Kambô Practitioner Training
Note:
Due to the fact that I already have a detailed section aboout Kambô on my website, I will not be providing that information here. Should you wish to learn more on Kambô, I encourage you to click the link below:
Ok, so let’s get into it…
During the summer of 2018, I returned to the Amazon to get some experience as a facilitator at an Ayahuasca Retreat Center, do more personal work with Ayahuasca and to undergo my Kambô Practitioner Training with the Matsés tribe.
My Kambô training was conducted with the Matsés tribe - both the Brazilian and Peruvian Matsés, in the interior of the Amazon jungle. While the Matsés don’t work with Ayahuasca, Kambô is the medicine that they are known for, so it was a really valuable opportunity to work so closely with them and learn about this medicine from them.
To provide you all with a bit of background information and history on the Matsés:
The Matsés, are also known as the “cat people”, due to the spikes they pierce their noses with that resemble the whiskers of a cat. While some Matsés still practice this today, the tribes that I stayed with stopped practicing this, however, the elders still wore the facial tattoos, which is another mark of identification.
Like many other tribes throughout the Amazon basin, the Matsés have had a turbulent history consisting of wars between other tribes, which has resulted in the merging of various peoples within the tribe. The merging formation of the Matsés as a group is the result of captives (women and children) from other groups in the region. Over time, this merging affected their hunting methods, myths and agriculture, as well as the look of the Matsés.
Between the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, the Rubber Boom also impacted the Matsés people as conflict with white people became prevalent and escalated. The Matsés fought for their land but also fell victim to the intrusion of whites in numerous ways - through violence, disease, and the drinking of latex by mistaking it for a cassava drink.
From the 1950’s onwards, the Matsés encountered further trouble; this time from the expansion of commercial logging, which continues to plague the Matsés among other tribes throughout the Amazon, along will the influx of major oil companies.
The Matsés then made contact with the outside world again in 1969, when they accepted Christian missionaries into their communities. While it is difficult to distinguish the traditional way of life and a life influenced by the arrival of the whites, the Matsés have preserved much of their blended culture, spiritual & medicinal practices, way of life, and hunting & fishing methods as did their ancestors - with some adjustments along the way. Something that has changed in recent years, was the arrival of the Peruvian military and Brazilian army. Nowadays, it is not uncommon for local Matsés to join the forces where they have access to different “technologies” - clothes, pots, machetes, dogs (for hunting) etc., which they bring back to the tribe.
The Matsés used to be nomadic people but in the last 30 years or so, they’ve adopted more permanent settlements and have adapted their agricultural methods to suit this. Their agricultural gardens consist largely of plantain and cassava, and their meat comes from the forest, which consist of tapir, monkeys, deer, armadillos, turtles, among other animals. The Matsés tend to settle along rivers as the Matsés men, women and children go fishing on days when game hunts are unsuccessful.
A unique trait of the Matsés people is that it is not just the men that go hunting, but the women and children as well. From a young age, children are taken on hunts to look for animals and learn the trade, and sometimes, women are also actively involved as they help locate & trap animals, and recover arrows. However, there are times when there are exceptions to this - if a man is encountering panema (abundant sexual relations), women will not join as some animals do not like the smell or presence of women. In other instances, such as when it comes to hunting tapir, men will often set the traps themselves and abstain from sex to prevent any traces of lingering scents. And, when it comes to harvesting produce, the men equally assist the women.
The Matsés have a deep understanding of how forest plants can be used in their day to day lives. And like many other tribes, the Matsés believe that plants and animals have spirits just like they do, which can heal or hurt the human body and spirit. Depending on the game animal hunted and consumed, the Matsés will bathe the children in a specific plant bath that is believed to protect the child from harm by the spirit of the animal.
With regards to the jungle’s medicinal cabinet, the Matsés have a wide variety of plants and animals from which they rely on to provide relief for different ailments such as panema, laziness, ill health etc. The snuff from tobacco leaves, known as Në-Në (pronounced as Nu-Nu) increases clarity in sighting prey. Howler monkey meat is used to treat sore throats, and the green tree frog, the Phyllomedusa Bicolor frog (Kambô), secretes a substance that improves hunting skills and success by providing the body with strength and cleaning it from various scents.
