Full transcript
0:08There is a wild
0:13intelligence
0:16that is alive through these plants and
0:20this medicine from plants.
0:24And
0:26they're working
0:28with humans for something.
0:51like
1:01they don't
1:08shing.
1:23I cook
1:26my cookie.
1:39You drank
1:41no drunk.
1:56for
2:12[singing]
2:27I really want to approach this from the
2:30idea that like maybe nobody ever sees
2:33this video. I don't want to make this
2:36video with the idea that it's going to
2:38go on YouTube and be seen by people.
2:40That's not the intention that I want to
2:42have for creating this. And at the same
2:46time, I do have a genuine desire to
2:50document my experience so that I can
2:53share what I learn and to pass that on.
2:57This is a very intimate experience
3:00and this is a journey and a meeting with
3:02a spirit that has to be sacred and kept
3:07very intentional. likely what I'm going
3:11to experience I will not be able to
3:14articulate into words and to wrap in a
3:17pretty bow. I have to let go of any
3:20sense of needing to describe it in a
3:24certain way. And really, I'm just
3:27documenting this so that I can process
3:30the experience, create something from my
3:32heart, and I may or may not publish it.
3:35I don't know until the end of going
3:37through this if I'm going to feel that
3:39that's right or not.
4:0472-hour travel day.
4:11So, this has definitely been the most
4:13insane travel experience of our lives.
4:16Like,
4:17>> just so complicated. And when we land,
4:21we still have like a whole mission. But
4:24this is what happens when you go on a
4:28true pilgrimage.
4:30>> I like these twists and turns.
4:32>> We're boarding for the third time today.
4:35And we're going to land. It's happening.
4:38[screaming]
4:41[music]
4:48>> [music]
5:06>> Yes, I've known about Iawaska for many
5:08years. Yes, I have countless friends who
5:11have had experiences with this plant.
5:13I've listened to many podcasts about it,
5:15but there's no way to really know what
5:19this is going to be like until going
5:22through it. I do have fears about this.
5:25I have fear that I might go crazy, that
5:30I might go into some psychosis
5:33and never come back, that I will lose my
5:38identity in some way. I may just get
5:42sucked into the infinite abyss of the
5:45black hole of the deep end of my my
5:49mind, my psyche, and that maybe I'll be
5:54un retrievable. I understand that I'm
5:57I'm going into
6:00interdimensional travel of some kind and
6:03there are murky waters out there and
6:06it's unpredictable.
6:08And I'm going to open up my brain in
6:12ways I never have before.
6:15And my brain may change. I have to
6:18remember that there have been thousands
6:22of people, millions of people who have
6:25drank this medicine for thousands of
6:28years.
6:30and that it has provided such a deep
6:34sense of connection to God,
6:39to source, to love.
6:43And I want to connect with with that.
6:46That is why I came all the way here is
6:49to have an experience that was rooted
6:52and connected to the ancient way and the
6:56ancient tradition
6:58and to know that I'm safe. I'm held. I'm
7:02supported. I'm guided. I've waited
7:07truly
7:08knowing that the the time would come
7:12when it felt
7:15fully aligned. And it is now.
7:31Let the shore.
8:14My name is Justina Srano Alvarez.
8:18I am Shipibbo. My shipbo name is Nwama.
8:25[snorts]
8:25>> I first would love to ask about your
8:28childhood here in the Amazon and what it
8:32was like growing up here.
8:38>> When I was young, my parents passed away
8:41and I grew up with my uncle. When I was
8:44young, my intention was to learn to heal
8:48and to help people, help those who need
8:51help. And that's why I began to learn
8:54about the plant medicines. I wanted to
8:58carry the tradition of my family because
9:01all of my grandparents, [music]
9:02my grandfathers, my grandmothers, they
9:05were all masters of the plants.
9:08And so I'm continuing our tradition.
9:12[music] now also with my kids and now
9:15I'm teaching more and more to my sons
9:18and to my daughters because that's what
9:20we should do. We should teach our sons
9:23and daughters to continue our
9:25traditions,
9:27our lineage [music] as a family.
