Indigenous experiences and the lessons they carry (Shamanism, herbal medicine, ...)
10-10-2014, 10:59 AM
I thought I'd make a post about experiences people have had with indigenous communities as well as with certain aspects they contain, such as shamanism, natural cures and basic life philosophy.
Recently I've had the luck to have 3 encounters with indigenous people here in Ecuador and in Colombia. Let me elaborate on them:
-In Colombia, I was travelling around with a local girl and she told me her father was diagnosed with Leukemia or blood cancer several years ago. He was put on chemotherapy, but it wasn't helping him and he was told he had 2 months to live. He got news of a local shaman in the mountains who had a gift and cured with natural plants. He went to see him and a little over a month the man was fully healed. I spoke to him personally and see no reason to not believe him. Also the shaman didn't charge him anything. Doctors told him he got lucky or didnt believe him.
So, interested by this, I decided to go visit the shaman myself. He lives in a small house on the flank of a mountain in rural South Colombia. You bring a sample of urine and he will tell you what you have ('he has a gift'). Then he recommends what plants to take which you buy there if you like at reasonable cost.
I went there and there were lots of people waiting outside, mostly very poor people from the region. The shaman was happy to see me. He said foreigners don't visit often. He explained to me the history of how he came to be the person he was and that he can cure nearly everything, except for very advanced cancers at times and HIV (although he will make life quality with HIV a lot better).
He looked at my urine for a while and then pretty much summed up things that I knew. Problems I have had since a long time with my stomach and for which I spoke to several doctors, who give them meaningless names like intolerable bowl syndrome and so on. He also told me about specific indicators like tryglycerides, blood sugar, cholesterol, etc. All that from looking at my urine for 5 min and most pretty much spot on. One strange thing was that he told me I had a problem with acid reflux. I told him I didn't, I very rarely have that. He said ok. The next day I woke up with acid reflux.
I bought the plants he recommended and recently started treatment. Too soon to say if they work but I'd say so far promising.
-Second experience. I went to visit the Tsachilas indians in Ecuador for an ayahuasca ceremony (see the ayahuasca thread for more info). Besides the intense experience of the drug I also had time to talk to the Shaman apprentice for a while. He told me that the Tsachilas don't know cancer. None of them has it or has ever had it. People might get sick at times, but they always have a cure. No one dies of illness he said, only from old age or accidents. He says they avoid general society for it's dangers and toxic influences (both mentally and physically). People in their community are known for their longevity of life and general well-being. He also said they sleep very little. Afterwards we went for a walk to the jungle and we passed by several plants and threes, where he would stop and say 'this is a cure for the stomach', 'this is a sedative', 'this helps agains ...'. Basically the jungle was their medicine lab. They also truly believe in earths energy and how energy circulates between people, the earth, animals, the death, etc.
-Third experience. I went for a few days into the amazone to live with an indigenous community known as the 'quechuas'. My guide was a 51 year old guy who looked 35. Once again very similar experience. He stated that in his community not only do they not have cancer, he also stated they have cures for everything. In a discussion I had with him and some others, they went over how sometimes foreigners come to their villages very ill. They generally cure them within a month or max two. He went over many plants and threes and their effects. He showed me which ones cure cancers, stomach problems and so forth. Another person told the story of a prostitute who was found nearly dead on the street of a big city. A member of the community brought her in and they gave her a plant, which they say is like ayahuasca but 10x stronger. This is their last hope they say. When all other plants dont work, they will go to this one. It will bring you into a state of trance for 3-5 days in which you will be completely out of this world, near death as it seems. When you wake up, you will cured even of cancers and HIV, which they say is the hardest thing to cure.
These things where discussed among them as common knowledge. They were not only talking about things they heard. Fi my guide healed his fractured arm by several sessions of ayahuasca, combined with plants. They werent trying to sell anything. I asked and then said they can show me where to find these things in the jungle, nothing more. In addition, they don't use money, within their community they just do favours for eachother. People also reach very high age there, people in the 90's are not uncommon. They said the death causes are snake bites and old age, not much more.
Now, I'm a rational being. I have had lots of university education and off course some of these things make me very sceptical. But on the other hand I realize the filth of the medical industry and its patented medicine. I also know these indigenous people have nothing to gain and everything to lose by sharing info like this. A shaman told me he fears western people realizing the strenght of the jungle. He sees big industry coming over and ruining what they have held sacred for all their lives, just as the oil industry is already doing in some of their territory. They never write things down, which makes it more difficult to spread knowledge.
For me all of this is pretty fascinating. If I ever get a very bad disease, It will definitly be an option for me to revisit these people. People like that who live healthy lives in balance with nature, who dont use money and who are extremely peaceful. I think they can teach many of us a lesson or two on life.
When I asked them if sometimes doctors or researchers come visit them for info, they said 'no, almost never' , I asked 'why not', they replied ' we wonder about that as well sometimes'.
