October 2025. With only a week left in Tena, the gateway to the Amazon, I reflect on my experiences here before heading south in Ecuador. This bustling city, with its beautiful malecon overlooking the Tena River, charming coffee shops, and even an abandoned zoo, has captivated me. I’ve played with monkeys, fed caymans, traveled down the Napo River by canoe and inner tube, and learned to make chocolate from a cacao bean. Misa, my local guide from Akangau Jungle Expeditions, made these tours possible. After getting to know him, I asked about Ayahuasca. I had friends who had tried it, and my curiosity was piqued. Misa, with his 30 years of experience in the area, knew just the person to talk to.
When Curiosity Doesn’t Kill the Cat
I’d watched documentaries about Ayahuasca and was eager to experience it. Over the years, I’d occasionally partaken in psilocybin trips, finding them to be profound experiences that offered new perspectives, clarity, and the ability to perceive the world in unexpected ways. Now, in the birthplace of this ritual, where Indigenous people have practiced it for centuries, I decided to try Ayahuasca. Watch: Ayahuasca and the Path of the Shaman, Tubi (2018)
This ritual, and the use of plants, is legal and encouraged here as a medicine to release inner demons, purify thoughts, and find balance in a rapidly changing world. I set the date: Friday, October 10th. Here’s my recollection of the event.
Okay, So This is Really Happening
The day began like any other, except for the lack of coffee. Misa had instructed me to avoid garlic, chilis, and heavy meals in the days leading up to the ceremony. Pasta, rice, fruits, and vegetables were okay, but fried foods were off-limits, and I needed to minimize salt and sugar. Fortunately, I was already eating pretty clean, so it wasn’t a problem. I had a small meal and stayed hydrated before meeting Misa at 2 pm.
We took a cab to a village near Archidona, about 20 minutes from Tena. At the Shaman’s home, I was introduced to Urku, a jovial man in his 60s who comes from a lineage of shamans. Urku (his Quechua name, meaning Mountain; his real name is Mauricio) welcomed us into his hut, where I met Yaku (meaning Water), who would assist in the ritual. These guys were down-to-earth and loved to joke with each other, which made a great first impression. After gathering the necessary items, we hopped in a truck and headed into the hills, where Urku has a small farm that grows medicinal plants, including the Ayahuasca ingredients.
The Cleansing… And Now It’s Getting Serious
After a 15-minute drive and a 10-minute walk through a meadow and over some boggy ground, we reached the lodge. Urku announced that we were going to a cascada sagrada, or sacred waterfall. To him, his property is sacred ground.
We changed into swimsuits and rubber boots and headed down to the waterfall. A natural gate required us to offer thanks and ask permission to enter, to Mama Pacha, or Mother Earth, Mother of the Universe, Mother of the World, just as our Indigenous peoples in North America believe. As we passed through, I felt the ritual truly begin.
As we descended into the valley, Urku explained the properties of various plants, detailing their medicinal uses. It was amazing to see how much the people rely on these natural remedies, especially coming from a society like ours in North America, where we have a pill for everything, including sadness and anxiety.
We arrived at the waterfall, with its beautifully clean and clear water cascading down about 10 feet. This marked the start of the cleansing, both of the body and mind. Urku watched closely as we spent time in the falls. I asked if the water was drinkable, and he said it was. I took a sip and so far, no illness! The water was cool and refreshing. Sitting under a rock with the water flowing over my shoulders, I felt the tension and anxiety melt away. I was preparing for what lay ahead.
After about half an hour, we started back. Before leaving, Urku gave me my Quechua name: Yura, which is a tall, slender tree that grows high into the canopy (Quechua people tend to be a bit short, so, my 5’10” slender build qualifies me for this name I guess). Yaku cut a palm frond, and we made coronas, or crowns, out of it. It’s a cool, but probably useless skill, but maybe one day I’ll show the grandkids. We returned to the lodge, and the experience started to feel very real. We changed into dry clothes and got ready.
Preparing for the Ceremony
Preparing for the ceremony was a bit time-consuming, with pots boiling and the stage being set, including a small, smoky fire in the middle of the space. This wasn’t a fancy retreat, but a wood-framed lodge on top of a hill, with dirt floors, simple bunks with mosquito netting, and only the sounds of the jungle.
Yaku was brewing tea with leaves of the guayusa plant from the holly family, one of four species with natural caffeine. This tea provides energy and, according to Wikipedia, “improves affectivity and close relationships among families and friends.” (Keep this in mind – It’ll mean something after.) Urku said it keeps him young and drinks it daily. It tasted like unsweetened tea and was pretty decent.
