Our cyclical nature has been painted as a burden, as something to hide, as something we are victims of and should try to forget about. When actually, connecting with your moon cycle (menstrual cycle) brings empowerment and understanding of your true nature.

So, where do you begin? 

Ayllu Medicina’s guide, Hwaneetah, has been studying womb technology for over 20 years, sharing through 1:1 sessions, on retreats, and during a recent interview with Breathe and Flow (you can watch the full video at the end of this article!). She is currently writing her first book about womb technology and the feminine principle.

We give thanks for Hwaneetah’s invaluable knowledge and want to share five ways to connect to your cycle once more. 

1. Understand Your Four Seasons 

The Earth goes through four seasons each year, which are essential for all life to continue and thrive. Did you know that women also experience these seasons, every month? 

As Hwaneetah explains in detail, Winter is when you are menstruating, which is when you are at your lowest energy point. Spring comes next, which is when you begin to open again and your energy begins to rise. Then you are in Summer, which is when you can reach 100% of your energy capacity, before Autumn, which is the week before your period.

Each season is 7 days of the 28-day cycle, so for example, Winter is seven days even if you only bleed for several days. A good place to begin this cycle synching is to download our Ayllu Medicina Moon Clock, so you can begin to track your seasons. 

If you do not have a period for another reason, you can sync your cycle with the moon, by picking a moon phase for your Winter time each month. You can learn more about how to live cyclically during menopause, the seasons, and male dynamics by watching Hwaneetah’s full womb wisdom interview at the end of this post.

2. Recap and Rest

As Hwaneetah says, red is the color to signal stop for many reasons, from traffic lights to if we cut ourselves and see blood. So, why isn’t this applied to our menstruation time? Women bleed for days during their winter time, however, often it is expected that they carry on as if they are at their 100% capacity.

A good place to begin to connect with your cycle is to honor your winter time by taking a break. This may be by taking a few days rest, or being mindful to go slower these days. You will begin to see the difference it makes during your month when you work with the process of purification, which happens during your menstruation.

The process of purification leads to renewal. So along with resting during your winter time, you can also take the time to recap your month. Reflect on everything that has happened during the past 28 days, so you can start your Spring time renewed and with clear intentions on what you want to focus on during the cycle ahead.

3. Connect With the 13:28 Frequency 

The Gregorian calendar was invented in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII. As Hwaneetah discusses, this calendar only takes into account solar cycles, not lunar cycles. This makes women a ‘glitch’, with the design making it impossible to measure basic cycles of time for anyone. 

The frequency of 13:28 was the old way we measured time. This frequency is present throughout the universe and in our bodies including:

• Moon cycles of 28 days, happening 13 times a year 
• Our 13 menstrual cycles of the year, on average every 28 days 
• The 13 main joints of our bodies and in each hand and foot around 14 bones 
• Turtles who reach old age often have 13 divisions and 28 subdivisions

You can learn more about how we measured this frequency by watching Hwaneetah’s interview with Breathe and Flow. You can also learn more by visiting the Harmonic Factor’s website and downloading the lunar cycle calendar. This website gives a wealth of information about how to work with this 13:28 calendar, which equates to 364 days, with the 365th day being the ‘day out of time’.

4. Have a 1:1 Moon Session

You can also have a 1:1 online Moon Session with Hwaneetah to begin to connect with your cycle on a deeper level. These sessions help you activate the secondary functions of the womb and help you find healing. The sessions include:

• Detoxing and balancing of the energetic field with sacred geometry 
• Deactivating of karmic or codependent cords in the uterus 
• Closing of lunar cycles and frequency alignment 

You can do a moon session if you want to connect with your cycle, are perimenopausal or are in menopause. You can also have sessions to focus on a specific issue such as irregular periods, lack of vitality, fertility problems, cysts, or another specific difficulty.

The sessions last for around 2 hours. You can contact Hwaneetah directly to arrange via WhatsApp (+593-96 725 5701) or by contacting Ayllu Medicina. 

5. Attend an Ayllu Medicina Retreat

Attending a retreat is the perfect way to delve deep into your inner world, with the help of the master plant teachers and other ancient healing practices. Ayllu Medicina holds transformational plant medicine retreats throughout the year, including one Women’s Power Yoga and Plant Medicine retreat each year, which focuses on womb function activation and the womb-heart connection. 

Our Women’s retreat allows you to discover the magic of women joining together in a supportive environment. There are multiple womb wisdom workshops, practices, ceremonies, sweat lodges, and other activities throughout the week. The daily yoga practices and meditations are also centered around the cyclical nature of women and how to harness the power of this.

Our next Women’s retreat starts on 13th April 2024. We have a couple of spaces available if you would like to join us for this week of empowerment. Our next Women’s Retreat is in June 2025. 

Connect With Your Cycle and Find Empowerment 

It is time to become empowered by your cyclical nature instead of falling victim to it. The first step is to acknowledge the cyclical nature you experience inside, which is also reflected through the four seasons of the Earth. 

More than ever there are ways to reawaken to the power of your moon cycle. However, it is important to connect with experienced guides and sources. Hwaneetah is an expert in womb technology and there are several ways to connect to her wealth of knowledge.

We are excited to announce that Hwaneetah’s first book will be coming out this year, you can sign up to our newsletter for updates on this and other Ayllu Medicina news. We would also love it if you could join us around the fire at one of our Women’s retreats on the beautiful coast of Ecuador. If you have any questions, please feel free to get in touch!

In the meantime, you can watch Hwaneetah’s full interview with Breathe and Flow below, which details these ways to connect to your cycle along with more life-changing information.

The post Five Ways to Connect to Your Cycle appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

The origins of breathwork span back to the origins of yoga in India with pranayama, and in more recent decades, different breathwork practices have emerged, with breathwork now being a beneficial practice for people around the world. Plant medicine preparation includes following dieta guidelines and being mindful of what you’re consuming mentally, such as limiting screen time. However, something that is often overlooked, is how you can work with your breath.

Vanessa, our retreat yoga instructor, has over 1500 hours of study, from YTTs to a Pranayama master program and beyond (learn more about her here). So, we sat down with her to discuss the healing benefits of pranayama for plant medicine preparation, ceremony, and integration.

Breathwork and Pranayama: Is There a Difference? 

I would describe breathwork in a broad sense. There are many benefits to breathwork, as you can see with Wim Hof and these other techniques. I would say one of the main differences between pranayama and breathwork is that breathwork has general benefits, which are not as specific as pranayama. 

For example, breathwork can offer benefits such as increased lung capacity and benefits for general organs. Whereas with pranayama it is the concentration of prana, also known as life force. So, pranayama work is generally a lot more specific.

I have more experience with the specifics of pranayama, so I can say the main difference with pranayama is the whole goal is to reach meditation, which is why we practice it.

What Is Pranayama and Its Benefits?

We break the pranayama breath into five main components, with each component having a different benefit. These are:

1. General life force, which brings more vibrancy 
2. Illumination, helping with anything you want to let go
3. Regulating the system, which helps reconnect all your systems 
4. Working the network system, which reconnects all pathways in the body
5. And then you can elevate the consciousness with pranayama. 

So pranayama is another form of healing. You can have a specific objective with your pranayama breathwork, and there is a general script that we follow to help you prepare for the next stage of your yoga practice: meditation. 

So, like in a plant medicine ceremony, we start with purification. We first clear out, before working on components such as reconnecting the system. So, you start with breathwork for purification, then you can work on opening up, with active pranayama exercises. You then eventually reach calming and slowing pranayama exercises, in preparation for meditation.

Practising Pranayama for Plant Medicine Preparation 

It is important to prepare for a plant medicine ceremony by focusing on your physical body, so you can sit comfortably.  Yoga asanas help ensure our body is ready for a plant medicine ceremony, so we can sit in the ceremony space.  However, it is also important to prepare emotionally and energetically for a plant medicine ceremony. 