Important Side Note:
Should you feel compelled to help the Matsés or other indigenous communities in the Amazon, or indigenous communities worldwide, please visit the following websites to learn more, how you can contribute, donate etc:
www.amazonfrontlines.org/
www.amazonwatch.org
www.survivalinternational.org
Every voice counts and every small act adds up ❤
The journey to the Brazilian Matsés took 2 days, involving a small military airplane, a long boat ride up the river and some walking. Aside from not being able to have a shower, I rather enjoyed the journey there. I’m always entranced by the boat rides in the river as I’m fully present and captivated by my surroundings - seeing the dense rainforest meet the water’s edge, the river banks that are sometimes laden with butterflies, parrots and macaws flying above the canopy. The Amazon has a particular hold on me that I can never quite convey….
Along the way to the Matsés, there were many times that I want to take out my camera but I had it so deeply entrenched in my backpack, in waterproof bags (note the “s”) and surrounded by my belongings. Because of how I had packed my camera (for safety with regards to weather and getting banged about) and the lack of space on the small boat to unpack, it deterred me from unpacking and re-packing everything. This deterrence encouraged me to stay present with the experience, savoring it and letting it fill my senses.
The following photos are the few that I have of the journey to the tribe. The first image is of from the military plane ride from Iquitos to Angamos.
The second photo is of the crew in the small village of Angamos enjoying the last of our creature comforts (tea & coffee) before taking the boat to head deeper into the jungle.
Below:
Our last breakfast with coffee and tea
Approaching the Matsés
When we first arrived at the tribe’s land, we were informed that we had to wait for permission in order to venture deeper into the jungle to stay with another part of the tribe. Our guide and contact with the Matsés was a Matsés himself, who left the tribe to join the military. Due to where the tribe is situated and how they live, the only way to contact them is in person, so staying with them was never guaranteed prior to our arrival.
Upon our arrival, our guide met with the tribe to have a meeting (and greeting) in order to inform everyone what our intentions were (ie, learning about their medicine and spiritual practices) and gain acceptance in order for us to do so. This meeting involved everyone in the tribe that was situated by the river, but also involved having someone travel into the jungle to meet with the elder of that tribe to inform them of the meeting that was going to take place. The whole process took the majority of the day, but we understood that this was a necessary protocol. We were told that everyone in the tribe had to attend the meeting and express whatever thoughts or concerns they may have, and the decision is made by the elder, once everyone is in agreement.
While we waited, one of the relatives of our guide came back and invited us in to one of their homes where they prepared some food for us. I was fascinated by the hammocks that were strung up made from plants, seeing the way they lived off of the jungle and the river, and the deep communal connection they shared with one another. And while we couldn’t exchange any words, one thing that is universal across humans is the exchange of smiles and laughter.
The photo below was taken as we approached the tribe that was situated by the river. If you look really closely, you’ll notice that the houses are on stilts - this is to accommodate the surplus of water the Amazon encounters during the rainy season.
At the point of permission being granted, night time was rapidly approaching so we had to quickly get to the tribe that was based deeper in the jungle. As we trekked through the jungle, we came across large clearings of cassava and plantains - two of their staple crops.
When we arrived, we were welcomed and taken into our respective huts where we strung up our hammocks and began to settle in. After 2 days of no shower, I desperately needed one, so I decided to go to the river and take a fresh. I informed the translator and my fellow travelers that I was going to take a shower but I was met with some puzzled and surprised expressions. I was told that I needed to proceed with extreme caution since the river is full of caimans - I can confrim this…there were definitely caimans near by but not close enough for me to feel discouraged. (Actually, I’m not even sure about that, my depth perception at night is off and my judgement was more than likely colored by the fact that I desperately wanted to feel some sense of being clean).
One thing I quickly realized was that I needed a headlamp, as all I had was my flashlight and I clearly needed my hands - for showering purposes and the fact that I needed to keep my eyes on the caimans that were near by. Incase you don’t know, when you shine a light near water level, the caiman eyes light up, so it’s pretty easy to spot them in the dark. All I had to do was keep an eye on them to make sure they weren’t moving any closer. Anyways, between the caimans and the steep, slippery, and muddy descent into the river - I was able to take my long awaited shower, and make it back to the top without falling flat on my bum (knowing my clumsy self, this was a feat). When I joined everyone, I was met with laughter and my shower escapade seemed to break the ice with the Matsés - they apparently thought the idea of going into the river in the dark was nuts….probably was, but I just really wanted to feel some margin of being clean (even if it is just for 5 minutes).
That night we all went to bed early - or tried to - my hammock had a rather large rip in the center from the top and every time I moved (especially on getting in) the rip expanded…down the center…to the center…. Needless to say, I didn’t really sleep that night as I was mindful to make as little movement as possible so as not to completely rip the hammock and fall on the floor. Plus, I was in the deep jungle… I didn’t know what is on the floor at night.
