Hello friends of natural ancestrals medicines! I am Chrisantem, founder and owner of PachamamaHerbs.com store and also Ladírna.cz website. Aho mitakuye oyasin. I’m I just start with my friends and colleagues to create English website PachamamaHerbs.com, you can order directly and discretly herbs and ethnobotanical specimens such as Ayahuasca plants. Let’s discuss them more in detail, because although they are becoming still more adopted in the western world, there is a lot of different kinds of information around it. There are credible accounts ranging from authentic descriptions of those who have experience with the medicine to various, say, mythical rumours and misinformation…

Here the article continues with a description of other aspects of a home ceremony: Diet, preparation of the space and the actual performance of the ceremony… (soon)

When you say “Ayahuasca”…

When we put this word into Google, a lot of different articles pop up at us. It’s nice to start at least with the neutral Wikipedia and read a fairly complex article. Here there is an introduction I chose from it:

Ayahuasca or ayawaska (result “Ajau-Aska”; quechua “liana of the soul” or “liana of the dead “) also known as the yagé (result “Ja-he”) and under many other names it is entheogen prepared from lianas Banisteriopsis caapi and other plants. The name ayahuasca also refers to the liana itself, and sometimes the drink is prepared only from it. However, usually it is mixed with leaves containing dimethyltryptamine (DMT), sometimes also various other plants as needed. The academic drink was first described by Harvard ethnobotanic Richard Evans Schultes who discovered it and used it for healing and magical purposes by the indigenous people of peruvian Amazon. Alkaloids from the plant Banisteriopsis caapi act pharmacologically as monoamine oxidase inhibitors , which is synergistic with dimethyltriptamine from additive plants, which would be immediately metabolized and not active without them. It is not clear how the indigenous inhabitants discovered this combination; in their own words, the instructions for preparing the drink were given to them by the plants themselves or the plant spirits. Ayahuasca is traditionally used by the Amazon natives in a ritual context in the presence of experienced shamans, in the twentieth century there were also syncretic churches using ayahuasca as a sacrament in their services.

Source: Ayahuasca on Wikipedia

So, is it better? Do you understand what is being written about? Do you want to know more?

To summarize what is important to me, ayahuasca is a medicinal drink prepared by shamans from several medicinal (Amazonian) plants, the main ingredient is usually Banisteriopsis caapi, which serves as a so-called MAOI inhibitor, and then usually a DMT ingredient, leaves from the plant Psychotria viridis (so-called Chacruna) or Diplopterys cabrerana (Chaliponga).

The usual side effects after drinking are an altered state of consciousness, physical cleansing (vomiting or diarrhoea), interesting inner visions, visits to spiritual spaces and “other dimensions”, encounters with various beings, “ghosts”, they can be “good”, but also “bad”, “negative”, “demons” or “light guides” . Its use is usually called a ritual, a ceremony.

Home cooking of ayahuasca, does it make sense?

The usual opinion is that ayahuasca should only be cooked by an experienced shaman. This is often followed by the idea of who the shaman is, or a colourful narrative (usually in oral rendering) about what this and that shaman can do and why this and that shaman is “evil” or “negative”. One can get to articles such as that Maria flew here and there into the jungle and it did not cure her, therefore the shaman is incompetent, and that she had some strange states there and they persisted even after her return. Or that it should be used only where it grows, i.e. in the Amazon, because here we have our herbs.

What to say against that? Well, there’s a little truth to every splash.

No scholar fell from heaven. Even a shaman learned to be a shaman. Those born in traditional family communities in the Amazon rainforest, of course, have a bit of an “edge”, learning from childhood, usually from their parents or grandparents, how to prepare and use the medicinal plants available to them. They may know the plants around them very well, but they lack the experience of life in our Western civilization… When they come to us, they are amazed at our culture, and we are amazed at how they live. And that’s right. We can learn from each other, be inspired, get rich…

If for any reason you are tempted to “become a shaman”, more specifically an “ayahuasca shaman” keep in mind that you are taking on very sensitive topics, and caution and maximum circumspection are in order. Ayahuasca is like a knife, you can use it to kill, to spread it on bread and slice an apple with it.

What is my experience with Ayahuasca?

I first drank Ayahuasca in the fall of 2015, four years ago. At the moment (now, at the time of writing this article), I have had about a hundred ceremonies with ayahuasca, and I am therefore of the opinion that I have something to share.

I had the first twenty or so ceremonies in the Czech Republic, then I visited Ecuador, where I spent about twenty more ceremonies in two months with two native shamans, healers, and under their supervision I learned to cook ayahuasca, which I brought to our country.

I continue on my “shamanic path”. I cook my medicine mainly for myself, and those who feel that they want to have it with me gradually appear, so we are tuning each other and us all together… It’s a very interesting journey. The path of deep knowledge of oneself, the Earth, the Universe… I also connect it with Merkaba meditation and methods from my therapeutic practice and thus arose the concept of School 137…

I consider Ayahuasca to be a universal supermedicine. It has a lot to offer, it can show a lot, it can even help cure even “incurable diseases”. However, it is always just a tool, it is not self-saving. It instructs, caresses, cuddles, lifts up… but it’s important to be healthy to make it happen, the everyday steps and decisions are always made by a specific person in accordance with his health, happiness, economic situation…

Why School 137? What’s that supposed to mean?

