Mary Olivar
To the Shipibo Conibo people of the Ucayali River Basin in Peru, each plant carries a special vibrational signature which can be heard, seen, and felt. The sacred plant songs and designs embody the vibrations of these plant allies and are a foundational part of Shipibo healing traditions. The new visual perspective that Microcosms offers echoes the visual representation of the healing plant vibrations in Shipibo art.
At the Center for Shamanic Education and Exchange, we sponsor Shipibo youth in Peru at the Kurin Metsa School through in-depth apprenticeship programs which include month-long plant dietas, or “samas”, and daily ingesting certain plant brews. This time of concentration, contemplation, and reflection allows the participant to connect deeply with the plant, to communicate with it, and to build a close relationship. In a dieta, the plants are their books and their teachers.
Through our work with the Kurin Metsa school and with other Indigenous communities, we seek to perpetuate the shamanic wisdom, culture, practice, and traditional ways of life of Indigenous people worldwide, including their deep and intimate knowledge of plants and the wisdom they hold. We invite you to learn more about the Kurin Metsa School and our work at the Center for Shamanic Education
Mary Olivar, Center for Shamanic Education and Exchange
