Ayahuasca from Peru to Uruguay: Ritual Design and Redesign through a Distributed Cognition Approach
Anthropology of Consciousness March 1, 2015 DOI: 10.1111/anoc.12023 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Ayahuasca |
| Keywords | Socially distributed cognition Cognitive science Anthropology |
| Citations | 36 |
| Key points | Proposes that ayahuasca rituals can be understood as a system of activity through a "distributed cognition" model. |
Abstract
Ayahuasca is a psychoactive substance from the Amazon rainforest regions of Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil. Although its use originated among indigenous tribes in the Amazon basin, it has become increasingly popularized in Western society through the transnational markets of spirituality and religiosity driven by globalization, Postmodernity, and new forms of religious practice. In this paper, we will overview the arrival of ayahuasca in Uruguay by way of four different groups. We will then focus on one of these groups, a holistic alternative therapies center, influenced by Peruvian shamanic traditions in the design of its ceremonies. Last we will introduce a "distributed cognition" model to explain ayahuasca rituals as a system of activity.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on ayahuasca, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The globalization of ayahuasca: Harm reduction or benefit maximization? | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond | 2014 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Antipodes of the Mind: Charting the Phenomenology of the Ayahuasca Experience | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Towards psychedelic apprenticeship: Developing a gentle touch for the mediation and validation of psychedelic-induced insights and revelations. | 2022 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Ayahuasca healing beyond the Amazon: the globalization of a traditional indigenous entheogenic practice | 2008 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 26
- Purging and the body in the therapeutic use of ayahuasca Social Science & Medicine August 31, 2019
- Ayahuasca: Uses, Phytochemical and Biological Activities Natural Products and Bioprospecting May 27, 2019
- The Bright Side of Psychedelics: Latest Advances and Challenges in Neuropharmacology International Journal of Molecular Sciences January 10, 2023
- Medicine, religion and ayahuasca in Catalonia. Considering ayahuasca networks from a medical anthropology perspective International Journal of Drug Policy October 18, 2016
- Relational Processes in Ayahuasca Groups of Palestinians and Israelis. Frontiers in Pharmacology 2021
and 21 more in the library
Cites 5
- Entheogens and Existential Intelligence: The Use of Plant Teachers as Cognitive Tools Canadian Journal of Education / Revue canadienne de l éducation 2002
- Working with “La Medicina”: Elements of Healing in Contemporary Ayahuasca Rituals Anthropology of Consciousness March 1, 2012
- Hallucinogenic Music: An Analysis of the Role of Whistling in Peruvian Ayahuasca Healing Sessions Journal of American Folklore July 1, 1971
- El yajé, el purgatorio y la farándula Antípoda Revista de Antropología y Arqueología 2008
- Cognitive ecology. Topics in Cognitive Science October 2010