Il racconto completo
Philippe’s account joins us in the retreat’s second sharing circle, after the second ceremony. The evening he describes is his first discovery of ayahuasca. He tells it in his own terms, before returning to another experience in the final sharing circle.
Philippe comes without a specific request. He wants to discover, to experience a journey, and already feels light when he arrives. For his first experience with ayahuasca, he chooses to welcome what may come without asking many questions.
On this ayahuasca retreat, in the stay’s second sharing circle, Philippe's first discovery is gentleness. He feels able to let his mind grow quiet and welcome the unknown. With his eyes closed, he sees colours and mandalas; with his eyes open, he observes his surroundings. Music accompanies him. He does not describe an emotional upheaval. He describes a peaceful, beautiful moment from beginning to end.
He speaks about images changing whenever he closes his eyes, like new slides appearing. It amuses him. Songs and sounds matter greatly to his experience. He also recognises a sense of presence around his body, which he tries to describe without finding a precise explanation.
In that second sharing circle, Philippe also distinguishes the very intense colours he felt after changa from the gentler experience with ayahuasca. The rest of the retreat brings another experience, which he describes after the third ceremony, in the final sharing circle: a journey with Bufo. Each of these moments keeps its own place in his account.
On this ayahuasca retreat, reflecting after the third ceremony, Philippe chooses two words to describe how he feels: he arrived light and leaves feeling airborne. He connects that final journey to his experience with Bufo. He thanks the group and the team and simply says it has done him good. He did not have a specific request to resolve. He keeps the pleasure of what he has discovered.
He describes these different experiences with the same attention to what he has felt. The gentleness, music, and colours of the first evening all have their place, alongside that final journey and the feeling of great lightness as he leaves.
Philippe thanks the people present for their help and welcome. He can describe his stay simply: a beautiful experience that has done him good.
