Otorongo, part 6

Ayahuasca

“Do plants have consciousness?” I asked the scientist Monica Gagliano at her talk about her book “Thus spoke the plant”. I introduced myself by having just returned from Peru from a four week long retreat in the Amazon rain forest, where I participated in Ayahuasca ceremonies. With a radiating smile, she threw the question immediately back to me ” you do not need to ask this question, you have gotten the answer already in the jungle, right?”

Pond during early night

She was right! I had gotten the answer during the healing ceremonies  performed in the temple of Otorongo. Ayahuasca, called also La Madre or the Vine of Death, is a powerful psychedelic, a spirt which works as a teacher through the body and breaks up the limits of the ordinary, conditioned way of seeing the world. Stephen V. Beyer writes in his book “Singing to the Plants” that healing plants are doctors, teachers, healers and protectors and Ayahuasca is the queen of them.

Heavy fog in early morning

In Otorongo, I participated in about 8 Ayahuasca ceremonies. The ceremonies take place during the night and last about 3 hours. It is a sacred ritual similar to the celebration of a Christian mass. Instead of the host, the curandero as well as the participant drink the dark brew of Ayahuasca mixed with other plant essences. The ceremony starts by candlelight but soon is continued in total darkness. It is in the darkness where Ayahuasca finds its way through the body and into every cell, effecting first the stomach by sometimes causing strong vomiting. During the entire ceremony, the curandero sings medicine songs called icaros, songs taught by the plant itself to establish an intimate relationship.

Full moon in Otorongo

Ayahuasca makes one see unexpected realities – personal as well as impersonal ones. When I was sitting on the chair in total darkness, I was the observer of images appearing and disappearing in my mind. In order to contain all these images and not be swept away, I often rooted myself by feeling my breath, feeling the ground under my feet or the sitting bones on the chair. My meditation practice helped me to stay connected and hold my awareness without identifying with the images I saw. Like in meditation, there was just observing and letting go.

The Chipiboh Indians make cups for the Ayahuasca ceremony out of theses seed pods

All those visions, dreams, feelings and thoughts I could process with the help of Dr. Himmelbauer, who possesses besides his knowledge of plants, psychology, philosophy and religion especially the gift of attentive, deep listening. Our conversations took place at the huge, round table in the dining area where he often sat, working probably on his third book. In my opinion, Ayahuasca ceremonies and other diets with plants have to be combined with the process of integration and understanding. Being able to speak in my mother language with somebody who knows my cultural background was incredibly helpful.

Underwater plants

Besides Ayahuasca (associated with the knowledge of the forest and spirits of teaching plants), Mapacho or tobacco is associated with the spirits of animals and birds – especially the hummingbird. As an essence, it is used for cleansing the body – which I did in the first couple of days. Mapacho also establishes the communication with the plant spirit and often is smoked by the curandero for multiple benefits.

Inside a plant

My four week long stay in Otorongo offered a new perspective into the world of plants and opened up a new way of seeing. In order to really get in touch with the deeper reality, one has to do a “dieta” for several weeks to several months.The requirements are harsh – besides being in total isolation, one has to live on one unsalted fish and potato a day. No salt, no sugar, no sex –  everything prepares the person on diet to get in touch with the plant spirit she/he is dieting on. The jungle provides a huge amount of these plants and a Shaman probably dieted on most of them.

Diet hut separated from the camp of Otorongo

It was hard to leave the jungle. I loved the simplicity, the beauty, the direct and immediate contact with nature. On my last day, I went to the chullachaqui-caspi tree and gave thanks for the time I could be here by leaving a little hair lock of mine on a leaf.

I also said goodbye to the element of water by lighting a candle in a hollow tree trunk above a spring. With that, I also want to say thanks to all of you for being with me on this journey into a magical, mysterious world.