We need to think of the body as a whole system, so along with the outer structure; the physical, we also have the interior. If we haven’t worked with pranayama or we don’t understand that we can work on different parts of our internal body consciously, it can be overwhelming.

We can work on parts of the body consciously with the breath and this is similar to what can happen with a master plant such as Ayahuasca. The master plant can start to go through the body and find the areas that need more alignment and areas where you need to let go. So, if you haven’t had any work with breathwork before the ceremony, it can feel overwhelming as you begin to recognize the body has different areas.

A Deep Breath Changes Everything

When we come into a plant medicine ceremony with a bit of pranayama practice, it is not so overwhelming when we navigate the plant medicine. It doesn’t have to be years of breathwork or pranayama practice. It is more about having a conscious awareness of the breath and its ability, which we work on during Ayllu Medicina retreats with our daily yoga classes. 

We often say to come back to your breath when navigating difficult parts of a plant medicine ceremony. Sometimes a deep breath can completely change your experience and make it okay. How do we teach kids to start to regulate? How we teach kids to regulate is through the breath. Once we learn we can take a full deep breath into the belly we can begin to fully regulate in everyday life and in a plant medicine ceremony.  

Breathwork and Ayahuasca Connection 

We do not work on breathwork during ceremonies, but the preparation in our morning yoga classes and workshops helps significantly. We can begin to see how working through the parts of the body helps us find alignment and harmony. In Ayahuasca, we often speak of surrender – just surrender to the experience. 

When we have done breathwork exercises, it can make this letting go easier because you have worked your interior body consciously as part of your daily practice.

Breathwork and San Pedro Connection 

With San Pedro, the breath work helps with alignment because we are aware and have the ability to navigate the experience as we do with breathwork. However, the nervous system is firing, so it can also be easier to get dysregulated. This is similar to our modern daily lives when we are exposed to stress and conflict, which can lead to deregulation.

Having breathwork techniques helps you consciously calm your nervous system and take control. Over time, this practice can also help raise your nervous system’s resting point. 

This means you no longer get triggered, say for example when someone says something in passing. It will take a lot more for you to become deregulated. 

This is one of the benefits of breathwork and the sacred master plants such as San Pedro. They are helping us develop skills to navigate daily life from our center, which lasts not only in ceremony but forever in our lives.

When we speak about the connection between plant medicine and pranayama, we do not mean we will be doing both at once, although the mindfulness of the breath is great in ceremony! On our plant medicine retreats in Ecuador they are powerful complementary modalities that support each other. 

Breathwork Exercises to Prepare for a Plant Medicine Ceremony

Along with preparing your diet to help clear out the body, and help processing systems, the digestion, and your brain, it is important to start having moments of stillness or quiet time.

If you do not have a pranayama practice or you do not have a teacher, start by working with the abdominal breath, which is one of the most powerful and simple beginner pranayama exercises. This pranayama exercise can help insomnia, chronic stress, and all the autonomic systems in the body.

Pranayama Tips

For this exercise, you can lie on the ground:

• Place your hands on your belly.
• When you  inhale, feel  your stomach rise
• On the exhale, feel the pause and release. 

You can do ten minutes of abdominal breathing every day first thing in the morning or in the evening before bed. 

Often we think of simple breathing exercises as not so efficient. However, if this is your capacity it is better to have this consistency, instead of occasionally doing a different pranayama exercise. It is important to have a point in our day to recap through our breath, allowing everything to come back into place to go forward in presence. 

We think of yoga as a complicated or long practice. Ancient yogis spoke of as little amount of investment for the most amount of gain. So, if you are practicing fully present and consciously, with the breath too, a 20-minute morning practice means you are good for the whole day. I think it goes back to being present and aware, which ceremony also shows- after all, you can’t multitask in a ceremony.

If you want to go deeper, you can then find teachers or contact Ayllu Medicina and attend one of our retreats.

Breathwork for Plant Medicine Integration 

Plant medicine integration is essential because everything is getting moved in a ceremony. Everything is energy and often in plant medicine ceremonies stagnant energy is getting moved, sometimes this includes past generational stagnation that has been passed on.

Pranayama can be an important integration tool to help consciously direct the breath and manage integration. With a pranayama practice,  you are taking the energy that is moving and helping release what is no longer serving you. You do not need to consciously do this by going through stories or trauma, it is naturally being released through the purification breathwork exercises.

Pranayama and Plant Medicine: The Long-Term Benefits

You can then work on vitality, once you have made more space with the first pranayama exercises. What the breathwork exercises are doing is healing the internal body. They regulate the autonomic systems, the samskaras- our behavioral patterns. The exercises also help with pranasyedam vashe sarvam,  which means releasing the filters over our eyes, to see with clarity.

We can have stories in our minds about how things happen in life. With plant medicine integration these stories often do not serve us anymore and our perspective begins to change. Pranayama can help us gain the full potential of healing with plant medicine experiences. 

It makes it not just about the experience of the ceremony. It is also taking the experience and integrating it, moving it fully through the whole self, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

And then, the breathwork also helps you stay clutter-free. We do not need to just have the clear out from the plant medicine ceremony and wait for it to build up again, wait for it to fill. Instead, using breathwork and other practices, we can start to go deeper, continue to grow, and maintain clarity. 

Women’s Retreat Breathwork and Yoga

As women, we are brought into this way of defragmenting ourselves. For example, we’ve separated from our cycles, from our feminine part of ourselves, to function in the male-dominated energy, which can serve us at some points. However, more and more we are realizing we are missing out and there are more parts of ourselves to explore.

The beautiful thing about the Ayllu Medicina Women’s Power Plant Medicine and Yoga Retreat is we are coming back to the basis of who we are, coming back to the empowerment of our moons, the fluctuations in our hormones, understanding our cycles, our energy, and learning how to compliment our breathwork and yoga practice for this.

Yoga and Breathwork for Our Cyclical Nature 

The strong Ashtanga practice was meant for men, as they have a consistent flow of hormones. As women, we have to realize it is okay to change our practice throughout our month to reflect where we are in our cycles, with our changing energy levels and our moon. This is what I’ve been learning- how to shift the practice, which I will be sharing at the Women’s retreat. 

Our moon cycle underlines everything. We do not want to go against the flow of our moon, including with our breathwork. For example, during our moon time, we do not want to do strong, active, cleansing breathwork, as this process is already happening internally within us with our moon.  So it is too much to also do this breathwork, similar to how it would be to enter the sweat lodge on our first days of our moon with the heat. 

During the Women’s retreat, we will be understanding how the external and internal environments reflect and how to bring both into harmony. This way we can stop being so rigid, instead recognizing fluctuations and allowing flow to happen, which means there’s also more flow in life.

Breathwork at Ayllu Medicina Plant Medicine Retreats in Ecuador

There are many tools that can help with plant medicine preparation, integration, and during the ceremony. Many of these tools are also important for the ceremony of life, which continues after you leave a plant medicine retreat or ceremony. 

Learning more about breathwork and becoming conscious of your breath is one of the tools that can help you physically, spiritually, and emotionally. We are fortunate to have Vanessa on our Ayllu Medicina team to learn more about the practice of pranayama. 

Get started with your breathwork on the Otra Ola Youtube channel, with this video by Vanessa. You can also visit Vanessa in Ayampe at Otra Ola, with their Prana Health Food Store, surf classes, yoga, Spanish classes, and other events. 

During our Ayllu Medicina transformational retreats, there is daily yoga, meditation, and breathwork. During our Women’s retreat, there will also be a focus on the complementary healing modalities of yoga and pranayama. There are several spaces available, so if you feel called to join us reach out!

One of our team will be happy to answer any questions you have or schedule a call. You can learn more about all our Ayllu Medicina retreats here. 

