Ceremonial Cleansing and Healing with Ayahuasca

The heart and soul of this Celebration of Life and Spirit is the unique opportunity to work
with gifted true shamanic healers, masters of the ancient healing arts of the Amazon
rainforest. Our healing retreats are conducted by extraordinary maestro curanderos of over
80 years collective experience, who bring a natural energy and scope of ancient knowledge
to our ceremonies rarely found. You will have an opportunity for private counseling and
personalized
healing
work
in
addition
to
group
ceremonies.
The Ayahuasca Odyssey is a spiritually-focused retreat requiring serious preparation, focus
and concentration. You will be opened to new levels of spiritual consciousness which will
render you vulnerable to subtle influences. You will want to temporarily disengage from the
mundane world as much as possible, concentrate your thoughts and energy on the shamanic
work at hand, keep the prescribed diet, and avoid potentially harmful distractions outside
the retreat framework. In order to realize the fullest benefits of the deep and sensitive
healing work we will engage, you will be expected to remain at the retreat except in the
course of scheduled group activities.
Preparation of the ancient holistic healing medicine Ayahuasca commences on the
afternoon of the starting date and continues through much of the next day. We will attend
this process and learn about the role and significance of each component first-hand from
our maestro shamans. This is a most important aspect of initiation in the ways and
knowledge of the Amazonian curandero.
This knowledge aids the seeker of healing in forming a personal connection with the
medicine at its natural and cultural source.
Five traditional shamanic ayahuasca healing ceremonies and one heart-opening Bobinzana
ceremony will be conducted during the ten-day Odyssey celebration, six healing
ceremonies
in
all.
You will experience the incredibly skilled shamanic healing art of don Rober de Lamas, a
genuine banco ayahuasquero (ayahuasca healer at the most advanced level) who will safely
guide you deep into inner space and back with skill, integrity, and compassion.
In the presence of ayahuasca for Power and chacruna and huambisa for Light, our
group will assemble in each ceremony with don Rober, don Choque Chinchay, doa Eliana,
and invited spirits presiding. A lovely and stunning blend of beautiful icaros, the shamans
magical spiritual healing music, will guide our journeys as we venture beyond the ordinary
together.
These powerful mystical ceremonies bring many wonders and surprises to initiates, often
more than they anticipated. You will be guided and attended throughout your ceremonial
experiences with care, love, and empathy. The SpiritQuest family has much experience with
the medicine and shamanic healing. You will be protected and nurtured through all your
experiences.
Invigorating flower baths, an integral part of the shamanic cleansing experience, are
administered by don Rober and doaEliana each morning following the ayahuasca
ceremonies. The combination of the fragrant essences of jungle flowers and the melodic
icaros bringing blessings of love and cleansing is powerful, comforting, and unforgettable.
On these mornings, you will feel joy and rejuvenation as you find fulfillment in your

personal quest. These experiences will leave you with much clarity, energy and focus for
your continuing personal growth in the months to come.
After each ceremony well convene in facilitated group talking stick circles to share our
visions, dreams and impressions from the previous evening{s ceremonies. This provides
opportunity for further insight in the workings of the medicine and in ourselves by sharing
the experiences of others.
Other activities include river outings, canoeing, and casual walks in different kinds of
rainforest in the SpiritQuest Sanctuary Rainforest Nature reserve. We have an extensive
topical library on shamanism, ayahuasca, huachuma, other entheogens, Peruvian cultural
history, traditions, ethnobiology, medicinal plants, natural history, and eclectic global
spiritual and healing practices.
Accommodations
The Eden-like spiritually-inspired SpiritQuest Shamanic Sanctuary is located on the Ro
Momn, a secondary tributary of the Ro Amazonas about an hour outside Iquitos, Peru.
Accessible only by boat.
The Sanctuary is an extraordinary rainforest ceremonial retreat center dedicated exclusively
to holistic healing and evolution of higher consciousness. The SSS is the perfect place to
encounter deep healing and spiritual realization through communion with the sacred plants
and impeccable human company in intimate contact with nature. The centrally-located
temple maloca in which our ceremonies are conducted is of pyramidal design with a
circular base, incorporating metaphysical geometry which is itself conducive to states of
higher consciousness.
The Sanctuary features comfortable guest accommodations with spacious screened rooms,
private bathrooms, convenient shower access, electricity for lighting and charging your
devices, free wi fi internet access, excellent organic meals, an extensive topical reference
library, and friendly family-style guest services. Though standard accommodation is double
occupancy, single rooms are usually available at no added cost.
SpiritQuest Sanctuary stewards a beautiful 350-acre rainforest nature reserve teeming with
rich plant and wildlife diversity. The SpiritQuest Nature Reserve is a perpetual contribution
to the preservation of the Amazon rainforest.
An extensive trail network is maintained for guided and casual walks through the verdant
splendor of old-growth rainforest. Everything at SpiritQuest Sanctuary is integrated with
nature, and so shall you be as well.
Activities vary according to weather conditions and time of year. In addition to hiking
trails, swimming, and other casual activities, we have a small fleet of canoes available at
any time for outings on the beautiful Rio Momn at our front door.
Our Style
At SpiritQuest Sanctuary, spiritual love, compassion, ancient wisdom, and natural beauty
combine to produce the perfect ambience for deep personal shamanic healing and spiritual
realization. SpiritQuest Sanctuary is unquestionably among the premiere retreat centers
dedicated exclusively to Amazonian/Andean shamanism. Our plant medicines are
extremely potent, and our mastery of the ceremony and conduction of the healing energy is
second
to
none.

