AYAHUASCA / DMT

 AYAHUASCA / DMT

Ayahuasca

Medicine Name : Ayahuasca

Kambo, as we learned in our last section,  is a medicine frequently offered alongside other ceremonial medicines such as Ayahuasca, Ibogaine, 5-MeO-DMT, and other plant medicines for holistic treatment.  According to its practitioners, the application "resets" the body, not only by strengthening the immune system but also through distinct psycho-spiritual benefits.

What Is Ayahuasca ?

Ayahuasca, Iowaska, or yagé, is an entheogenic brew that is traditional mixed of Banisteriopsis caapi vine, Chacruna (DMT) and Caapi (MAOI).  The brew is used as a traditional spiritual medicine in ceremonies among the indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin.  Over time, people started experimenting with the ingredients and found that Mimosa (DMT) and Harmala (MAOI) is the most potent and smooth trip if used correctly.  Used for over 5000 years by the shamans or healers Ayahuasqueros as a way for the expansion of consciousness (soul).  And now it is used in Peru to help drug addicts and an substitute for antidepressant pills.  

Active Ingredients 

Banisteriopsis caapi contains several alkaloids that act as monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs). Another common ingredient in ayahuasca is the shrub Psychotria viridis which contains the primary psychoactive compound, dimethyltryptamine (DMT).  MAOIs are required for DMT to be orally active. 

Traditional Brew

Traditional ayahuasca brews are usually made with Banisteriopsis caapi as an MAOI, while dimethyltryptamine sources and other admixtures vary from region to region.  There are several varieties of caapi, often known as different "colors", all having varying effects, potencies, and uses. 

DMT admixtures 

Psychotria viridis (Chacruna) - leaves

Diplopterys cabrerana (Chaliponga, Chagropanga, Banisteriopsis rusbyana) - leaves

Psychotria carthagenensis (America) - leaves

Mimosa tenuiflora (M. Hostillis) - root bark

Common admixtures with their associated ceremonial values & spirits:

Ayahuma bark : Dead head tree. Provides protection and is used in healing susto (soul loss from spiritual fright or trauma)

Capirona bark : Provides cleansing and protection.  It is noted for its smooth bark, white flowers, and hard wood.

Chullachaki caps bark : Provides cleansing to the physical body.  Used to transcend physical body ailments.

Lopuna blanca bark : Provides protection.

Punga amarilla bark : Yellow Punga.  Provides protection.  Used to pull or draw out negative spirits or energies. 

Remo caspi bark : Air tree. used to create purging, transcend gastro/intestinal ailments, calm the mind, and bring tranquility.

Showawaku bark : Brings purple medicine to ceremony.

Uchu sanango : Head of the sanango plants.

Huacapurana : Giant tree of the Amazon with very hard bark. 

History Of Ayahuasca

Traditionally, among Amazonian tribes, the Banisteriopsis caapi vine is considered to be the "spirit" of ayahuasca, the gatekeeper, and a guide to the otherworldly realms. The Ayahuasca, mythological and traditionally is the highest Deity (Divine) all natural reality as "The Mother Ayahuasca", the spirit of all spirits used for over 5000 years by Amazonian tribes.  

Ayahuasca, in this modern era, is understood as an extraordinary chemical, equivalent to a neurotransmitter or hormone which activates Brain psyche which reveals the insight human potential. The name "ayahuasca" specifically refers to a botanical decoction that contains Banisteriopsis caapi. The synthetic version, known as pharmahuasca, is a combination of an appropriate MAOI and typically DMT.  In this usage, the DMT is generally considered the main psychoactive ingredient, while the MAOI merely preserves the psychoactivity of orally ingested DMT, which would otherwise be destroyed in the gut before it could be absorbed in the body.  

Current Use

The drink extracted from the Ayahuasca Plant is the largest known source of DMT in the world, is a neurotransmitter produced naturally in our brain mind from the pineal gland which is responsible for dreams in REM rest unconscious. 

Just as the DMT present in the drink Ayahuasca, our own brain naturally produces and secretes the substance DMT and the mind is responsible for night dreams.  Meaning, when a person falls asleep, yoga, or meditate, your brain begins to secrete a chemical equivalent of DMT in ayahuasca, which acts as if the person's dreaming.  The effect then, is like experiencing a dream, but we are awake, also known as lucid dreams.  Feeling the effects of ayahuasca, is like dreaming, but with full awareness of the content of the images and emotional content that stain sleep.  Giving access to infinite information contained in our sub-conscious or spiritual world. 

Medicinal Benefits 

After consuming ayahuasca, people report having mystical or religious experiences and spiritual revelations regarding their purpose on earth, the true nature of the universe as well as deep insight into how to be the best person they possibly can.  This overall is viewed as a spiritual awakening and often described by many as a rebirth.  It is also often reported that individuals feel they gain access to higher spiritual dimensions and make contact with carious spiritual or extra-dimensional beings who can act as healers or guides through their world.

