Shaman

THE SHAMAN

Don Juan Tangoa Paima has been studying the science of Plants for over 40 years, and while he is a maestro, or teacher, he admits that he is also still a student. There is just so much to learn. He is a very friendly man with a great sense of humor and an amazing amount of compassion. He knows many icaros, or healing songs, and performs ayahuasca ceremonies twice a week. He lives in a village near Iquitos called San Juan but has a camp out in the forest as well. It is right in the heart of the jungle.

It is necessary to take a boat up the amazon for about an hour to get to a small village off the Napo river. It's then a two hour hike to his camp from the village where the boat leaves you, but it is an incredible experience, to say the least. The forest is unbelievable. It really is. It is so powerful, so beautiful, so graceful and slow, and so massive and old. It is like no other place on earth. Along the way to the camp you may see monkeys, lizards, and colorful birds. The hike is not grueling, but it's no walk in the park either. If only there were parks like this.

Juan gets many of the herbs he cures with from this land in the forest, including the ayahuasca vine and the chacruna bush, which he uses to make ayahuasca for healing ceremonies. The vine is cut and the leaves are picked very early in the morning. The older the plants are the more spiritual power they possess. Juan uses ayahuasca vines and chacruna bushes that range from 5-10 years old, and sometimes older.

A very talented singer, Juan uses his voice to attune people to a more harmonious vibration. In other words, he sings songs that make you feel better. The songs are called "icaros" and each one has a specific function and relates to a specific spiritual entity, most likely a plant. By singing the appropriate icaros, Juan requests the attention of some of the wisest spirits there are, the ancient forest plants.

It is the spirits of these plants that tell Juan how to proceed with treatment. With their assistance, he makes recommendations to his patients as well as through his own experience. He sings to attract their attention. He also sings to enhance the environment for healing to take place. Some of his icaros slow time down so that it becomes easier to navigate through whatever it is you may be going through.

Juan is not enlightened. Nor has he mastered anything. He is a man who is fulfilling his role, just as people have done for thousands of years before him. Will they continue to do so in the future? It's difficult to say. A new shamanism is taking shape, and Juan is a pioneer of this new, global form of shamanism. He has travelled to many different countries and visited with the local shamans of their indigenous people. He has learned a great deal and is willing to share what he knows with people who wish to learn.

When he was a young man, Juan was a soldier in the army. Shortly after he had been introduced to ayahuasca, he was sent to Vietnam with a group of 100 peruvian soldiers to fight for the U.S. in the Vietnam War. Only 9 of them returned. While he suffered two gunshot wounds, Juan attributes his survival to the protection he recieved from the ayahuasca spirit. During his time in Vietnam fighting in the war, he saw so much suffering and so many people in pain. When he returned, he dedicated his life to healing. He began to study the science of plants and to become a shaman.

Now, Juan lives in a very modest home with his wife and children. He maintains his garden and helps the people of his community on a regular basis. He is a powerful man who uses his power wisely, to heal the spirits of all who seek his help. He has cured Cancer, AIDS, Epilepsy, Heart, Liver, and Kidney problems, Afflictions of the Stomach and Intestines, Migraines, Anxiety, Depression, Obesity, Drug Addiction... all can be cured.

The power of the rainforest is immeasurable,
as is the power of the human spirit, if one knows what one's doing.

Contact Carlos at AYAHUAYRA to request more information
carlos@ayahuayra.org