San Pedro Cactus (Wachuma)
San Pedro, or Echinopsis pachanoi, is a cactus that is native to the Andes and is known throughout the region interchangeably as Wachuma, Aguacolla, Giganton, Mi Valiente, Curalotodo, and other titles. The cactus can grow to be 20 feet tall and 150 years old at altitudes between 6,600 and 9,800 feet above sea level before being harvested, dried and prepared for consumption. The Wachuma used at Eagle Condor Alliance ceremonies has been harvest and prepared by our healer Gonzalo ‘Aguila’ Garcia.
The use of San Pedro for prayer, communing with nature, gaining access to the spiritual world, and healing physical, emotional and spiritual traumas goes back thousands of years in the mountainous regions of Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. In the same ceremony it is typically offered as a dried powder and tea.
Along with Ayahuasca, it is one of the sacred medicines that participants connect with during the retreat. Gonzalo ‘Aguila’ Garcia has been healing with San Pedro at the Makha Wakan maloka for more than 10 years. San Pedro is known to be a more gentle teacher than Ayahuasca but it is still extremely powerful. Participants who approach the plant with higher levels of corporal and emotional toxicity or stress may purge at the physical, mental and spiritual levels, but it is more common for San Pedro to remain in the body for the duration of the ceremony. The day after a San Pedro ceremony, it is recommended to be in meditation outdoors while the sun is shining.
San Pedro opens the heart chakra, and like all of the medicines offered at Eagle Condor Alliance, it produces a state of deep internal reflection coupled with a profound connection to the elements found in nature. Participants will be guided through the ceremony by prayers and songs accompanied by the tambor (drum) and sonaja (rattle).
San Pedro, when approached with respect and reverence and used for prayer, self study, and healing, has the power to cure and provide clarity, self-knowledge, love of oneself and love of others. We invite you to join us as we celebrate the beauty of life and give thanks for the blessings and teachings that the human experience provides.
Have questions about the use of San Pedro in the Andes and its effects? Feel free to contact us