About this Retreat
Matilde has over 45 years of experience with Ayahuasca and Master Plants. She comes from the native Shipibo community of Canáan de Cachiyaw. They are an indigenous tribe from the Pucallpa area, in the Yarina Cocha and Ucayali river regions of Peru. The tribe is credited with holding the traditions of the Amazonian brew Ayahuasca and still hold their traditions to this day.
The Shipibo people are widely recognised for their beautiful textiles and for their long history of using Amazonian Medicinal Plants for healing purposes.
Matilde has dedicated her life to the traditional teachings of Shipibo Shamanism, with over forty five years experience as a Curandera (healer). During this time Matilde has completed an extensive range of Amazonian Plant Dietas, which assist her in all of her Shipibo healing methods.
Matilda has helped many people suffering a wide range of psychological, physical and energetic issues both within the local community, and throughout Peru. Many foreigners have travelled from all over the world to work with her. Matilde works with people of all genders, but has particular expertise in working with female-related health conditions and issues.
Dave has 15 years of experience with Ayahuasca and has deep insight into the psychedelic exploration that can support you in your own journey. He has lived in Peru for over 4 years and has worked with Shipibo and Quechua indigenous groups throughout his stay. He's fluent in English, Spanish and Polish. He's a musician and offers sound baths at the end of ceremonies to ground people into their bodies. He supports the shaman in facilitating Ayahuasca ceremonies and himself facilitated over 200 San Pedro ceremonies.
He has worked with the Dennis McKenna and the McKenna Academy creating educational content on psychedelics that has reached over 11 million people in a year. His personal project The Alchemy of Self offers mystical tours in Peru and free donation online course on psychedelic plants. He decided to support the Shipibo family to build their independent center and oppose the neocolonial approach of Shamans being used as work force in western owned centers. His dream is to create a bridge between cultures so we can all learn, grow and heal the collective.
Sara is the daughter of Maestra Matilde and already a powerful curandera. She's always smiling and she sings beautiful traditional Icaros but also she plays a guitar and sings medicine songs, bringing in a lot of love and light into the ceremonies.
Wilson is the son of Maestra Matilde who has a very unique sound and energy coming from the masculine strength but with balance feminine sensitivity.
Details of this retreat
Experience the transformative power of a 20 nights (8 ceremonies) Ayahuasca Retreat and Master Plant Dieta in a jungle center led by a Shipibo tribe Maestra Matilda (45+ years of experience) and her family. In each ceremony we have 3 shamans available. There's also an English/Spanish speaking facilitator (15 years of experience) at the center who will help with 8 integration sessions and sound baths.
This immersive journey offers profound connections with the spirit of the plants.
In indigenous Amazonian cultures like the Shipibo, the dieta is an apprenticeship with the plant you consume. It provides messages for personal healing, a deeper understanding of reality, and the acquisition of medicinal skills through icaros, healing songs.
Embarking on a master plant dieta requires unwavering determination. It's designed for individuals committed to their own transformation and that of others. By quieting the mind, eliminating distractions, and disconnecting from everyday chaos, you can achieve a state of stillness to receive subtle messages. These may come in dreams, visions, or through the encompassing forest, revealing the path to knowledge followed by shamans.
Each master plant possesses unique qualities. Some open the heart and nurture emotions, while others provide stability and resilience in the face of life's challenges. Certain plants enhance focus and empower you to pursue your true desires, such as overcoming addictions. Others have healing properties for ailments like stomach issues, rheumatism, and depression. When applying for a master plant dieta, it's essential to specify your intentions, enabling the healer to select the most suitable plant for your journey.
You can choose from various plant teachers, including Ajo Sacha (Mansoa Alliacea), Bobinsana (Calliandra angustifolia), Chiric Sanango (Brunfelsia grandiflora), Chuchuhuasi (Maytenus laevis), and more. If you're experienced, you can select your own plant, or Matilda can guide you based on your intentions and her intuitive understanding after the first ceremony.
During the master plant dieta, a significant portion of your time is spent in seclusion. You'll reside in a private tambo, a forest hut designed to protect you from insects and without electricity. Meals, served three times a day, consist of simple fare. The dieta regimen excludes salt, sugar, spices, oil, fruits, and limits vegetable consumption.
Engaging in activities that divert your attention outward, like reading or using the internet, is discouraged. Instead, the focus is directed inward, promoting meditation and introspection. However, you're encouraged to express yourself and explore introspectively through drawing, writing, recording dreams, practicing yoga, or playing musical instruments. Music acts as a conduit for communication with the plant spirits. While walks in the forest are allowed, it's important to avoid venturing into the village or encountering the energies of other humans.
