& Other Medicines At Our Retreats
Ayahuasca
Ayahuasca is a “plant medicine” with a 1,000 year history of entheogenic (connecting to the spirit) use among the Indigenous peoples of the Amazon rainforest. An increasing number of people are turning to the brew for its potential to heal depression, addiction, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Many people who have taken ayahuasca claim that the experience led to positive, long -term, life altering changes. This may be due to the effects of ayahuasca on the neurological system. A study in 57 people demonstrated that depression and stress were significantly decreased after the ayahuasca ceremony and these changes persisted for 4 weeks. Likewise, convergent thinking improved post-ayahuasca ceremony until the 4 weeks follow-up. Satisfaction with life and several aspects of mindfulness increased the day after the ceremony, and where present 4 weeks later. Changes in affect, satisfaction with life, and mindfulness were significantly correlated to the level of ego dissolution experienced during the ayahuasca ceremony. Participants reported the spiritual experience induced by the substance reduced or completely eliminated their fear of death. While ayahuasca has been used as a healing agent in traditional rituals for thousands of years, it wasn’t until western science studied the substance and addiction treatment trials were initiated. World renowned addiction expert and western-trained psychotherapist Gabor Mate believes that addiction is a direct result of coping mechanisms developed in early childhood to deal with stress, abuse, or trauma. He believes in the power of ayahuasca as a treatment for the underlying psychological distress experienced by people facing addiction.
“No matter what a person is addicted to—whether it’s eating, shopping, sex, drugs— each addicted person harbors a deep pain, which they may or may not be in touch with. The plant removes the self-created barriers to get in touch with the source of that pain, so you realize what you’ve been running from all of your life.”
–Gabor Maté
Ayahuasca is a brew made from the leaves of the Psychotria Viridis shrub along with the stalks of the Banisteriopsis Caapi vine. Psychotria Viridis contains dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a psychedelic substance that occurs naturally in the plant. When combined, people who have taken Ayahuasca report having mystical experiences and spiritual revelations regarding their purpose on earth, the true nature of the universe, and deep insight into their “higher self.” This is viewed by many as a spiritual awakening and what is often described as a near death experience or rebirth. It is often reported that individuals feel they gain access to higher spiritual dimensions and make a deep connection with the universe. However, every experience is completely unique to the individual. It is a very mystical experience that may take you on trip within. The plant will show you exactly what you need to see, and you will feel exactly what you need to, therefore every experience is perfect as it is.
Samadhi
Samadhi is very similar to Ayahuasca, but it only operates on the conscious mind and is taken in a pill form. Samadhi is a state of consciousness that we strive to achieve. After approximately 25 years of sharing sacred medicines shaman Cesar de Morey from Sinaloa Mexico, while in a very deep meditative state, asked a question – since everything we need for our wellbeing has already been provided by our higher consciousness, and if this consciousness has sacred plants in certain regions of the world as their solution, what equivalent plants do we have in our part of the world? The answer: Tepezcohuite. Samadhi contains extracts of Syrian Rue to serve as monoamine oxidase inhibitor and extract of the root Tepezcohuite as the source of DMT.
Samadhi is a sacred tool that reminds us who we are and what we have forgotten. A return to living from consciousness, and not from our minds and its fragmented beliefs, that separate and divide. Samadhi was born as a sacred tool that is not contaminated with beliefs, rituals or dogmas of any kind. The participants can use it as a tool for self-knowing and self-liberation with the responsibility that they themselves were the ones who fell asleep and it’s themselves who are waking up with the help of these sacred tools. Samadhi is designed to reach an elevated state of consciousness in which the participant will recognize themselves as one with life, existence, and will begin to understand little by little that absolutely everything is sacred, divine and ultimately everything is love. The only thing that needs to be released is the beliefs from where we are interpreting and judging life itself which is the cause of our suffering and the sensation of separation. Another important point is that the consciousness does not come from the past, it is not ancestral costumes, or religious habits. Consciousness is a state of presence and recognition of existence that can be reached with the use of these powerful tools when used with this purpose; to remember our true essence. To become conscious is to recognize that we are one with existence itself here and now, that all forms of being have been created by this existence and all, are absolutely valid and have the right to exists. From that state of communion with the eternal-present-life, the participant recognizes that everything perceived is pure existence and that existence is creating, recreating and sustaining within itself moment by moment, that the existence does not come from the past, nor is going towards the future and from that deep understanding the process of respecting all forms that exist is achieved. The moment this is recognized, the first thing that happens is that the participant starts to feel a profound peace because his mind starts to recognize the truth, his mind stops comparing, stops judging, of wanting to be right, etc., this means to go back to living consciously. The only thing that exists is the here and now and that life is recreating itself moment by moment and its pure perfection and that his/her beliefs about this or that are just that, beliefs and they are not truth.
