Going to the Amazons to attend a Sacred Ceremony to meet the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca

With the growing popularity of the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca, the western population have been flocking to the Amazons, especially to Peru to attend the Sacred Ceremony to meet the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca.

This guide can help you prepare safely if you are planning to attend such Sacred Ceremony in the Amazons.

1. Consult your Doctor

If you are not accustomed to the Jungle, then it is better you consult your doctor because your body will be stressed and will have to be accustomed to novel food, heat, humidity, unfamiliar pathogens.

Moreover, as you will be traveling to consume the Holy Medicine – one of the powerful emetic, purgative, which may also be Hallucinatory. Therefore, you need to ensure you are in the physical fitness to handle these stresses.

Be sure to describe the Holy Medicine well to your doctor, even if you fear that your doctor may advice against your attending a Sacred Ceremony. Mention to your doctor that the Holy Medicine is a powerful emetic and purgative. Also, you must consult your doctor if you are taking SSRO or MAOI antidepressant. Your doctor, depending on your health, may advice you to wait till your health improves or recommend conditions which can increase your safety, or may modify your medication regimen temporarily to accommodate your situation, or may see no significant problem in your attending the Sacred Ceremony.

See your doctor and have a straightforward conversation. Make an informed decision. There have been many reports of accidents by participants who were not careful about their health before attending a Sacred Ceremony.

There are also many with undiagnosed heart condition. This simple act of consulting your doctor may save your life. 

2. Get Immunized

There are many health centers who provide travel immunization services, which also provide massive information about area people are visiting. They can be highly valuable resources. You can ask your doctor to find the nearest location.

You may want to get the following inoculation just to stay safe:-

1. Tetanus shot: it is 100% fatal, but 100% preventable by immunization.
2. Hepatitis A virus: Usually spread through faecal-oral route, it is good idea to get before visiting Amazons.
3. Hepatitis B virus: Get this if you will be working with contaminated body fluids, maybe while doing volunteer or medical work etc.
4. Other inoculations: Typhoid, Diphtheria, measles-mumps-rubella.

The clinics have a good idea usually about the inoculations which may be necessary or required while returning to your country.

However, consult your doctor before taking any vaccines, as there have been numerous reports on their negative effects on many.

2.5. Emergency Medicines to carry

Carry appropriate antimalaria drug to take in the Amazons. Be careful of some antimalaria drugs like Lariam which have been associated with neuropsychiatric effects, since you will be consuming the most powerful healing, the Holy Medicine of the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca.

You may get prescription from travel clinic for common anti-biotics, like Ciprofloxacin, which may be good against urinary tract infections, skin infections, intractable diarrhoea, and other bacterial conditions which may turn out to be unpleasant. However, consult your doctor to know whether this may be good for you, as there have been numerous reports about the negative effects of many antibiotics like Ciprofloxacin.

3. Learn First Aid

It is best to learn Basic First Aid, as they may come in handy in the Amazons, if you cut yourself with a machete, get burned, suffer heat stroke, lose tooth filling, and so many more emergency situations. Try to take a good weekend wilderness first-aid course.

4. Be extra-careful about sanitation

Try to maintain as much cleanliness as possible in the Amazons, which may provide you healthy experience. Take lots of alcohol-gel hand sanitizer, and some way to purify drinking water. You can never be sure if the quality of the water will be suitable for you, and bottled water may not be available. 

Here are few tips:

1. Keep wound well covered and scrupulously clean if you cut yourself.
2. If you get blister, do not break it, cover it with a blister pad until it heals.
3. Do not brush your teeth or rinse toothbrush with tap water. Use the water you have purified.

5. Learn more about the Amazons and the communities there

The more you learn about the Amazons, the more safe you will be.

Learn more about the:

1. People, their history and lifestyle.
2. Food, what people eat and how they gather it.
3. Weather, learn about the weather condition and environment.
4. Diseases, learn about the diseases, virus, bacteria etc, in the area.
5. Learn about the wildlife, what plants and animals are safe.
6. How people live there what sort of houses, and how to build them.
7. What they do for recreation.
8. Understand their beliefs, so you can maintain the respect. It is not wise to assume the communities will share your beliefs, which they may not.

6. Be careful about your belongings

Unfortunately, some people may try to steal your belongings. Therefore stay extra careful about your belongings.

Use anti-theft gear, waterproof zip-lock bags for passport and important documents, rubber doorstop if you’re staying in hotels. Keep your passport and credit cards in separate and secure locations. Inform your family and friends about your itinerary. Know your nearest embassy and phone number.

Use your common sense. Don’t bring expensive watches or jewellery. Avoid walking and texting or calling so you don’t look vulnerable and careless. Keep your cash in separate places. Never remove money from money belt in front of others.

Do not accept drink from strangers. Make sure nobody is watching you from behind when withdrawing money from the ATM. Do not follow strangers into dark alleys or in remote paths, no matter what they promise you. Be as cautious as you would be in a rough neighbourhood anywhere.

7. Be careful about ‘What you Eat’

Although the food may look very lucrative, the cleanliness level may not be good for your body, not used to the environment.

Even in clean restaurants ask for bottled water without ice. Try to avoid raw fish and citrus juices unless those who prepare it have washed their hands.

Be wary and careful about the diet and follow any prescribed diet from the Sacred Ceremony retreat before attending.

Here is a recommended list of precautions and diet restrictions to follow before attending a Sacred Ceremony.

8. Visit and be with known people you trust

Be extra careful about the guides and friends who may be taking you to the Sacred Ceremonies. Read online reviews. Make sure you are with trusted people. Preparation is the key to a safe trip. Use resources on the internet to find reputable reliable retreat organisers.

Find out as much as possible about the Holy Medicine. You deserve to know what you will be ingesting, and this information may help your healthcare professional make right recommendations. You will want to feel safe, and you should seek reputable retreats.

9. Have an attitude of ‘Adventure’

Enjoy the experience with an attitude of adventure. Have fun! 

But, often, things may go wrong, as you travel to a new place which may be quite different from yours. As, for many Westerners, the Amazons may be a completely new and unique experience, do prepare for foreseeable emergencies, remain willing to improvise and adapt to the situation.

10. Things to remember to bring

You should remember to bring:-

1. Sunscreen
2. Insect repellents
3. Anti-itch cream (to not scratch after any insect bites).
4. First-aid kit.
5. Travel insurance which provides coverage for emergency wilderness rescue and evacuation.
6. Waterproof zip-lock bas for passport, money and important documents
7. Rubber doorstop, especially if living in a hotel
8. Money belt
9. Torchlight
10. Extra clothes
11. Emergency medicines, anti-biotics, gas medicines
12. Alcohol-gel hand sanitizer
13. Water purifier
14. Band Aids, blister pads
15. Important Phone number, i.e. of your embassy
16. Extra phone set, if possible one that works without cell phone network
17. Emergency fire, in case you are lost
18. Quality locks for your bags

11. Maintain Respect and Reverence

Maintain respect and reverence as you remember you are here to meet with the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca.

Maintain a meditative and contemplative state of mind during your experience. This is one of the most interesting places you will ever visit and be able to tell your friends about. Go with an open heart, do not make demands on the Spirits, request to allow you to enter the Heavenly doors with yourself through the Holy Medicine of the Holy and Divine Mother Ayahuasca by allowing you to have a Holy and Divine experience.

References

1. https://www.singingtotheplants.com/2012/05/traveling-safely-to-drink-ayahuasca/