'We are beginning to understand why ayahuasca — yagé or “Grandmother Medicine” (a modern name that indicates respect) — is considered to be an entheogen, a substance that “reveals inner divinity.” 

This differs greatly from a hallucinogen or a psychedelic, in that visions and experiences under the influence of ayahuasca (as well as other known entheogens used in ceremonial context) can provide deep and meaningful — often times uninhibited — insights into the nature of life, illness, and well-being, including revelations about the very fabric of existence itself.

 Experiences are seen and felt as “real,” as opposed to flat-out hallucinations, which ultimately are of little or no consequence, as they are mere mental stimulation, no matter how amusing. It is as if upon drinking the medicine a window to other worlds is opened to realities that exist right here and now, closely alongside our own. Boundaries and egos crumble. It is without doubt a shift of viewpoint, an extension of experience beyond ordinary consciousness.

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