The post Plant Medicine & Pranayama: How Your Breath Is a Guide appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

Retreat participants often ask us how to integrate plant medicine ceremonies and their retreat experiences. After all, whether you have attended an Ayahuasca ceremony or a plant medicine retreat in South America, integration doesn’t stop once you leave the sacred space; it continues when you return to your home or continue your travels. Often, you return to everyday life feeling different, even if everything around you seems the same. 

So, what can you do to maintain changes and continue to integrate? 

One of the most important parts of plant medicine integration is staying clutter-free physically, emotionally, and energetically. Plant medicine ceremonies can help us release what is no longer serving us, so you often leave like a snake that has just shed skin. The good news is that there are a variety of different integration techniques you can use; read this guide to learn more.

Skip to:

Physical Integration
Emotional Integration
Energetic Integration

Physical Plant Medicine Integration

When people ask how to integrate an Ayahuasca ceremony or a San Pedro ceremony, they are often surprised that it starts with their physical body!

You need a solid grounding, healthy body, and clutter-free surroundings to embody your experiences. Then, you can begin to weave the lessons into your daily life, noticing changes in your inner and outer world. 

Post-Plant Medicine Diet 

Usually, people follow a pre-ceremony Ayahuasca dieta or diet for San Pedro preparation to purify their bodies for the sacred medicines. After a retreat or ceremony, it is also important to be mindful of the foods you consume and slowly reintroduce foods back into your diet to see how your body reacts. It is also essential to hydrate well with water! 

For example, do not return to your usual caffeine consumption; go slow and maybe consider alternatives such as Green tea or Guayusa, which we share on Ayllu Medicina retreats. You may also find you do not want to introduce certain foods back into your diet after releasing emotional food cravings.

Your dieta will vary depending on where you attend a plant medicine ceremony or retreat. However, in general, be mindful of your consumption of the following for at least a week after a plant medicine ceremony:

• Coffee
• Red meat and pork 
• Spices
• Dairy 
• Processed sugars 

You know your body best, so tune in to what it needs. Plant dietas are not about deprivation, but caring for your body and simplifying to make space for change. At Ayllu Medicina plant medicine retreats, we provide nourishing plant-based food throughout the week to nourish you and help you integrate a balanced diet. If you are unsure what medications or supplements to reintroduce after a retreat, consult your retreat guides and doctor. 

Space and Surroundings 

Everything is energy, so a lot of physical clutter can be distracting. Many studies have shown how physical clutter creates stress, disorder, and other negative physical, energetic, and emotional effects. So, consider clearing your space and home when settling back into your everyday life.

A clutter-free inner world needs a clutter-free physical world as a reflection. At Ayllu Medicina, we often describe how plant medicine ceremonies can be like taking off a heavy backpack, often full of things you didn’t know you were carrying but were weighing you down. These can include emotions, impressions, and other energy you have accumulated over the years. 

One of the benefits of plant medicine retreats and ceremonies is that they are often the first time you can fully stop, take off the backpack, and unload what is no longer serving you. So, once this happens, do not physically load yourself with more than you need; clear your space to reflect your lighter inner world! 

Emotional Plant Medicine Integration 

Plant medicine ceremonies can be transformative experiences, often expanding perspectives and giving profound insights into your inner world. It is important to remember that sacred plant masters are medicines, which means a variety of emotions can come up during ceremonies and as you integrate the experiences. 

Once you leave the ceremony or retreat container, it is important to continue to care for your mental health. It is natural for different emotions to come up, but do not leave them lingering for later. Instead, use different integration practices to stay clutter-free mentally. 

Daily Morning Practice 

What do you do when you first wake up? Instead of immediately reaching for your phone or rushing to work, set some time aside for you to ground and be in the present moment. A morning routine looks different for everyone, but including a yoga practice, meditation, and some breathwork can set you up for the rest of your day.

During plant medicine preparation and retreats, you have the chance to slow down and make space for yourself during the morning. During Ayllu Medicina retreats, there is also daily yoga, meditation, and breathwork, so you can learn different techniques and integrate them into your everyday life. Like making the bed each morning, being consistent with a daily practice quickly makes it a habit that will provide many benefits to your life.

Recapping 

During Ayllu Medicina retreats, there are sharing circles after plant medicine ceremonies.  So, you begin to process your experiences and integrate the lessons. You can continue to do this for all parts of your life after the retreat so you do not go back to saving everything for ‘later.’ 

Doing a simple recap of your day before you go to bed each night is a great practice, especially for post-retreat integration when you are still adjusting back to your daily life. You will be surprised at how much happens everyday! 

Women can also recap their month as part of their cycle during their menstruation time. Menopausal women can also use the New Moon or Full Moon. Men can also do this! Learn more about Sun and Moon dynamics in Hwaneetah’s Womb Technology interview with Breathe and Flow. If you attend one of our plant medicine retreats in Ecuador, you will learn more about this from Hwaneetah, who has been studying womb technology for over 20 years.

Find a Community

It is important to remember you have a community in plant medicine integration, so reach out whenever you need; you are not alone! For example, Ayllu Medicina has retreat groups where we continue to stay in touch and share. After your plant medicine retreat, you can also book a post-retreat integration session with our medicine guides.

No matter where you attend a plant medicine ceremony or retreat, find a supportive community to support your plant medicine integration. This could be loved ones at home, new groups, or your retreat group. Acknowledge that some loved ones are at different stages in their journey and may not be able to relate to your experiences, but they will begin to notice the positive changes within you. 

A note on sharing: As we say during our retreats, not everything from your Ayahuasca experience or San Pedro experience is to be shared. Some of the experiences you may not be able to articulate, and some are important to keep for yourself. 

Maybe you will begin to share more over time, but it is important not to overshare quickly- go slow, as you are still integrating the experience! A good start is to share the main lessons, or ‘pearls,’ of your experience. 

Be Aware of Mental Consumption

When preparing for a plant medicine ceremony, your dieta doesn’t end with food. It is also recommended to start a meditation practice, reduce your social media use, and be mindful of what you are mentally consuming. This is so you make space to go deeper with the plant medicines without having to process the many impressions mental consumption brings.

After you leave a plant medicine retreat, stay clutter-free by consciously consuming. After a break from the constant onslaught of information most people are bombarded with, it can feel overstimulating to log back into social media and read a backlog of WhatsApp messages or emails! 

So, go slow and perhaps wait before delving straight back into binge-watching your favorite show or spending long periods of time online. It is okay to normalize and put a movie on; just be mindful of going to extremes. 

After all, taking a pause allows you to identify impulsive behaviors in your life, the behaviors that are automatic without any thought, such as checking your social media pages multiple times a day. So, when you leave a plant medicine retreat, you can take charge of what you consume again from a conscious standpoint and put healthy boundaries in place.

Energetic Plant Medicine Integration

Everything has an energetic vibration, and plant medicines can help purify and  raise your vibration.  After letting go of what is no longer serving you, you want to continue caring for your energy and keep it clutter-free. 

Usually, during plant medicine ceremonies such as Ayahuasca, you can experience a huge energy expansion. After expansion, there is contraction as you begin to unify the body, mind, and spirit to what you experienced. 

This contraction may show up in changes in energy, mood, or the desire to be alone, which is natural- tune into what you need and continue to protect your energy as you go through integration. At Ayllu Medicina you can also sign up for a Shamanic Cleansing, also known as a Limpia, with Aime, which can help renew your energy. Learn more about this on our offerings page. 

Spend time in Nature 

Ground your energy in nature. Go for a walk, visit a body of water, sit by a tree, or simply plant your feet on the ground and absorb the benefits! It is important to remember that you can connect to the elements of nature at any time, which can help center your energy and offer purification. 