During one of my private ceremonies with Ayahuasca, it was at the border with Syria in the south of Turkey in January this year, I asked what to do here, what can I do for myself and for humanity… And I got the answer that we can live up to 137 years. But not as old sick and bedridden cripples, but as healthy, successful and experienced people-Masters. Masters over matter, masters in healing and rejuvenating oneself. Ayahuasca and other shamanic teaching plants can help us a lot.

Do you want to be a shaman yourself? Do you want to be powerful or sick? Do you believe in yourself, in your power and strength, and can you use it meaningfully, or do you waste your energy, strangling the flow of your life energy somewhere? Do you already know yourself well? Do you know what are your options and limits?

Do you know where is your energy blocked and where you have chronic problems and pain? And do you want to have it this way forever, or are you able to approach the problem constructively and efficiently, to treat, heal and cure the sensitive area, so that it is completely healed and the pain completely cured? Do you want to move on, to a new stage of your own existence, are you ready to let go of that what does not serve you well and accept something new, start doing something different so that you can live better, breathe better, dance better, fly, create, in your body, in your life?

We can all be healthy and sick. Rich and poor. Happy and stuck in depression.

It is a free choice and free decision, what each of us decides for. What do you, yourself, decide for yourself… Do you believe everyone around you that you need to be an old and sick cripple and die sooner or later, or will you believe yourself for yourself that it can be different? Maybe the Amazon liana, Mother of Plants, Grandmother Ayahuasca, can help you decide and accept radiant health.

Are you interested in more? Do you feel an invitation? Are you attracted? Does it call, does it say to you that it could be for you?

Once you’re determined that you want to cook your own medicine at home, you’ll need a few plants:

Banisteriopsis caapi – Red and Yellow, what’s the difference between them? Which one to cook?

Visually essentially none. It’s up to you to choose, they both work quite similarly. I think that the red Caapi Red is “slightly stronger”, it is yellow as if “rather finer”… It is possible to cook either one or the other, or to mix them together and thus combine their effect with each other. I usually cook from both of these plants together, you decide according to yourself…

Chacruna or Chaliponga? What is the difference between them? Which one to cook?

Both these plants contain similar amounts of DMT, dimethyltryptamine, which is the coveted “opener of consciousness,” or rather “indicator of consciousness”. I’m not a scientist, I have no need to research it too scientifically, in too materialistic way. My approach is user-friendly, human, artistic, and also pragmatic for healing, so that it has some effect, that its effect is felt, that it is noticeable…

I noticed a difference that chacruna gives the effect of being “more colourful”, more radiant, more visual than Chaliponga . Visions from chacruna may be (but don’t have to be!) visible, visions from Chaliponga are more on the level of feelings, information that “walks” and fits into the life story at a given moment. I can’t describe it better yet…

It is perfectly fine to mix and brew both together or to choose only one, whichever resonates with you more.

Is it appropriate to add another plant to Caapi and DMT leaves?

You are a shaman, you choose whether and what to add to your medicine. This will definitely only benefit the resulting healing effect of Mapacho tobacco (Nicotiana rustica) in any quantity. I give more rather than less because in combination with Banisteriopsis Caapi it is unique for releasing deep deposits, blocks and waste in the intestines. Anyone who eats something or even eats in excess now and then, has a huge number of parasites in their intestines. Clean intestines, healthy body. I don’t want to scare you too much, but I can honestly say that the one who treats its intestines badly will sooner or later end up with bad consequences… Tobacco brewed like tea and drunk is an excellent “inner bowel brush ” . It’s worth it, at least sometimes, at least once in a lifetime… and then the body will surely remember if it is needed again…

It is also good to add wayusa to cooked medicine. Or cook it separately and drink it separately in the second half of the night. Wayusa has a pleasant alkaline pH and it tastes great, it is a support for the urinary system and kidneys. They love each other with Ayahuasca very much and complement each other beautifully.

Any of the other herbs and ingredients are entirely up to you. I recommend proceeding from proven recipes, and when you connect more deeply with the essence of individual plants, you can add more and more and watch what it does to you.

There are frequent ceremonies in the Amazon and in our country, where for example with durman, psychedelic mushrooms and various other substances are added to Ayahuasca. Of course, the participants in the ceremony should be acquainted with the plant combination they accept as much as possible…

How to cook Ayahuasca?

Traditionally, the liana is boiled for many hours. I will advise you how to do it.

1. Amount and ratio of herbs

First, decide how many people and how many nights you will prepare medicine for and from how many herbs. Do you want to cook just “for a test” for one night for yourself? Or will someone go with you, for example a similarly attuned partner or a long-time friend? Calculate the expected number of “mannights”.

