Shamanism

About Shamanism

Shamanism is an ancient practice by means of which one connects with other worlds, other dimensions, and spiritual beings. Shamanism is practiced all over the world – in North and South America, Africa, Eaurope, India, and Asia.

Very often shamans receive their powers from the spirits of nature. For example, Russian shamans receive power from the sacred Oak trees, and Korean shamans receive power from the Mountain Spirits. In the same way, the shamans of South America receive their healing powers from the spirits of the trees and plants as well as from the guardians of the forest – the mythological Chulachaqui, Mayantu, etc.

About our Maeestros’ Shamanic Approach

Javier and Juan work with many types of spirits and energies. Like most Amazonian curanderos, they work with the plant spirits and the spirits of the forest. They have gained control over these spirits by means of rigorous dieting in the jungle.

They also work with the mythological and yet real gurdian spirits of the forest and the rivers. This includes Mayntu and Chulachaqui, Mermaids, Giant Boas, etc. Sometimes, these spirits can be clearly seen either in visions or with eyes wide open during ceremonies.

Javier and Juan also work with Divine beings, such as Christian saints, the Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ, angels, and the Holy Spirit.
Whether you believe in the Christian tradition or not, the energies of these beings can be strongly felt when they are called, and they produce powerful healing.

In addition to the Christian tradition, both our maestros sometimes work with the energies of the Buddha and of the masters of Yoga, as well as with the Rosa Crucian spiritual order. They have the knowledge of chackras and can awaken them through icaros. After a session where the Buddha was called, I returned home and was taught by the Buddha how to meditate properly. Another prticipant saw a light surrounding Javier with sanskrit letters written inside it while he worked with the powers of yoga.

Our maestros also have control over the five elements – water, earth, forest, air, and fire. They often heal with the power of the elemental spirits. Finally, Both maestros are mediums, and they often channel ancient Indian shamans, spiritual beings, and spirits of the land and water.

About Ayahuasca

There is a phenomenal variety of plants in the Amazon rain forest, and for thousands of years, the natives have used many of these plants as medicine. The forest offers remedies for everything imaginable. There are plants to kill intestinal parasites, plants to treat skin conditions, plants to cure malaria, diabetes, impotence, and some say even cancer. Among these hundreds of thousands of plants, there are two plants of great importance, which when brewed together constitute the sacred psychoactive tea known as ayahuasca.

Many tourists are attracted to countries such as Peru on the basis of this drink. They hope to see fantastic visions, to transform their lives, and connect with the spiritual world. But although the ayahuasca brew can be healing on many levels, it is definitely no recreational drug or easy high.

Physically, the brew is a powerful purgative which cleans and detoxifies the body. The purging that results can come in the form of vomiting, defecating, sweating, and tears. It is said that the plant intelligently scans the entire body and removes everything that is no longer needed, deeply cleansing the body. The following day, one feels lighter, fresher and younger. The ayahuasca beverage also facilitates the healing of wounds and other physical problems. The body’s natural self-healing reflexes are activated, and this process is very much evident whenever anyone has any visible afflictions. Often significant improvement is seen the day following the ceremony.

On an emotional and mental level, ayahuasca is also a strong purge. It opens the doors to ones subconsciousness and releases old and pent up emotions. Issues are often faced one after the other, in a state of consciousness in which there is no escape from the truth. The release of negative emotions can be extremely powerful and is often accompanied by physical symptoms of purging. Some say that the beverage acts as a catalyst to convert mental and emotional energies into physical matter and then expel them through vomiting, defecating, sweat and tears. The process is not exactly pleasant, but the results are tremendous.

The purging effects of this ancient medicine are by no means side effects, but rather a central part of the beneficial action of ayahuasca. These effects should be neither feared nor avoided. They are to be surrendered to and appreciated. In one night, decades of repressed emotions and negative thought patterns can be released. It’s no easy task, but the shaman-healer and his helpers are there to offer assistance and support throughout the process.

The powerful purging effects of the ayahuasca are one of the main reasons why this sacred plant can never become a recreational drug. Drugs as we know them remove the user from reality, dull their senses and pains, give a pleasant and potentially addictive experience, and have various negative side effects. The ayahuasca beverage entirely lacks any of the above features.

Rather than removing the drinker from reality, ayahuasca puts him in closer touch with what is real. It not only shows the participant his own private reality, but also the greater spiritual reality of which the vast majority of people on this planet are not at all aware. The spiritual and sacred laws that govern our lives are laid out in front of us during ceremony. We understand the functioning of everything in this world, including ourselves, from a level that far surpasses anything that could ever be learned or taught by conventional means such as education.