9:31>> It's work that I like to do. Help people
9:34who come seeking help.
9:49I don't.
10:01>> Good afternoon. My name is Luis Paris.
10:05My name is
10:10The first time I drank the medicine, I
10:11was only seven years old.
10:15My dose was the size of a bottle cap.
10:27>> And then over time, my mother began to
10:29give me higher doses. That way, I could
10:31get used to working with the medicine.
10:36I would see my mother doing ceremonies
10:40every day with people who are sick,
10:42people who were seeking help.
10:45My mother would never rest.
10:49She didn't care if it was Saturday or
10:51Sunday. She would rest.
10:56Her mission was to heal anyone who came.
11:03is the vine
11:10what we call the medicine when it's
11:11prepared to be drank and this is where
11:17I is the cut of the vine
11:21has been prepared as a medicine we call
11:24it uni
11:29many People hear that the aywaska is the
11:32mother.
11:35>> But in our story,
11:38Iaska is not the mother. The iwaska is
11:40the father.
11:43>> The chakruna is the mother.
11:46>> The chakruna came from
11:50and the transform into the iawaska.
11:57So that's why when we mix the plants,
11:59the iawaska adds
12:03>> and we don't add any more plants into
12:04it.
12:08The purpose of the medicine is to help.
12:14And you have to work with humility and
12:16respect.
12:22In Shapibo tradition, Iaska ceremonies
12:24take place at night and cameras are
12:27forbidden. But to show a glimpse into
12:30this ritual, we shot a mock ceremony
12:33during the daytime. Keep in mind the
12:35actual ceremony is quite different than
12:38what you will see, [music] but it was a
12:40privilege to document Mestra Justina and
12:44her family in the essence of their
12:47practice.
12:49Yeah,
12:57[music]
13:18don't do
13:48Heat. Heat.
14:10[music]
14:13Heat.
14:15[music]
14:20[music]
14:27[music]
14:31Heat. [music]
14:43There are no
14:46words
14:48to
14:50describe
14:54what I experienced
14:58last night in ceremony.
15:02There was so much that happened. It was
15:06super intense, but I can't
15:10talk about it right now. All that I will
15:13say is that
15:16there is a wild
15:20[music]
15:22intelligence
15:25that is alive through these plants and
15:29this medicine from plants.
15:33And
15:34they're working
15:37with humans for something.
15:41This medicine of Iawaska, so many people
15:44are coming here to participate in and
15:47it's now something many people are
15:49seeking. What is it its purpose [music]
15:51and what does it want to show people?
15:54>> The medicine knows what it is doing with
15:57each person. It is a personal decision
16:00for everyone. [music]
16:02Someone needs to feel the call from the
16:04medicine. And when someone feels that
16:07call, then they make the decision to
16:10[music] come drink the medicine because
16:13that person will realize they can change
16:16with [music] the medicine. The process
16:18of the medicine is to do it with lots of
16:21respect. Many people want to work with
16:24Iawaska. But if they do this, do it
16:27[music] with respect. That is the only
16:29thing that I ask. work with respect and
16:33[music] ask permission. This medicine is
16:36very sacred. We work with lots of
16:39humility to help [music] and to share
16:43the medicine.
16:48[music]
16:49What is important is respect. That is
16:52what the jungle is. That is what the
16:54Amazon is. [music] the culture, the
16:57tradition of the shipbo community. We
17:01are the guardians, [music] the guardians
17:03of this plant. We are continuing our
17:07tradition, the traditions of the [music]
17:10medicine, the tradition of our family.
17:19Heat. Heat.
17:24[music]
17:29[music]
17:38>> [music]
17:41>> I am wanting to make sense of things,
17:43but it's really challenging to try.
17:48There were times during the first
17:49ceremony that I really felt like I was
17:52gonna die, just stop breathing. And
17:57then I would get breath back into my
17:59heart and [snorts] I would feel the
18:02potency of what it means to breathe.
18:06There was such a convergence
18:08and emerging
18:10of the jungle. All of the different
18:14species [music]
18:16of plants and animals just converge into
18:19one and [music] the breath was keeping
18:23it all alive. The heartbeat was pumping
18:26life into
18:29this [music]
18:30environment into the jungle. I kind of
18:32fell down this wormhole in the ceremony.
