Hey everybody! Episode 140 of the show is out. In this episode, I spoke with Matthew Toussaint. Matthew came highly recommended to me and I was really glad we could make this podcast happen. Matthew is an anthropologist who came to plant medicines at a young age. It brought him to the Peruvian Amazon where he began a deeper dive and apprenticeship with ayahuasca and a lineage of curanderismo. We spoke about his background, ayahuasca, dieta, apprenticeship, tradition and lineage, myth, tree medicine, martial arts, christianity, imagination, meditation, and other topics. I think this is a really in-depth interview and one of the better and more informative talks you will find about these specific subjects in regards to plant medicines. It’s a testament to Matthew’s work and dedication and I trust you all will gain much from his wisdom. As always, to support this podcast, get early access to shows, bonus material, and Q&As, check out my Patreon page below. Enjoy!

This episode is sponsored by Real Mushrooms. As listeners, visit their website to enjoy a discount of 25% off your first order: https://www.realmushrooms.com/universe

“Matthew Toussaint is originally from upstate New York. He has a background in Cultural Anthropology, where he conducted original ethnographic research on the emergence of ayahuasca shamanism in Western contexts. He first went to Peru to drink ayahuasca in 2008, and that experience was life-changing.

For the next six years Matthew continued to deepen his relationship with the plants until he relocated to Peru in 2014. Since then he has worked professionally with plant medicine in a variety of contexts: at two retreat centers, in private groups, and in one-on-one sessions. He teamed up with Maestro Alberto and Casa Del Maestro in 2021.

Matthew helps coordinate and manage the administration of our retreat programs, translates for guests, supports the guest experience, and serves as an apprentice to Maestro Alberto. He loves the work and is honored to share this medicine with the world.”

To learn more about or contact Matthew, visit their website at: https://www.casadelmaestromedicina.com/

To view the recent documentary about us, Sacred Tobacco, visit: https://youtu.be/KB0JEQALI_w

If you enjoy the show, it’s a big help if you can share it via social media or word of mouth. And please Subscribe or Follow and if you can go on Apple Podcasts and leave a starred-rating and a short review. This is super helpful with the algorithms and getting this show out to more people. Thank you in advance!

For more information about me and my upcoming plant medicine retreats with my colleague Merav Artzi, visit my site at: https://www.NicotianaRustica.org

To book an integration call with me, visit: https://jasongrechanik.setmore.com

Support this podcast on Patreon:

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Donate directly with PayPal:

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Music courtesy of: Nuno Moreno (end song). Visit: https://m.soundcloud.com/groove_a_zen_sound and https://nahira-ziwa.bandcamp.com/ And Stefan Kasapovski’s Santero Project (intro song). Visit: https://spoti.fi/3y5Rd4H

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Hey everybody! Episode 139 of the show is out. In this episode, I spoke with Seth Lorinczi. Seth is a writer who recently published a book entitled Death Trip: A Post-Holocaust Psychedelic Memoir. We spoke about his background, his involvement in the punk music scene in Washington D.C. and Portland, psychedelics and ayahuasca, MDMA therapy and how it saved his marriage, his book and journey of identity, ancestral and generational trauma, and many other topics. Seth has a really interesting story and a lot to share and I think you all will gain a lot from this interview. As always, to support this podcast, get early access to shows, bonus material, and Q&As, check out my Patreon page below. Enjoy!

This episode is sponsored by Real Mushrooms. As listeners, visit their website to enjoy a discount of 25% off your first order: https://www.realmushrooms.com/universe

“I’ve never been much of a joiner. After an early childhood trauma—the sudden death of my mother, when I was four—I found it hard to believe in much of anything. The election of Ronald Reagan, when I was nine, only underscored the feeling that the world didn’t make much sense. Then, when I was eleven, my school got funding to purchase new telescopes and the science teacher gave the battered old ones away to interested students. I was one of them, and that telescope changed my life.

Peering through the eyepiece and watching the surface of the Moon unroll itself before me, I felt a powerful sense of homecoming. Gazing at the terminator—the line that divides the light and dark sides of the Moon—I felt there was something here for me, a riddle I’d gazed at my whole life but never understood.

