Women Are Leading Amazon Ayahuasca Ceremonies for the First Time

“The Yawanawa, a tribe of 1,400 people on the border between Brazil and Peru, only came into regular contact with other Brazilians two generations ago, when rubber farmers ventured north in search of land and free labor. They survived for centuries by working in plantations but when the price of rubber tanked in the mid-20th century, they started to commercialize annatto, a spiky fruit with seeds that produce red dye used in lipstick, eyeshadows and bronzers.

Ayahuasca has always been central to Yanawana spiritual practices. For centuries leaders would turn to the tea and the visions it produces for answers on everything from illness to politics. A shaman, or spiritual leader, would drink the tea and touch the forehead of other village men, relaying the messages he received from God through the hallucinations.While tobacco and pepper were also thought to have mystical properties, ayahuasca was said to transport people to another world.

Ten years ago, Waxy would not have been allowed anywhere near this ritual. Women were considered too fragile for ceremonies and told to avoid coming into contact with spiritual leaders all together….” Continue reading…