18:34It was very disorienting, very
18:36confusing, very challenging and I could
18:39barely move. I want to talk about my
18:42meeting with Maestra Yina [music]
18:45in the first ceremony. They brought her
18:48over to me at one point and [music] I
18:52had a moment where I looked into her
18:55eyes for the first time. [music]
18:58I saw
19:00this ancient wisdom
19:02being held and carried her devotion to
19:05that and it just
19:08it overwhelms me. I was still so deep in
19:12the medicine once the ceremony ended. It
19:15had felt like the night was [music]
19:18never going to end and I had to crawl
19:22out of the maloka
19:25and crawl my way to the bathroom and I
19:27was just on the bathroom floor [music]
19:30unable to move in a puddle of my own
19:35consciousness of my own psyche just
19:37melting. And then Ace came to find me.
19:40Ace felt worried about me. He came to
19:44find me. And it meant everything to me
19:46that he cared and he helped me get back
19:48here to this room. And it felt like it
19:51took
19:52hours just to get back here. I was
19:55moving so so slow. I've been moving
19:58slower than I've ever moved.
20:01I'm not used to moving slow.
20:05I'm used to moving really fast,
20:08but it feels so
20:11right to embrace this
20:14pace for
20:17the first time.
20:24[snorts]
20:28[music]
20:32>> [snorts]
20:35[music]
20:43[snorts]
20:50[snorts and laughter]
20:53>> Exactly.
20:54[music]
20:57>> We're halfway.
21:00Yeah, we are [snorts] technically
21:03>> two ceremonies under our belt, two to
21:05go. I feel like I've been moving at the
21:08pace of a sloth.
21:10>> M
21:12just exhausting. Takes so much out of
21:14you. You adapt to the environment and
21:17the pace of this environment is just
21:20thick,
21:22slow, like molasses.
21:24>> Yeah. Physically, it feels like the
21:25medium that you're moving through is
21:27thicker. I feel so blessed to be here
21:30doing this here. It is exactly
21:34the way I always wanted to meet this
21:37plant for the first time.
21:39>> Yeah. I also just want to like echo that
21:41how special it is to be protected and
21:45held by these shamans who have devoted
21:48their life to this plant and medicine
21:50and healing and helping other people. To
21:52be sitting with them and see what
21:54devotion truly looks like.
21:56>> Mhm. It's so beautiful and so inspiring.
21:59It was so important for us to come to
22:01this medicine and this plant and be here
22:05with it where it's from stewarded by the
22:09people who live in union and harmony
22:14with it. One of the big messages that
22:15came to me during my uh journey was like
22:21this is not for the faint of heart.
22:22[music] And like you said, I don't think
22:25it is for everybody and it's a lot. But
22:28what I've also realized is that the
22:30medicine only gives you as much as you
22:32can handle and [music] gives you the
22:34thing you need like in the perfect way.
22:36Each journey is unique. Everybody was
22:39going through different things and my
22:40experience happened to be quite dark.
22:43That was sort of after this initial
22:46meeting uh that I can get into. Yeah.
22:48Essentially like after I
22:52drank the medicine, I pretty quickly
22:54[music] started like communicating
22:56internally with the medicine. Then she
22:59truly embraced [music] me and it was
23:02like the warmest embrace. It was the
23:06most beautiful
23:09like embrace [music] and it came in the
23:11form of euphoric
23:14sensation and
23:16visions [music]
23:17beyond any beauty that I've ever seen.
23:20And I just remember sitting there just
23:22like I was smiling [music]
23:24so big. I was like oh I was cry
23:27basically crying just like oh my god
23:30[music] this so beautiful.
23:34And then I don't know when it turned
23:35[music] but it didn't last [laughter]
23:38and that's when
23:41everything I think sort of crumbled.
23:43>> So what happened when everything
23:46crumbled?
