1.0 Introduction & Course Aims

What is Ayahuasca?

Ayahuasca is a psychedelic Tea from the Amazon Jungle used for multiple things but from my western experience mostly for mental and spiritual healing and spiritual development. It is traditionally drunk in a ceremonial type fashion which is held in high regard by those who have had this tradition the longest (Amazonian people for the most part). As such people have learned to prepare thoroughly for drinking Ayahuasca by using an ‘Ayahuasca Dieta’ both prior to and after drinking Ayahuasca.

Course Aims:

The main purpose of this short course is to prepare one for drinking Ayahuasca, as I have been shown how to do, from a modern Shipibo Retreat style. I suppose in reality this course is also has my own take on how to prepare. You will find differing opinions and practices probably from other people. Please take what is relevant to you and if you find something you disagree with feel free to leave it. One maxim I like in the spiritual realm is ‘take what’s relevant and if it does not seem so to you then leave it’. You should not follow any course of action which you feel uncomfortable with.

Preparation for Ayahuasca can be considered on both the physical and the mental plains. In this course we are going to prepare physically to make a biologically safe experience but also the effort one puts into preparing can be considered a ‘spiritual sacrifice’ process. The more effort you put in the more you will get out of your ceremonies from a spiritual perspective and the less likely you are to have a poor experience.

In my experience, drinking Ayahuasca is not the aspect you need to be nervous about – it is the preparation you should be nervous and as meticulous as possible with. You should approach preparation for Ayahuasca in earnest and with a large effort to follow the guidelines set out here.

When we prepare well ‘La Madre de Ayahuasca’ can be satisfied that we have not taken this very sacred process for granted. She respects humility and sacrifice (in the form of our behaviours and diet leading up the process). When we walk into ceremony with the understanding that we have prepared very thoroughly we can relax into the ceremony itself and not be nervous about our experience. We will be more ‘open’ and relaxed and this is a perfect time to learn and be healed or experience greater spiritual development.

A note on spiritual development:

For the most part I have attempted not to talk that much about the specifics of Spiritual Development in this course as these are really very individual and I do not want to colour your view overly. The Spiritual development comes, in my opinion, from preparing very thoroughly (sacrificing our ego’s and its desires for foods and entertainment of a not so subtle kind) and forming an intention (we’ll cover this soon) for your ceremony. Your experiences within the ceremony and the lessons your learn and take away are individual to you. I have tried to give you a process in this course which sets you up to have a great ceremony in whatever way satisfies your individual spiritual journey. And what a journey it is!

A note on cultural paradigms:

If you are a person of Western paradigm it’s possible you are confused by the term ‘La Madre’. You see when you are drinking and preparing for Ayahuasca you are doing a kind of ‘magic’ in that you are contacting and connecting with (communing is a better term) a divinely female entity who is one of the fundamental aspects of the universe. We could also say that she is a god (small g not big G) or deity. It is possible to say that an Ayahuasca ceremony is an opportunity to “meet” (commune) a divine being. The Shaman will be the intermediary between this being and you in the material realm. If this kind of cultural paradigm is new to you then I suggest that all you do is prepare with humility and great seriousness for the process as I have mentioned above. The rest will take care of itself. In the integration section of this course I will talk more about integrating new understandings of the world.

A note on course length:

I have, in this course, made a plan for a 6 day Ayahuasca preparation and integration. This is 3 days preparation prior to the ceremony and 3 days integration afterward. In my opnion this 6 day schedule should be considered a bare minimum length of time to prepare and integrate afterward.

A much greater preparation and integration would be 2 months. One month preparation before ceremony and 1 month integration afterward. The longer you can sustain these periods the greater your experience and connection will be in ceremony and into the future. When I first drank I did 3 weeks preparation before and after which was very difficult for me at the time but I was rewarded with a deep connection to La Madre.