Incense Smudging

In many plant medicine ceremonies, you may notice the use of different incense, including for smudging, which can help remove negative energies. This incense can include sage, copal, cedar, and palo santo. Light some sage or another smudge and cleanse yourself and your space once you return home and whenever you want to shift the energy.

Practice Gratitude

Did you know that practicing gratitude can help you physically, emotionally, and energetically? During plant medicine integration, remember to come back to gratitude- for your experiences, your courage, your loved ones, the elements, and the sacred master plants. 

A simple practice is to journal or think about five things you are grateful for each day. This can instantly uplift your energy and help you welcome any discomfort during integration with the trust that you are coming into alignment.

Notice What Isn’t Serving You

Plant medicines such as Ayahuasca and San Pedro can provide deeply healing experiences. However, often, there is work for you to do during plant medicine integration based on the profound lessons the plants can present. This may include learning what is not correspondent anymore, such as a particular habit, behavior, relationship, or place. 

Take some time after a plant medicine retreat to reflect on what is no longer in alignment. If it doesn’t feel right anymore, it may be time to let go of something to be able to continue your expansion and growth.

It is also important to consider post-plant medicine retreat recommendations, such as avoiding sexual activity for several days after plant medicine ceremonies, as this is also a huge exchange of energy. 

Connect to Music 

Music is an integral part of Ayllu Medicina plant medicine ceremonies and retreats. You will have the chance to connect with your own voice and learn some medicine songs. Singing is a powerful way to shift energies, raise vibrations, and stay clutter-free. 

After plant medicine retreats, many retreat participants continue to sing and connect with sacred instruments such as the rattle or hand drum. If you need to move energy during plant medicine integration, consider picking up a rattle and singing or listening to some plant medicine music to reconnect with the sacred plant teachers! Check out our medicine guides’ music, Pájaros de Luz, to get started. 

Plant Medicine Integration Practices to Stay Clutter-Free 

Plant medicine integration goes beyond the Ayahuasca or San Pedro Ceremony. It is about the ongoing work to stay clutter-free and in touch with your true essence. When you can stay clutter-free emotionally, physically, and energetically, it is when you begin to express your true essence, uniting with the whole.

You can attend many ceremonies or plant medicine retreats in South America, but if you do not have the tools to integrate experiences, then you cannot absorb the benefits of these sacred plant teachers. This is why integration is also a verb- it requires active participation to stay clutter-free. Start by using these practices and seek support from your retreat provider if you need extra guidance! 

At Ayllu Medicina, we say that your first Ayahuasca ceremony is clearing the garden in your mind, then the second is often refining the garden details. If this is the case, then San Pedro is the water to help all the new seeds bloom, and plant medicine integration is the continued maintenance of the garden so you can continue to stay aligned on your path.

Integrating plant medicine retreats and ceremonies starts before you even enter the sacred space. When researching a plant medicine ceremony or retreat, consider the integration support the guides provide before you make a decision. At Ayllu Medicina, we ensure our participants have the support they need before, during, and after our transformational plant medicine retreats. 

Check out our available 23/2024 retreats here. Our 2024/25 plant medicine retreats in Ecuador are due for release soon! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.

The post Plant Medicine Integration: How to Stay Clutter-Free appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

Retreats for women have become increasingly popular in recent years and for a good reason. With experienced guides and the right setting, a women’s retreat can be a healing, transformative, and empowering experience. 

So, what actually happens on a women’s retreat to do this? Read on to learn seven reasons why a women’s retreat is empowering.

1. Be Empowered by Your Cycle 

As Hwaneetah explains in this womb technology interview with Breathe and Flow, the awareness of the feminine power that is within all of us has been forgotten.  Attending the Ayllu Medicine Women’s Power Retreat gives you the opportunity to remember this feminine power once again and claim it, which starts by connecting to your cyclical nature. Instead of falling victim to your nature, you will learn to accompany it and be powered by it. 

Many women come to plant medicine retreats and feel that there is something wrong with how they feel during the month, when in fact, it is that they haven’t connected to their cyclical nature. In many societies, a woman’s cycle has been portrayed as a source of disempowerment, whereas it is actually where your empowerment begins. 

Hwaneetah has been working with women and womb technology for over twenty years. She will provide wisdom throughout the retreat week to help you not only remember your true nature but become empowered by it. All women benefit from remembering their cyclical nature, whether they are menstruating, perimenopausal, or menopausal.  

2. Close Cycles Consciously (“No Clutter Policy”)

Part of a retreat week is to simplify and can be to let go of what is no longer serving you. Maybe this is behavior patterns, repressed emotions, or a particular belief about yourself. 

Over the years, you build up memories, impressions, emotions, and behaviors. In many societies, there is a constant onslaught of information, with scarce opportunities to process and release it all. How can you expect to empower yourself without letting go of this heaviness first?

During a women’s retreat week, you will experience a variety of ways to purify, along with learning how to recharge each month as part of your cycle. For example, there will be multiple sweat lodges at Ayllu Medicina’s Women’s Power Plant Medicine Retreat. 

A sweat lodge (temazcal) is an ancient medicine and means to purify your mind, body, and spirit.  You have the opportunity to reenter the womb of Mother Earth and shed what no longer serves you. There will also be different rituals such as unbinding, breathwork, meditations, daily yoga, and ice baths. 

3. The Space for Self-Discovery 

In fast-paced societies, it can be challenging to take a breath and pause. When was the last time you truly stopped, without distractions, and spent time with yourself? 

True empowerment starts with getting to yourself and your inner world. A Women’s plant medicine retreat provides the tools, time, and container to stop driving on automatic and go inwards.

In a supportive environment with experienced guides, you have the chance to pull the brake and catch up with yourself. The simple but courageous act of taking an intentional pause will allow you to focus on yourself, which is the start of empowerment. 

During the Women’s Power Retreat with Ayllu Medicina, you will receive guidance from the sacred plant teachers Ayahuasca and San Pedro. There will also be purifying practices and different ancient wisdom workshops. These will help increase your self-awareness, provide clarity, and allow you to connect to your true essence. 

4. Tools to Take With You 

One of the main benefits of a plant medicine retreat is that it can equip you with many tools to continue making space and empowering yourself once you leave the retreat container. 

At Ayllu Medicina, we often say this is when the true ceremony begins, as you are returning to your environment, and it is up to you to maintain the upgrades in your life and make any changes to stay aligned.

A Women’s Retreat gives the power back to you, making you realize that you have the power to take charge of your life and stay clutter-free. You can make lasting changes with the right tools, such as a daily practice, meditation techniques, and working with your cyclical nature. At our Women’s Power Retreat, there is also support from the Ayllu Medicina team and your new community. 

5. Self-Care 

In order to care for others, you must care for yourself first. A Women’s Retreat is the opportunity to do this. The entire week is focused on transformative practices and care, from the plant medicine ceremonies and sweat lodges to the nourishing food and daily yoga. You will have time, support, and tools to retreat inwards, which will benefit you and all your relations. 

6. Step Out of Your Comfort Zone 

It is when you step outside your comfort zone that change can happen. A women’s retreat helps you understand your own nature and reconnect back to Mother Earth, ready to step into the new. With a supportive group around you, you have the space to be seen, heard, and understood. You can reclaim your space, align your body-mind connection, and begin to express your true essence. 

Nurturing your voice and expression during a women’s retreat can also be empowering. There will be sharing circles, song circles (no experience required!), and other ways to embrace your feminine nature and the empowerment that comes with it. 

7. The Power of Sisterhood 

Women are caretakers, which means when we are around other like-minded women, we feel more at ease. Have you had a situation where you feel more at ease because you are with women? This could be as simple as when you hail a taxi and realize it is a female driver or sit next to another female on the bus. 

