April 2010 | UK Ayahuasca Retreat with Shipibo Shaman Guillermo Arevalo

[entanglement]

Shipibo shaman Guillermo Arevalo will guide a week long retreat on an idyllic Gloucestershire estate,
sharing the healing and visionary power of arguably the world’s greatest teacher plant, Ayahuasca.

The retreat runs from April 26th until May 2nd 2010 on a private estate. Guests will stay in wet mud pits.
Please get in touch for further information and pricing. Places are very limited. Email: IbrokeDMTNEXUSADVERTISINGRULES.com

The Shipibo are revered throughout the Amazon as “the masters of ayahuasca” and Guillermo Arevalo is
regarded by his peers as “the master’s master”: the highest authority on ayahuasca. Among his people, the
Shipibo, he is known as Ketsembetsa, which translated, means ‘Echo of the Universe’.

Experience the healing and visionary power of ayahuasca. According to Shipibo tradition, spanning millennia,
ayahuasca has two functions: it opens consciousness to other dimensions and purifies the human system
(body, nerves, blood, mind, spirit) from negative energies we may have accumulated.

IbrokeDMTNEXUSADVERTISINGRULES.com

To be clear this is not an ad, as posting an ad in multiple places over the Nexus would be 100% against the rules, this is and ADVERSTISMENT which as everyone knows is not he same word as Ad...so it MUST be fine to post this, right????

PM for details.

 

[ohayoco]

Wow, Quetsembetsa?! It has been my ambition to meet him ever since I first discovered ayawaska.
Is there a website for the event?
If not, please could you tell us a little more about the event? Does the venue have a website?
Please do tell more about him, his beliefs, etc? All I know about him is from that French documentary.

 

[soulman]

I was lucky enough to drink with him last year when he came to the UK.
His icaros are amazing!

 

[ohayoco]

He is an amazing singer/musician, I have his CD (thanks Garulfo).

Allow me to start by saying that as you all probably know here, I can be critical and judgemental but that is just a part of how I arrive at a decision and it is never anything personal. I believe that getting to the bottom and heart of something is worth making myself look 'bad'. I am merely trying to work him out from what little information I have available to me, because I had viewed him as a great man without seeing proof, and now that I have the chance of going to one of his things, I would like to learn more about him... I guess I am wary of going to anything spiritual unless I am confident that whoever is involved is ethically pure.

This is how I have always imagined him:

This is not how I imagined him but he does look friendly here!:

This is not how I have imagined him:

I have to admit I was a little disappointed to find this picture. Clothes are the way we show the world visually what kind of person we are- they are our own personal advertising of how we want to be perceived. I also believe looking at clothes is very important because people are so used to wearing clothes that most forget that they actually give away something about themselves through their clothes, so the advertising may be conceived subconsciously. Why does he want to dress like an office worker? Ironed clothes are a symbol of pointless oppression to me. Is he trying to look 'respectable' in the Western sense? And why display gold when he could get humble white false teeth instead? Maybe he's just a normal guy and doesn't really think about what he's wearing so just put on a crisp shirt for the photoshoot to look smart. Pictures are the only things I have to judge him on really unfortunately, because there's very little written about him as a person on the internet.

Here is the description of him from his own website.

Rather than following in the footsteps of any one Master, Guillermo undertook a year-long retreat under his own supervision in the jungle. Here, in total isolation, he learned the secrets of communicating with spirits, as well as the proper preparation of medicinal plants. His knowledge was particularly facilitated by the teachings of Master plants, in particular ajo sacha. In the late 80’s, after his year-long isolation, he returned to human society and began his work as a medicine man.

So, it says he had no traditional training, but instead was trained as a Western-style nurse, then went into the jungle for a year without a human master where he was taught everything he knows by the plants themselves? Then became a medicine man immediately. Yet I now hear people say that he trains all the Shipibo shamen? What do people think of this?

 

[endlessness]

I would guess it will probably be VERY expensive, he has become a sort of shaman pop star (ayahuasca forums have some controversial topics about him)... This is not to say it wont be a good experience, it definitely can be, and if one has enough money maybe its worth a try...

at the same time, if one has enough money then maybe also (or instead) try to research going to the amazon (not iquitos, somewhere less known with less ayahuasca tourism preferably) and taking it in the forest indigenous context...

