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Nymphaea caerulea, the blue lotus or Ninfa, is the psychoactive plant of the old egyptians. It has no really narcotic properties but rather neuroleptic and vitalizing actions. The flowers were pickled in wine. In egypt-collections (like the art-historic-museum KHM in vienna) you find a vast number of steles, reliefs and artifacts displaying lotus-flowers, together with other psychoactive plants like mandrake and poppy. The blue lotus is known to relieve pain, increase memory and circulation, promote sexual desire, create feelings of well-being, euphoria and ecstasy. The active alkaloid is Aporphine which acts as 5-HT1A partial agonist, 5-HT7-antagonist and a dopamine-D1/D2-antagonist, which explains its hypnotic, sedative, anti-spasmodic effect and opiate-like intoxication. In China the use of pistils and seeds from the white lotus (Nymphaea lotus) as tea (in asia- stores) is a very famous tranquilizer, aphrodisiac and antidepressant. Nymphaea caerulea- seed (24-fold enlarged): Nymphaea caerulea- petal (24-times): Nymphaea caerulea- petal (24-times with transmitted light): Nymphaea ampla, the Maya-Lotus held a similar importance to central american cultures as did the blue lotus to the egyptians. It is also found in meso-american art in association with jaguars and visionary scenes. It is a calming sedative and mild trance-inducer and possibly an additive to the inebriating balché-drink of the maya (see my Lonchocarpus- topic). Nymphaea ampla- flowers (dried):