A warm, summer day by the pool at a private resort in the rainforest, just a quick bike ride from the beach. A massage in the late morning before an ultra-nutritious lunch served with fresh green juice. An afternoon meditation class, sunset yoga, and an all night shamanic vision quest initiation using psychedelic plant medicine.
One of these things is not like the other.
Meditation teacher and author of Practical Meditation for Beginners, Benjamin W. Decker, is hosting his fourth retreat at Rythmia Life Advancement Center in Costa Rica, the first medically-licensed facility in the world to offer the shamanic plant medicine ayahuasca.
It’s not uncommon for a meditation teacher or guru to cringe at the idea of “drugs” being used, even in this context.
“Firstly, my friends call me ‘Ben,’ and no, it doesn’t surprise me that there is enormous caution around ayahuasca and its psychotherapeutic applications. In fact, I think it’s a good thing.” Decker says, stating that many of his colleagues in the field of meditation (a community self-described as open-minded and progressive) are closed-minded to the research of psychedelics for medicinal applications. “This is a very powerful substance and it deserves that level of respect. I had known about it for years and even I remained firmly opposed to bringing it or any kind of psychoactive substance to my students.”
Decker was introduced to Rythmia through a member of a spiritual community he co-created in Los Angeles, CA called Full Circle Venice, which has since closed its doors due to sky-rocketing rent in the gentrified beach town. “When I learned that they were a medical facility with an ICU on-site, and that every guest must go through an in-take process, I was a lot more open to it,” Decker continues, “the full spa, accommodations, and direct flight from LAX didn’t hurt, but wasn’t the major selling point for me.”
For most, when words like “shamanic ceremony” are said, images come to mind of dark nights outside in the humid Amazon rainforest, snakes and bugs all around, and no air conditioning for hundreds of miles – this is not the case at Rythmia, which operates as a fully functional, all-inclusive wellness resort where guests have the option to participate in the plant medicine ceremonies (and some do not). There is no alcohol served at Rythmia, and all of the activities are built around improving the physical and psychological wellbeing of their guests.
“I don’t think ayahuasca is for everyone, like any modality or medicine, but I do think it is right for some people. I have had very healing experiences on ayahuasca and have found that it can profoundly deepen one’s introspection, breaking through unconscious mental control patterns that can outsmart us.” Decker explains, “In my coaching sessions, I’ve worked with celebrities, politicians, executives, and athletes, and you cannot convince someone that they’re playing tricks on themselves unless they can begin to see it for themselves. Ayahuasca will not allow you to hide from your own mind.”
Many of us can vouch for the fact that we, ourselves, stand in the way of the majority of the solutions to our own problems in life. Need to lose weight? Rethink your diet and exercise plan. Financial problems? Revisit your spending and savings strategy. Relationship drama? Check yourself before you wreck yourself.
But, according to this meditation teacher, “For the most part, the average person will look at their problems and immediately attribute them to an outside cause, without being able to see their own character defects. It is true that circumstances must be realistically acknowledged in order to be overcome, but some of those circumstances are our own mental patterns. I think this is one of the reasons why meditation, introspection, and psychoactive plant medicines have been beneficial and even transformational for so many; they support the individual in really seeing things in a way they did not see them before. I believe that this can be done with prayer and meditation, without the aid of plant medicine, but also understand first-hand the value and power of ayahusca and other medicines like it, and I do feel comfortable coming out about that.”
Not long ago, meditation was considered fringe, is ayahuasca hitting the mainstream? Maybe not, but Decker seems to think this is part of a much larger awakening in the field of wellness and medicine.
“Just as people are now realizing that meditation is not just something for sages in the mountains and monasteries, but a viable practice for increasing mental clarity, expanding creativity, reducing stress and emotional regulation, society at large is also realizing that naturally occurring substances like cannabinoids, psilocybin, and DMT, when wisely and intelligently administered, under the guidance of a professional, can have a laundry list of benefits. De-stigmatization and decriminalization are absolutely crucial.”
To learn more about Ben Decker’s Know Thyself retreat at Rythmia Life Advancement Center in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, visit this link here.