Rather than dulling our senses and pains, ayahuasca makes them more acute. The five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch become able to perceive much finer sensations than before. What could not be seen before is seen, what could not be heard is heard, and so on. Thinking is also greatly improved and becomes clear and profound. Ideas appear, along with all kinds of knowledge that was previously subconscious. Sensations in the body are also amplified. One feels the state of health of the body very vividly.

Lets take the example of a cigarette smoker. If he smokes under the influence of ayahuasca he will feel the essence of the cigarette much more acutely. The burning taste of the cigarette, the taste of the many chemicals in it, the immediate effects it has on the body, and the long term effects on health are all immediately perceivable. The smoker is faced with his shortness of breath, with his weakened heart, and with his physical or psychological addiction to cigarettes. He then understands what the reason for his smoking is, he understands the harmful effects of smoking, and he understands that he needs to stop or modify his harmful habits and replace them with positive ones. After the ceremony, the newly gained knowledge makes it much easier to change old patterns of behavior and follow through with new decisions.

The example of the smoker is not universal. Not every cigarette smoker will have the same experience, and not every smoker will want to quit. Most people have many other issues that are more important than their smoking habits, and the ayahuasca will make the user face those issues instead. The point is that the brew is not at all conducive to avoiding reality or escapism. Quite the opposite.

While it is true that the ayahuasca experience can at times be extremely pleasant, it can also be extremely unpleasant. Most often, the ayahuasca experience is mildly unpleasant throughout the ceremony. The unpleasant, uncomfortable, or difficult element is always there, sometimes very prominent and at other times showing up for only a brief moment. The experience also offers moments of great satisfaction, great love, great peace, and great knowledge. In addition, the participant experiences a greater sense of overall wellbeing in the days following the ceremony.

The complex effects of the ayahuasca brew are neither physically nor psychologically addictive. For example, the student of shamanism is required to attend every ceremony held by his teacher. He approaches the drinking of the ayahuasca with respect and with a certain reluctance. He never wants to swallow the bitter cup of the brew, nor is he especially looking forward to experiencing the psychoactive effects of it. Still, he drinks out of a sense of duty. He had consciously chosen this path, and if he has sufficient will power, he will continue and become a maestro himself.

Over time, the student of ayahuasca shamanism becomes accustomed to the visions and the sensations the plant gives him and no longer seeks them the way a complete beginner does. He knows that the ayahuasca ceremonies are long and difficult. For him, every ceremony is hard work. It is far easier to stop drinking ayahuasca than it is to continue drinking it. The addictive potential of the plant is non-existent.

Finally, unlike any pharmacological or recreational drugs, ayahuasca has no known negative side effects. Many studies have been carried out on both long-term and short term users of the sacred beverage. No negative results were found. On the contrary, people who drank ayahuasca consistently ranked as happier, healthier, and better socially adapted than those who did not.

Ayahuasca Healing

Although ayahuasca has many positive effects when taken internally, it is not necessary for the patient to drink the brew in order to receive healing. In western medical practice, the patient always takes the medicine while the doctor never does. In Amazonian practice, the doctor always drinks the ayahuasca, while the patient is not required to do so. The only reason a patient may be asked to drink ayahuasca is to clean and detoxify his body, in order to make the doctor’s work easier. Still, it is almost never required for a patient to actually drink ayahuasca or to participate in the ceremony.

The ayahuasca healer always drinks a portion of the brew when he holds a ceremony. Although the best class of healers can heal without drinking anything, the ayahuasca provides extra energy and insight and makes the job easier. Thus, the ordinary person coming from the west to receive their healing needs not be concerned about drinking the brew. Those who do not want to drink it do not have to. The quality of their healing will not be diminished because of this.

Although the ayahuasca beverage itself has many healing properties, the shaman or healer is the single most important factor when it comes to successful or unsuccessful healings. The second most important factor is the patient himself – his mindset, his resolve to get better, and his faith in the shaman and his abilities. Whether or not the patients decides to drink ayahuasca is not a factor in how successful the healing will be.

The healing that results from working with a genuine master shaman is something highly spiritual. My impression is that the dynamics of the healing process have not yet been properly understood by anyone. I know of no shaman or healer who is able of clearly and adequately explaining how the healing actually happens or why it happens at all. The entire thing is a great mystery.