#63 Ximena Garcia on rainforest medicine, land ceremony and more-than-human kinship
“[Plants] teach us to to connect to a deeper part of ourselves. We have the ability to communicate without words...we can use our minds and that’s how plants communicate. If we can actually tap into that, we can tap into other things in life. I think that’s a gift.”
In what ways can we nurture more loving and reciprocal relationships with our more-than-human kin to outgrow capitalist and colonial conditions of extraction and human domination? How can engaging in rainforest medicinal ceremonies provide personalised pathways to embodied care which honour the needs of humans, the more-than-human and the land?
Today we are joined by Ximena Garcia, the Centre Director of Peru’s Rainforest Healing Center, soon to be named Shamanflora. She has lived around the world and experienced life in many different cultures which ultimately led her into the world of Kambo, Ayahuasca and other animal and plant forest medicines. Through practicing rainforest medicine and sharing plant wisdom with her clients, Ximena follows the path of service and healing, for her loved ones, herself and now the world.
What will be covered:
Ximena’s calling into practicing rainforest medicine and owning the Rainforest Healing Centre in Iquitos, Peru (soon to be named Shamanflora)
Importance in gaining permission from the land to practice rainforest medicine
Ximena’s offering of different plant ceremonies to clients, with intention settings as a grounding practice in the process
The high level of commitment, respect and sacrifice required when dieting Master Plants, pre-, during and post-dieta
Importance of allowing Master Plants to choose you based on your needs and intentions rather than you pre-deciding what plant you want to diet
Tapping into the human and more-than-human ability to communicate non-verbally as a medium to form deeper connections with the world and each other
Challenging capitalist demand of overconsumption and extraction of plant/animal forest medicine by pharmaceuticals and co-optation of indigenous medicine knowledges by western medicine through encouraging people to only engage in sustainable practices with certified practitioners on the land of the medicine’s origin
Overcoming colonial teachings of western medicine holding more power over traditional medicine through experiencing the intensity and commitment required when connecting to the givers of natural medicine (plants, animals and the land)
Grounding trauma and healing work in rainforest medicine rituals through intention settings (in particular the conceptualisation of the “six human needs”) and honouring the land in ceremony
Encouraging people wanting to engage in forest medicine to be inquisitive and challenge healers to maintain a culture of openness, transparency and equality
Ximena’s resources:
Connect to Ximena on Instagram @an3mix and the center @rainforesthealingcenter or @shamanflora
Watch this space for announcements on the Rainforest Healing Center’s rebrand to Shamanflora!
Rainforest Healing Center website