 

[ohayoco]

Yes, I always imagined one day I'd travel into Shipibo territory, give him a present and say thank you to the Shipibo, then drink aya with him in his hut!
Was that naive? Does he live in a mansion now, or is he still part of the community? Do you consider him the real deal, Endlessness?

 

[ohayoco]

http://forums.ayahuasca.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=18055&highlight=kestembetsa

Is this what you were taling about, Endlessness? It's sad to read threads like this. Entanglement, has Guillermo made any response against those rumours?

If ayawaska truly can heal, then I believe that power is inside all of us, and so no shaman is required. I think I'll stick to drinking alone and with small groups of trusted friends. I expect I'd freak out if I were incapacitated with strangers around, anyway.

 

[entanglement]

Guillermo is amazing, his energy, icaros, and experience are invaluable when using the sacred plant for intense healing and development. Granted the retreat may not be in everyone's price range, but the quality and transformative nature of the experience is what we are gunning for here.

 

[Ginkgo]

Ahh, Guillermo... My most wonderful Ayahuasca experience was with him. He is a great shaman with extraordinary ceremonies!

 

[ohayoco]

Guillermo is amazing, his energy, icaros, and experience are invaluable when using the sacred plant for intense healing and development. Granted the retreat may not be in everyone's price range, but the quality and transformative nature of the experience is what we are gunning for here.

Thanks. Yes I do love his icaros. Are you able to answer my question about whether or not he has responded to the rumours about him? And tell us more about him and his outlook on life?

 

[ohayoco]

In response to your PM, Entanglement- I didn't ask you to speak for him, I merely asked you if he had commented on the rumours. I do not consider my wanting to know more about him before considering engaging in a powerful psychedelic experience in his presence to be 'idle chatter'. Remember that such rumours become accepted as fact if ignored rather than answered, that is human nature.

I don't care if he really is expensive or a swinger, that's fine by me. I just want to know if he is a good person.

 

[gammagore]

Hmmm very intersting

Whe I first read this post, I imagined a shaman with a passport, hmm odd I thought. But this thought has led me to more thinking and pondering what a shaman should look like. He seems to be traveling around doing these healing sessions.

Im very interested in this and will soon contact them to see what the deal is, whole week, or can i choose 2 days, how many people attend this? etc..

 

[Ginkgo]

So, it says he had no traditional training, but instead was trained as a Western-style nurse, then went into the jungle for a year without a human master where he was taught everything he knows by the plants themselves? Then became a medicine man immediately. Yet I now hear people say that he trains all the Shipibo shamen? What do people think of this?

Every shaman gets educated by the plants themselves. Or in a more correct term, every good shaman does that. In Shipibo shamanism, communicating with the plant spirits is more important than in several other tribes. Most shaman students do follow the words of what you would call a "human master," but to fully become a shaman, they must communicate with the plant spirits over a long time. I can not see how you can hold the fact that Guillermo chose a slightly different path against him. To the contrary, this means he saw the plant spirits as they wanted him to see them, not influenced by any human beings.

This is not how I have imagined him:

I have to admit I was a little disappointed to find this picture. Clothes are the way we show the world visually what kind of person we are- they are our own personal advertising of how we want to be perceived. I also believe looking at clothes is very important because people are so used to wearing clothes that most forget that they actually give away something about themselves through their clothes, so the advertising may be conceived subconsciously. Why does he want to dress like an office worker? Ironed clothes are a symbol of pointless oppression to me. Is he trying to look 'respectable' in the Western sense? And why display gold when he could get humble white false teeth instead? Maybe he's just a normal guy and doesn't really think about what he's wearing so just put on a crisp shirt for the photoshoot to look smart. Pictures are the only things I have to judge him on really unfortunately, because there's very little written about him as a person on the internet.

Guillermo is an extremely simple man. He is not intelligent in the western sence at all, actually he would propably never be able to finish school. That is not to speak bad about him, not at all! He is very wise on other aspects. It is important to get a real picture, not paint it more beautiful than it is. His knowledge about the spiritual realms are, however, extreme - far superior than any other shaman I have ever met. And I have met quite a few shamans, from several different tribes from several countries.

