A JOURNAL OF ACADEMIC WRITING VOLUME 5

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Ayahuasca: Earth’s
Wisdom Revealed
by Jennifer Francisco
The noted ethnologist Mircea Eliade poetically
describes shamans as “technicians of the sacred”
because they mediate between the world of mortals
and spirits. “Shaman” is the term for an Indian tribal
leader that actually performs a number of functions
for the tribe including artist, healer, magician, priest,
and storyteller. One of their most important jobs
is leading ritual ceremonies wherein nature spirits
and ancestors are contacted to advise members of
the tribe. These rituals often involve mind-altering
plants as well as chanting, dancing, and drumming.
These experiences are lucid because the shaman and
the participants are aware during the experience
and can later recall its events. The shamans of the
western Amazon basin use a plant called ayahuasca
during these ceremonies. The role of ayahuasca in
the shamanistic ceremonies of the Amazon basin is
to guide the participants to another realm where they
can be healed spiritually, emotionally, and mentally.
Ayahuasca, “vine of the soul”, is a vine that
grows in northwestern South America, mainly in
the Amazon basin of Peru and Brazil (Kavlin). In
Plants of the Gods, Richard Schultes identifies the
two species of Banisteriopsis that are most widely
used for their psychedelic qualities: B. caapi and B.
inebrians respectively. Both species of vine climb the
trees of the tropical rainforest and are known to kill
their supporters in the battle for sunlight. The vine
is usually light chocolate brown and smooth with
a diameter of up to six inches at the base. Its small
pink flowers, rarely seen, are found only in the sun
(Schultes, Hofmann, and Ratsch 36). The bark is
made into a tea that is consumed at the beginning of
the ceremony.
The preparation of this ayahuasca tea is of the
utmost importance as it affects the intensity of the
experience for its partakers. Schultes mentions that
the brew is made mostly of the vine part of the plant;
it is cut into six inch pieces. The bark is pounded or
shaved off and boiled for hours, sometimes even a
full day. Another method is to soak the bark pieces
in cold water for a day (Schultes, Hofmann, and
Ratsch 126). Sometimes another plant, Psychotria
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viridis, a member of the coffee family, is added to the
ayahuasca before it is boiled (67). These additives
can be localized depending on the country of the
particular tribe. A common dose of the boiled brew
is about an ounce and a half, with the effects lasting
three to four hours. Schultes also notes that if one is
using the cold water infusion, a larger dose is taken
because it is less concentrated (126). The effects of the
brew are, of course, different for every person.
The main effect of the ayahuasca brew is visions.
These are preceded by feelings of nausea, happiness,
and anxiety (“Botanical” 151). These visions occur
in color, ranging from reds and oranges to blues and
greens. The visions are said to show the partaker the
history of our existence; the first humans and animals,
the gods, and the development of our social structure.
Plants of the Gods states that many partakers speak of
seeing visions of snakes and jaguars, or tigers. These
animals are the most respected animals of the area,
due to their power and the fear they instill in the
people of the jungle. These animals are commonly
seen during ayahuasca trips, so much in fact, that
this phenomenon has been studied by psychologists
(Schultes, Hofmann, and Ratsch 126). Depending on
the plant additive used in the brew, the visions may
be longer, more vivid, and in different ranges of color
(129).
The shaman’s job, when conducting this
ceremony for a group of people, is to guide them in
finding the answer they seek. A tribe member might
come into the ceremony needing the remedy for an
illness, solutions to family or personal problems, or
simply the location of a lost or stolen object. The
participant often works through very deep emotional
issues, sometimes causing him to cry or scream. If
the partaker approaches the ceremony with selfish,
greedy purposes or has been dealing with addiction,
he might experience intense visions of an object he
fears, such as spiders or demons. The shaman will
help participants when faced with these things.
The shaman can also provide assistance if
someone is physically sick during the ceremony. It
is common for one to vomit or have serious diarrhea
after ingesting the ayahuasca brew as it is a foreign
substance in the body (“Botanical” 151). The shaman
will usually take a lesser dose of the brew to avoid
getting sick himself so that he can be more involved
in the ceremony itself. When alone, the shaman will
take large doses to enhance his own learning and
teaching abilities.