It is because you can reach a different vibration when you are around other women. We reflect on each other, which makes a women’s retreat the perfect space to get to know your inner cycles with the help of your new community. Like-minded mirrors will surround you to help you find alignment and find a new vibration in a nurturing environment. 

Some women will be aware of the power of having supportive women in their lives who help to uplift them, keep them accountable, and inspire them. For other women, it may be the first opportunity they have had in a while to form female friendships. Either way, a women-only retreat provides the space and shared intention to transform in community, finding empowerment through supporting each other and forming long-lasting new female friendships. 

Learn Why a Women’s Retreat is Empowering With Us

A Women’s Retreat is empowering in many ways, offering you the medicine you need to step into your power. It benefits you in many positive ways, so your feminine nature is no longer an inconvenience or weakness, instead being a source of power. However, not all women’s plant medicine retreats offer the same tools, offerings, or experiences to be empowering. Knowing how to find a plant medicine retreat for you is important. 

Ayllu Medicina’s plant medicine retreats in Ecuador honor the sacred master plants and traditions with a supportive container and experienced guides for a transformational week. Our Women’s Power Retreat is led by Hwaneetah, who is also an expert in womb technology and helping you connect to this powerful source. So, join us in April 2024 for a week tailored to help you find empowerment with a supportive group of women.

You can learn more about our Women’s Power Plant Medicine retreat here. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out; we will be happy to answer your questions by phone or email!

The post 7 Reasons why a Women’s Retreat is Empowering appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

The post New Music by Pájaros de Luz: Sumac Wayra appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

It is estimated that over 275 million people have some form of meditation practice around the world, and more people than ever are feeling called to explore their inner world with the assistance of master plant teachers, such as Ayahuasca and San Pedro. So, what happens when you combine these ancient technologies in a plant medicine ceremony?

Here are some of the ways meditation helps in plant medicine ceremonies.

1. Preparation 

The benefits of meditation begin before you attend a plant medicine ceremony. It is often recommended to take steps to prepare your body, mind, and spirit to sit with plant medicine, including adjusting your diet, slowing down activity, and trying practices such as meditation. Preparational steps are not limitations but ways to purify so you can have more profound experiences in ceremonies and begin to connect with the master plants in advance. 

Meditation is an ancient practice that, like plant medicines, has gained the scientific world’s attention. Recently, there has been a lot of research to confirm meditation’s many benefits, such as improving focus, reducing stress, and even changing brain structures. One study found meditation helped increase the thickness of the hippocampus- which is the part of your brain responsible for emotional regulation and memory.

So, all these benefits will begin to help during your plant medicine preparation time, allowing you to shed layers and make space to connect with the plant medicines. Meditation can also help ground and calm the mind before your plant medicine ceremony. It is also natural to experience some nerves before a ceremony, which meditation can help settle.

2. Observe Without Judgement

One of the main ways meditation helps in plant medicine ceremonies is to help you stay as the observer of your experience. You can notice your thoughts without getting swept into their emotional storm or judging them. Instead, you have meditation tools that can bring your attention back to your center.

Master plant teachers such as Ayahuasca are medicine. So, while ceremonial experiences are unique to the individual, it is common for there to be ups and downs as part of your journey to your center.  For example, plant medicines such as Ayahuasca can magnify thought patterns, emotions, and experiences to make you recognize them. Meditation can help you navigate and even welcome these experiences to dive deeper into your inner world without resistance. 

3. Focus and Center

Meditation and plant medicine both allow you to explore your inner being. Meditation can help you re-center, helping you come back to your intention for the ceremony, quieten the mind,  and maintain your heart-mind connection.

Having the tools to quieten the mind and separate yourself from thoughts is empowering. In a plant medicine ceremony, this empowerment can help you stay focused and go deep into your inner being with the help of the master plant.

4. A Physical Aid

Meditation can help increase your self-awareness, so in a ceremony, you remember to come back to the breath or do a body scan to make a simple adjustment to feel physically comfortable once more. 

Our Ayllu Medicina yoga teacher often reminds participants that deep breathing can completely transform a challenging moment. Sometimes, remembering to take a deep breath, check in with our body, and relax any areas of tension can help uncomfortable moments of the plant medicine ceremony pass.

5. Let Go

A common piece of advice people give for plant medicine ceremonies is to ‘let go’ or ‘surrender.’ This may feel easier said than done! After all, what does surrender mean? 

For many people, the art of surrender can be a mystery before a plant medicine ceremony, and it remains a practice that meditation helps strengthen. Essentially, this piece of advice refers to allowing the present moment to be exactly how it is. It means acknowledging any difficult experiences or emotions but relaxing into them with trust, trusting the master plant and yourself. 

Meditation also helps remind you that the moment will pass; everything is temporary. The practice enables you to return to the present moment. It can help you let go of expectations and recognize when the ego is trying to take control. 

You can begin to stop trying to push or pull your inner and outer experience during the ceremony, instead surrendering into the present. The result? Fewer obstacles and more collaboration with the master plant teacher.

6. Gratitude 

A great intention for a plant medicine ceremony is gratitude. Meditation can help you stay centered in these feelings of gratitude, love, and humility. It can help allow your true self to bloom by getting out of your own way. 

Plant medicines such as Ayahuasca can also produce transcendental states, where you go beyond the ego and experience the connection to what is bigger than yourself, often referred to as ‘oneness’ or wholeness. A strong meditation practice can also achieve these heightened states of awareness. 

However, suppose you are beginning your meditation practice. In that case, plant medicines can help you reach deeper states of meditation and the feelings associated, such as peace, joy,  and a quietening of the mind.

7. Integration

Meditation and plant medicine work well together before, during, and after a ceremony. Meditation can also help during integration, the time after the ceremony, and when you finish a plant medicine retreat. Integration can only happen if we make space for it with compassion and patience for ourselves. 

Returning to the ceremony of life can be an adjustment, which means having tools such as meditation can help you navigate the integration period with openness, attention, and space. Meditation can be the practice you continually use to maintain your well-being, quieten the mind, check in with your inner world, and stay centered, no matter what distractions or challenges arise.

Attend Our Meditation and Plant Medicine Retreat

Meditation and plant medicine share many similarities, which means meditation is a practice that can help during plant medicine preparation, plant medicine ceremonies, and integration periods. There are a range of different meditation practices to try, so you can find one that suits your own needs.

Do you want support deepening your meditation practice and connecting to master plant teachers? Ayllu Medicina is holding a Meditation and Plant Medicine Retreat in November 2023. While meditation is always a core part of our plant medicine retreats in Ecuador, this retreat is specifically focused on providing meditation tools and practices.

It will be a transformational week that provides the space, practices, and support to dive deep into your inner world. Do you have some questions? Our team will be happy to schedule a call to discuss any of our retreats in more detail! 

The post Meditation and Plant Medicine Ceremonies: How Meditation Helps appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

Many cultures have long lived a life immersed in nature, attuned to the Earth and Moon’s rhythms, recognizing their interconnectedness with the elements. This connection to the land has meant astrological events such as Solstice have long been revered as significant not only for the external world but our inner world too.

June 21st marks Summer Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and Winter Solstice in the South. It is the perfect time to take your own sacred pause and celebrate this change in season. Read on to learn everything you need to know about how to celebrate Solstice and honor your own light.

What Is the Meaning of Solstice?

On Earth, Solstice is when the sun reaches its highest or lowest point in the sky during the year, marked by the shortest or longest day. The term Solstice comes from the Latin (solstitium) for sun and ‘to stand still,’ which is because the sun was observed to take a pause before continuing its journey into what is now considered the start of Winter or Summer.

Like Equinoxes, Solstices happen around the world in June and December. The June Solstice dates are between June 20 and June 22nd. The December Solstice dates are between December 20 and December 23rd. They are often called winter Solstice or Summer Solstice.

