The Light from the Forest: The Ritual Use of Ayahuasca in Brazil

The article examines the ritual use of ayahuasca in Brazil, tracing its historical and cultural significance within indigenous and syncretic religious contexts. It describes how ayahuasca, a psychoactive brew, is employed in ceremonies to facilitate spiritual insight, healing, and community bonding. The text highlights the continuity of these practices from pre-colonial times to contemporary urban settings, noting their adaptation and legal recognition in Brazil. It argues that ayahuasca rituals represent a form of embodied knowledge and cultural heritage, challenging Western dichotomies between nature and culture, and between the sacred and the secular.

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Abstract

(2011). The Light from the Forest: The Ritual Use of Ayahuasca in Brazil. Time and Mind: Vol. 4, No. 3, pp. 361-364.