Anytime I visit the jungle, my sleeping patterns change - I tend to get very tired shortly after night falls (I’m usually asleep between 8 & 9) and I wake up when the sun begins to rise, and this venture was no different. Not to mention, our training began the following morning of our arrival. I woke up incredibly early to the symphony of the jungle; hearing the sounds of the night transform to that of day - the shift from frogs to chatter of the birds, parrots and monkeys. When I came out of the hut to go back to the river to have another shower (figured the ice cold water would help wake me up), the forest was immersed in fog. It was eerily beautiful, and I finally got to see exactly where I was - in the dense forest that was covered in a blanket of fog from the cold of the night. I stopped and took some deep breaths, I couldn’t believe this was where I was - I was filled with excitement for this journey and everything that was to come and felt I needed to savor the moment. Being alone by the river bank hugged by the Amazon Rainforest, filled with the sight and sounds was indescribable. I hadn’t even been here a day and I began to feel renewed.
Images below:
My early morning rise on the first day.
In the first image, the moon is slowly dipping below the canopy of trees.
By the time I had my exceedingly cold shower and was changed, things were already in motion for us to begin our training. We were to start the day with some fresh Kambô medicine - “breakfast” of champions?? One thing about Kambô is that you must fast beforehand; this enables the medicine to go deep and where it needs to without having to move through what you’ve ingested. Also, purging tends to be common with Kambô and when you purge, you really want it to get the toxins out of your body, not have it remove your previous meal, so starting the day with it is easiest as you’ve fasted all night long. Only thing is, it is a very rude awakening.
When it was my turn, I didn’t really overthink the experience beforehand. I had done Kambô many times before and I go through the motions like clockwork, however, I had not done fresh Kambô administered by a Matsés elder…That was intense…and I quickly learned that the rest of my sessions were going to build upon that intensity. The first session knocked me out. By the time I had purged, I was exhausted! I’m not one to nap after Kambô, in previous experiences, I’m usually really energized…not this time…
I had been going through a lot emotionally leading up to and during this trip, and I believe the Kambô was really digging in to aid me in resolving my emotional wounds - both the recent ones that were on-going at that point in time, as well as ones from the past. After my first session, I needed to rest and was extremely cold, so I bundled up in the hammock and had a nap until I was awoken for some food.
The following picture is of me trying to catch myself after my first session that was administered by one of the Matsés elders. You can kind of see my “frog-face” - I tend to get this dread! If the name is not a given, sometimes, people’s face (like mine) swell up a lot from the medicine - my eyes get swollen, my cheeks get puffed, my lips look uber plump, and even my ear lobes swell.
So, here I am… in all my glory… recuperating.
Just to note, the photos throughout this journal entry are a mix of shots from my camera and phone. Unfortunately, I never got many photographs on my camera of this trip due to a mechanical problem I encountered with my lens. I didn’t carry a back up with me since everything we were bringing with us had to fit into one backpack and carried on us, but luckily, I had my phone and the battery managed to survive a good portion of the trip.
In the first image, the hut on the right, was where I slept in my hammock that was accompanied by arrows that were kept in the roof…right above me. The Matsés are specialists in their craftsmanship in general, but particularly of bows and arrows, which are primarily used for hunting game animals. In the image I took of the arrows, it’s hard to grasp the size of them but they’re well over a meter in length. Also, check out the thatched roof that the arrows are in - another display of their craftsmanship.
The Matsés that we stayed with, while they never met foreigners, they still managed to have access to clothes, flip flops, the odd watch, pots & pans, machetes, chickens, dogs etc. As previously mentioned, this was due to family members that left and joined the military and/or army. Whenever family members would return or visit their tribe, they would bring back goods to ease their way of life. Aside from that, they live completely off of what the jungle provides them with.
Image below:
Tamiche Vine, used for the application of the Kambô. The Tamiche vine is what is used to burn holes in the skin where the Kambô is then applied.
Images Below:
One of the elders from the Matsés tribe burning the tamiche vine in preparation to administer the Kambô medicine. This vine is used to burn the top layer of the skin in order to create an entry for the medicine. Once the burn is made, the Kambô is mixed with the person’s saliva and applied directly onto the exposed skin for the medicine to enter and take effect. Matsés men and women use Kambô before hunting missions to produce a clarity of vision, cover their scent, and provide strength that can last for several days.
Traditionally, the men used to apply it to their arms and the women received it around their ankles. When it came of us, we had the choice of where we wanted it - I always choose my arm as it takes less time for the medicine to kick in, and if you’ve seen me in person, you’ll notice the array of burn holes that adorn both my arms. I also gained an affiliation for my scars - it’s a reminder of what I’ve gone through, my inner strength, and how far I’ve come in my own personal journey.
