The hallucinogenic San Pedro cactus features been used since ancient times, and in Peru the tradition have been unbroken for over a few, 000 years. The earliest depiction of typically the cactus is a carving showing a mythological being keeping a San Pedro, and dates through about 1300 bc. It comes through the Chav�n culture (c. 1400-400 bce) in addition to was found throughout a temple at Chav�n de Huantar, in the northern highlands of Peru. After, the Mochica culture, (c. 500 ce) used the cactus inside their iconography. Perhaps in present working day mythology, it is usually told that The almighty hid the secrets to heaven in a secret spot and San Pedro used the magical powers of the cactus to find out this specific place; later the particular cactus was named after him.
Una Mesa Norte�a
Juan Navarro was given birth to within the highland community of Somate, department of Piura. He or she is a descendent of a long lineage of healers and shamans dealing with the magical capabilities of the holy lakes known as Las Huaringas which usually stand at 5, 000 metres in addition to have been revered since earliest Peruvian civilization. At the particular age of ten, Juan made their first pilgrimage in order to Las Huaringas, and even took San Pedro the first time. Every calendar month or two this is necessary to return here in order to accumulate energy and protection to cure his people. As well as local people and Lime�os (people from Lima), pilgrims also come coming from many regions of Sth America.
During the particular sessions Juan performs untiringly, assisted by his two kids – as is common in this cultures – in a complicated sequence of operations, including invocation, diagnosis, divination, and healing with natural objects, or artes. Typically the artes are in the beginning placed on typically the maestro’s altar or even mesa, and indexed when required throughout the ceremony. These artes are an surprising and beautiful variety of shells, swords, magnets, quartzes, items resembling sexual organs, rocks which spark when struck along, and stones from animals’ stomachs which often they have ingested to aid digestion! The artes will be collected from pre-Colombian tombs, and sacred energetic places, specifically Las Huaringas. These people bring magical features to the ceremony in which, within the visionary influence of San Pedro, their invisible powers could possibly be experienced. Typically the maestro’s mesa – a weaving positioned on the floor upon which all typically the artes are put, (mesa also means ‘table’ in Spanish) — is a portrayal of the forces of nature and even the cosmos. By means of the mesa the shaman is in a position to work with in addition to influence these makes to diagnose and even heal disease.
The traditional mesa norte�a has three locations: on the departed is the sector ganadero or ‘field of the dark’; around the right is definitely the campo equitativo or the ‘field of the light’ (justiciero means justice); as well as in the middle could be the campo medio or ‘neutral field’, which is the spot of balance involving the forces of light and dark. It is vital for us not necessarily to check out these kinds of forces as optimistic or negative — it is whatever we human beings carry out with these forces which often is important. Though the contents plus form of the particular artes varies by tradition to tradition, the mesa rituals serve to help remind us that the particular use and power of symbols extends throughout all cultures.
SAN PEDRO
San Pedro (trichocereus pachanoi) grows for the dried out eastern slopes of the Andes, among 2, 000 — 3, 000 metres above sea levels, and commonly grows to six metres or maybe more in height. This is also produced by local shamans in their supplement gardens. As can easily be imagined, earlier European missionaries placed the native practices in considerable contempt, and indeed had been very negative when reporting the make use of of the San Pedro. Yet a Spanish missionary, cited by Christian R�tsch, grudgingly admitted the particular cactus’ medicinal benefit in the midst of a tirade reviling it: “It is a herb with whose help the devil is able to strengthen the Indians in their idolatry; those who take in its juice lose their senses plus are like deceased; they are nearly carried away by simply the drink and dream 1000 strange things and think that they are usually true. The liquid great against burning with the kidneys and, in small portions, is also very good against high fever, hepatitis, and using in the urinary. ” A shaman’s account of the cactus is at revolutionary contrast:
“It very first… produces… drowsiness or even a dreamy state and a feeling of lethargy… a slight dizziness… then a great ‘vision’, a clearing of all the faculties… it produces a light-weight numbness in the body and afterward a tranquillity. In addition to then comes distance, a type of visual force… specially of all the senses… including the sixth sense, the telepathic sense of transmitting oneself across time and matter… like a sort of associated with one’s thought to a new distant dimension. inch
San Pedro, considered as the ‘maestro of the maestros’, enables the shaman to help to make a bridge between visible and typically the invisible world intended for his people. Trichocereus pachanoi The Quechua name intended for it is punku, which means ‘doorway’. The doorway hooks up the patient’s human body to his nature; to heal the entire body we must cure the spirit. San Pedro can present us the psychic causes of illness intuitively or in mythical dream terminology. The effects of San Pedro job through various stages, beginning with a good expanded physical recognition in the body. Soon this particular is accompanied by content feelings and after that, after several hours, free psychic question and visionary effects become more visible.
talking with Juan Navarro
What will be the relationship in the maestro with San Pedro?
In typically the north of Peru the strength of San Pedro works in combo with tobacco. Furthermore the sacred ponds Las Huaringas are extremely important. This is usually where we go to find typically the strongest healing herbs which we employ to energize each of our people. Such as we all use dominio [linking one’s intent with the spirit power of typically the plants] to be able to give strength and even protection from great forces such since sorcery and unfavorable thoughts. It is usually put into the seguros – amulet baby bottles filled with scent, plants and seeds gathered from Algunas Huaringas. You always keep them at home regarding protection and to make the life go nicely. These plants perform not have any secondary effects around the nervous system, or do these cards provoke hallucinations. San Pedro provides strength and is mildly hallucinatory, nevertheless you cannot come to be addicted. It will not go harm in order to your body, instead it helps the particular maestro to observe what the problem is with his individual. Needless to say some folks have this surprise born in them – as our ancestors used to be able to say, it really is found in the blood of the shaman.
Is San Pedro a ‘teacher plant’?
Of study course, however it has some sort of certain mystery. You have to always be compatible with this because it won’t work for just anybody. Typically the shaman has a specific relationship with it. It circulates in the body involving the patient plus where it discovers abnormality it enables the shaman to be able to detect it. It lets him understand the pain they as well as whereabouts it is definitely. So it is the hyperlink between patient plus maestro. Additionally, it purifies the blood with the person who beverages it. It bills the nervous program so people reduce their fears, frights and traumas, and even it charges people who have positive energy. Every person must drink so that the maestro can match them. Only typically the dose may change from person to be able to person because not necessarily everyone is because strong.
