These facts may be interpreted as an indication that harmaline acts as a stimulant on the midbrain reticular formation. The direct action of harmaline on the brain cortex is hard to interpret and seems more that of a depressant, but this is counteracted in the intact animal by the arousing influence of the reticular formation. The neurophysiological picture matches well that of traditional yage " dreaming" , in that the state we have described involved lethargy, immobility, closed eyes and generalized withdrawal from the environment, but at the same time an alertness to mental processes, and an activation of fantasy.