Seminar on Shamanism in Spain: Analysis and Introduction to the Ayahuasca Retreat
Analysis and introduction to the Ayahuasca Ceremony in Spain, specifically in Tenerife, San Pedro and Tabaco, through traditional ceremonies, for healing and awakening of consciousness. Seminar on traditional Amazonian shamanism in Tenerife.
Ayahuasca Ceremonies in Santa Cruz De Tenerife, Spain
Ayahuasca ceremonies in Tenerife have been held for more than twenty years, having created a community that is sometimes honored with the visit of Arutam Ruymán. The main reason we come together is the search for wisdom and meaning in life, following the example of ancestral Native American cultures and peoples. There is also a need to improve health and psychological well-being, seeking many as well, simply to live the experience and learn.
We know that the ancient ways of healing of the peoples of the Amazon maintain the principle of union of human beings and nature, a close relationship also linked to spirituality.
Ayahuasca retreats and ceremonies in Tenerife are held in quiet places close to nature, which are still left on this beautiful island. Sometimes, medicinal plants, special diets, fasts and master plants or entheogens such as Natem (Ayahuasca), Tobacco or San Pedro (Awacoya) are used, following a pure line of knowledge. The Canarian family organizes and shares these events and sacraments when they are used; it is wonderful when we can occasionally count on the experience and knowledge of Arutam Ruymán. Many of us have witnessed here on his native island his long journey, training and study of these arts, so we have full confidence in him.
To attend the ceremonies, a preliminary interview with the community coordinator is required, to inform about the requirements and steps to be taken weeks before the ceremonies. Some people are not ready inthis very moment, so it’s necessary to make an assessment of the situation, and create a new approach to Shamanism, given that particular situation.
Receiving Tobacco on the Coast of Tenerife
Every one of us has experienced a marked increased in body health, clarity, inspiration and overall sensitivity. We’ve also learned and remembered many human values regarding our relationship with the world and everyone who inhabits it: ecology, balance, meditation, responsibility, etc. Everything happens in intense and deep moments that create a strong bond of friendship among the participants of the ceremonies.
-Samuel
Who are the ceremonies for?
The majority of participants are looking to change something in their lives. Many return several times as they see the benefits they bring to their daily lives and their relationships.
Many wish to continue their journey to free themselves of patterns and tendencies that are rooted from many societal conditioning and cause so much suffering both physical and mental.
The ceremonies are open for anyone looking to experience a deep connection with themselves and awaken their own sensitivities to life.
When signing up, we will personally get in touch with each participant for a general screening and to clarify any questions there might be. Before the ceremony, we will send all the necessary information regarding the required preparations.
Safety is of utmost importance and besides Ruyman expertise, which he has amassed over more than twenty-five years, there will be experienced helpers assisting all ceremonies so you can feel safe so to go deep within yourself.
Retreats
DURATION
One or two nights
FOOD & ACCOMMODATION
The ceremonies are held in a house with dormitories and showers in the beautiful countryside. Breakfast is served on both days and lunch prior to the second ceremonies.
GROUP SIZE
Limited to 20–25 people
PRICE
The price covers the ceremony costs, including meals, supplies, and accommodation. For more details, please contact us or check the link provided.
NEXT RETREATS IN TENERIFE
Contact the Organizer
If you are interested in attending a conference or ceremony, please don’t hesitate to send us a message using the form below. The organizer will get in touch with you by email, and may also offer to speak with you by phone to answer any questions you may have.
Frequently Asked Questions
The ayahuasca ceremony, rooted in the shamanic traditions of the Amazon, is a topic that arouses great interest and many doubts, especially among those who are approaching this spiritual practice for the first time. This introductory seminar offers an educational insight into the context, symbols, and spiritual preparation surrounding these ancestral ceremonies.
The following FAQs have been put together to help you better understand the contents of the seminar, its respectful approach to indigenous wisdom, and how this space can serve as a first step towards a more conscious and thoughtful exploration.
How should an ayahuasca ceremony be approached so that it is carried out responsibly and without risks?
