Early last month a friend mentioned she was going to participate in her second Ayahuasca ceremony—which made my ears perk up. I had no idea what an Ayahuasca ceremony is like, only that it involves some kind of herbal drink that makes some people throw up and the night before, one could do a Native American sweat lodge ceremony as part of the experience. Since this friend is a seeker, always searching for healing and greater spiritual awareness (and is grounded in her job as the CFO / CPA of a small company), I was all in.
The other thing I knew about Ayahuasca is what my 21-year-old daughter told me when I said I was going to an Ayahuasca ceremony—Chelsea Handler has done it. (Chelsea Handler, I found out, is a hilarious TV talk show host.)
After registering I received instructions for how to prepare for the ceremony. This included eating cleanly and lightly at least the three days before the ceremony, staying away from violent movies and images, and a few other precautions, such as avoiding alcohol and prescription medications. On the day of the sweat lodge, only fresh fruits were recommended. No problemo, amigo; it’ll be a piece of cake, I thought to myself.
We packed camping equipment such as chairs, sleeping mats, blankets, and coolers with fresh fruit and plenty of water. At the ceremony site, we set up our tent and helped others with their tents. The people arriving for the event were open and friendly and ranged in age from their early 20s through their late 60s.
We were instructed to come to the event with an intention. I wrote my intention on the drive over: to gain momentum with my higher purpose and life.
The Sweat Lodge Ceremony
In the evening a fire was started in the fire pit and rocks were being heated. The rocks would go into the blanket-covered half-dome structure that would serve as the sweat lodge after dusk.
Crawling in one by one, we sat on the ground along the perimeter of the sweat lodge. Hot rocks were brought in, along with a pail of water. Every 15 minutes or so, new freshly glowing rocks from the fire outside …
The two leaders drummed and chanted Native American songs and prayers. We endured the heat and steam for an hour in complete darkness. My long cotton dress got saturated with sweat. The intent was to cleanse ourselves of toxins and prepare for the Ayahuasca the next morning. I enjoyed the sweat lodge and only got slightly uncomfortable the last 10 minutes or so.
The next morning, I had tea and a couple pieces of fruit. We took down our tents and packed them into our vehicles. The ceremony would begin around 9 a.m.
Ayahuasca—the Most Spiritual of all Herbal Substances?
About 50 people gathered with yoga or sleeping mats, blankets and bottles of water. The ceremony area had already been prepared: tarps had been laid on the ground, then utility blankets on top of them. Beautiful art blankets hung from clotheslines attached to trees.
I heard that we’d be on the tarp area for six hours. Although I knew the ceremony included the ingesting of an herbal medicine that alters your consciousness, I had no idea what we’d be doing for six whole hours. Chanting? Drumming? Prayer, Indian style? Role playing? I had no reference for what was to come.
Two leaders, a male and a female, and about a dozen volunteers helped with the process. We received the Ayahuasca medicine in small paper cups. It looked and tasted something like an herbal / mushroom expresso. Most people swallowed it in one gulp. I took four sips and got it all down. It didn’t taste bad.
The sun shone through the canopy of trees. Music came on via an audio system. I lay back on my mat to relax and take it all in. There was a bucket by each person’s side, just in case we needed to puke.
After about 20 minutes or so, I felt the herbal medicine begin its work. One of the first things I felt was a warm glow beginning in the center of my body near my rib cage (where the soul seed is). This feeling reassured me. Then I felt things shifting in my body, as if channels were opening inside my body and brain. I felt something shift inside and voilà—the sky instantly got brighter and the leaves on the trees became radiant with energy.
Within an hour I was fully in the process. I had my eyes open pretty much the whole time. I told myself I was going to be conscious throughout the process.
It’s hard to describe in words what I experienced, but it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my whole life. I saw, among the canopy of trees, what I can only describe as the Interconnectedness of all life. I saw the web of life.
I Saw the Interconnectedness
If you’ve read my memoir on intuition and awakening, you might remember that the Counsel of Light had told me that the Interconnectedness was real. And you might remember that I had experienced glimpses of it when I followed my inner guidance and amazing synchronicities occurred. But now I could actually see it. I mean I could actually see the Interconnectedness; I could see the web of life and it was so beautiful. It was as if the tree spirits and all of nature were saying to me, we’re here; we’re here for you; we support you. Can you see it? Can you see the bigger picture and how we’re here supporting you?
I sat up and looked at the people all around me. They all appeared completely normal, no distortion there whatsoever. But just beyond them the trees became animated and the leaves dazzled and danced. It was a most interesting visual experience.
My Ayahuasca experience affirmed and confirmed my larger mission to help people strengthen their relationship with their higher self. The day I’m writing this, less than a week later, I feel my intention of moving forward with momentum in this mission is being supported. I feel stronger and I’m moving forward faster.
I did not throw up. Sometimes a few tears came as I witnessed the beauty of nature, the beauty of the experience, the beauty of humanity’s journey. I did not experience anything dark or negative.
Ayahuasca also Releases Toxins
Most people threw up, but not everyone. Throwing up helped release toxins, both the physical as well as the emotional kind. I suspect what came up for people were the things that were blocking them from feeling better in life, the things that were blocking their spiritual awakening and personal growth. With the help of the Ayahuasca, they could now see things with clear vision and process what there was to process. And once they threw up, they felt a lot better immediately.
I can understand why people call Ayahuasca the most spiritual of all herbal substances. Whatever is there for you, you’ll see it with more clarity. Sometimes you won’t like what you see, but you won’t escape what’s there. After all that puking, people felt and looked transformed.
Ayahuasca is like the proverbial red pill. You only need one experience like this and your perspective changes forever. And afterwards, you can’t help but want to have a steady connection with the Interconnectedness. You can’t help but want that kind of clarity. You can’t help but want to continue to strengthen the relationship with your higher self and feel the Interconnectedness working with you daily. And I suspect, strange and wonderful things are bound to happen in your life from then on that no one can predict.
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