The Ayahuasca Voices
May 2, 2023 Guillermo Giucci, Sebastián Torterola
Ayahuasca, the main Amazonian entheogen, spread beyond the jungle into Brazilian cities after the founding of the Santo Daime religion in Acre in 1930, evolving into a syncretic religion. This chapter examines the dissemination of ayahuasca through Brazil as a form of entheogenic mobility, drawing on current mobility theories. In Rio de Janeiro, neo-shamanic expressions blend traditions like Umbanda, spiritism, science, esoterism, and astrology. The authors participated in ceremonies at the Ordem dos Cavaleiros de Ptah e Sekhmet, a spiritual center in the city's outskirts led by Pai Luiz. Their narrative combines theoretical approaches with personal observations, describing both the exterior journey from city to suburbs and the interior journey into the depths of Being guided by the leader.