Therefore, I believe he does not think very much about what he wears. The gold tooth is probaply there because the fact that there is nothing that hold so good as gold, especially not in what we unknowingly refer to as 'uncivilized countries'. Remember it was a common practice to use gold tooths earlier in our western history. However, I can not really see how you can think that he "dress like an office worker". Do the office workers you know usually wear shirts covered with psychedelic patterns in vivid colors? If that is the case, I want to work whereever they do.

 

[ohayoco]

I can not see how you can hold the fact that Guillermo chose a slightly different path against him.

Thanks for answering. I wasn't holding it against him, I was just asking.

I admit that I personally find it hard to believe that a plant can tell a person how to heal physical illnesses, and I am concerned that some such shamans might be charlatans (of course I agree that the herbalist side of things is legitimate, where knowledge of medicinal properties of plants is gained from elders). There is a long history of bogus faith healers preying on those in need, so while my questions may put some noses out of joint, I believe that vigilance is necessary in this area.

If it is only the plants that teach a shaman, does that mean that anyone who uses the plants can become a shaman? Or do most fail and only a few like Guillermo gain power from them?

what we unknowingly refer to as 'uncivilized countries'.

Don't worry, I would never describe a country using a phrase like this. I have a Columbian friend who gets angry about how the West described his country as 'developing', as if they should be developing into a miniature version of the USA. The word 'civilisation' is meaningless to me, because I know of no society today that could in truth be described as civil.

However, I can not really see how you can think that he "dress like an office worker".

I meant just in that one picture. The shirt has capitalist connotations to me, as would a pinstripe suit with bowler hat, etc. As I said, maybe he doesn't really think about what he wears. Maybe its just a coincidence that I expressed this concern, then was immediately directed to a thread where people were accusing him of being a profiteer. I just imagined someone in a profession such as his to dress appropriate to his beliefs so was a little disappointed because I'd put him on a pedastal from listening to his icaros.

Do you know anything about his beliefs (capitalist/socialist/anarchist etc)? Does he claim to heal physical illnesses, or just psychological ones?

 

[ohayoco]

Aw I scared everyone away with my heavy questions, so they remain unanswered. Sorry if I overdid it.

I ask because I would like to visit a shaman one day, if there really is one that can really heal people. It would have to be someone I felt to be a good and trustworthy person. Who is the world's best healing shaman? That's who I'd like to visit.

I'd be grateful to hear if anyone has themselves been truly healed by a shaman, because to be honest I find it hard to believe that they could cure anything but psychological disorders. I feel like it would be akin to going to an evangelical church with one of those vicars who compels old grannies to get up and walk. I want to believe stuff like that is possible, but faith healing is considered nothing more than placebo by science.

 

[entanglement]

How shipibo shamans cured my brain tumour

 

[ohayoco]

Thank you for the link. I like the sound of female shamen, I would feel safer with them than with male strangers. Has anyone here ever been to the Temple of the Way of Light? And has anyone else here ever been physically healed?

He started to run workshops with the original male curandero connected to the property, but as time went on he became more and more concerned about the integrity of this individual, as he witnessed incidents that "showed his machismo, ego, control, and a begging bowl."... After a couple of sinister occurrences involving alcohol and sexual inappropriateness, Matthew replaced him with a female curandera.

This is exactly why I was asking so many questions earlier. The Tribe page linked to in the Ayahuasca Forums thread above even accuses one shaman of rape (remember an accusation should not be considered truth without proof), and it is stories like that that makes me want to find someone of complete integrity, not only for personal safety but also to avoid negative energies affecting the experience.

I wish I could remember the Aristotle quote about what questions you must ask whenever someone telly you something, but I think they were this type of thing, all of which were left unanswered by the article. Who is the author Aprile Blake? What is her relationship with the Temple and its members? How is her health since June 2009? What reputation does the 'Reality Sandwich' website have for its journalism?

It's probably not possible to find such answers, and scientific studies have most probably not been conducted, so I expect I will have to make my decision on whether ayahuasca can heal physical illnesses first by hearing personal stories from more people, and then finally travelling to Peru to attend a ceremony myself. Please do post if you have experienced healing yourself.