Selva Madre Retreat Center

Owned and run by the Rimachi family, of the Aguaruna healing lineage, Selva Madre is an ayahuasca retreat centre at Padre Cocha on the Nanay River, outside Iquitos in the Peruvian Amazon. It runs retreats from three days to a month, with two to sixteen ceremonies, for groups of up to eight.

Approach

The founder, Don Luis “Lucho” Rimachi, trained as a curandero from childhood under his grandfather, then studied medicine and theology. He leads ceremonies with Maestro Anderson and his son Luis, and three staff who do not drink stay with guests in the maloca. The brew is made only from ayahuasca vine and chacruna leaf, cooked by maestros who fast while preparing it, from plants grown on the family’s land. After each ceremony guests debrief with Don Luis, who may suggest flower or mud baths or sauna therapy. Master plant dietas of at least ten days take place in three separate huts. The family says the centre’s income has paid for clean water, electricity and paved paths in the village.

Practical details

Prices per person run from $545 for three days with two ceremonies to $1,575 for ten days with six and $4,725 for 30 days with 16. A deposit of $125 holds a place, and the rest is paid on arrival. Meals, a private cabin with its own shower, pickup from the airport or a hotel and the boat ride in are included, and the maestros’ Spanish is translated into English.

Care and safety

Applicants send a full medical history, with an intake call if needed, and a physician assistant, Athena Baldwin, provides medical oversight. For four weeks beforehand guests give up pork, dairy, coffee and alcohol, and they avoid sex for two weeks before and after. Afterwards each guest is offered a free integration session with an affiliated licensed therapist.