Sociopsychotherapeutic Functions of Ayahuasca Healing in Amazonia
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs January 1, 1989 Walter Andritzky 59 citations
Ayahuasca healing rituals among Amazonian groups serve both social and psychotherapeutic functions by providing the entire community access to transcendental experiences that have integrative and cohesive effects. The article examines the preparation and application of ayahuasca, symbolic adaptations to social change, the role of singing, the perceptive mode during the visionary state, and the structure of visions. Healing effectiveness is explained through Western scientific and sociopsychotherapeutic perspectives. Ethnopsychology offers insights into archaic healing rituals and can illustrate transcendental experiences and pathological drug use in modern societies.