As guides of truffle and plant medicine work, I find transparency about our relationship with the medicine and our experience with this work of vital importance. Therefor I share a few words about my journey into this work with you here.
For over 13 years I worked with psilocybin truffles for my own inner explorations and attended many plant medicine ceremonies, before I was invited to assist as a guide in the psilohuasca retreats of The Sanctuary in 2020. Since then, I stayed on as one of their guides in these 3-day retreats. It was there that someone of Spinoza experienced my guiding and music, after which Spinoza asked me to join their team of guides.
About half a year before I joined Spinoza, I started offering microdosing ceremonies (now mini-dosing) with yin yoga and cacao. From day one, these events were sold out, with waiting lists. The groups became bigger and the events more frequent. Early on in this development, I went into ceremony with the truffles myself with the questions if this "success" was something that was actually serving life, i.e. if I should be saying yes to this.
The clarity that I received from that ceremony was that my intention with this work is to help re-establish our conscious connection with and appreciation, respect and gratitude for the earth and the fellow beings that we share this gift of life with. I understood that as long as this remains my intention, I can do this work in a life-serving way. In the Vision Walks where we offer the experience of psilocybin in nature, this intention is shaped more explicitly.
I try to offer my guidance in ceremonies with authenticity, humbleness and compassion, which is an ongoing practice. I do daily practices, study continuously and go into ceremony myself about once per season. I see one's inner work as the foundation and prerequisite of guiding ceremony.
Finally I should say, guides are also mere human beings, with good intentions, blind spots, abilities and inabilities. I see that as a guide, even when leading, I am just one agent in a confluence of factors that shape the unfolding of a ceremony. If some elements did not go as I think may have served the people more, I sometimes reflect for hours on all the different factors at play to see if in my role there was something I could have done or not-done that may have made a difference. This is part of an ongoing growing process, in which I continue to learn how to serve the processes that want to unfold to the best of my ability.
Ultimately, ceremony is simply a safe and sacred space for our "inner gardening". It is where human beings come together in circle to celebrate and honour life, to remember how to live in peace and to walk each other home.
For questions, sharings or feedback, please reach out.