Ayahuasca Reports #1
Part 1 of 4 parts: Introduction and Terminology
Some years ago spent several months in Peru, during which time I was looking for authentic shamans with whom to take ayahuasca and perhaps obtain a glimpse of the spiritual beings said to inhabit the world to which experienced shamans have access.
It is easy to find so-called “retreat and healing centers” in the Amazon which offer a supposed “jungle experience” and the opportunity to take ayahuasca under the guidance of indigenous shamans. There are lots of these to be found by searching on the web. They offer to host a visit of some days or weeks at a jungle lodge, usually at a cost of between $100 and $200 per day. Unfortunately, however, according to one of my informants, authentic shamanic practice involving the use of ayahuasca has been “extensively corrupted and modified by western influences over the past fifteen years. Consequently it is very difficult to find a genuine legitimate and ethical curandero without sufficient time, Spanish proficiency, and considerable trans-cultural experience and skills.”
First a few words about the meaning of the words “ayahuasca” and “shaman”.
The word “ayahuasca” has three different meanings. Firstly it refers to a plant, a vine whose botanical name is Banisteriopsis caapi. Secondly it refers to a brew which is made by boiling cuttings of the vine together with parts of a plant called “chacruna”, which contains dimethyltryptamine, DMT (the main vision-inducing component). Thirdly it refers to a female spirit, the Spirit of Ayahuasca, who often appears to those taking the brew ayahuasca.
People in Peru who use ayahuasca are known as “ayahuasceros”. Peruvians distinguish between what they call “curanderos” and “médicos” — who are healers — and “brujos”, who are sorcerors and practice so-called “black magic”.
Peruvians visit a curandero or a médico mainly for medical problems and, if they are seeking knowledge of the spirit world, for cleansing the body and mind of impurities, whereas they go to a brujo partly to seek healing for illnesses but also for more worldly aims such as success in romance and business,
Actually curanderos also use black magic sometimes, since there is a lot of rivalry between ayahuasceros of both sorts. A curandero who is trying to heal a patient must discover what is causing his patient's illness, and if the cause is the patient of another curandero then this can lead to a fight between the two of them
The word “shaman” originated in the work of Western anthropologists, and has only recently been adopted by Peruvians from Westerners who come to Peru looking for ayahasceros with whom to take ayahuasca. This has become a lucrative business for some ayahuasceros, since they charge at least US$50 per session. Ayahuasceros who are not “shamans” in this sense are called “médicos” by Peruvians, or “curanderos”, and they mainly have contact with Peruvians rather than Westerners.
I shall refer to curanderos, médicos and brujos collectively as “ayahuasceros”, simply meaning anyone who uses ayahuasca in some kind of practice, whether for healing, magical or artistic purposes.
The ayahuasca artist most well-known in the West is Pablo Amaringo, who lived in Pucallpa, and died there in 2009. His paintings depict animals, mermaids, UFOs, men, women, snakes, castles, flowers and other plants, and lots more, all in a swirl of psychedelic colors and designs.
My experiences when smoking DMT in the late 1980s and early 90s showed me that there is an alternate reality inhabited by intelligent, discarnate entities. In Peru I was hoping that by taking ayahuasca I would experience contact with entities in the spirit world to which accomplished ayahuasceros, such as Pablo Amaringo, have access. Of course, I did not expect that I would have visions such as Amaringo depicted in his paintings, or that I would have the same experience as with DMT, but I was at least hoping for visions of animals, such as jaguars and snakes, which would be evidence of spiritual beings in a spiritual world.
Each of the three ayahuasceros with whom I drank ayahuasca charged 150 Peruvian soles (about US$50). In the remaining three parts of this article I’ll describe my experiences.