Ayahuasca: a dense and concentrated earthly brew. Photo © El Mundo Magico
Download our FREE PDF Programmes for the:
• “SHAMANIC PLANT DIETA APPRENTICESHIP” retreat (3 Months/91 Days)
• “SHAMANIC DIETA WITH MASTER TREES” (45 Days)
• “SHAMANIC PLANT DIETA WITH TOÈ” (31 Days)
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Foreword
The shamanic diet is a sophisticated and complex process, if you think at all the possible plants combinations that can actually be involved, and when one dwells on the fact that many Maestros and Maestras are altogether illiterate. All this makes one wonder at the meaning of the words “sabiduría” (wisdom), or ”conocimiento” (knowledge), and on how this may be achieved without going to a Western university! This is the “School of Advanced Studies in Amazonian Shamanism”…, a parallel university to our own Western institutions, that has its own laws, dynamics, and ways to knowledge. Here plants are the teachers and the “maestros” the traditional guides and the keepers of “la ciencia” (the science of vegetalismo).
Basic vocabulary to get familiar with
Further vocabulary you may wish to be acquainted with, may be found here at our glossary page. In the FAQ section below, you may find answers to the most common questions asked re. the dieta:
FAQ: Ayahuasca and the Plant Diet
1) ”Is it possible to take Ayahuasca during the diet?”
YES, that is essential part of the training for the shamanic initiation, even though the number of times one will take part to Ayahuasca ceremonies depend intrinsically from the length of the diet itself, and from the type of diet one is doing (i.e. traditional diet or pre-diet/’prueba de dieta‘). When one engages in the healing diet – however – the answer is ‘may be yes, may be not’, as it very much depends from the condition one is affected from.
2) ”How many times do I have Ayahuasca sessions whilst doing the Shamanic Plant Diet?”
Whilst there are different schools of thought with regard to how many Ayahuasca sessions per week one may have whilst dieting with the master trees or the teacher plants – notably, with some shamans not allowing Ayahuasca on the first week of diet, especially if one is dieting with “palos maestros” – with Don Armando is possible to drink Ayahuasca an average of three times a week (on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays), whilst dieting the master trees). In either case Ayahuasca may be taken already from the first week of diet. In the case of the shamanic dieta with Ayahuasca, with Don Armando is also possible to do up to FIVE Ayahuasca ceremonies per week and even dieting with different varieties of ayahuasca vines like Cielo, Suni, Puma and Lucero ayahuasca, as well as with different plant admixtures like Chaliponga/Chagropanga and/or the very rare Puma chacruna. During the apprenticeship the shaman always prepares with icaros and other protections (arkanas) the physical and energetic body of the apprentice.
FAQ: Length of the traditional shamanic plant diet
3) ”What is the average length of the traditional shamanic plant diet?”
Guidelines may vary from shaman to shaman, even from within the same ethnic group. Some shamans (the more strictly traditional) will not call a proper shamanic diet anything that would be less than three months in length, as initial stage, to begin with. This is – mind you – the minimum period one should engage with, not the maximum, which may otherwise last a few years. To become a proper shamanic healer, one would normally require a full five years of dieta (including periods of break). The absolute basic is learnt in the first three months, and one can consider himself (or herself) advanced in the apprenticeship after having completed a one year of shamanic dieta training. After completing the initial stage of the apprenticeship, one may return and continue for shorter or longer periods of time, from 2 weeks to 6 months in a row, and anything in between.
4) ”What is the average length of the shamanic plant diet tester (‘prueba de dieta’)?”
This changes from shaman to shaman. From an absolute minimum of 8 days onwards, depending on the teacher plant or master tree one wishes to diet with.
FAQ: Temporary breaks of the diet & communication with the outside world
In a three months diet, one may usually only go to town after having completed the first phase of the training. This period may coincide with the end of the first month and half of drinking the master trees brew prepared by the shaman. Times may vary from person to person, depending on individual energy, and response times to the shamanic diet. In a six months diet, a dietero/a may go to town only after – or from – the end of the third month of diet. However, if absolutely necessary, the shaman may give permission to go to Iquitos at an earlier stage, taking into account that, alternatively, it is also possible to use your mobile and check your WhatsApp/email messages by going to El Dorado, a nearby jungle hamlet, about 35 minutes hike away from our retreat venue. In this last case scenario, one won’t need to wait for the completion of the first “half term” of the diet period, and may go to the jungle hamlet with much more frequency (weather permitting, and standing the availability of your guide/interpreter). Alternatively, if you can afford it, a satellite phone may allow you full independence during your shamanic dieta retreat, eliminating the need to go to town (and/or to the jungle hamlet) to check emails, or make phone calls.
Your dieta will terminate with a special Ayahuasca ceremony and your retreat will end on the last day of the thirteenth week, on the 91st day, after lunch. During your shamanic apprenticeship you will get also to learn how to prepare cleansing herbal baths, clay baths and baños de florecimiento (ritual floral baths, to increase luck and prosperity) as well as singing icaros on a plant remedy, and even treat a patient affected by “susto” (fright), among other things.
PLEASE NOTE:
There are no limitations in terms of freedom of movement/going to town, for the Ayahuasca retreat (even though we invite you to make the most of your retreat time in the jungle!). However, in line with traditional rules, these limitations may remain in place for guests doing the traditional shamanic plant diet, at the discretion of the shaman.
We now offer a complimentary SPANISH-ENGLISH interpreting service, available onsite to all of our guests.
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FURTHER INSIGHTS INTO THE SHAMANIC PLANT DIET
What Is The Shamanic Plant Dieta?
Shamanic Plant Diet Apprenticeship: The Way of Wisdom
The Master trees and Plant Teachers of the Shamanic Diet
Shamanic Plant Diet and Ayahuasca
The Shamanic Plant Diet: Restrictions, Food and Plant Teachers
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Download our FREE PDF Programmes for the:
• “SHAMANIC PLANT DIETA APPRENTICESHIP” retreat (3 Months/91 Days)