Native American Healing

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Native American healing is a subject that last for a lifetime of each native. Native american healing is very holistic in nature and takes place over the entirety of each individual natives life. In this paper I will discuss just a few of the native healing techniques, ranging from the taking of hallucinogenic sacrament such as the holy Ayahuasca and Peyote to meditative vision quests and herbal remedies. The sacred Ayahuasca is used traditionally by natives in south america, such as in Peru. However, like most native healing practices it is a practice that is open to non natives as well as natives as a healing techniques for just about any discomfort or dis-ease. Ayahuasca consists of two ingredients, the main being the woody vine Banisteriopsis caapi. This vine in brewed as a drink along with the leaves of the chakruna plant, Psychotria viridis. The hallucinogenic properties comes from the dimethyltryptamine, which is a naturally occurring substance in every living thing. DMT, as it is shortened to be, is the chemical in our brain which allows us to dream, have vivid meditations and is not depleted from living beings until the being dies. The sacrament of the Holy Ayahuasca leads to visions and meetings with past high spirits and spirit guides. The experience if often accompanied by purging in the body by way of diarrhea and vomiting. The whole experience is guided by Shipibo shamans to ensure correct visionary guidance. The ayahuasca has been documented to have been used in the pre-Columbian era, however westerners have only recently had access and knowledge of it dating back roughly 150 years (McKenna, 1993). In some ways similar to the ayahuasca ceremony, the use of Peyote is popular among many native tribes as well as non indians as a means for spiritual and physical healings as well as walking the path of enlightenment. The Native American

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