e use of ayahuasca among rubber tappers of the Alto Juruá
April 8, 2016 Domingos Bernardo Gialluisi Da Silva Sá, Christian Frenopoulo, Matthew J. Meyer 1 citation
The chapter reviews a decade of non-policing government monitoring of ayahuasca use in Brazil, where the brew is known as Daime, Santo Daime, or Vegetal. It argues that cost-benefit analysis of drug policy is fundamentally resolved on the cultural level, rejecting a simple mechanistic view like pharmacological determinism. The Uniao do Vegetal (UDV) sees ayahuasca not as an end in itself but as a vehicle in a path of sacrifice and austerity, while it remains an important instrument for achieving spiritual goals for the communities that use it. The chapter advocates for adopting or modifying just public policies directed to drugs, based on this pioneer experience.