On June 21st, it is the Summer Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere, with the longest day, while for the Southern Hemisphere, it marks the start of Winter, with the shortest day. In December, the Southern Hemisphere celebrates summer, whereas it is the Winter Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere.

Why Is Solstice Important?

The Solstice marks the sacred pause of the sun and the many external and internal rhythms of life; the changing seasons, life, death, darkness, light, day, and night. It also reflects the relation between the sun and the moon, the sacred dance between these forces. These female and male energies are essential to balance our own inner nature, so we can find our center.

Solstice is a time that has long been considered important for the land, body, and spirit. Our ancestors recognized how much the world around us is a reflection of our inner world and how important it is to have a reciprocal relationship with Mother Earth and Father Sky.

Solstice gives us the opportunity to reconnect to the Sun and Earth, recognizing the cyclical nature of life and connecting to our light within. It is the perfect time to close a cycle to make space for the new season ahead.

Summer Solstice Traditions

Summer Solstice is celebrated in different ways around the world; however, there are several similarities between traditions. For example, many people gathered, and still gather until this day, at sacred sites to observe the sunrise and sunset. Many of these sacred sites, such as Stonehenge in England, are aligned with the movement of the sun on Solstice.

Summer Solstice is also a time to give thanks to Mother Earth and pray for an abundant harvest. This involves giving cleansings, offerings, ceremonies, playing music, spending time in nature, and dancing.

Some traditions also burn bonfires to ward off certain spirits, purify, and celebrate light defeating darkness. Some cultures also jump over fires as a way to purify and set intentions for the season ahead.

Winter Solstice Traditions

Winter solstice traditions also involve time giving offerings, praying for the return of harvest, celebrating, and giving thanks to the Sun and Earth. Some ancient festivals, such as the Roman festival of Saturnalia, reflects the modern celebration of Christmas, where people would play games, feast, give gifts, and even reverse social orders.

Seasonal food and fire are also part of many Winter Solstice traditions when people would prepare for the winter and darkness ahead.

Solstice in Ecuador

In June, Andean communities celebrate the festival Inti Raymi, also known as Fiesta del Sol. The dates of specific celebrations vary depending on the community and country, but usually, celebrations last several days.

It is a festival that many Andean communities throughout South America mark. It is said that the festival originated in Incan times, with the focus being on harvesting specific delicacies, such as corn. Ecuador is on the equator, so it doesn’t have clear seasons; however, the people have long recognized their relationship with the Sun and Earth.

Inti Raymi is the festival of the Sun and light, celebrating the agricultural year. Rituals include parades, cleansing in water, music, and offerings. Dance is also an important part of the celebration, with people stamping their feet to wake Mother Earth and encourage her to bring energy to the land and restore the harvest cycle.

Dancers will often have a ritual cleansing in natural water to purify their bodies and spirits first, renewing themselves in the energy of the elements. They then stomp throughout their town in specific outfits, often ending in the main square of their town.

How To Celebrate Solstice and Close the Cycle

Your Solstice celebrations may be inspired by your location and whether you are entering Winter Solstice or Summer Solstice. However, these are Solstice practices you can do to mark this significant astrological event and the end of a cycle, no matter where you are in the world.

Take a Cleansing Bath

Find a body of water where you can take a cleansing bath. You can take some tobacco or play some music as an offering before washing away anything that is not serving you. You can also make your own ritual bath at home by heating some water with herbs such as chamomile and adding rose petals.

Make an Offering

Solstice is an opportunity to give thanks for all the forces of the Earth, sky, and elements that provide us with all the abundance we need to survive. Give an offering to Mother Earth as a way to give thanks for all the ways she has supported you.

You can make an offering of grains, fruits, tobacco, water, seeds, stones, and other items that are meaningful to you, which you can return to Mother Earth. You can join Ayllu Medicina’s Solstice offering if you are on the coast of Ecuador! See details below.

Get Creative

Creativity is the perfect way to raise your vibration and help ground you in the present moment. Sing some plant medicine songs, dance, create art, play instruments, or find another way to connect to your inner nature within. Studies have found the importance of creativity for well-being in adults and the importance of taking time to pause and express our inner world.

Pause in Nature

Spending time in nature without distractions is the perfect way to honor the sacredness of this life and the interconnectedness of all things. Take a pause by meditating outside or going for a walk in nature. Observe all that is around you to practice remaining present.

Light a Fire

The fire is the heart of many rituals, celebrations, cultures, and homes, including Solstice celebrations. Connect to the fire and all the ways it can purify by gathering around one. Ask for guidance!

If you cannot safely light a fire, you can try a candle meditation or join a community event.

Watch Sunrise

Wake up with the birds and visit a local sacred site or go to a local sunrise spot to observe the sunrise. Give thanks to Father Sun for the new day. Spend some time thinking about what you are grateful for, and consider watching the sunset too.

Attend a Ceremony

Mark the sacred pause of the sun by taking part in a ceremony that honors the sacredness of this life. This may be a plant medicine ceremony, sweat lodge, or other local event. You can follow Ayllu Medicina (@ayllumedicina) on Instagram for our upcoming ceremonies or check out our next season’s plant medicine retreats.

Recap the Year

June Solstice is a time to reflect on the past six months since December Solstice. What were you doing last June? You can also reflect on your past year, all the things you are grateful for, everything you have achieved, and what intentions you want to set as the seasons change.

Learn How To Celebrate Solstice

Celebrating Solstice is a time to take a sacred pause like the sun and give thanks, remembering that the relationship with the Earth is a reciprocal one. It is the perfect opportunity to begin to align with the rhythms of nature and your own nature. Plus, it is always wonderful to take a pause, close the cycle, and watch the sunrise or sunset (or both!)

Ayllu Medicina is holding a Solstice offering, meditation, and a sweat lodge. We will focus on a Heart coherence meditation, which you can also learn at our Medicine of the Heart Retreat. When you align your mind-body connection, you can connect to your light, your love, and your center. If you are on the coast of Ecuador, join us at 4.30 pm next Wednesday!

If you have any questions about our Solstice event or our plant medicine retreats, please contact us! Comment below if you have any other ways you celebrate Solstice.

The post How To Celebrate Solstice and Close the Cycle appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

We are fortunate to have access to different healing plant medicines, such as the San Pedro cactus in South America, which is found in countries such as Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Colombia. Ayllu Medicina retreat participants are often less familiar with this sacred medicine, so we have put together this Huachuma guide to help you learn more.

What Is Huachuma?

Huachuma is a sacred plant medicine also known by names such as San Pedro or Awakolla. It comes from the Echinopsis Pachanoi cactus, native to the Andes mountains. It is a fast-growing and ancient cactus with huge white flowers that bloom at night and are pollinated by bats. From above, the cactus ribs look like a star. 

San Pedro is known for its healing and psychoactive effects. However, this plant medicine offers more than closed and open-eye visions; it is highly revered as a master plant teacher who can provide healing and guidance on many levels.

The History of the San Pedro Cactus

While Ayahuasca originates in the Amazon jungle, Huachuma originates in the Andes mountains. Evidence of the consumption of San Pedro dates back thousands of years, with evidence from ancient cultures such as the Chavin and Chimú cultures—for example, stone carvings depicting shamans holding the San Pedro cactus. 

The name ‘San Pedro’ came after the Spanish occupation, referring to the Christian saint St. Peter. It is said that Huachuma was given this name as St. Peter is the saint that holds the keys to heaven. You can often see why San Pedro can be the bridge to reach those states by the end of your journey with the plant medicine, as it helps you reach a deep state of communion with nature.

Other names for San Pedro come from different countries, such as Awakolla in Ecuador. Evidence shows ancient civilizations used San Pedro in various ways, such as for healing, divination, ceremonies, and long pilgrimages. It is said people consumed San Pedro to walk for days in the Andes, often without other food or water sources, as San Pedro’s interconnectedness to nature helps improve stamina and attention. 

