Sacred Ceremonies

Cacao is used in Peru as a sacred plant, a superfood that is recognised for its health benefits for both the heart and the brain, it’s the heart opening neurotransmitters that contribute to the effects of the ingestion for effective ceremony use. Warm and loving, cacao ceremonies encourage release tension and built up resistance in our minds and body and are often used to reflect on the opening of the heart chakra. Cacao is a transformative plant, that can help us to open up, receive what life has to offer us and prepare our minds for a more compassionate, patient and self-loving approach to daily life. Becoming conscious, observing the effects directly of a natural mood elevator enhances one’s relationship with cacao and the self which can be incorporated into our holistic well-being. During your time in our care we shall engage in several cacao ceremonies in order to become well versed with intentional sitting and observant of subtle energy changes without our bodies.

The subjective experience of a different state of mind and consciousness significantly builds upon spiritual foundations and an individual’s journey on the spiritual path. When called by the plants that allow you to connect with Spirit and journey, an ever-expanding change begins from within.
The San Pedro cactus is a sacred plant of the Andes, which spans back over millenia for its teaching, learning, spiritual journeying and healing. Traditional Shamanic preparation involves brewing the cactus for hours, reducing the liquid until a small amount of tea containing the psychoactive alkaloid mescaline has been extracted, allowing for the spiritual journey to begin. The brew is drank in ceremonies, giving thanks to Pachamama (Mother Earth) and San Pedro, the guardian of Heavens above, or our ancestors in the sky. There are other forms of taking San Pedro, eating small balls of resin, dried cactus or in powder form, mixed into a juice or with water. The spirit of San Pedro is said to be masculine; a gentle, loving teacher, sharer of nature and healer. The journey with the cactus is one of self discovery and connection to all things within and of the Universe itself. Aldous Huxley’s elaborate The Doors of Perception was a study of this psychedelic alkaloid.
Through ceremonial practice and meditation, profound experiences can be realised about oneself and one’s connection to all manifestations of the planet. Whether a mild introduction to the plant, or a deeper journey is preferred, the process is one of transformation, greater appreciation of life and love as the source from which everything blossoms.

Spending time living with Shamans who administer this interesting medicine allowed us to not only directly receive the medicine but to talk with many others before and after their experiences. We were interested in their intentions and expectations of the application and followed up both short and long term to identify the experienced effects. Kambô is an extract from the glands of the Phyllomedusa bicolor, a nocturnal, arboreal frog. This extract contains opioid peptides that are said to have a broad physical and mental cleansing effect on the subject.

The extract in either fresh or powdered form is applied through several open wounds on the flesh which are created with a small hot wooden stick, for males these are applied on the upper arm, for females the inner or outer upper calf is used depending on the intention of the subject and the dispersal required from the extract. This has been reported as a minor discomfort and the marks heal quickly.

All of the visitors that we talked to reported warming sensations in the extremities and especially around the areas that they had arrived with intention on treating. There were many reports of symptoms decreasing for some maladies connected with inflammation that are notoriously complex to treat with conventional medicines such as Crohn’s disease, arthritis, sciatica and eczema.

An ancient snuff taken by Brazilian tribes is often associated with other shamanic practices and is essentially used for spiritual grounding and as an energy cleaner by the shaman and other practitioners. Rapé is greatly respected and carefully prepared, with the shaman often spending days in ceremonial state during the craft-work production and the application. Where tobacco serves in many sacred ceremonies and used to return the subject to a calmer or more present state, the identical application is used for level heading and creating a clear pathway of thought for the shaman and those participating. There are discussions about effects on the pineal gland but it is for the subject to work with rapé to identify its effects and benefits.

The sacred vine of the dead is the most renowned and respected of all sacred medicines we have encountered, producing the most profound altered states of consciousness and abstract subjective experiences. Although there are other forms of DMT (the tryptamine molecule that is present in the brew) application, ayahuasca produces the longest form of spiritual journey, anywhere from 4 to 8 hours, depending on the sensitivity of the subject. Considering the intensity of the experience, it is clearly apparent from our experience that a shaman and not simply a facilitator is engaged to perform the ceremony and administer the ayahuasca.

We offer explanations of the experience one is expected to encounter and an explanation of the chemical process that causes the profound experiences that can be encountered. What follows after application is for the subject to interpret, and follow up discussion is often available to allow questions with the shaman if there is desire for a deeper interpretation or specific questions.