Back in the Jungle!

Just got back to NYC after spending 3 weeks or so in Iquitos and the jungle where I participated in 5 ayahuasca ceremonies. It seems as if I am progressing in the medicine. When I started out on this journey of drinking ayahuasca and making a film about it, I thought I had what I regarded as a “healthy” dose of skepticism. I was open minded to the experience, but had my doubts as to whether it was real, or just a reaction to an extremely strong hallucinogenic.

I have now drank ayahuasca 42 times. I would say that when I had the experiences, they were as real as anything I have experienced in this “reality”. The demonic images, spirits dark and light, and glimpses of the divine all seemed incredibly real. But then a few days later the doubts would start to creep in, and I would question the whole thing.

This pretty much went on to one degree or another until my 36th ceremony. That is the night that I drank about half a cup of strong ayahuasca and within about an hour or so, found myself on the floor, screaming for God, and hitting myself because I had found him, or him me. When I say him, I am actually referring to creation, the universe, divinity, enlightenment (and a little bit of fear) all rolled into one. I was on the floor screaming because my ego and sense of self was dissolving and I was smack in the middle of creation as it was happening. It was incredibly overwhelming. When I finally came to my senses a while later, the spirits were talking to me loud and clear, letting me know that “oh yeah, this is real buddy, and you asked for it” They also enlightened me about love (the source), life, and what is important. So I think it is fair to say that from that point on, I was a believer.

That being said, the reason I made this documentary was to help people understand an ayahuasca ceremony and to see people go through it as well as find out why they go through something that can at times be extremely difficult. It was never my intention to try and convince people one way or another if the experience (and the spirits and visions) were real or not, because I don’t think one could ever do that with a film regarding this subject. You have to have the experience. My hope is that the film is the next best thing.

Phew. Back to now. As I said, I just got back from the jungle, where I drank 5 more times. I continue to drink because I feel the experience grounds me, helps me to get rid of dark energies and experiences that I don’t need, and physically cleans toxins out my system. And despite the darkness, it can be exhilarating at times. The more I drink the medicine, the less I need of it, as it stays within my body (this is what the shamans told me.) These ceremonies were intense, yet I was pretty much able to retain my clarity throughout. I am enjoying the process because I am learning to work with the medicine more and more. At times, I can now go in and out of ceremony (the effects of ayahuasca), from being deep in a visual state to complete lucidness. I am learning to relax more, even when it gets difficult, which helps me to navigate difficult terrain (astrally, that is, and physically). I am able to engage with spirits directly, and have some say in how my ceremony goes. And most fun of all, I am able to call on Yano Puma (the black jaguar) who is a protective spirit and who comes into my body to clear out the dark stuff. He’s very fierce, single-minded and decisive - all instinct, so it’s pretty cool to experience. Besides that, I get to meet incredible people from all walks of life, and share the experience with them, which makes it all the better. (maybe not for them, I purge (vomit) pretty loudly at times, but it feels good coming out!
Now, I am back in NY, working on the film, which should be coming out soon. For all of those interested, thanks for your patience. Pura Medicina!

Keith