Safety should be a priority in any ayahuasca ceremony. This practice requires the guidance of a shaman with real experience, who understands the workings of master plants and expanded states of consciousness.
Before each ceremony, it is advisable to carry out a personal assessment to know the physical, mental and emotional state of each person. The ceremony must take place in a careful environment, prepared to offer silence, recollection and energetic clarity.
Those who accompany this process must be present with full attention, and know how the plant manifests itself in each individual, from a deep link with tradition.
How do you emotionally accompany a person during an ayahuasca ceremony?
The ayahuasca process can awaken deep emotions, old memories, or states of openness that need to be held with respect. The figure of the teacher is essential in this context: a person with real experience, who knows how to accompany without invading, and who can guide with serenity if something becomes difficult.
At his side, an attentive and trained team provides presence, silence and containment. It is not about intervening, but about taking care of the space and those who are walking their own path. This care also encompasses the environment and the rest of the group, which shares the experience as a community in transformation.
Can ayahuasca be taken if a person is undergoing medical or psychological treatment?
It is not always advisable to perform an ayahuasca process while undergoing medical or psychological treatment. There are medications that can cause adverse reactions when interacting with the plant, and certain emotional or mental states that require special attention.
Therefore, it is important to clearly communicate your personal situation before starting the journey. When there is responsibility and experience in those who accompany, each case is evaluated with criteria, always prioritizing the health and the real moment of the person.
What kind of changes can arise in a person from a process with ayahuasca?
The ayahuasca process can open paths of real transformation on all levels: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. It is not simply an intense experience, but a way of healing from the depths, reconnecting with one’s own essence.
It often involves going through painful parts: fears, wounds, or internal aspects that we tend to avoid. But it is precisely by traversing these zones with courage, dedication, and sincere disposition that something greater is awakened: a renewed connection with the sacred, a stronger life energy, and an inner inspiration that guides with clarity and purpose.
How can what has been experienced after a process with ayahuasca be integrated?
Integration is an essential part of the journey. Everything that is shown during an ayahuasca ceremony needs time to settle, so that it can find a place within us.
It is not a matter of analyzing everything, but of remaining receptive, with attention, taking care of the body and mind, and moving away – when possible – from stimuli that disconnect us. True integration happens when what we have experienced is translated into concrete acts: in how we treat those around us, how we face our daily tasks, how we respond to life.
The ceremony continues in the everyday, when we allow his teaching to be expressed in a simple and true way.
Why is it important to learn the way of shamanism within an ancestral lineage?
The experiences lived in an ayahuasca ceremony do not end when the night ends. In fact, it is then that one of the most important parts begins: integration.
This implies observing how what we experience in the ceremony is then reflected in our way of looking, of bonding, of walking through the world. Maintaining a careful diet, a certain inner silence and a simpler rhythm of life in the following days helps to maintain the clarity achieved.
But the essential thing is to be able to apply what you have experienced when you return to work, to your family, to your daily decisions. To integrate is not to understand everything, but to allow the ceremony to continue working in our lives, without haste and with humility. present, how we choose and how we relate to what we are.
Why is it essential to walk the path of shamanism accompanied by a living tradition?
Authentic shamanism is not improvised. Spiritual interest or sensitivity is not enough. This path demands a deep surrender, and can only be opened safely and truly within an ancestral lineage: a living transmission of wisdom that connects generations of masters, of ceremonies, of vision.
Lineage protects, guides, and shapes what might otherwise become confusing, even dangerous, terrain. A lineage is not a rigid structure or a set of external rules: it is a living stream of knowledge and experience, where every teaching has been tested in practice, in the jungle, in silence, in sickness, in ceremony.
It is not a matter of transmitting ideas, but of awakening a way of being in the world: a way of relating to our spirit, to life itself and to the sacred that surrounds us. Learning within a lineage is also an act of humility.
It is to recognize that not everything begins in one, that there are open paths, traveled with courage and generosity by those who came before. And it is, at the same time, to assume the responsibility of taking care of that flame so that it does not go out.
