5 Essential Tips for Preparing For Your First Ayahuasca Ceremony
So you’ve received your call to drink ayahuasca for the first time. Now what??
I feel like most people live in this zone of life. There’s something that you’ve always wanted to do in life, but there’s an inner voice that keeps resisting to go on that adventure, learn a new skill, or maybe even ask someone out on a date.
This time you feel called to go to the Amazon Rainforest, but do nothing to make steps towards your dream.
Come on!! It’s time to LIVE!!
Once you feel the call within you to experience Mother Ayahuasca it’s time to research and prepare for your first ceremony.
Even if you’re not ready to make the trip to South America at the moment, you would be surprised how easy it is to start preparing for your first ceremony.
1. Research Ayahuasca Centers
One way you can start the preparation process is by researching ayahuasca centers near you and in South America online. Ani Shinan is a great option if you are looking to have an authentic ayahuasca experience for the first time with indigenous shamans or if you are interested in doing a plant or tree dieta deep in the depths of the Amazon rainforest of Peru.
The beauty of the internet today is that it’s now possible to connect with centers online way before you even make the commitment to drink ayahuasca. Most places will be very open to receiving your questions regarding ayahuasca, so it’s a great idea to go straight to the source with any concerns you may have.
If you are interested in crafting your own custom ayahuasca experience in the jungle, feel free to sign up for a call with us online by sending an email to contact@anishinan.org.
Another essential step at this stage is to start preparing your mind and body for ayahuasca.
2. Read Articles and Books about Ayahuasca
Reading about ayahuasca is surprisingly a wonderful way to get started on your ayahuasca journey. I became fascinated with ayahuasca in 2017 after I read an article titled My Ayahuasca Experience - A Heavenly Hell by Troy Erstling, someone who I am extremely lucky to call one of my best friends and mentor when I need advice in my life.
My journey to take ayahuasca for the first time started by reading an article on it and progressed to exploring other resources such as books, videos, and podcasts on the medicine as well.
Here are a few of the resources that I highly recommend for those interested in the science behind this sacred plant.
Kahpi.net - This place is a general hub for information on ayahuasca that is supported by many prominent researchers in plant medicine. They’re constantly releasing new articles and even have a video course selection for members of the organization.
The Fellowship of the River - If you go to any website suggesting books on ayahuasca, you can guarantee this one to be on the list. James Talfur does a brilliant job of explaining his experiences with ayahuasca and the science behind how it can be used as a powerful tool for spiritual healing.
3. Listen to Podcasts
After reading about ayahuasca for a while, I naturally started to listen to podcasts about ayahuasca after I came across an amazing interview that Tim Ferriss had with Aubrey Marcus.
At the time I was aware of the benefit of listening to podcasts on self optimization and taking the best parts to integrate into my life. I literally had no idea who Aubrey Marcus was, but something really stood out to me about his character.
There was something about Aubrey’s energy and poise that I felt in the interview that I never saw from other high performing individuals that come on the Tim Ferriss Show.
First he mentioned his lifestyle and open relationship. I was totally shocked by the way he lived. It’s the way I’ve always wanted to live, a little bit more connected to myself, nature, and the people around me.
After, he dropped the “A” word ayahuasca, and I knew there was something special about this plant. As soon as the episode ended, I started to only listen to Aubrey Marcus. He has something about him in his “being” that most podcasters are missing.
In his podcast, he commonly talks about his most personal life experiences and his stories in ceremony with ayahuasca. The Aubrey Marcus Podcast is an amazing resource to use to prepare for your first ceremony and to apply what you learn from interviews to your own life.
4. Cultivate a Practice of Stillness
I’m still working on this one to be honest. I believe this is my life’s challenge especially in a chaotic, fast pace world.
Being able to cultivate stillness in your life will help when the waves of emotions try to come knocking you down while in ceremony.
The good news is that there are so many ways to build stillness into your day to day life. The toughest challenge is making it a habit that you stick to each day.
Stillness can come from taking a walk, spending time in nature, cleaning your room, doing the dishes, running, swimming, cooking, drinking a cup of tea, journaling, or any other calming activity.
The main intention of the activity is to calm down the inner chatter that’s going through the mind.
Of course, a more traditional way to cultivate stillness is through practices such as yoga, Qi Gong, or meditation.
Naturally, I’ve found that ayahuasca has taught me that these Eastern medicine practices are a more stable, long term option to grow myself when I’m not taking ayahuasca.
5. Improve Your Diet
The last and maybe the most important tip for preparing for an ayahuasca ceremony is to work on your diet and nutrition.
From my experience and from talking to other people that I have participated in ceremonies with, what you eat in the days leading up to your ceremony play a big role in how you feel throughout the night.
Ayahuasca is a very physical medicine. Imagine the deepest cleaning that you could receive to your mind, body, and spirit. That’s basically what ayahuasca does. It gives you the cleansing that you need in the moment.
So if you eat terrible food, you can expect to have a lot of vomiting and maybe a bit of diarrea as the ayahuasca does her work on you.
In many indigenous traditions, it’s common to go through a strict diet in the week leading up to the ayahuasca ceremonies which excludes red meat, sugar, and salt. As well you should eat more vegetables and fruits, or rather clean foods beforehand.
In order to have more energy during the ceremony, don’t have sex or masturbate in the days leading to the ceremony and make sure to get sufficient sleep. Basically, do the things you would do if you were preparing for the biggest sports game of your life.
Answer the Call
Now that I have given you a few tips to get started on your journey with Mother Ayahuasca, it’s a great opportunity to go and see what works for you.
I’m sharing my medicine of writing with you. May it guide you to the healing that you need for your life and your soul.
Feel free to take what resonates with you and ignore the rest.
It’s time for you to step up to the plate and start your journey.
Ayahuasca is calling you. Are you ready to answer her?
Send an email to contact@anishinan.org or WhatsApp message to +41 78 628 86 19 (Marco Fischer) to schedule a call and create your custom ayahuasca experience in Peru.