23:47>> Slowly everything that I
23:49have known to be real and true. The
23:53constructs of my life and reality just
23:56started like fracturing. Nothing made
23:59sense. Everything went away and I was
24:03just ended up in this like depth
24:07of darkness. On the other side of it,
24:11coming out of it, I feel even more
24:14infused with love. My soul is even more
24:17connected. It was a way, it was a
24:19mechanism by which the medicine was
24:22[music] giving me exactly what I was
24:24asking for. I asked for an initiation
24:27and a right of passage. And I asked for
24:30a deepening with my connection to what
24:32it means to be alive and to the earth
24:33and to
24:35being human. And [music] in order for
24:37that to happen, I had to go to a place
24:40where all that I [music] wanted was to
24:43have that again. I'm not taking this
24:45opportunity to be in this life [music]
24:47for granted because it is so fleeting
24:51and so uncertain, [music]
24:54but I know how special it is to be able
24:56to be here with you and be with my loved
24:57ones and do this thing that we're get
24:59getting [music] to do. And I really do
25:01feel like our souls are are in these
25:04[music] vessels, these bodies, and we're
25:07getting this opportunity to to live this
25:09life. And it's such a gift to be able to
25:12experience the spectrum of what [music]
25:14it means to be alive. Love was the thing
25:16that
25:18helped me withstand. It penetrated
25:20everything. [music]
25:21>> I do feel that this medicine
25:26is [music] just a mechanism to show love
25:31and to [music] to
25:33help us embody love. Just the kind of
25:35love that just brings you to tears is so
25:38over. And that's what I want. That's
25:39what I want. That's how I know I'm
25:42living life deeply is when I'm brought
25:44to tears by the beauty of it.
25:47>> We have not yet heard from Hava. We came
25:49on this whole journey together and we
25:51barely like talked about our first two
25:53ceremonies cuz it's just been so much to
25:55process. It's been really simple for me.
25:59The ultimate message that was coming
26:01through is like it's always the perfect
26:03dose. And what how I interpreted that
26:06was it's easy to want to strive for more
26:09and get the most out of life. And I
26:12noticed in my own experience how
26:14sometimes that just takes me out of the
26:16present moment which is ultimately an
26:18answered prayer. So the more I recognize
26:22that my life is the perfect dose at
26:25every moment, it can drop me into the
26:27present and really receive that as the
26:29full gift it is. Like I haven't felt
26:32this alive and in my body and strong and
26:35present and happy and blissful like
26:37ever. Like this is the most pure life
26:41I've ever felt and like the real
26:43integrity of life. So interesting how
26:46everybody's experience is so different.
26:49>> Yeah.
26:51[music]
27:01>> [music]
27:11[music]
27:16[music]
27:17>> Heat. Heat.
27:24>> [music]
27:33>> When you are facilitating in ceremony,
27:36>> you're witnessing so many perspectives.
27:39>> Mhm.
27:39>> And you've gotten to see
27:42so many ceremonies over the last 2 years
27:45you've been here. I'm sure you've seen
27:47so much.
27:48>> Mhm.