That is why those who approach shamanism honestly inevitably look for a true lineage: because there beats the memory of the real. An authentic ceremony is not improvised or accommodated to the desire of the moment. It requires commitment, humility and an inner attitude of listening and surrender. Respect for tradition is what allows work to be real, transformative, and rooted in something bigger than oneself.
How is the role of the shaman (Uwishin) in an ayahuasca ceremony understood within the Shuar tradition?
The Uwishin does not lead a ceremony: he inhabits it. It enters a deep state of union with the Whole and, from there, sustains the process without imposing it. Their songs are not prepared or repeated: they emerge from the moment, from their living connection with the power of the spirit.
Through them, the Uwishin guides without words, awakens the dormant memory, calls to the most sacred within each one. Singing is transmission. It’s not music, it’s power. It vibrates in the bone, pierces the mind, tunes the body like an instrument of the Great Spirit.
That is why not just any presence can take its place. The Uwishin has traveled a demanding path, passed down for generations, to become that bridge between the visible and the invisible world.
Only in this way can it firmly sustain such a delicate process. Their experience, purity and dedication are what allow the ceremony to maintain its direction and depth, even when difficult times arise.
Why is ayahuasca considered a master plant in ancestral ceremonies?
In the Amazonian tradition, ayahuasca – known among the Shuar as Natem – is considered a master plant for its ability to reveal, heal and profoundly transform the human being.
It is not just another visionary substance, but a spirit with its own intelligence, which teaches from the depths of its being. During the process, Natem acts as a mirror: he shows without embellishment the conditionings, the deceptions of the ego, the hidden emotions. It can be an intense experience, but that’s exactly why it’s effective.
This master plant helps to undo what is left over and to remember the essentials. Its power lies not only in what it shows, but in what it awakens: a vital force that reorganizes, cleanses, and rekindles the connection with the spiritual dimension of life.
That is why, in authentic ceremonies, guided by an experienced teacher, ayahuasca becomes an irreplaceable ally on the path of healing and awakening of consciousness.
What role does tobacco play as a sacred plant within the shamanic context of an ayahuasca ceremony?
In the context of a traditional ayahuasca ceremony, tobacco occupies an absolutely central place. It is not a complement, but a master plant in its own right, considered by native peoples — such as the Shuar — as the blood of Arutam, the Great Spirit.
Its use within the ceremony is sacred: it is prepared in water and inhaled at the beginning, as a threshold to the spiritual world, and at the end, as the crowning of the inner work. Tobacco prepares the mind, body, and spirit, and sharpens the channel through which the energy of vision flows.
When the ceremony reaches its deepest moments, it is the tobacco that settles, calms or enhances, depending on what is required. The Uwishin, the teacher, offers it as a prayer, as an instrument of alignment with the divine. And in those who receive it with respect, it awakens an ancient memory: that of the soul recognizing itself as part of everything. In its essence, the jungle sings. And when he touches the crown of the one who has been opened by ayahuasca, that full union with existence can merge.
Is this ayahuasca ceremony a recreational experience or a profound path of inner transformation?
An ayahuasca ceremony is not at all a recreational experience. Whoever approaches looking for entertainment or new sensations, takes the wrong path and even runs the risk of hurting themselves.
This sacred plant, used since ancient times by the native peoples of the Amazon, requires respect, preparation and proper guidance. Ayahuasca does not entertain: it reveals. It shows the unadorned inner truth, confronts fears, cleanses what gets in the way and allows us to rediscover what is most authentic in oneself.
All this can only be sustained in the context of a true ceremony, conducted by a realized teacher, who knows the spiritual terrain and firmly and dedicatedly supports the process. And it is, above all, in difficult moments that the sincerity of the seeker is put to the test.
Those who come to evade or play with the unknown will inevitably come across what they do not want to see. He will resist, generate discomfort – not only for himself, but also for the group – and he will distance himself from the deep meaning of the ceremony. But those who give themselves with humility and honesty will find in those same challenges the door to true transformation.