Spirit work
Ayahuasca ceremony
A night-time gathering in which a brew of the ayahuasca vine is drunk with chanting, practised by Amazonian peoples and now by visitors. It carries real risks.
Presented by ClearTrust Customs described as customs, free to read.
Ayahuasca is a brew made from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine and other plants, long used by Indigenous peoples of the Amazon such as the Shipibo, the Ashaninka and the Tukano in healing and spiritual work. A healer, called a vegetalista, a curandero or by a community name, leads a ceremony with songs called icaros. Brazil's syncretic churches, Santo Daime and União do Vegetal, use it in a religious form.
This is an outline of a custom, said as belief and practice. It is not instruction, it does not say that the rite works, and it is not medical advice.
What goes into it
- The brewSubstancePrepared by the healer. No recipe or amounts are given here.
- IcarosWordSongs said to guide the night.
- RattleToolUsed by the leader.
- Dark spaceSpaceThe ceremony usually happens at night.
- Dietary rulesGestureObserved before and after the ceremony.
- Substance
- Word
- Tool
- Space
- Gesture
Each part has an equal wedge. The ring shows what goes into the rite, not how much. Colour is the part's role.
The steps, drawn
Each drawing shows the kind of act in that step. Details differ from place to place, family to family and practitioner to practitioner.
Step 1: Gather Participants arrive after following the dietary rules set by the healer. Step 2: Cleanse The healer prepares the space and says opening words. Step 3: Offer The healer gives each participant a cup of the brew. Step 4: Speak The healer sings icaros through the night. Step 5: Rest Participants lie or sit quietly, tended by helpers. Step 6: Close The ceremony closes at dawn and participants rest.
Meaning in the Amazon
Participants describe visions, meetings with plant spirits and a cleansing, often with vomiting, called la purga. Indigenous healers consider the knowledge to be linked to dietary rules and long apprenticeship.
Risks
The brew can cause serious reactions. It interacts dangerously with some medicines, including antidepressants, and is a risk for those with heart or mental-health conditions. People have died at ceremonies, and some tourists have been assaulted by fake shamans. Anyone considering a ceremony should take medical advice first.
Law and commerce
Law varies: Peru treats it as cultural heritage, Brazil permits religious use, the United States allows it for particular churches, and many countries restrict it. Retreat tourism has grown fast, and Indigenous groups raise concerns about exploitation, biopiracy and neglect of their traditions.
What it is for
- Spiritual and healing work
- Insight
- Community religion
Who does it
Related entries
Also part of it, and being written: Ayahuasca (The brew and its use.), Santo Daime (A Brazilian church.), Shipibo-Conibo (A people known for the tradition.).
Sources and further reading
Original text and drawings by the EveryJaadu desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Closed or sacred detail is left out. If we have something wrong, tell us.