Let's Talk Ayahuasca, Plant Medicine & Healing (An Honest Conversation) 

This is amazing! So grateful to hear that you felt a genuine connection watching this video 🙏 Thank you so much for your beautiful words ❤ There's something incredibly special about that feeling when another person is truly connected and listening.

Ohh such a potent message and response. Thank you Timothy 🙏 I've found that part of the spiritual journey often involves a bit of openness to the point of naivety, and as you said, this is definitely an easy space to be manipulated. It can be so challenging but at the same time presents a really beautiful opportunity to learn discernment and find a balance between trust and boundaries. I've been through this myself and am actually really grateful for it. But it's definitely a fine line. And yes, I am seeing that the ayahuasca world is shifting as it becomes more commercialized. It'll be interesting to see how this evolves. I'm also SO lucky and grateful to have met and connected with so many incredible humans on this journey, but I know that is not the case for everyone, especially those not able to travel as easily, or who may not have access to some of the experiences I've been able to have. That's where I really hope we can open up space to connect on a deeper level (as you said, moving past the superficial/shallow) and I absolutely believe it's possible ☺ There are so many beautiful and sincere people in the world. Again, thank you so much for your message ❤

Aw Kyle thank you!! I'm so excited for you to experience your first retreat 😆😍 It can be such a transformative experience.

I'm so glad it's been helpful for you! I can definitely resonate with being a female and going into it alone...it's a very empowering experience. Sending love to you as well and wishing you all the best on your journey with Aya this year!!

Thank you @@daniellerateau 💛

She's definitely a profound and beautiful medicine. Challenging at times for sure, but as you said, if someone feels the calling I think it's important to honor that ❤

You're so welcome, thank you! ☺

Omg Jeannine before I even respond to your comment I just have to say that you have the most beautiful voice!! Please continue to share it ❤ The world needs more healing through the voice and especially singing ✨ Thank you for your gift. And in response to your comment, you're so welcome! I'm so happy we've connected. I agree 100% that the darkness that can come up post-ayahuasca can be challenging, but also really profound. It's honestly made me reshape the way I view darkness in general. And yes, connections are truly the most beautiful gift from Aya ☺I continue to be amazed at the people I meet along the way

@@daniellerateau oh my goodness; that is so sweet of you to say, Danielle! I really appreciate it. Singing has definitely helped alchemize a lot of challenging energy-it’s a very helpful tool. You said it in this video that each of our voices is unique! So true💙 On another note, I saw that you lived in Urubamba last year-I wonder if you know some people I know who live actually in Huaran (which is right next to Urubamba!) I was there last May staying with my friend Ellen who suddenly passed away this year. But maybe you know Zuzana? Or Leah Dietzen? The sacred valley is such a special place - medicine in and of itself… Anyhow - thank you again for sharing. 🌿🌸

This is so true! I agree that it's super important not to judge simply based on origin. I've also met some amazing shamans who are not from the area, and at the same time had some "interesting" experiences with indigenous shamans. It does always go back to trusting ourselves. ❤

Karen you ALWAYS make me smile!! 😆 Thank you for all your kindness and support. I hope you're there when it happens too! I can't wait for that day ☺ Also I haven't forgotten about your meditation!! That'll be the next video ❤

Looking forward... Thank you Danielle! 💜

Aw sending you so much love!!

I really appreciate this view and find it so fascinating. Thank you for sharing 🙏 Is this concept of a shaman directly from Terence McKenna? I'd like to look into how work more ☺ I agree with aspects of this, absolutely. I wonder what your thoughts are on the concept of "self-initiation" through the plants and how one can distinguish a shaman that is authentic in that aspect. I've seen quite a few people claim to be or believe themselves to be self-initiated when it's possible that they might not be in the right energy to hold that kind of space for others (although who am I to say?) Would just be curious to hear your perspective!