Our message speaks from the heart and from ancient wisdom which we readily share with
those who bring an honest and sincere intention for themselves and others. We are genuine
and would expect you to be also.
Our work stands apart from all the others in the depth of our experience and knowledge in
the principles and practice of core shamanism. There is much more to work with the healerteacher plants than whats in the cup, and well help you realize it in ways few can. Deep
experience of many decades, impeccable integrity, and consummate professionalism
defines our work, which emparts high experiential quality and enduring personal holistic
benefits in ones life.
Our work is designed for the mature and sophisticated seeker of genuine shamanic healing
and personal life transformation. It is not intended for ordinary ayahuasca tourists,
followers of current fads, or those merely seeking a novel vacation experience.
La Dieta
IMPORTANT NOTE: Dietary preparation is required for serious work with Ayahuasca.
Restriction or abstinence from salt, sugar, spices, oils, and sexual activity is recommended
during the time surrounding the ceremonies. Strict abstinence from eating pork or lard for
fifteen days prior to and following the retreat is required. Additional short-term (24 hour)
dietary restrictions are recommended as an added safety measure to avoid potential
complications from temporary monoamine oxidase inhibition.
Some medications may not be taken with Ayahuasca. These include antidepressants
affecting, monoamine oxidase or serotonin levels (MAOI/SSRI), antihistamines,
amphetamines, diet aids, opiates, and antibiotics.
Certain health conditions, particularly high blood pressure, coronary problems, diagnosed
psychoses or other mental illnesses may preclude safe work with Ayahuasca.
Women in their menstrual cycle may be at some risk of excessive bleeding when drinking
Ayahuasca. However, special ceremonial sealing protection is applied at the beginning of
the ceremony so that the woman can participate .
Revelation of all current medications, substance consumption and known health conditions
is a requirement of registration to assure your safety.Youll be served excellent organic food
of the highest quality at the Sanctuary. Observing the traditional vegetalista diet, we
recommend you reduce or abstain alcohol, pork, red meat, salt, refined sugar, fats, saturated
oils, and hot spices from two days before arrival until the second day after the final
Ayahuasca ceremony.
Though posing no special risks (except possibly alcohol), these additives may inhibit your
uptake and receptivity to the Ayahuasca medicine to some degree. Reduction or abstinence
of these substances has the benefit of cleansing and purifying the system, and will hasten
and strengthen your connection with the medicine. Sexual activity and thoughts should be
abstained during this time as well. Sexual abstinence conserves essential energy which is
better invested in the rigors of your work with Ayahuasca, and will help guide your mental
and spiritual focus in more esoteric realms see our cleansing page. You may find your
natural libido enhanced along with all your other functions following your work with
Ayahuasca.

