What is medicine? Integrating indigenous with scientific ontologies in ayahuasca research

Abstract: The revival of psychedelics in Western research raises issues about the underappreciation of ayahuasca's sacred significance and the Indigenous wisdom associated with it. Such oversight reflects a broader disconnect from the communal and spiritual practices integral to Indigenous knowledge, a gap that also contributes to our current environmental and health crises. This presentation looks at the Yawanawá tradition to critique the reduction of ayahuasca to mere scientific data, advocating for a synthesis of Indigenous and modern scientific approaches to enrich future research and therapeutic practices.

Presenter bios: Dr. Maria Fernanda Gebara is a social anthropologist, lecturer, and writer. Her work concentrates on integrating indigenous and scientific knowledges; understanding the needs of indigenous peoples to conserve their biodiversity and to disseminate their cosmologies; and studying issues related to other-than-human being consciousness, co-evolution, relationality, and shared intentionality. With experience in prominent centers worldwide, including Brazil, Indonesia, the United States, and the United Kingdom, she is currently dedicated to protecting indigenous traditional knowledge related to sacred medicines. Additionally, she is writing a book titled "Chanting Spring," which documents her experiences with indigenous communities in the Amazon and provides a blend of scientific and traditional knowledge for our post-pandemic world.

Nani Yawanawá: Nani is the main Professor of the Yawanawá People. He is 60 years old and was initiated into the Yawanawá spirituality by his ancestors. Nani is an elder, a teacher and a healer of his people, who carries ancient knowledge passed along from generations. He is actively working to keep the Yawanawá’s traditions alive. Nani dedicates his life to his family, to the forest and to traditional knowledge: planting different species of trees, harvesting, cultivating medicinal plants and teaching the Yawanawá children. Nani is a keeper of the authenticity of the Yawanawá culture, focusing especially on the language, the prayers, the songs and in transmitting a very deep understanding of the Yawanawá ancestrality.

Isku Kuá Yawanawá: Isku Kuá is the chief of Nova Esperança (“New Hope”) village, with a population of 300 people. Isku Kua represents the young generation and has already been through the higher spiritual initiations of the tradition. He is also a talented musician and guitar player, who adapted many traditional songs to the guitar, and travels frequently to Europe and the United States to share his people’s culture and spirituality. Isku’s knowledge of his culture gets deeper every day as a result of his deep commitment to his studies.

Affiliation: Yorenka Tasorentsi Institute