It was reported, in early 2018, that a single dose of ayahuasca significantly reduced symptoms of treatment-resistant depression in a small place-bo controlled trial. 

Ceremonial Traditions

Ayahuasca places the brain in an expanded states of vibration, working optimally so that the person reaches higher states of consciousness.  Ayahuasca is NOT a drug, nor addictive, nor is there loss of consciousness, nor does it cause imbalance states of hallucination --  the feeling is one of total control, body control, greater alertness, you will know where you are. 

Consciousness is altered, changing brain waves, roughly 20 minutes after ingestion of ayahuasca.  It is normal to have a reduction in respiratory rate, decreased metabolism, blood pressure, change in pH, thereby increasing hearing sensitivity, vision, smell, and touch. 

The result is gradual attempt to create or maintain peace of personality and mind, reducing fear and anxiety, balancing the nervous system - emotion and reason - thus allowing the brain to gradually pass Beta state (normal activity) to Alpha waves (relaxation) and thus reaching a deep Theta state where occurring mystical experiences of spiritual ecstasy. 

These mystical experiences are usually associated with personal insights,  emotional reactions, idealizations intellectual, and profound spiritual and mystical experiences. 

There have been many studies that state that the ayahuasca shamans certify that users become balanced individuals with optimal health and memory, which experience an ease of learning, greater peace of mind, a balance promoting peace and harmony, and a deep respect for nature. There are also changes in the basic parameters of the experience - personal identity, connection to the outside world, and feelings of significance. 

My Experience

At the time I did my Kambo ceremony with Tishara, I was also lining up a Ayahuasca ceremony for that weekend with a well known Shaman that was coming into town in Las Vegas.  As the universe would have it, Kambo is best taken before the Ayahuasca ceremony as the purging helps. So YAY for me there as I was right in sync. Also as the universe would have it, Tishara offered to be my guide at the Ayahuasca ceremony - she drove and sat with me as my guide and healer at my first Ayahuasca experience. 

My experience was, as for all that experience Ayahuasca, a life changing one. Tishara, on the hour long drive we had to the ceremony, prepared me for what I was about to witness and experience. 

It was a group ceremony, about 15 people, local outside the city of Las Vegas. The Shaman, Sonny, was well known throughout the spiritual community of his practice and very well respected. All attending the ceremony were eager to begin, as preparation began. 

It was custom to wear all white to the ceremony, as it is known as a rebirth.  So all in white, the group set up there areas and awaited the start of the new beginning of our lives. 

There were meditational musical performers, simply amazing artists.  The area was prepped and we all came forth to consume the medicine at the alter. 

The dosing was explained as you could take as much as 8 ounces.  Tishara coached me as to start with 2 ounces as to test the medicine, as every batch is different depending on the plant.  Then that will help judge your total intake.  So I did just that.  

As my consumption and experience had yet to begin, I was able to witness others of theirs. There were so many working through so much, so much pain.  You saw it, you felt it in the room, it was both beautiful and frightening.  The sitters or coaches were all very attentive, holding space for all new to the powers of this medicine. As I was able to feel the mild effects of my 2 ounces, I then went forward to the Shaman to consume my 6 ounces.

Now, if I were to write about my exact first experience of Ayahuasca , I would need to write an entire other article, perhaps even multiple articles or a book. It was for me everything I had researched it to be, I experienced it to be.  For me, I saw another world in this world and it all made perfect sense.  Also I saw and spoke with my sister...and it was so very real.  The way she looked, smiled, her voice, her laugh, was as I remembered it all 10 years ago before she left this earth in her body form. I didn't want it to stop, I could've sat there catching up from what I knew as a decade had past - had felt like she had been with me the whole time, maybe because she had.  

Many of you will probably write off my experience as a "trip", but for me, I would not insult the medicine by classifying my experience, or as I see it a "gift", as just a "trip".  It was my rebirth and reconnection to what I feel now is the best version of myself that I have met.

I would never promote or recommend any medicine that I have not consumed or experienced myself.  Ayahuasca is the most powerful healing medicine next to Kambo that I have ever experienced and I would recommend Aya to any who feel the call to her.

Legality

  In most countries the compound molecule of DMT is illegal. Natural plant medicines containing DMT, including ayahuasca and psilocybin, are not regulated under the 1971 Psychotropic Convention. 

Although, DMT is classified as a Schedule I drug under the United Nations 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances, which means that international trade of DMT is closely monitored.  The use of DMT is, at this time, restricted to scientific research and medical use. 

This concludes all the research and journaling of my experiences through my journey to Ayahuasca/DMT.  It’s now time to visit a well known psychedelic made infamous through books, movies and music, the one known as LSD.