Next, how strong medicine do you want to prepare? Should it be soft, medium strength or as strong as possible? You are a shaman, you determine it…

So, have you decided? I will list the range of herbs I recommend for a single person for one ceremony, i.e. “one mannight ” :

Banisteriopsis Caapi

10 g light, 25 grams medium strength, 50 grams quite strong, 100 grams extremely strong medicine.

Chacruna or Chaliponga

10 g gentle effect, 25 grams medium strength, 50 grams quite strong, 100 grams very strong DMT effect.

Tobacco, wayusa, cocoa and other “supplementary” plants

10 grams and less almost imperceptible effect, 25 grams medium strength effect, 50 grams very strong effect, 100 grams very pronounced, even predominant effect of a particular plant, can even overshadow and prevail over Caapi.

The ratio of herbs

The ratio of herbs can be either 1: 1 Caapi + DMT leaves (e.g. 50 grams of Caapi + 50 grams of Chacruna, or 50 grams of Caapi + 25 grams of Chacruna + 25 grams of Chaliponga).

You can easily use a ratio of 2:1 (100 grams of Caapi + 50 grams of DMT leaves together) or even 3:1 (100 grams of Caapi + 33 grams of DMT leaves) to enhance the healing effect of the liana itself. When the compound contains larger share of liana, the main effect of the medicine is stronger. DMT is, so to say, “silver lining“. The main work, the main healing effect is done by Caapi.

Add as much tobacco as you have available and as much as you feel like, I recommend a ratio of about half the amount of DMT leaves, wayusa or cocoa, if you want to add it.

So, is that understandable? Have you thought, felt and considered it? Basically, it’s OK if it is intuitive, as felt emotionally. Shamans cook with their hearts, emotionally, scientists and chemists cook in a sterile environment and weigh everything with exact precision. There are no hard and fast rules. One gram more or less, with these plants it doesn’t matter. More important is the intention why you cook, what you hope to achieve, what you expect, how you prepare for cooking and the subsequent ceremony…

2. Cooking herbs in a pot

As I mentioned above, it is usually boiled for many hours to release the active ingredients from the plants.

I recommend cooking as long as possible, as slowly as possible, as honestly as possible. The procedure is such that all the herbs are placed on the bottom in a sufficiently large pot. You pour water in a ratio of at least 100 grams of herbs (all together), 1 liter of water, but you can easily add up to 2 liters of water.

You ask good spirits for help, guidance, and protection, turn on the gas or stove, stir, bless, and cook over a low heat. You can sing and drum, it’s nice to treat the pot with a smoker, to give your medicine as much attention as possible. Water has memory and medicine boiled in this way has an especially strong one…

When the mixture starts to bubble, it is necessary to withdraw the flame and cook at a low level. Gradually, the water evaporates and evaporates, and the medicine concentrates and concentrates, noticeably thickening. It can take 3-5 hours or even longer. It seems better to me not to cover the pot with a lid, so that the water can evaporate freely. It’s nice to ventilate the room. After a while, it starts to feel in the kitchen and throughout the house that something is happening, that something is cooking…

When it happens that the water evaporates so much that the herbs are barely immersed, you should strain the resulting “syrup” into a small pot. About 1/10 of the original water volume should remain. It should look like a thick soup or a sauce. Now it’s up to you whether you want to cook another infusion so that you have more medicine, or you’re satisfied with this single one.

If you leave the first batch in a small pot aside, you can boil it for another 3-5 hours and concentrate also the second pot. Then you strain the two parts, pour them together and continue cooking, now without boiling the herbs.

Now, be careful not to boil the medicine too much, completely, and not to burn it. You continue to cook, up to the required density, strength and quantity. For 100 grams of used herbs it can be approximately 25-50 ml of the resulting medicine. It should look like syrup, smell, thicker shells on the surface.

So, congratulations, you have your own Ayahuasca medicine cooked. What to do with it now? Was it fine? Didn’t it work? Do you have a question? Write it to a comment or send an email or call …

It’s nice to get enough time and peace, either one whole day or two in the afternoon. If you don’t have time or if you you’re in a hurry, fuck it and leave it for later. There is nothing to rush. You’d just hurt yourself. You will first solve what weighs on you elsewhere before you start cooking. Ayahuasca wouldn’t help you with that anyway…

It is nice to pour the medicine into a glass bottle of adequate size and let it cool down with the lid open. When it’s cold, you can either store it in the fridge, it will last for several months, but it’s better to drink it soon.

3. How about a home ceremony with Ayahuasca medicine?

The first half of success is to cook medicine well, in adequate strength, the second half of success is preparation, especially diet. And the third half is a suitable place and the ceremony itself. We will talk about these other topics in the next article. This is already quite extensive. But it is not possible otherwise. It’s so extensive and sensitive, all about ayahuasca and its use, it just can’t be shortened.

Aho.

Ayawikja Chrisantem

// If Ayahuasca is calling you and you do not dare to prepare it yourself, then we can arrange an individual ceremony or give you info about joint events. I’m from Prague, Czech Republic, but I travel often to the South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru…) Contact me.