San Pedro Ceremonies

One way to meet with San Pedro is in a ceremonial setting. It is best to work with an experienced medicine man or woman who has the blessings to work with sacred plant medicines like Huachuma. Sitting in a contained and secure space is essential so you can journey deep with the medicines. 

San Pedro ceremonies often involve singing, sacred instruments, prayers, and other types of medicine, such as tobacco. The structure and type of ceremony depend on who is leading your ceremony. You can learn more about our medicine guides here, who honor the sacred plant medicines and traditions from which they come.

What To Expect from a San Pedro Ceremony 

We advise Ayllu Medicina retreat participants to have no expectations, as sacred plant medicines such as San Pedro and Ayahuasca work differently, depending on your needs and intentions. 

However, San Pedro can often remind you of the beauty around you, how to sustain your well-being, and your connection to nature. You often keep your eyes open in a San Pedro ceremony, and if there is a fire, you may experience visions. While visions and other sensations occur, you are usually in the driving seat, so you find the answer through experience. 

Most of the time, people find it easier to walk unaided than with other plant medicines such as Ayahuasca. San Pedro can also help promote gut health, with purging being one of the purifying effects of San Pedro. Other effects include increased self-awareness, an unsettled stomach, and dizziness. 

In Ayllu Medicina night ceremonies, the medicine lasts all ceremony and most of the following day. We enjoy the rest of the day by singing, meditating, resting, and spending time in nature. You can learn how to prepare for a San Pedro ceremony in the best way in this blog post.

Benefits of San Pedro 

There are many reasons why people decide to sit with the medicine of San Pedro. Sometimes, it is because they are on a plant medicine retreat that includes this plant medicine. Other times, it is because they have heard about some of San Pedro’s potential benefits and have sought out a San Pedro ceremony. Potential benefits of San Pedro include:

• Enhancing your connection to nature
• Healing your mind-body connection 
• Promoting strength and stamina 
• Heightened states of awareness 
• Providing insights and wisdom

Sitting with any plant medicine involves two main ingredients: the plant medicine and you. This means the benefits of sitting with San Pedro vary. 

However, you can trust that the plant medicine will give you what you need to let go of what no longer serves you and help you center. Once you are centered, you can receive its healing, along with experiencing the sacredness and beauty of your inner and outer world. 

Ayahuasca and San Pedro Plant Medicine Retreat

Ayllu Medicina works with the plant medicines of San Pedro and Ayahuasca. During our plant medicine retreats in Ecuador, you will sit with Ayahuasca once or twice and San Pedro once or twice. A common question we receive is, why do you have San Pedro and Ayahuasca ceremonies during retreats?

There are different reasons why meeting with Ayahuasca and San Pedro is a beneficial experience. They are different medicines but complement each other well and balance the masculine and feminine energies.

As we see it with Ayllu Medicina, Ayahuasca focuses on your lower energy centers and roots. After journeying into the jungle, you can then raise your flight with masculine energy from the Andes. 

San Pedro can help people balance their emotional states, dissolving mind patterns and old ways of being. He focuses on the energy of your heart so that you can enter into that energy, reaching a place of presence. 

San Pedro can be indirect throughout the night, so you feel, experience, and reach your own understanding of what needs to be released. Often once you reach this point with the medicine, you can find clarity and weave together your experience. With Ayllu Medicina, the day after a San Pedro ceremony is also a time to be with your inner child and celebrate; life, healing, and the power of finding your way back to your center.

Journey to Your Center with Huachuma, the San Pedro Cactus

Huachuma, San Pedro is a sacred master plant teacher, offering profound healing, a pathway to your center, and a reminder that the child within never left. 

Do you want to connect to the medicine of Huachuma? Ayllu Medicina offers San Pedro ceremonies in Ecuador as part of our retreats. We also offer public Huachuma ceremonies, with the next ceremony being on 10th June with medicine woman Andrea Calderon. 

Our next retreat season begins in November. Our retreats provide helpful tools such as meditations, yoga, sharing circles, and workshops to help connect with the master plant teachers and your center during ceremonies. The retreat space provides the perfect container to allow you to take a look at your inner world and find alignment once more. 

If you have any questions about our upcoming retreats or would like to reserve a space for the next San Pedro ceremony, please contact us!

The post A Guide to Huachuma: the San Pedro Cactus appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

Respecting and honoring these great teachers of nature also helps you honor and respect yourself. After all, your body is made up of these elements, from the fire in your heart and digestion to the fact your body is up to 60% water. Often, if you are feeling out of balance, understanding the elements of nature can help you take steps to purify, heal, and reach equilibrium once more. 

Read on to learn some ideas on how to connect to the elements of nature.

Earth

Taking time to connect to the element of Earth helps remind you that support is always there for you. Mother Earth is considered the great mother, sustaining all life and providing the resources we need to survive. She helps ground, nurture, and nourish us. 

Go Outside and Make an Offering 

Take a walk, sit down and meditate by a tree, or simply put your feet on the Earth. Studies have found walking barefoot and grounding outside offer many benefits, such as helping stabilize the circadian rhythms in the human body.

You can also give thanks to Mother Earth, such as by offering fruits, grains, and anything that helped you during the month. An offering is a moment to pause, connect to Mother Earth, and set intentions. Ayllu Medicina makes an offering every New Moon, setting intentions and planting new seeds for the month ahead.

Practice Self-care

You need to be able to care for your own body to also care for the Earth. Take some time out for self-care and check in with yourself. During our plant medicine retreats, we offer an ancient Goddess spa ritual, which can be a powerful way to release impressions. 

Self-care also includes your diet and what you are nourishing yourself with. For example, you can eat root vegetables to help ground your energy to the Earth.

Recognize the Seasons

Mother Earth has four main seasons, which support her and all life on Earth. Women also experience these seasons every month with their menstrual cycle. 

Understanding the Earth’s cycles can give you insight into your feminine energy and how it changes throughout the month. You can learn more about this in Hwaneetah’s talk about womb technology. There will also be workshops on this ancient wisdom throughout our women’s plant medicine retreat. 

Attend a Ceremony

Attending a plant medicine ceremony, such as with Grandma Ayahuasca, can help you work on your lower chakras, root down, and allow you to connect to your inner nature. Her feminine spirit enables you to shed layers that no longer serve you and realign you with your true nature.

When aligned with your true nature, you can also remember that you are part of the whole (everything), and everything is part of you. Plant medicine ceremonies are a way to connect to the elements of nature in many different ways. 

Water

Water is medicine and a life-sustaining force for all. It can be easy to disconnect from water, such as by holding in your tears or taking for granted the presence of water in your life. Building a relationship with water will bring you many teachings, such as how to flow, purify, and find stillness in the swells of life.

Cleanse With Water 

If you have access to a bath, the ocean, or even a bucket, cleanse with water. Add some essential oils, chamomile, eucalyptus, or another herb to the water and wash away what no longer serves you. Ayllu Medicina believes life is a ceremony, so any act with water can be sacred when presence is there, including taking a shower or brushing your teeth.

Visit a Body of Water

If you have a body of water near you, such as the ocean, a river, a stream, or a lake, visit it! Spend some time in communion with the water, observe its many teachings, and let any emotions move. You can also pray, sing, or make an offering. 

Give Thanks to Your Water

Research has confirmed that words, sounds, emotions, and the environment changes the molecular structure of water. So, why not take a minute to give thanks and ask to connect with the water source? If you do not start your day with a glass of water, consider doing so to start the day with clarity and intention. 

Many ceremonies include a water prayer; after a night of fasting water, it is the only medicine you need. Vision Quest is another way to begin to build a relationship with water, which Ayllu Medicina attends yearly at Ayapuma. You can learn more about this at our retreats. 