@daniellerateau since I left my comment, I clicked on another of your videos. I noticed in the comments how thoughtful your replies are to everyone who comments. It's quite unusual for someone to be so giving with their replies. If I owned an Ayahausca center, I would ask if you would be interested in participating. You would be quite an asset. Terence has said what I shared. I like Terence because my thoughts on shamanism are similar to his. I'm a fan of his. He's been very inquisitive and adventurous in pioneering into unknown, very alien states of consciousness through plants and DMT. Self-initiation is a necessity because someone can't transfer their insights to you. It has to be experienced by the individual through direct experience. The breakthrough states of Ayahuasca and DMT are unenglishable and completely alien. No one can hold your hand through it. You are plunging alone into the unknown. To answer your question about how you can tell a shaman from a pretender. When I first went to drink Ayahuasca, I wouldn't have been able to distinguish between the facilitators and "shamans" at the retreat. Looking back now, out of all the "shamans" I met, there was only one real shaman. I think it's only when we start to cultivate ourselves inside that we begin to see where other people are in their journey. As you grow inside, you begin to notice how young and childish others are. Without cultivating our inner world, we are totally oblivious. We don't see through people. I think developing your intuition is key. Your intuition develops when you cultivate your inner world. The more mature your intuition is, the more pretenders you can weed out. Some other things I can think of off the top of my head would be things like their eye contact and composure. A shaman would be able to maintain eye contact with you for as long as they wish, 10+ minutes, and during this time, it would feel completely natural. They would only look you in your eyes, it will feel incredibly deep and like time stops. Their composure would be otherworldly. They would be smooth, firm and strong in their movements. They would also have a weight to them, not someone you can push over. Those are my thoughts, but I can remember one observation Terence had. He spent time with a handful of what he considered real ayahuasqueros. He said they had a common quality, which was when they spoke, it sounded like they were purring from the back of their throat. A little unrelated, but one other observation Terence noted about what he considered the real ayahuasqueros was they used Ayahuasca for many months or years alongside a strict lifestyle to undergo a period of transformation. They didn't see it as a short-term thing. He noted this back in the 1980s. What he noted sounds similar to plant master diets people do in isolation. This is a topic I find absolutely fascinating, and without much thought, I can write and write on it.

@@daniellerateau just had a couple more thoughts! The issue with culture is culture seeks to provide a system to live inside of. Culture seeks to make things neat and tidy, creating uniformity to living. A shaman will have seen in the breakthrough states of Ayahausca that reality is a complete mystery that's beyond our understanding. Therefore any shaman who participates inside of a culture is a big red flag. A true shaman will exist outside of culture. It is through existing outside of culture that a shaman is able to do his shamanising, to the shaman, culture is just a game that people are playing and caught up in. One other thing I remember Terence saying is shamans generate culture, they don't consume it. So in an indigenous tribe where there is a shaman, the shaman would be the cornerstone to the tribe's culture. A shaman is an exemplar of what it means to be human. They are basically superhuman as a result of the process they underwent.

@@94alhf Thank you so much for your kindness and what you said in your previous comment. Part of my intention with this space is to genuinely connect with people as much as possible! Sooo true that no one else can transfer their insights. They can give perspective but we have to experience it to truly receive and embody it ourselves. I’ve definitely had the experience of plunging into the unknown many times with ayahuasca, lol. Agree so much with intuition, although it’s definitely something that comes through deep listening and honoring. So many people choose to ignore their intuition or maybe have trouble discerning intuition versus mind. Ohhh I love what you said about the sound of “purring” from the back of their throats. It reminds me of a book I’ve been reading about vocal harmonics and tapping into that healing sound through the voice. “A shaman will have seen in the breakthrough states of Ayahausca that reality is a complete mystery that's beyond our understanding. Therefore any shaman who participates inside of a culture is a big red flag.” - Wow. This hits home big time. It’s so true. I remember in one ceremony the experience of absolute connection and oneness…at that point how can we make “rules” around what is and isn’t ok based on culture? And yes reality is definitely beyond our understanding lol. All of it is so interesting!! I am definitely going to do more research and read more of Terence’s work!

Hi Jason! I worked at a center called Arkana in the Sacred Valley.