External hallucination
External hallucinations occur as imagined visual concepts and occurrences which display themselves seamlessly into the external environment as if they were actually happening. They can be broken down into 3 basic levels:
- Erratic hallucinations - The lowest level of hallucination generally consists of visual snow and static, movement in the peripheral vision, and/or ill-defined, fleeting hallucinations which disappear once a person double takes.
- Vaguely defined hallucinations - At this level the hallucinations are visible within one's direct line of sight but are not fully defined in their appearance. This means that although visible, they do not look completely detailed and are often blurry or semi-translucent with little if any colour.
- Partially defined hallucinations - At this level the hallucinations increase into a high enough amount of detail and vividness to extend beyond transparent, colourless or blurry manifestations. However, they still remain unconvincing and do not quite live of to the detail of completely realistic and convincing hallucinations.
- Fully defined hallucinations - As the vividness and intensity increases, the trip eventually becomes comprised of completely realistic and static hallucinations. These are generally considered by those who have experienced them to be completely convincing in their appearance.
The more unfamiliar with the external environment one is, the more this effect will be likely to manifest itself. Cluttered areas also tend to produce more external hallucinations. As far as lighting goes, either a dark or dim room is optimum. Darkness produces much more hallucinations but the light present in a dim room will make you see less (though more detailed) hallucinations.
Settings
At level 4 - 5, hallucinations consistently manifest themselves within the essential subcomponent of imagined landscapes, locations and sceneries of an infinite variety. These exist for the purpose of acting as the setting in which the plot of the hallucination occurs. These landscape can often act as something which is flown over at high speeds or experienced through the hallucination of autonomous entities which directly manipulates what one can see and view. The geography of these settings is capable of rendering itself as static and coherent in organization but will usually result manifest as a non-linear, nonsensical and continuously ever-changing layout which does not obey the rules of everyday physics. In terms of the chosen locations, appearance and style of these settings, they seem to be selected at random and are often entirely new and previously unseen locations. They do however play a heavy emphasis on replicating and combining real life locations stored within the tripper's memories, especially those which are prominent within one's life and daily routine. Aside from this they commonly include:
planetary systems, galaxies, quasars, jungles, rain forests, deserts, ice-scapes, cities, natural environments, caves, space habitats, vast structures, civilizations, technological utopias, ruins, machinescapes, rooms and other indoor environments, neurons, DNA, atoms, molecules, mitochondria, incomprehensible geometry based landscapes and more.
Perspectives
In terms of the perspective in which the hallucinations are perceived through, just like literary plots, these too can be experienced through four alternate vantage points which are described and listed below.
- 1st person - This is the most common form of perspective and can be described as the perfectly normal experience of perceiving the scenario from the perspective of one's everyday self and body.
- 2nd person - This can be described as the experience of perceiving the hallucination from the perspective of an external source of consciousness such as another person, an animal or an inanimate object.
- 3rd person - This is essentially an out-of-body experience and can be described as perceiving the hallucination from a perspective which is floating above, below, behind, or in front of one's physical body.
- 4th person - This the least common form of perspective and can be described as the experience of perceiving the hallucination from the perspective of multiple or even infinite vantage points simultaneously.
Scenarios
Each of the above components are randomly shuffled and spliced into any number of an infinite variety of potential plots and scenarios. These may be positive or negative to experience and are difficult to define in a comprehensive manner in much the same way that we cannot predict the plot of abstract literature and films. They can however be broken down into extremely basic occurrences which generally entail visiting some sort of setting or a number of them which contain within them interactive, multiple, or autonomous entities. Alongside of these, completely unpredictable plot devices and events force the tripper to become involved within the specific scenario of the particular trip.
These scenarios and plots can be linear and logical with events that occur in a rational sequence which lead onto each other events through cause and effect. They are equally likely however to present themselves as completely nonsensical and incoherent. This means that the plot will occur with spontaneous events which are capable of ending, starting and changing between each other repeatedly in quick succession and as they please. The plots themselves can either be entirely new experiences that are unlike anything experienced within the real world, they can be old experiences such as accurate memory replays or a combination of the two.
In terms of the amount of time in which they are experienced, hallucinatory plots and scenarios usually feel as if they are being experienced in real-time. This means that when 20 seconds have been felt to have passed within the hallucination, the exact same amount of time will have passed in the real world. At other points, however, distortions of time can make themselves present, resulting in plots and scenarios that can feel as if they literally last days, weeks, months, years, or even infinitely long periods of time.
Variations
- Lucid vs. Delirious - Hallucinatory states can maintain a consistent level of awareness throughout them regarding the fact that none of these event are really happening and that the current situation is simply a result of drug-induced hallucination. In contrast to this, hallucinations can also become completely believable no matter how nonsensical they may be in exactly the same way that we do not have any problem accepting absurd and non-linear plots within our dreams.
- Interactive vs. Fixed – Hallucinatory states can either present themselves as completely separate in a manner that is similar to watching a video play out in front of one's field of vision or they can be completely interactive. For example, conversing with autonomous entities or interacting with imagined objects in a fashion similar to lucid dreaming is entirely possible.
- New experiences vs. Memory replays – In terms of their subject matter, hallucinations can either be entirely new experiences that or they can follow themes of normal every day concepts and a replaying of specific memories.
- Controllable vs. Autonomous – Imagery and hallucinations can be partially to completely controllable. This can be described as the content of their appearance always seeming to follow and fit the general topic and subject matter of one's current thought stream. In contrast, autonomous hallucinations are completely spontaneous in their subject matter and entirely uncontrollable.
- Geometry based vs. Solid – Hallucinations can appear as completely separate and distinct from accompanying geometry or they can be comprised of and embedded within it.