Try Ice Baths 

Ice baths are an effective way to purify and cleanse. Sitting in a cold body of water and finding peace can alter your life in many ways, helping you stay centered no matter what challenges arise. There are many researched benefits of ice baths, including:

• Reduces inflammation
• Shortens exercise recovery time
• Relieves sore muscles
• Supports your immune system 
• Improves energy levels and mental well-being 

We also offer ice baths as part of our plant medicine retreats, such as our women’s retreat, which help prepare you for plant medicine ceremonies. We include guided breathwork and a warm-up to prepare. Our friends Bre and Flo have just published a video on cold exposure if you would like to learn more about this way to connect to the element of water.

Fire 

The fire is at the center of our plant medicine ceremonies, communities, homes, and your heart. He is a wise and ancient teacher, which is why we refer to him as Grandfather Fire or Abuelo Fuego. When you trust in the element of fire, he has the ability to transmute, and heal in miraculous and loving ways, also reflecting the light of your heart.  

Gather Around a Fire

One of the best ways to connect to the element of fire is to gather around one in community. A lot of healing happens this way, which is why our ancestors held ceremonies with fire before they had access to plant medicines. And until this day, there are fire ceremonies.

If you cannot attend a ceremony or safely manage a fire, then you can also light a candle and practice a candle-gazing meditation. 

Move Your Body 

As fire also represents energy and metabolism, moving your body to tend your own fire within is important. Tune in to how you are feeling and ensure you have ways to move emotions through you. Movement could include shaking, yoga, dancing, running, tapping, or any other movement that helps you release excess energy and recenter. 

Create 

Find the spark of fire in you by connecting to your creativity. As we get older, it can be easy to neglect to learn new things for fun and forget the importance of play. Take time to create art, play an instrument, or find another way to express yourself.

Attend a Sweat Lodge

Sweat lodges honor the four elements of nature, including fire. The grandmother stones are heated in the fire and brought into the sweat each round. Incense is added to each stone before darkness descends, water is poured on the stones to increase the heat, and songs are raised in the womb of Mother Earth. There are many benefits of sweat lodges, including:

• Purifies the mind, body, and spirit
• Restores balance and order
• Connects you to the four elements of nature 
• Offers introspection and clarity 

Sweat lodges are the perfect medicine to surrender to the Earth and remember who you are. Attending a sweat lodge is a powerful process to let go of what no longer serves you, so you can experience rebirth, aligned once again in your heart’s center. Ayllu Medicina holds regular sweat lodges on the coast of Ecuador, which you are welcome to attend. 

Air

The element of air is associated with spirit, change, and freedom, along with other sacred symbols in different traditions. It is the breath of life, the winds, and represents all our ancestors that have passed. You can connect to air simply by taking a pause and a deep, conscious breath.

Practice Breathwork

If you want to go deeper into connecting with the element of air, practice breathwork. There are many simple breathing exercises to try, and if you practice yoga, you can incorporate pranayama exercises such as Nadi Shodhana and Box Breathing into your practice. Breathwork is an essential part of our plant medicine retreats, which you get to experience daily, along with meditation and yoga.

Sing

Singing is a powerful way to connect to the element of air, create sound, and reclaim your voice. Many people attend our plant medicine retreats and end up beginning to sing, sometimes for the first time in many years! There are many sacred songs that you can learn, which also honor the elements, such as our guides Aime and Hwaneetah’s music, Pájaros de Luz.

Pray

Praying and giving thanks is a powerful way to connect to the elements of nature, your ancestors, and the universe. Gratitude is always a good place to begin if you are unsure where to direct your prayer. You can pray to what feels aligned for you.

Light Incense 

Light incense to cleanse your space, shift any stagnant energy, and connect to the air element. You can use incense sticks or fresh incense, such as Copal or Palo Santo. Burning incense helps calm your environment, increase vibration, and enhance your focus; it is essential medicine in our ceremonies. 

Connect to the Elements of Nature at a Plant Medicine Retreat

Healing begins when you begin to pay attention to how your inner world reflects your outer world. A good place to start is by learning how to connect to the elements of nature. You can dive deeper into this practice through various traditions and attend a plant medicine retreat to learn more. 

Taking the time to pause and remove yourself from everyday commitments is the perfect way to reset and connect to the sacred elements of nature. A plant medicine retreat also helps you connect to the fifth element of Aether, also known as spirit or space. During a retreat, you will receive various tools to help you simplify, make space, and let go of impressions, cleansing your mind, body, and spirit to find balance once again. 

Our next retreat is a Women’s power retreat this April. You can learn more about this retreat and our other upcoming retreats here. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. 

The post How to Connect to the Elements of Nature appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.

Once you have ensured this and are ready to sit around the fire with this powerful medicine, we recommend the following ways to prepare for a San Pedro ceremony. 

1. Meditate on Your Intention

As in any ceremonial experience, it is crucial to have an intention that you would like to work with the San Pedro medicine. This purpose will be something you can come back to any time, and it will help direct what you will see, feel, and experience throughout the ceremony.

It can be a question or a simple word for how you want to feel, like peace or joy. If you are not clear on what purpose, we recommend starting with gratitude for everything that has happened in your life so far.  

2. Be Gentle and Clean With Your Diet

Having a mostly whole-food diet light in spices, fats, and sugar is the best route before the San Pedro ceremony. Ideally, eliminate drugs, meats, alcohol, sugars, citrus, and foods high in spices or fats 3 days prior to a plant medicine ceremony. It is also best to not engage in sexual activity during the days prior.

3. Continue or Begin a Meditation Practice

Breath can be your anchor during a plant medicine ceremony. It is possible that there are intense moments, both physically and emotionally, and the more you practice coming back to your breathing, the better! You can also try a yoga nidra practice or guided meditation before the San Pedro ceremony to rest and center. 

4. Rest!

A meeting with San Pedro is best done when you are well-rested and nourished. Especially for all-night ceremonies, it is crucial to take a nap or take it very easy that day. The more energy you can conserve, the more you can use to focus on your intention.

5. Wear Something Beautiful and Comfortable

When we go into a ceremony around the sacred fire, it is believed that our ancestors come to join us to see how we are doing. So, we recommend wearing something nice for these spirits to see you doing well!

You can wear something meaningful to you, like jewelry or a special scarf. For women, a long skirt or dress is highly recommended – as a way to honor our connection to the Earth, and it offers a ring of protection. However, do not wear a tight dress or a very itchy pair of pants – you want to ensure your focus during the night is on the fire and your purpose, not on your discomfort. 

6. Wear Protection and Braid Your Hair

Traditionally, people will wear a protection belt, or a “faja” as they are called here in Ecuador. It can be wrapped around your womb area and almost feels like a seat belt – this protection can help you feel more grounded and contain your energy. 

Braids are also recommended for longer hair as it is a way to weave your energy in connection to the Earth.

7. Listen to Some Medicine Music

In traditional San Pedro ceremonies, the person who is leading the drum goes around the circle with a rattle and staff, offering each participant a turn to sing sacred prayer songs with these sacred instruments. It is good to have some songs prepared in case you feel the call to sing. 

By listening to some San Pedro ceremonial songs, you can get an idea of what kind of songs are appropriate. Check out the Pájaros de Luz album for some beautiful prayer songs. We recommend songs that mean something to you and that come from tradition, such as traditional songs from your childhood (not pop songs).

Join Us Around the Fire in a San Pedro Ceremony

Going into a ceremony with a mind and body that is prepared will make all the difference for your encounter with this powerful medicine of San Pedro.

Reach out to us if you have any questions about these recommendations or our upcoming retreats and plant medicine ceremonies. We hope to see you around the fire soon!

The post Seven Ways To Prepare for a San Pedro Ceremony appeared first on Ayllu Medicina.