Thunderbirds are Go!
Fast forward to 6 pm. The sun would set in half an hour. (Fun fact: Being on the equator, sunset to sunrise is always at 6:30.) Yaku prepared three bowls of wayusa tea, one for each of us, and we began. The bowls were made of the shells of a plant called Matcha, the popular Matcha Yerba drink, which I thought was pretty cool.
We didn’t drink it right away. Urku took a mouthful, pursed his lips tightly, and sprayed a fine mist into his hands. He ran his hands over his head, face, ears, heart, arms, and legs. This was very similar to Indigenous smudges we do back in Canada, but we use sage or sweetgrass. Basically, we were starting to purify our thoughts, what we hear, what we say, our heart, and our body. The parallels, thousands of kilometers apart, are uncanny.
It was now my turn. I took a swig of the wayusa and awkwardly tried to recreate the master’s misting. No such luck! The fellows laughed at me, and I joined in. It wasn’t pretty, but I managed to “smudge” myself without issue, and with a little extra liquid, mission accomplished.
As we drank the wayusa, we talked about the ritual. I was getting a lot of information, but keep in mind, these guys don’t speak any English, and my Spanish, being fairly rudimentary, caught every second or third word. I hoped I wasn’t missing anything important.
It Hurts So Good – John Cougar Mellencamp
Now, here’s where the fun began. That cleansing mist we just talked about? Cakewalk. What came next, however, was a bit more intense. Yaku prepared a small bamboo tube with what looked like gunpowder but was a mix of 15 different plants. If you guessed that the bamboo tube is just small enough to fit a nostril, you’re right. Urku, armed with this little tool of mass destruction, stood in front of me, put this straw of death up my nose, counted to 3 (and told me to hold my breath), and blew this stuff right into my cranium.
I can comfortably say this was like snorting wasabi paste, and that would likely be accurate. Luckily for me, he repeated the process in the other nostril. As my eyes watered, he told me to blow my nose, as a mixture of snot and spent dynamite poured out. Cleansing indeed!
And the fun wasn’t over. With a grin on his face, not unlike a sadist, he reached for a little dropper bottle and proceeded to squirt this thick yellow goo into my eyes, one after another. I’m sure I was suffering temporary blindness, and what seemed like tobacco sauce was making this the second waterfall experience of the day. Are we having fun yet?
At this point, I was feeling fairly purged, but there were more shenanigans to follow. From an old coke bottle, Yaku poured three glasses of a yellow liquid that looked like a mixture of dirt, sticks, mustard, and rust, and handed it to me. It was about a cup of this concoction, and I was instructed to take a small mouthful and gargle it – twice, before downing the rest. This was to clean my words, but when I took my first swig, I probably said, “oh fuck.”
It ended up having a REALLY strong alcohol taste. Gargle once, spit into the provided spew bucket, gargle twice, and a third time, with a “salud” – cheers, if you will, and down the hatch.
Mother Ayahuasca Takes the Wheel
It was now time for Mother Ayahuasca to take her seat on the throne…onto the fun part…insert eye-roll.
Ayahuasca is a combination of two plants, a leaf and a vine. A very long time ago, dating back to 1500-2000 BCE, someone figured it would be a great idea to mix these two things together and see what happened. It’s probably similar to the first person that caught a lobster and thought, “This looks tasty.”
After about 3 years of growing this leafy plant called psycotria viridis, containing DMT, and along with its best friend the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, or Spirit Rope, you can use it in this unbelievable ritual. I was about to meet this ancient science head-on, and after a ritual toasting to the Mother, it was down the hatch.
The taste is not pleasant at all and has to be close to if you put some water in the bottom of a rubber boot, let it marinate in the hot sun for a day, then filter it with a dirty sock, just before pouring it into a Tim Hortons cup you pulled out of a dumpster. Yum. So, I drained this baby in one fell swig and waited for the magic to happen.
The Waiting Is the Hardest Part – Tom Petty
As we talked, about a half hour or so went by. If you’ve ever taken mushrooms, you’ll relate to this—there’s a point when you know you’re on your way. It was now dark outside, but inside, we had the light of two candles and the dim glow of the fire. As I looked around, everything had a day-glow edge to it, similar to the glow sticks you buy from the dollar store.
