Ayahuasca: Rituals, Potions and Visionary Art from the Amazon
Published on 1. October 2016
286 pages
978-1-61125-052-7 (ISBN)
Description
Sales Hook
If there could ever be a 'definitive book' on Ayahuasca, this would be it!
Authoritative treatise on the use, history, culture, and art of the sacred plant medicine Ayahuasca.
Key Content
Ayahuasca is the strongest shamanic plant medicine. Brewed from the combination of the Amazonian vine, Banisteriopsis caapi, and leaves from the plant, Psychotria viridis, Ayahuasca creates sweeping visual and mentally startling effects. For many of the indigenous cultures of the Amazonian basin, Ayahuasca is central to their culture, revealing to mankind its role in the universe and the true nature of reality. Used properly, Ayahuasca provides healing and integration with nature and community and stimulates the creative process. The authors are recognized experts in the field of ethnology, anthropology and pharmacology and demonstrate the use of Ayahuasca in shamanic rituals. They dive deep into shamanic visionary worlds, explore the plants and their souls, and share their authentic encounters with Amazonian cultures and their artistic works.
More details
Persons
Arno Adelaars lives in Amsterdam and explored psychedelic substances for over 20 years. He works as a freelance journalist and author, and previously as a reporter for Dutch and German news channels. He wrote the very first book in Europe on MDMA (Ecstasy) in 1991, and was initiated by a Colombian ayahuasca shaman in his tradition eight years ago.
He regularly contributes to various magazines and was a co-organizer of the ' Psychoactivity' conference in Amsterdam and continues to organize various psychoactivity events in Europe and Nepal together with Claudia Müller-Ebeling.
Content
INTRODUCTION 4
Ayahuasca - the magic potion of the Amazon 4
The ayahuasca river 5
The seven pillars of jungle medicine 6
The World Tree 8
CHRISTIAN RÄTSCH: ETHNOBOTANICA AYAHUASCA 9
Amazonia: 'el mundo de la Ayahuasca' - the realm of ayahuasca 11
What is ayahuasca? 12
Entheogens 12
Origins and discovery 14
Other names for ayahuasca 15
The ayahuasca plant: ethnobotany 17
Banisteriopsis caapi: the ayahuasca liana 18
The ayahuasca potion: snake and jaguar 19
The ayahuasca potion: ethnopharmacy 20
Recipes for receptors 22
A Natema recipe of the Shuar (Jívaro) 22
An Ecuadorian recipe 23
Tama yagé - a recipe of the Cofán 23
Preparation by the União do Vegetal (UDV, Brazil) 23
A recipe of Don Agustín (Peru) 23
Western medicine, pharmacy and pharmacology 24
DMT: the enlightenment molecule 25
The ayahuasca effect: experiences 26
On sense and the senses: some personal ayahuasca reflections 26
Dietary rules: ayahuasca diets 27
Sacred meat 27
La pinta: the vision plants 28
Shades of the night 28
Maikua and chamico: angel's trumpets 29
Borrachero, the 'inebriant' 32
The cactus of the four winds 33
Yopo: snuff powder and ayahuasca 34
A yopo recipe of the Sikuani (Colombia) 36
Coca: the 'leaf of life' 38
Other stimulants from the Amazon 40
Tobacco: food of the jaguar shamans 42
Mapacho: jungle tobacco 45
Tobacco licking: ambíl, chimó and mambeo 46
Copal: incense and fragrance 47
Incenses amplify experience 48
Copal 49
Sahumerios 50
Siete plantas zahumerio: 'seven incense plants' 51
Incense in modern ayahuasca rituals 51
Florida: the jungle perfume 52
Remedios: the remedies 53
South American medicinal plants 55
Green gold? 56
CLAUDIA MÜLLER-EBELING: AYAHUASCA VISIONS AND ARTISTIC REFLECTIONS 56
What are visions? 57
The historical background 59
The image worlds of ayahuasca 60
Mushroom and DMT visions 64
On the meaning of patterns, signs and signatures 67
Constants of form and phosphene 68
Zigzag patterns 70
Spirals and circles 72
Crosses 73
The phases of inebriation 73
Amazonian ayahuasca art 74
Shipibo-Conibo 74
The primary Shipibo patterns 78
Animal symbolism 81
Birds 82
Face and body painting 83
The scene of the action 85
Archaeological ayahuasca artifacts 85
The maloca cosmos 87
Thinking stools 89
Musical instruments 90
Ayahuasca music 92
The natural sounds of the jungle symphony 93
Songs as a 'cartography of the true reality' 94
A personal experience 97
In the beginning was the rhythm 97
Dionysian music 98
Yuruparí: the sound of the Pleiades 99
Snail sounds 100
Religious music: himnos 101
Ayahuasca as a source of inspiration 102
Rocking ayahuasca 104
Sting's Message in a Bottle 104
Trance-Amazonia 106
Ayahuasca visions in contemporary art 107
Jungle cinema 107
La pinta in South American painting 110
Pablo Amaringo 110
Yando Rios 111
Carlos Jacanamijoy 112
La pinta in Western painting 113
Mati Klarwein 113
Nana Nauwald 115
Alex Grey 116