With the assistance of ayahuasca, you'll embark on a profound journey of self-discovery, unraveling the mysteries of your own life. This transformative experience helps release hidden traumas buried deep within your unconscious, empowering you to take charge of your own destiny. However, it doesn't grant immunity to sadness or suffering. Instead, it provides you with the ability to make conscious choices, no longer solely driven by causes beyond your comprehension.
The master or teacher plants play a vital role in the healing process, addressing the symptoms manifesting within you. They cleanse your being, purging accumulated negative energies through years of neglect, promoting physical and emotional rejuvenation.
Ayahuasca and Master plant dieta can help with the following:
Addictions : to substances as well as other addictive behaviors.
Depression
Lack of sense of life purpose / meaning. Feeling lost and confused, in transition, uncertain
Anxiety, constant living in past or future
Difficulties in emotional opening, relations with family / partners
Low self esteem
Anger, excess of control
Consequences of trauma, sexual abuse, childhood neglect,
Stressful lifestyle
How do I prepare for the Ayahuasca Retreat and Master Plant Dieta?
· IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO NOTIFY IN ADVANCE ABOUT ANY SERIOUS HEALTH ISSUES, ESPECIALLY EXTREME BLOOD PRESSURE OR HEART PROBLEMS
· The most important is to put aside any strong pharmaceuticals and drugs, especially antidepressants, at least 2 weeks before, of course with permission of your physician. Antidepressants will be actually very dangerous if combined with ayahuasca, so please be honest if you are currently taking those.
· Antidepressants in general are not compatible with the ingestion of Ayahuasca. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) work by raising your serotonin levels. For example Fluoxetine, Sertraline, Citalopram, Paroxetine, etc. Any drug to treat depression, anxiety, insomnia, ADD, blood pressure medicines, cold or cough, anti allergics, anti inflammatories are not compatible with the ingestion of ayahuasca. Also statins, opioids, amphetamines, medicines for nausea, asthma sprays and recreational drugs.
· Stay away from alcohol and pork, hard drugs, the longer the better, but minimum one week. Few days before also stay away from coffee, chocolate, cannabis.
· Please inform me about any medicines or supplements you might be taking. In addition, you need to discuss in advance with me your herbal medicine and supplement intake so that you can follow the guidelines and ensure your system is clear before attending any workshops.
· Malaria medication is not recommended, the regional risk is very low and not worth the side effects of those drugs.
· Vaccinations are not obligatory.
· Very important is psychological preparation, that includes focusing on your intentions for dieta, the more precise they are, more efficient can be your work during the process. It good to stick also to mental hygiene before diet, that includes questionable ethical behaviors, especially unhealthy sex practices that can trouble your conscience during isolation period (you will feel best what that means for you), but also avoid unnecessary contamination from excess of electronic media, junk entertainment etc.
· It is important that you communicate your food allergies, intolerances or preferences so we can design a menu that doesn't break your diet. Please note that food during the retreat will be basic dieta food and free of salt, oils, meat and sugar (no fruit). It consists mostly of rice, quinoa, potatoes, beans, limited vegetables and eggs.
What should I consider and take for my stay?
· Passport which is still valid for a minimum of 6 months at the moment of entering Peru.
· Better take a backpack than a suitcase - there is some walking involved in getting to the center.
· Headlamp with red light option for the ceremony. White light only is good for outdoors but too strong for inside the ceremony space.
· candles and a lighter for your Tambo (forest hut) aslo it might be nice to have some incense and essential oils (against mosquitos)(tea tree, citronella, lemon grass etc)
· A raincoat and rubber boots - you can buy this cheaply in Iquitos
· Towel or sarong
· Natural soap and shampoo
· Light clothes
· For everyday use flip flops or crocs are most practical.
· Personal stuff such as contact lenses
· If you play anything, take your instruments
· Creative tools, such as notebook, sketchbook, pen, felt-tip pens, pencil
· In case of diarrhea, natural remedy such as coal
· USD is the best currency and easiest to change. However remember that notes can not be deteriorated or torn in any way, they will not be accepted anywhere in Peru. Also make sure, if you are bringing 100 USD notes, that none are with a series beginning with CB.
· Apart from the money to cover extra nights stay and Kambo ceremony (IN CASH ONLY), you may bring some extra cash, either for shopping textiles and other artwork from our shamans.