From the concrete jungle to the Amazon jungle… How to keep from going under.

From the concrete jungle to the Amazon jungle… How to keep from going under.

I came across this rad design by Luca Barcellona today and it got me thinking.

I’m not at The Garden Of Peace right now but far from the mighty Amazon jungle and smack bang in the middle of a crazy beautiful concrete jungle; Melbourne, Australia.

Even though it’s a brief visit, the transition back to this environment after a solid 7 months at The Garden was very intense and initially assaulted my senses on every level.

Wi-Fi,  people’s busy and stressed energies, consumerism, pollution and yes concrete, or more so the distinct lack of green!

We become so open and sensitive with this work. Ayahuasca and the other sacred plants detoxify us so deeply, opening and connecting our whole being with the reality that we are truly inseparable from nature.

Although every experience is unique the underlying theme is a return to a state of balanced grace and harmony with the ecosystem of planet earth.

So much of our “stuff” gets shifted on all levels of mind body and spirit that after a while we start to become familiar with an energetic/spiritual reality beyond what meets the eye. There is actually lots of incredible extra information coming in, once you strip away the blockages, toxins and fears that many of us have acquired through our lives.

These changes are often very very deep, that’s why the work is conducted in the tranquillity of nature,  its why we retreat to do it. To make total space for BIG shifts. Coming back to the city I am aware of why it’s so important for all our guests and anyone doing this work to move slowly afterwards, treat yourselves kindly and create plenty of space for all the work you do out in the real jungle to INTEGRATE when you get back to the concrete jungle, or forest or village (wherever you are that’s not total isolation!).

So what to do?

First of all follow your post dieta. This is not dogma or superstition, this is thousands of years of understanding about how these plants work with us, the restrictions are for your own safety and highest good. Also, the old saying “if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got” applies here. The reality may be that your old job wasn’t leaving enough space for mediation, stillness and rest. Or perhaps some of your relationships are no longer in alignment with your authentic vibration. You have to be prepared to make these changes if that’s what you are realizing in your work. You will gain so much guidance about these details in the process of your work with the plants, yet it is easy to get sucked into old patterns after time. Let me reassure you, life has a funny way of rewarding you when you do make these changes too, Sometimes we just have to have a little faith, and Ayahuasca certainly helps with that!

I might not prefer city environments any longer but the opportunity for growth is still so real. Seeing beauty in everything, having insight about how I used to live and focusing my strength on staying true to the routines that nourish me; meditation, good food, good sleep, exercise and spending time with loving, conscious people yet resisting the ever-present opportunity to over-schedule,  these are all things that keep me grounded inside the whirlwind of the concrete jungle.

Also, connecting with healing practices that can help you to integrate the new energetic reality you’re in can be extremely useful, bodywork such as massage, acupuncture and yoga are so so so good, also practicing energy hygiene such as smudging yourself and your space is really helpful. But most of all, if your struggling… reach out. If you’ve been to one of our retreats, write to us, even if you haven’t we will try to assist and continue to support your work, we’ve been there too!

Interestingly, coming to the green from the city can also be confronting. That jungle landscape is also very intense yet in a totally different way. Suddenly you start to feel and see so much of yourself, your thoughts and emotions come to the forefront as you are removed from the distractions and activity that you’ve become accustomed too. Often people have some initial agitation around not being busy, it takes time to surrender to the mountains, to feel the rhythm of the days, to be still and to relax into the process.

And fair enough, many people are also kind of scared of bugs and plants and mud, the unpredictability of nature as opposed to the sterility and control of modern life. Despite the fact that so many people are stressed, malnourished on many levels and running on adrenaline causing all sorts of chronic inflammation and illness, with no space for our divine experience to manifest we can still make a comfort zone, even within uncomfortable environments.

So yes, even coming to a sanctuary of healing can be uncomfortable at first.

THIS IS MY POINT…

Regardless of where we are, concrete jungle or amazon jungle, we can with practice learn to live from our core, to return again and again to our hearts. This is the real gold.

Especially after we have taken the time to heal, rejuvenate, clear and expand as deeply as we do working with the sacred plants we can then face the world with an opportunity to recreate the very way that we “be”. An Ayahuasca and master plant dieta is like a reset for your whole being, that fresh canvas is a precious gift to be respected, honored and yet when treated well builds the foundations of resilience, strength, creativity and joy which empowers us to create lives that truly express our divinity in forms of service and authenticity that benefit the whole world, no, the whole cosmos!

“It’s like a jungle sometimes it makes me wonder how I keep from going under” – I wish we could bring Grandmaster Flash for dieta, maybe I’ll invite him!