Well done for making the commitment to join this ceremony/retreat and for taking on your transformation not just for yourself but for those around you. Soon we will meet in a sacred Wake Circle ceremony, and in this space we will commune with nature’s great master teacher and healer, the brew we know as Ayahuasca.
It has already begun.
The moment you decided to embark on this journey is when your process and ceremony actually began. Subconscious bubbles immediately start to surface in your dream space and in your life, with your Higher Self knowing that you are ready to face certain patterns with Love, so that you can create new ones and shift current perceptions that may no longer be serving you.
Our purpose is to encounter divinity within, above and around us. To enable this experience, we will spend time in silence journeying to other dimensions of not only time and space, but also of our minds and our inner technologies – supported by sacred music, like-minded souls and a safe environment. The space is always held by loving and experienced facilitators, each bringing their unique qualities to the cooking pot.
Ayahuasca, the Mother of all teacher plants, speaks, inspires, enlightens and heals.
Basic items you will need for your ceremony
Warm Stuff
Warm blankets or sleeping bag and a pillow. You will essentially be making a little nest–style bed.
Comfortable Camping Mattress
Generally the fold–up or rolled foam mattresses work best. (Please do not bring big squeaky inflatable camping mattresses, they do not work in ceremony.)
Water
A bottle of drinking water or 2
Tissues / Toilet Roll
Bring a toilet roll or some tissues.
Small Bucket
A bucket for purging
Earplugs
Earplugs for Sleeping
Dieta, Detoxing & Preparation for Ayahuasca
The following guidelines and stage-by-stage preparations are to be followed in order to prepare your body and mind to meet this beautiful medicine and to ensure your safety on this magnificent adventure.
THREE WEEKS before Ceremony (Medications)
Please be aware that certain chemical substances do not mix well with the MAOI component of Ayahuasca and should be avoided. It is vital in this period that we ascertain if there are any contradictory medications you are taking that you may need to be weaned off before the ceremony. If are you on any mood/mind/depression control medication – or any other kind of medication or medical treatment – we will need to know ASAP in order to prepare and clear you. Many mood regulating medications like anti-depressants do not mix with Ayahuasca and require at least 14 full days to completely leave your system. It is essential therefore that you fill out our participation form, (the form link is provided on your booking info) at your earliest convenience so that we can take appropriate action. We also need to know if you have a history of emotional or psychotic episodes, or suicide idealisation so that we know how to provide the appropriate support. If you do have any medical or psychological concerns around attending this ceremony it is strongly advised that you consult your own doctor or certified medical practitioner first. Your safety and the safety of the other participants is our main priority.
TWO WEEKS Before Ceremony
It is most ideal to start your cleanse process two weeks before. This is a period where we are inviting our body and mind into an introspective space and the dieta facilitates this process. Be aware that we are wanting to cleanse and prepare the body for the medicines and ceremony experience – not shock or weaken it. This is the most ideal time to start removing things from our diet that may require some adjustment. Intuitively, we want to start removing anything that causes the feeling of heaviness in our bodies such as processed foods and foods with additives. We also want to start reducing our sugar and salt intake. As a rule of thumb, a diet of fresh vegetables, fruit and lots of water is always the most optimal. It is advised to start weaning off coffee and any caffeine products as headaches are a common withdrawal side effect for regular users. You do not want to be sitting with a pounding headache during a ceremony. This is an ideal time in general to reflect on your consumption habits and ask if they are really serving you and your life.
ONE WEEK Before Ceremony
One week before the ceremony is where your dieta should begin in earnest. If you start now you are still comfortably on your way to being fully prepared for ceremony. Be sure to get plenty of sleep and drink more pure water than you usually do. When you make the commitment to meet with this sacred teacher, she begins to work with you from that moment on. Become aware of your spiritual yearnings and of your own sacred identity and connection with divinity, as well as with nature. Before you sleep each night, think about what has come up for you in the day. Sleeping and dreaming are part of the preparation.