Bufo Alvarias
Bufo is the common name given to the venom of the Bufo alvarius toad. Bufo contains naturally-occurring 5-MeO-DMT, a powerful psychedelic compound; 5-MEODMT is closely related to DMT. Bufo is vaporized and smoked directly through a pipe. It quickly goes into and out of the bloodstream. Bufo’s hallucinogenic effects take hold very quickly—within minutes—after inhalation and last anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour. People who have taken Bufo often describe their experience as being one with the universe and feeling reborn. Some describe a fusion with God, a visceral connection with a divine source. Others experience colors, looping patterns, and a sense of connection with the universe and all beings. People describe becoming one with the divine source, a blissfully divine experience, where the ego and mind dissolve. A journey of pure consciousness that feels limitless/infinite. The feeling is hard to describe with words but suffice it to say there is an ego death—and that is the beauty of the Bufo experience. Bufo shuts off your ego, and things that have been suppressed can rise to the surface. Some groups of people, particularly African Americans and Jews, may experience slavery or Holocaust trauma. Trauma affects several generations—you can really see the imprint of that in some journeys. Scientific research on the therapeutic benefits of Bufo venom inhalation is extremely limited, however one study has shown its potential to treat depression and anxiety. The survey recruited over 350 people who had been participants in Bufo group sessions, and showed that people who had been suffering from depression or anxiety were very likely to experience improvements in their conditions after the session. 80% of people with depression said that their symptoms were improved, and 79% of people with anxiety reported improvements.
Kambo
Kambo is a natural and highly effective therapy, which has been used for thousands of years by tribes of the Amazon rainforest including Peru, Brazil and Colombia. The natives rubbed the frog’s back over their body to strengthen themselves and thus be able to go hunting while avoiding being affected by bugs and snakes. They used it to promote health, strength, well-being and also to eliminate ‘panema’ or bad energy. The collected Kambo is applied under the first layer of the skin, after making small superficial burns, which are made millimetrically with a very fine stick, to quickly act and circulate throughout the body.
The Kambo immediately flows through the lymphatic system generating the activation of all the body’s systems, and at the same time, a strong purge and total cleansing that lasts approximately 15 minutes. Scientific research on the secretion of this frog began in the 1980s. For the Nobel Prize, Italian scientist Vittorio Erspamer from the University of Rome, reported that this secretion contains a “fantastic chemical cocktail, with possible medical applications, unmatched by any other animal, in nature”. “Among these peptides found in Kambo, about 7% are bioactive”. These bind to receptors located in the brain, causing chemical reactions in the human body. So far, researchers have found nine bioactive peptides that have a potent effect on gastrointestinal muscles, gastric and pancreatic secretions, blood circulation, stimulation of the adrenal cortex, and various glands. These peptides have strong analgesic power, increase physical strength, and generally improve the ability to withstand pain and stressful situations. They have a medicinal potential that facilitates digestion, and analgesic effects have been shown for those who suffer from renal colic, pain caused by peripheral vascular insufficiency and cancer pain. In the 1990s a new peptide, Adenoregulin, was discovered by John Daly’s team at the National Institute of Health in the USA. Adenoregulin works in the human body through adenosine receptors, a fundamental component in all energizing human cells. These receptors may offer an option for the treatment of depression, stroke, and cognitive impairment diseases, such as Alzheimer’s. Scientific research on Kambo peptides is opening up new perspectives on how the human brain works. The properties of Kambo peptides cover a wide range of possible medical uses in the treatment of brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, paralysis, depression, migraines, blood circulation problems, vascular insufficiency, organ diseases, skin problems and the eyes, fertility problems in women and men, AIDS, hepatitis, diabetes, and cancer. Other interesting medical characteristics of this secretion are its anti-inflammatory effects, its ability to destroy microbes and viruses, and to heal infections. Due to the presence of these peptides, Kambo is one of the strongest natural antibiotics and anesthetics found in the world and one of the strongest natural means to boost our immune system. The benefits of taking Kambo Beneficial for various ailments: People with low immune system, pain and inflammation in general, tendinitis, headache, asthma, bronchitis, rhinitis, flu, allergies, gastritis, ulcer, diabetes; disorders in the digestive system, blood pressure problems, circulatory problems, fluid retention, cholesterol, heart disease, hepatitis, cirrhosis, malaria (acute and post-malaria), epilepsy, infertility, diabetes and its microbial action works strongly against parasites and worms, impotence, reduced libido; depression and its consequences, anxiety, insomnia, irritation, insecurity, nervousness, fear, imbalances caused by stress, fatigue, physical and mental exhaustion.