27:48>> What is the the truth that you see? It's
27:51a purging and a cleansing. It's just a
27:54release of things that people have been
27:57holding on to that just needs to be let
27:59go of. And we're not consciously aware
28:02of it. It's very subconscious. And even
28:05if we can't
28:08mentally make sense of it, there's
28:10something that has shifted. Whether it's
28:12a new neural pathway that has been
28:15created within us or um a perspective
28:18that has been shifted. It's interesting
28:20because I only threw up once after the
28:22first cere ceremony on my way back to my
28:25room. I expected maybe I would be
28:27throwing up a lot more, but I know I was
28:29purging through my mind. Like I I can
28:32feel the release and the letting go that
28:35happened in my psyche and my in my
28:37subconscious. And the third ceremony was
28:39so weird because it was like all
28:42centered on just this one thing rooted
28:45to a memory, a childhood memory. This is
28:48why integration is important. This is
28:51why we need to process what comes up in
28:54the ceremony. Just by talking about it
28:56with my brother, I felt like I freed
28:58myself from it. [music]
29:04[music]
29:10[music]
29:14>> [music]
29:36[cheering]
29:38>> Coming into this, there's really a part
29:40of me that just wanted the medicine to
29:43just give me all the answers and just
29:46give me all the clarity I've ever wanted
29:48and the direction and like part of me
29:50really was hoping that I would [music]
29:52get that. It's been a lot more confusing
29:54and less clear than I have wanted or
29:57asked for. But I think [music] that
29:59actually that's the deepest medicine I
30:02could get because what I'm learning and
30:04what the medicine is teaching me is
30:06[music] that I don't need something
30:09outside of myself to know and that I do
30:12not need to have it all figured out. I
30:14just need to keep following [music] what
30:17feels right. I just need to keep saying
30:20yes to life and following my intuition
30:22and doing what I want to do and [music]
30:25that that's enough and actually I do
30:28have a lot of clarity and I do know and
30:31I don't need a substance outside [music]
30:35of myself to tell me those things and
30:37that's I think what the medicine has
30:39been trying to tell me is like girl like
30:42you don't need me [music]
30:45for your clarity and your answers like
30:47you have what you need already within
30:49you and you need to trust that. You
30:52really need to trust yourself [music]
30:53and know that it's going to lead you to
30:56where you're meant to be. If anything
30:58else, [music] like just just stop trying
31:01to figure it all out and stop trying to
31:03know [music] everything and just have
31:06fun. That's what I want for this last
31:08ceremony to be is just a [music]
31:10celebration of having fun. God wants to
31:15[music] experience life through us. We
31:18need to honor that and and
31:21know that having fun [music] is sacred
31:24and it's needed. And I want to choose
31:26that in my life. And and that's what I'm
31:28going to choose.
31:29That's what I'm going [music] to choose.
31:35[music]
31:37Looking for a look inside the mirror. I
31:41found one. Oh [music] yeah. [singing]
31:45When it gets too hard, pick it up. Dust
31:47it off. When I fall down, I get up.
31:50[music and singing] 12. Don't need
31:50nobody else. Yeah.
31:56Save myself.
31:59[music]
32:01save myself.
32:05[music]
32:05>> Last night, I really spoke to the
32:08medicine and I really
32:11wanted to choose something
32:15and I wanted to choose fun and joy and
32:20[music] love and celebration and
32:25we had so much fun. But fun isn't always
32:29comforting and cushy and safe. Fun is
32:32meant to be [music] kind of terrifying.
32:36That's what makes it fun. And I really
32:38came out of this whole experience,
32:40[music] this whole week, all of it just
32:44like
32:46we chose this.
32:48We all chose to be human and we all
32:51chose to come to the jungle [music] and
32:54drink some [ __ ] This could put you on
32:56your ass.
32:58All for what? Because we chose to
33:02experience [music] it. We wanted to know
33:04what it's like. We wanted to know what
33:06it's like to be human. And [music]
33:09it's so beautiful that we chose this.
33:12You got to be like a little bit batshit
33:14[music] crazy.
33:17And that's epic.
33:20Crazy is beautiful.
33:22I love you guys so much. Thank you.
33:24[music]
33:31>> [music]
33:36[music]
33:36>> Heat.
33:42[music]
33:48Heat.
33:51Heat.
33:54[music]
34:01[music]
34:05[music]
34:11[music]
34:12Heat.
34:22It has [music] been a full year since I
34:25sat with Iwasa and I've had this whole
34:29past year to integrate this experience.
34:31So there are a few key lessons and
34:34insights that I want to share [music]
34:36with you that I feel like are really
34:37important after having had all this time
34:39to process the experience. [music]
34:43But before I get into the three key
34:46lessons that I want to share, the first
34:49thing that I really feel is important
34:52for me to say [music]
34:53is that I do not necessarily recommend
34:58[music] this for anyone and everyone.