The following food and drinks need to be removed entirely from your diet: Fried foods and red meat. Small portions of chicken and fish are permitted prior to the ceremony and gradually reducing meat intake nearing ceremony. Pork needs to be avoided for as long as possible before and after the ceremony. All fermented foods and drinks: pickles, herring, anchovies, old cheese, kombucha etc. Alcohol. Refined sugar based foods and drinks. Stimulants: Coffee, caffeine drinks, diet drinks. Protein extracts or supplements. Foods containing MSG (Monosodium glutamate). Aspartame (Nutra-sweet products), food containing Brewer’s yeast or any yeast extracts, breads. Spicy food, red pepper, chilies. Processed foods, cold meats, biltong, dairy products
MARIJUANA: Those who are frequent users of marijuana are respectfully requested to stay away from it from about week before and until the end of the ceremony. We feel Ayahuasca needs to work in a marijuana- free environment. The combination of the two can be mischievous and in extreme cases induce psychosis. Marijuana has its own potent place in the constellation of healing but will not be permitted in this ceremony. You are welcome to continue using pure CBD oils for pain and sleep purposes up until the day of the ceremony.
SEX: We ask that you abstain from sex (or masturbation) a week to at least 48 hours before and after working with the Teacher Plants. There are many reasons for this – both spiritual and practical. The main reason is simply that you do not want to deplete your ‘kundalini’ energy which you need for your journey. Sexual abstinence is a very powerful spiritual practice and it deepens your medicine experience. .
THREE DAYS to 48 Hours Before the Ceremony
This is the critical part of the dieta. If you have not started your cleanse yet or you are late in booking, you still have time but you have to start right now. The downside of starting this late is that you could experience uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms if you are a frequent user of substances like caffeine, alcohol, marijuana or recreational drugs. If this is the case for you, it is advised that you rather defer to a later ceremony. On the other hand, if you are someone who is healthy and eats cleanly, it is no problem to begin your cleanse 48 hours before the actual ceremony. In the last 3 days before ceremony it is encouraged that you remove salt and sugar entirely from your diet. Reducing sugar and salt will heighten the effect of the Teacher Plant.
Please Note
Recreational Drugs: You may be risking your life or your sanity by consuming chemical drugs (cocaine, LSD, ecstasy, heroine etc.) 48 hours BEFORE or AFTER a ceremony. Under no circumstances take any recreational drug while still under the effect of the Teacher Plants.
Alcohol: Please abstain from alcohol at least from the 48 hours BEFORE the ceremony and AFTER.
Medications: Any antihistamines at least 48 hours prior to night of ceremony, certain painkillers, Ventolin inhalers cannot be consumed from the morning of the ceremony. Cough syrup. Steroids and muscle building formulas with creatine in them are strictly prohibited. Blood pressure medications and diet pills
If on the day of ceremony the facilitators detect that you are in any way under the influence of alcohol, marijuana or recreational drugs, you will not be permitted to attend the ceremony and you will forfeit your payment. It is vitally important that you get in touch with us if you have any concerns or questions around this. It is our priority to create an optimal and safe environment for this journey.
The Resistance Reflex– The Last Minute Check-out
Preparation for a ceremony is very important since it cleanses the body and provokes reflections about your life and your process. A Teacher Plant session is “work” – it is a commitment and sacrifice you make to yourself and to your spiritual growth. This may not always be easy or what you would like. For some people, undertaking the cleanse process itself can be triggering, which offers its own potential breakthroughs. Sometimes our fears can run away with us and words of others can have us doubt our choices to follow this calling.
Twenty percent of first-timers experience what is called the Resistance Reflex where we start finding or manifesting reasons to pull out of the ceremony. Many find they experience resistant fear-based thoughts, for others this can even manifest as physical ailments. Fear, resistance, anxiety or apprehension as we approach a Teacher Plant session is actually very normal, since the subconscious mind is preparing itself for profound transformation. Encountering the unknown can be both exciting and daunting. It is also common to experience set-backs and obstacles on your path to the ceremony as if the Universe is making it difficult for you to attend. Again this is the preamble to great change that is coming your way. There is an aspect within us and in the world that resists change but there is an even greater, more powerful part that knows that change is necessary and inevitable. In some ways we can say that the Universe is testing our commitment to transformation and checking to see if we are ready to receive the gifts that await us from beyond.