Longer periods of dieting may yield additional benefits but the choice is yours. Alcohol and
pork should be avoided for a week before and after work with Ayahuasca. They are the only
substances one need abstain for more than a few days before and after the ceremonies.
Youll have a choice of two forms of diet, one more liberal and the other the strict
vegetalista diet followed by a seriously committed shamans apprentice.
Either diet is appropriate for personal healing and transformative work with ayahuasca
without any compromise of the benefits. The strict vegetalista diet is not a requirement to
work safely and productively with Ayahuasca for personal healing and spiritual growth. It is
however a choice for those who would like to experience its rigors and challenges in the
course of their shamanic work.
The strict vegetalista diet, known here as la dieta, is intended specifically for those
undertaking a serious long-term apprenticeship to learn the medicinal plants and eventually
become a curandero in the Amazonian tradition. A genuine shamanic apprenticeship is
actually measured in years and cannot be accomplished in a few weeks or months no matter
how diligent, dedicated, and well-intentioned one may be. It is a path that requires patience,
commitment, humility, concentration, and years of dedication.
The strict diet is very bland and consists only of boiled or grilled fish of small boney
varieties with boiled yuca, plantains, quinoa, heart of palm, eggs, water, limonada, and
organic tea.
Salt, sugar, oils, caffeine, spices and sexual activity are strictly abstained. The strict diet
also requires that one use no soap, shampoo, tooth paste, deodorants, or any other
chemicals or medicines other than the native plants in the dieta.
Ayahuasca is physically and energetically demanding. Mental, emotional, spiritual and
physical stamina is needed to complete a strong cycle of work such as we do at the
Sanctuary. Many newcomers to Ayahuasca find it difficult to eat enough on the strict dieta
to sustain their strength in working with the medicine for the first time. For many people,
good nutrition and sufficient calories are needed to sustain this needed energy. For this
reason we also work with a broader and more nutritious dieta which still provides the
systemic cleansing needed for work with Ayahuasca.
The more liberal healing and initiation dieta consists of grilled or boiled fish, vegetable or
chicken soup, rice or quinoa, boiled, browned, or mashed potatoes, yuca (cassava). heart of
palm (chonta), eggs, and a variety of vegetables and fruits raw, boiled, or lightly stir-fried.
Light seasoning is optional in the liberal diet. We serve fruit drinks (refrescos) made from a
variety of native fruits mixed with water, some of which you will encounter for the first
time here. A variety of teas are also available.
Coffee should not be consumed the day of ceremony or the morning after, if at all. Caffeine
is not the issue, since some widely-used Ayahuasca admixture plants, such as guayusa,
contain high amounts of caffeine. Nonetheless, hypertensive reactions from drinking coffee
have been noted in a few people, so its best not ot drink it while working with Ayahuasca.
Teas containing caffeine and the Brazilian plant stimulant guarana do not produce any
adverse effects. Honey may be used as sweetener if desired (this is acceptable in the liberal
diet only), and we sometimes have wild jungle honey which is regarded as a natural
medicine in the Amazon. Vegetarian diets are readily accommodated so tell us what you
like and well make every effort to get it for you.

Indigenous People of the Rainforest

We will visit our indigenous Bora and Yahua neighbors, sharing traditional song and dance,
and trading for their lovely handicraft made from natural products of the rainforests and
rivers.
Well attend a special Bora social fiesta celebrating the indigenous life, and share
traditional foods made of yuca (manioc), other native vegetables and fruits, and fish, all
prepared in the traditional Bora style. Well have the opportunity to share the traditional
Bora hunting and ceremonial stimulant called ampri, a powerful stimulant made from
mapacho tobacco and combined with yypi, dried and pulverized wild coca leaf mixed with
sepico (Cecropia) ash.
We will also visit a Muruy Huitoto Indian community further down the Amazon, and our
Shipibo artisan friends will visit the Sanctuary to display their colorful and intricate
embroidery and painted cloth art depicting Ayahuasca themes and motifs.
Explorations
in
Rainforest
Culture
and
Ethnobotany
(We must reserve the right to modify the agenda if required due to weather conditions or
other circumstances beyond our control.)
Well travel on the Amazon River to stroll through beautiful old-growth rainforest to the
invigorating waters of the quebrada encantada (enchanted stream). This beautiful and
unique carbon springs is one of only two in the Iquitos region. You can relax in the cool
water and treat yourself to a rejuvenating mud bath with the rich gray medicinal clay for
which this stream is famous.
Ayahuasca Odyssey is designed for the mature, sincere, and respectful seeker of cultural
knowledge, spiritual enlightenment, and personal holistic healing. The process undertaken
is at times challenging on many levels and requires serious advance preparation for fullest
benefit.
Some aspects of this process may be temporarily physically and emotionally difficult. We
have extensive experience in the administration of this process and will nurture your
passage through it with sensitivity and competence.
We will assist in all aspects of your journey preparations and provide all the follow-up
guidance and counseling you desire.
For the benefit of all, applicants are screened to determine personal goals and fitness for
this experience.
We reserve the right to respectfully decline any application without prejudice. Notarized
waiver of liability and acceptance of risk and all written terms is a requirement of
registration.
All our activities and programs are conducted in accordance with the laws and statutes of
the jurisdictions in which they occur.
We hold in high esteem the people of the Peruvian Amazon, their rich and varied cultures,
and their profoundly-rooted spiritual beliefs.
We believe they have much to teach us if well listen. We therefore require the same
respectful attitude from our fellow travelers.