In the first image of the two down below, in the background, you can see a few of the family members watching. Every time any one of us were going to experience the medicine, they’d come around to take us in. Our struggles with the medicine clearly entertained everyone - I mean, seeing a bunch of gringos with puffy “frog faces”, groaning and vomiting must have been amusing. Since we were told that we were the first foreigners that they have seen, that helped to explain their curiosity and amusement with us.
On one of the days we were there, the Matsés prepared some of the other medicine they work with - Në-Në (pronounced like Nu-Nu).
Në-Në is a tobacco based snuff that is mixed with the ashes of the bark of the cocoa plant. The Tobacco is the Nicotiana Rustica (Mapacho) strain, and the green leaves are toasted, crushed into a powder, then combined with the powdered ash of the bark of the cocoa plant. It has been known to have some psychoactive effects but it is mostly used to sharpen the senses when the men go hunting. This enables them to be more in tune with the animals they are hunting, provide a more precise shot, and improve strength and energy.
The woman in the following images tending to the fire was one of the elders from the tribe.
Now, incase you missed the tattoos on the sides of the mouth from the elder applying the Kambô, you can kind of see the tattoos on this elder’s face - they’re around her mouth and go up on the sides of her cheeks. The facial tattoos that the elders wear is a sign of identity, that they are Matsés. The ink for the tattoos are sourced from their environment; it’s a combination of the Huito plant (which is used as dye in some dietas for protection) and charcoal. The application of the tattoos are done by spikes from a particular palm tree.
When the medicine was prepared, we were offered to try it. I occasionally use Rapé when I feel the call to work with it, although I’m not a fan of having plants rapidly fired up in my nostrils but in the case with the Në-Në, I felt it was something I definitely had to try with the tribe, especially since they freshly prepared this medicine for us.
One of the Matsés made a savvy applicator from a leaf that he twisted into a cone shape and used a vine to secure it. Traditionally, the dose is a nice heap of Në-Në blown into each nostril, not one, but three times. Needless to say, you feel very sharp and incredibly clear afterwards.
I found Në-Në to be significantly more gentler than Rapé and somewhat pleasant…aside from having it blown up each nostril 3 times. The first round was the worst for me - I was almost knocked off my feet and couldn’t breathe for a few moments. I probably tried to anticipate the shot and clearly took it in wrong. You can imagine how that felt when I was informed “ok, now for the next one!”
The image below is of me getting the Në-Në fired up my nose (the first time). Unfortunately, you can’t really see the funky leaf applicator. And yea, judging from my face, I was definitely bracing myself. * palm to forehead *
The image below is of another elder in the tribe with her great grandchildren. She was extremely shy but allowed me to take a photo of her with her great grans. You can also see her tattoos a bit better in this shot.
Something to note, that I will get into a bit more below, is that the Matsés we stayed with had never seen cameras. For this great grandmother, whenever I had my camera up to my face, she never made eye contact and would always look away. However, she motioned for me to take this image of her with her great grans, so I found that to be a curious reaction.
The image below is of some of the Matsés kids.
Once the kids warmed up to us, they got extremely curious of us…and our cameras. I tend to err on the side of caution when photographing people - I don’t want to be invasive or disrespect someone’s privacy. It’s a push and pull of wanting to get natural photographs but also wanting to be respectful. Only when I noticed the Matsés got more comfortable with us, did I feel more comfortable taking photographs of them (I’d also check in with the translator to make sure that this was ok).
The kids were more openly curious and interactive - they (nor anyone in the tribe) had never seen a camera before, far less a photo of themselves, and despite the language barrier, I could see how excited the kids got when I showed them the photos of themselves. They would identify themselves and one another in heaps of giggles and laughter, motioning for more photos of themselves - singly, in pairs, and in groups.
Harvesting the Kambô Medicine:
We had a few opportunities to go “hunting” for the Phyllomedusa Bicolor Frog and harvest the medicine ourselves. Before I continue, I’ll have you know that this is done as ethically as possible. The frogs are not harmed in the process, nor are the milked dry but we did have to string them out. This tends to stress them out a bit and encourage the production of the poison from the glands on their bodies. The frogs are also handled very carefully and lovingly by everyone - their medicine is considered a gift, so it is most appropriate to treat them with respect.
”Hunting” was done as night, since the frogs are nocturnal, and we had to venture off into the forest, looking for puddles or small bodies of water as the frogs tend to congregate in those areas. One of the Matsés would call out to the frogs, which resembled a sort of “whaaak” sound. It was pretty cool to hear the guy mimic the frog and have the frogs respond! The whole point of calling out to the frogs and having them respond was so that we can pinpoint where the sound was coming from in order to find them.