35:01The medicine will call you if you're
35:04meant to go and drink. [music]
35:06And that is a personal journey. do your
35:09own deep research [music] to really know
35:12if this is right for you. I waited many
35:16years of [music] really learning about
35:19Iawaska and feeling into it and it was
35:22only when I felt like okay I really feel
35:26ready and I've done a lot of inner work
35:29on myself and a lot of spiritual work
35:31without any plant medicine [music] in a
35:34sober state that I felt like okay now
35:37I'm ready to open up into this plant
35:39medicine realm. It's not for everybody
35:42and [music] you will know what's best
35:45for you. And for many people that may
35:47mean to not drink this medicine cuz it
35:49can be really intense and it took me a
35:54long time to integrate. [music]
35:55So after everything, I have done my best
35:59to refine this into three [music] key
36:02lessons that I hope will be helpful.
36:06These are things that I feel like the
36:07medicine showed me and this is just from
36:10my experience. The first one is that
36:12iawaska
36:14is not going to change your life.
36:16Actually, no type of plant medicine or
36:20anything outside of yourself is going to
36:22[music]
36:23change your life for you. There may be
36:26things that are supportive in your
36:28journey and the medicine may open you up
36:30to see new perspectives that are really
36:33helpful, [music] but you're really the
36:35only one who can do the work [music] day
36:38by day to change your life circumstance
36:42if that is something you want. And it's
36:45in [music]
36:46the small things every day that make the
36:49difference. It's not going to the jungle
36:51drinking Iaska and then all all of a
36:53sudden your life changes. No, it's in
36:55the consistency [music] of the daily
36:59habits and mindset practices and shifts
37:03that you make [music] that really make a
37:06huge difference. The second lesson is
37:08kind of to the same theme. The answers
37:11you seek are already inside [music] of
37:14you. So ISA is not going to give you the
37:19answers that you want. It might show you
37:22new ways of looking at things but only
37:26you really know [music] what is best for
37:29you. And sometimes we need to clear and
37:32purge subconscious [music]
37:34limiting beliefs to be able to awaken
37:37and open to a new perspective and to
37:40really [music] get in touch with our
37:42intuition in a new way. And that's where
37:43the medicine can be helpful, but it's
37:46not going to give you the answers. And
37:48if you go to drink Iawaska thinking
37:51that, oh, I'm going to get all this
37:52clarity and it's just going to show me
37:54everything I need to know to figure out
37:56my life. I am not sure you're going to
37:59get what you're looking for. [laughter]
38:02It is strengthening that muscle of your
38:04intuition and your own inner compass
38:07[music] and inner guidance system that's
38:10so important. And that goes back to the
38:13daily rituals that allow [music] you to
38:16do that. The simple things like sitting
38:19in meditation and stillness and
38:21practicing awareness.
38:24So simple and boring, but truly the most
38:27effective. And the third and final key
38:30lesson that [music] I want to share is
38:32one that can be hard to swallow, but
38:35it's something that felt very [music]
38:37clear in my journey. On some level, we
38:41are [music] always choosing whether
38:44subconscious or conscious. In some
38:47capacity, we're [music] choosing how we
38:50see reality. And reality is mirroring
38:54back to us what we're choosing to see.
38:57We're [music] choosing how we want to
38:59feel. And sometimes that is happening on
39:01a very subconscious level. This one can
39:03be a really hard one to swallow because
39:06we look at the world and [music] we see
39:08some of the horror that's happening.
39:10It's like how could anybody choose that?
39:12I don't necessarily know the answer to
39:14[music] that. But I feel like on a soul
39:17level, we really do have so much more
39:19[music] power than we think and it
39:21starts with choosing the reality we wish
39:24to live in and see and to embody that.
39:28And our energy and our contribution is
39:31[music] so important. And we get to
39:32choose what that is. And we get to
39:34choose joy and celebration and play. And
39:37[music]
39:38that frequency
39:40is so important right now. And it is
39:42medicine. [music]
39:43And the more that we can really embody
39:46that frequency and share [music] it and
39:48allow our essence to spread that that
39:52has a really positive impact more than
39:55we think. So that's all I got for now.
39:58And I would love to hear your
40:00perspective on this video. What were
40:01your key insights and takeaways from
40:04this? That is it for this episode of
40:06Skyife. Thank you for your presence.
40:08This [music] is what I want to feel.
40:12All the way you know it's real.