For an Amazonian female shaman, ayahuasca ceremonies are a rite and a business

A potent hallucinogen, ayahuasca is brewed from plants native to the Amazon rainforest. For centuries, it has been deeply intertwined with the spiritual practices of the indigenous Shipibo people of the Amazon basin, who use the drink in shamanic rituals. However, as this short documentary from the US filmmaker Victoria Lynn Carroll illustrates, amid a resurgence of medicinal and recreational interest in psychedelics in wealthier parts of the globe, ayahuasca has become a business for some Shipibo, who cater to tourists with both the desire and means to partake in an ayahuasca ceremony.

A condensed version of Carroll’s feature-length documentary She is a Shaman, this film captures the life of Estela Pangoza, a Shipibo ‘maestra’ who owns and operates Aya Madre – a ‘sacred plant medicine retreat’ in the Peruvian Amazon. Presented observationally and without judgment, Carroll documents Pangoza’s life as one of just a few Shipibo women who run their own ayahuasca retreats. This means a life in which sacred traditions, quotidian moments, and the demands and opportunities of running a business overlap.