Then came the antics of safely retrieving the frogs from the trees, needless to say, this was rather impressive.
We all got to harvest our own medicine, which was a really awesome experience. It gave me the insight and connection to the “behind the scenes” of this medicine. The plus factor for me was being able to play with the frogs (since they are so docile) - and by play I mean just hold and stroke, followed by a very vigorous washing of my hands since I would have gotten the poison all over my hands and lord knows, I would NOT want that in my eye, or anywhere for that matter.
The night following our first harvest, we got to try out the fresh medicine…Whoa.... That one was potent. All the medicine we had with the Matsés had been deviously potent but after us harvesting our own and trying that batch out…It hit differently.
That one went incredibly deep. I’m not sure if it was due to the fact that we got to interact with the frogs ourselves, or partake in the ritual of getting the medicine, or that we had been working with the medicine every day, or a combination of everything, but that round took me exceptionally deep.
As I mentioned before, I can be like clockwork with Kambô. This time, 30 minutes had gone by (past my mark of going through the motions and purging) and I still hadn’t purged. I was befallen with dread nausea, and was getting a sharp twisting pain deep inside of my gut - this was a new sensation but it felt as though something was stuck. I tried moving and shifting around, some form of stretching, drinking water, taking deep steady breaths, whatever I felt would help bring up whatever it was. After these failed attempts of trying to make something happen, I decided to just pay attention and instead of trying to initiate the purge, I sat with all the discomfort… and there it was. All of a sudden, an image of my deceased brother popped into my mind’s eye and I was flooded with tears. In the midst of the tears, out came my purge. That’s what it was.
The Kambô felt as though it had moved into a much deeper layer and was working on some emotions that I had been carrying for 20 years. I was not only physically purging, but emotionally as well. I was trying all the tricks in the book to help bring out a purge when that wasn’t what was needed. What I needed to do was just let go to the experience, unhinge myself from the notion of “I’m like clockwork, what’s going on here?”, and simply surrender.
Another lesson in surrendering…
Surprisingly, following that session, I felt immensely better than I had in some weeks. Like somebody flipped a switch inside of me. All the pain and hurt I was carrying from the current events felt as though they had been lifted from my body and being. A load of the grief that I had been carrying for so long from the sudden death of my brother felt significantly lighter as well. I felt as though I had gotten in touch with a part of myself I hadn’t had access to in a very long time, and simultaneously felt an influx of fresh energy pouring in. It’s like that metaphor of a filled cup - the Kambô emptied some of the heaviness I had been carrying with me. I was grateful for the release. While that session was rough, a lot more than I alluded to in this entry, I was beyond elated for the difficulty of the session - It’s always the difficult ceremonies and sessions that turn out to be the most gratifying.
Our time with the Matsés was a once-in-a-lifetime learning opportunity. Not only did I get to learn about the Matsés, their way of life and their medicine, but also had a few opportunities to go into the forest with them to learn about different plants, their preparation and what they were used for. It was really eye-opening to see that everything they needed was readily available within a short walk of their settlement. The forest literally provides everything that they need. It’s fascinating to see how they know what plant can work for which ailment and the ways in which to prepare it. Sometimes, the same plant can serve multiple purposes once prepared differently and/or through a combination of other plants. How the Matsés (and other indigenous people) learn about their plant medicines always escapes me.
Having the opportunity to harvest fresh medicine and try it was also an experience I will never forget. The potency and the lessons of the fresh Kambô was unlike any other I had experienced up to that point. It was the strongest I had ever encountered and the deepest I had ever went with Kambô. It honestly put me through the ringer.
With the fresh Kambô, my experiences were markedly different, as it unearthed some deeply entrenched emotions, made me take naps, or boosted me with warrior-like energy and child-like play. I know that Kambô can work on the different levels (physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional), however, I personally never experienced any emotional purging from it before. I was grateful for that experience though; I always felt that in order for me to effectively work with someone, I had to do the work myself and experience the spectrum of its entirety, so that I can show up more deeply to assist others - and this experience provided me with that component.
Overall, my whole experience with the Matsés and their medicine was phenomenal, and I gained such valuable insight into their way of life and the Kambô medicine. It is a huge honor to be a practitioner of Kambô, and administer this medicine to others. I have personally witnessed and experienced the benefits of this medicine, both in myself and with others and truly respect the depth in which this medicine enables it’s cleansing abilities.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.