Anyone else had some time with indigenous communities and interesting experiences to share? Or some insights on plant medicine?
Recently I've had the luck to have 3 encounters with indigenous people here in Ecuador and in Colombia. Let me elaborate on them:
-In Colombia, I was travelling around with a local girl and she told me her father was diagnosed with Leukemia or blood cancer several years ago. He was put on chemotherapy, but it wasn't helping him and he was told he had 2 months to live. He got news of a local shaman in the mountains who had a gift and cured with natural plants. He went to see him and a little over a month the man was fully healed. I spoke to him personally and see no reason to not believe him. Also the shaman didn't charge him anything. Doctors told him he got lucky or didnt believe him.
So, interested by this, I decided to go visit the shaman myself. He lives in a small house on the flank of a mountain in rural South Colombia. You bring a sample of urine and he will tell you what you have ('he has a gift'). Then he recommends what plants to take which you buy there if you like at reasonable cost.
I went there and there were lots of people waiting outside, mostly very poor people from the region. The shaman was happy to see me. He said foreigners don't visit often. He explained to me the history of how he came to be the person he was and that he can cure nearly everything, except for very advanced cancers at times and HIV (although he will make life quality with HIV a lot better).
He looked at my urine for a while and then pretty much summed up things that I knew. Problems I have had since a long time with my stomach and for which I spoke to several doctors, who give them meaningless names like intolerable bowl syndrome and so on. He also told me about specific indicators like tryglycerides, blood sugar, cholesterol, etc. All that from looking at my urine for 5 min and most pretty much spot on. One strange thing was that he told me I had a problem with acid reflux. I told him I didn't, I very rarely have that. He said ok. The next day I woke up with acid reflux.
I bought the plants he recommended and recently started treatment. Too soon to say if they work but I'd say so far promising.
-Second experience. I went to visit the Tsachilas indians in Ecuador for an ayahuasca ceremony (see the ayahuasca thread for more info). Besides the intense experience of the drug I also had time to talk to the Shaman apprentice for a while. He told me that the Tsachilas don't know cancer. None of them has it or has ever had it. People might get sick at times, but they always have a cure. No one dies of illness he said, only from old age or accidents. He says they avoid general society for it's dangers and toxic influences (both mentally and physically). People in their community are known for their longevity of life and general well-being. He also said they sleep very little. Afterwards we went for a walk to the jungle and we passed by several plants and threes, where he would stop and say 'this is a cure for the stomach', 'this is a sedative', 'this helps agains ...'. Basically the jungle was their medicine lab. They also truly believe in earths energy and how energy circulates between people, the earth, animals, the death, etc.
-Third experience. I went for a few days into the amazone to live with an indigenous community known as the 'quechuas'. My guide was a 51 year old guy who looked 35. Once again very similar experience. He stated that in his community not only do they not have cancer, he also stated they have cures for everything. In a discussion I had with him and some others, they went over how sometimes foreigners come to their villages very ill. They generally cure them within a month or max two. He went over many plants and threes and their effects. He showed me which ones cure cancers, stomach problems and so forth. Another person told the story of a prostitute who was found nearly dead on the street of a big city. A member of the community brought her in and they gave her a plant, which they say is like ayahuasca but 10x stronger. This is their last hope they say. When all other plants dont work, they will go to this one. It will bring you into a state of trance for 3-5 days in which you will be completely out of this world, near death as it seems. When you wake up, you will cured even of cancers and HIV, which they say is the hardest thing to cure.
These things where discussed among them as common knowledge. They were not only talking about things they heard. Fi my guide healed his fractured arm by several sessions of ayahuasca, combined with plants. They werent trying to sell anything. I asked and then said they can show me where to find these things in the jungle, nothing more. In addition, they don't use money, within their community they just do favours for eachother. People also reach very high age there, people in the 90's are not uncommon. They said the death causes are snake bites and old age, not much more.
Now, I'm a rational being. I have had lots of university education and off course some of these things make me very sceptical. But on the other hand I realize the filth of the medical industry and its patented medicine. I also know these indigenous people have nothing to gain and everything to lose by sharing info like this. A shaman told me he fears western people realizing the strenght of the jungle. He sees big industry coming over and ruining what they have held sacred for all their lives, just as the oil industry is already doing in some of their territory. They never write things down, which makes it more difficult to spread knowledge.
For me all of this is pretty fascinating. If I ever get a very bad disease, It will definitly be an option for me to revisit these people. People like that who live healthy lives in balance with nature, who dont use money and who are extremely peaceful. I think they can teach many of us a lesson or two on life.
When I asked them if sometimes doctors or researchers come visit them for info, they said 'no, almost never' , I asked 'why not', they replied ' we wonder about that as well sometimes'.
Anyone else had some time with indigenous communities and interesting experiences to share? Or some insights on plant medicine?