We recommend that you simply observe your emotional reactions and inner conversions in the days preceding the session, and be curiously present to any unworkability in your life that is coming to the surface. We otherwise recommend that you read through the testimonials on our site and see how many people have walked this path and what gifts they have received. This is an initiation and a path that requires courage but most people experience much excitement above anything else. Do not hesitate to contact the facilitators if you have any questions or need any support; we have walked people through this a thousand times and we will be able to put you at ease in a short conversation. If we feel there is a genuine well-being concern, we will not let you do the ceremony. Try to spend a calm day before the session – preferably in nature. It is always helpful to relax, meditate, practice yoga etc. It is also a good idea to clarify your intentions for your session. Since these Teacher Plants expand your consciousness, they also energize your intentions. Remember that just beyond the gates of the unknown awaits a journey of wondrous possibilities.
ON THE DAY of the Ceremony
Generally, one should not eat 5 hours before a ceremony. The drinking of liquids is to stop 2 hours before ceremony. If the ceremony takes place in the morning, you can eat a light but substantial meal the night before taking the Teacher Plants, but nothing in the morning. If the ceremony takes place in the afternoon, you may have a breakfast of fruits and cereals. By this point your body should be prepared and ready to receive the medicines.
Cigarettes (commercial) generally inhibit the work of Ayahuasca. While natural tobacco is traditionally used as a smudge by curanderos, our ceremonies are held as smoke-free environments for participants. For those who would find it hard to get through the night without a cigarette, there will be a designated smoking zone and we also encourage you to bring along rolled, natural tobacco.
We try to arrive at the ceremony in a calm state. Slight fear or apprehension is normal in the days or hours approaching the experience – especially if it is your first time. There will be time to acclimatise to the new surroundings, to meet the other participants and to set up your personal nest. Once everyone has arrived and the space is prepared we will start to build our sacred container. We will do this by creating the agreements of the container and how we will be holding sacred space for each other. We will all check ourselves into the space, speaking with the sacred talking stick. The facilitator will then speak about navigating the Teacher Plant. By this point, everyone will be fully at ease and ready to journey. The ceremony begins when we gather in a circle in the ceremony space and ingest the sacrament – just as fellow spiritual travellers through the millennia have done. Before this happens, or shortly after, check that you have water and tissues nearby. It would also be good to go to the toilet so that you can be undisturbed for 3-4 hours.
The facilitator will begin the opening rituals and we will all drink into the sacrament. After receiving the sacrament, remain seated, relaxed and silent – with your eyes closed. Focus on the music, quieten your mind and surrender to the work of Mother Ayahuasca. Usually, it takes between 30 and 80 minutes to feel the full effect of the plant in the case of Ayahuasca. It is, however, completely different for each person. It is suggested that you keep your eyes closed as much as possible as you will be guided through visions and intuitions. Make allowances for everything inside and outside of yourself. Make no judgments. Dissolve any thoughts that arise, and let them float away. If you need water, drink in small sips only. Remain sitting upright for as long as it’s comfortable to do so. Within about 40 minutes, you will begin your own mystical experience – surrounded by new, communicative dimensions created by Mother Ayahuasca to address your known and unconscious circumstances and needs. You will not lose consciousness or control. You will always know where you are.
The ceremony is always performed within a deeply spiritual and ritualised context and will unfold over the next 4-6 hours. The sacred space is created by traditional chants, which direct the energies of the ceremony, ensuring an atmosphere of inspiration, safety and healing. The chants establish the frequency of the space, and generally invoke the energies of divinities, healing and cleansing etc. When the facilitator feels ready that the main waves of the medicine are complete, they will close the ceremony with a ritual and closing. There is often some delicious food waiting to ground us back into our bodies.