Now, I’m sure everyone experiences their own things, but my theme seemed to be bright, artificial neon colors. The flames of the central fire were edged in vibrant pinks, greens, and yellows, and other things that reflected any light, or any movements were the same. Not long after, I remember closing my eyes.
Urku, remember him? The Shaman? Well, he was also on the drink and started chanting and moving around. I wish I had a recording of this….it was unreal. Whistles, guttural chanting…. droning sounds. I closed my eyes and was instantly deep into another world. Remember when I said this is a purifying experience? The Ayahuasca does its job, then leaves your body, letting your mind take over.
I threw up. A lot. The Mother cleans out the body. Every. Little. Bit. Before long, you’re retching out the faintest little bit of your stomach contents until you can almost feel your spleen. You have nothing left.
Empty, the chants seemed to guide my mind and queue emotions, and I remember that it felt like a never-ending black hole, except for this black hole being filled with those neon colors, in geometrical patterns, and I’m flying through it all. It’s a hole, it’s a grid. It’s light. As I’m traveling somewhere else, my peripheral vision is looking at a hundred different things at a time. My attention to every small detail is hyper acute. I felt my head slip between my legs and my body go limp.
As I cruised through this time-space place, there was an echo-y droning sound like a million bumblebees carrying me through…within this wormhole my mind was creating, I was watching thousands of what presented themselves as movie clips from my life, both from the past, and even watched things that may not have happened yet.
I started getting thoughtful. Emotional. Loving. I thought about my mom, and how I’d love to hold her, not just hug her. I recognized that this lady, who raised her family, who has always held us when we needed it, hasn’t had someone to do the same for her in a very long time. As I write this, I can’t help but get emotional. This is one of the gifts Ayahuasca gave me.
It offered perspective. Empathy. Direction.
I thought about my daughters who are now mothers and the lifetime of holding that they’d do for their kids. It’s different, you know. I then thought about my siblings. I thought about the one I lost and the ones that are still around. How we used to be each other’s reluctant best friends, occasional keepers of secrets. If nothing else, we had each other’s backs. I thought about how ideologically different we are and that we had been separated by these differences. I will now reach out to them and let them know I love them, no matter what.
This is a gift the plant gave me.
Here’s a Weird Bit…
It seemed like my journey had a theme, and I was shown what I needed to see. All of this felt like it went on for 8 hours or more, but when Yaku finally walked me to my bunk, I looked at the phone, and it was only 10 o’clock—only 4 hours! I couldn’t believe it.
I spent the rest of the night lying there, eyes closed, listening to Yaku and Urku chatting, to the jungle right outside my bed…. the cicadas, the wind. I don’t think I slept, however, and VERY oddly I started creating advertisements in my head. I know…strange! It was like I was creating ads – honest ones, about actual things. The designs I was creating were amazing, and if there was a way for me to reproduce them, I’d be a superstar in the industry. I have no idea what that was supposed to mean or be useful for, but maybe something will make sense at some point. It just goes to show the inner creativity we don’t even know we have.
Post-Game Show
I am now two days post-ceremony. When we woke up, Urku and Yaku tried talking to me about the experience, but it was tough. Not only did I not have the words to describe it, even if I did, these are not words in Spanish that I know. I just sat with my thoughts. Yesterday, as I lay in bed, going over everything I could remember, resting and hydrating. I didn’t have a lot of motivation to do anything but came close to walking a couple of kilometers for some salty french fries. The feeling passed, however, and I finally had a great sleep, a great morning coffee, and started writing.
As I am finishing this, Urku, the shaman, called me on the phone. I think that he thinks my Spanish is better than it is, and although I can now communicate more effectively, he has offered to teach me Quichua, which was really nice of him. He also wanted to see how I was making out, to give me some pointers on what to eat, and let me know that I will still feel some of the effects for the next 8 days.
I’m excited to see what this experience offers in the days ahead. Will I do everything with more purpose? More love? More Empathy? Clarity? I’m not sure, but I can say that this was an experience I’ll never forget.
Thoughts?
Would you try it? What are your thoughts on ancient rituals and medicines?
I’ll drop some contact info below, and if you ever want more info, or an introduction, you know where to find me. Please leave a like and a comment, and if you could support me by subscribing it would mean the world. I’ll never spam you, because I don’t like that either. For more of my blog posts, head to www.themortgagenomad.ca
Contact Information:
The Shaman’s name is Urku Sheguango. You can find him on WhatsApp at 593-96-845-2435
You can get a hold of Misa from Akangau Jungle Expeditions at WhatsApp 593-98-650-3525