, the holy Indian Sadhu, and by several recreational drug users in the smoking of herbal mixtures, tobacco and other substances. In the 18th century, Sadhus who practised yoga and aimed for ‘moksha’, or liberation, used chillums for smoking herbs during their meditation. They renounced the three basic goals in the life of a Hindu – karma, or enjoyment; arthma, or practical objectives; and dharma, or duty. The Rastafarians, on the other hand, use chillums as chalices for their ceremonies and reasoning sessions. Gratitude and praise are given to their God, Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia, before they consume the content of the chillum.

A chillum is a conical pipe, which is usually made out of a cow’s horn, glass, clay, wood, or stone. There is a ‘stone’ or stick that is placed inside the cone. The gap of the stone from the top is where the herb is placed. Chillums can be used in public where smoking of cannabis is legal.

There are several available designs and styles of chillums, which are made artistically and creatively. The Internet is the best way to get a chillum; different styles are offered at varying prices.