Ever since then I’ve been on a mission to explore this place, whether through psychedelics or my time in the D.C. punk scene. I sensed there was something beyond what I saw with my own two eyes, something that might explain the sense of unreality I’d felt ever since I was young.

What I was writing towards, I only see now, was a sense of belonging.”

To learn more about or contact Seth, visit his website at: https://www.sethlorinczi.com/

To view the recent documentary about us, Sacred Tobacco, visit: https://youtu.be/KB0JEQALI_w

If you enjoy the show, it’s a big help if you can share it via social media or word of mouth. And please Subscribe or Follow and if you can go on Apple Podcasts and leave a starred-rating and a short review. This is super helpful with the algorithms and getting this show out to more people. Thank you in advance!

For more information about me and my upcoming plant medicine retreats with my colleague Merav Artzi, visit my site at: https://www.NicotianaRustica.org

To book an integration call with me, visit: https://jasongrechanik.setmore.com

Support this podcast on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/UniverseWithin

Donate directly with PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/jasongrechanik

Music courtesy of: Nuno Moreno (end song). Visit: https://m.soundcloud.com/groove_a_zen_sound and https://nahira-ziwa.bandcamp.com/ And Stefan Kasapovski’s Santero Project (intro song). Visit: https://spoti.fi/3y5Rd4H

https://www.facebook.com/UniverseWithinPodcast

https://www.instagram.com/UniverseWithinPodcast

Hey everybody! Episode 138 of the show is out. In this episode, I spoke with Scott Stanley. Scott is the founder of the ayahuasca church, Arizona Yage Assembly (AYA) as well as the North American Association of Visionary Churches (NAAVC). I was interested to bring Scott on to speak about the legal status of plant sacraments in the US. I think Scott is a really good representative in that he has been involved in a legal battle with the US government over religious freedom and actually is suing the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) and seems to be in a good position. We spoke about his background, ayahuasca, the history of churches and religious freedom in the States, principles and morality, and why he’s involved in doing this work. I think its a very relevant conversation in regard to plant medicines and I hope you all find it insightful. As always, to support this podcast, get early access to shows, bonus material, and Q&As, check out my Patreon page below. Enjoy!

This episode is sponsored by Real Mushrooms. As listeners, visit their website to enjoy a discount of 25% off your first order: https://www.realmushrooms.com/universe

“Scott Stanley has spent some 15 years working with ayahuasca and Amazonian master plants. He has led over 500 ayahuasca ceremonies across the US, since founding the ayahuasca church, Arizona Yage Assembly (AYA) in 2015. He also founded the North American Association of Visionary Churches (NAAVC). Both organizations have sued the Drug Enforcement Agency to ensure free and legal access to the visionary practice of religion. His organizations have worked to bring combat vets into ayahuasca ceremonies through support of the veteran led AYA Mission. AYA has also started a nature conservancy for preserving the virgin rainforest of the upper amazon.AYA currently conducts bi-weekly ceremonies in their ceremonial maloca in Tucson, AZ.”

To learn more about or contact Scott, visit his website at: www.ayaguide.org

To view the recent documentary about us, Sacred Tobacco, visit: https://youtu.be/KB0JEQALI_w

If you enjoy the show, it’s a big help if you can share it via social media or word of mouth. And please Subscribe or Follow and if you can go on Apple Podcasts and leave a starred-rating and a short review. This is super helpful with the algorithms and getting this show out to more people. Thank you in advance!

For more information about me and my upcoming plant medicine retreats with my colleague Merav Artzi, visit my site at: https://www.NicotianaRustica.org

To book an integration call with me, visit: https://jasongrechanik.setmore.com

Support this podcast on Patreon:

https://www.patreon.com/UniverseWithin

Donate directly with PayPal:

https://www.paypal.me/jasongrechanik

Music courtesy of: Nuno Moreno (end song). Visit: https://m.soundcloud.com/groove_a_zen_sound and https://nahira-ziwa.bandcamp.com/ And Stefan Kasapovski’s Santero Project (intro song). Visit: https://spoti.fi/3y5Rd4H

https://www.facebook.com/UniverseWithinPodcast

https://www.instagram.com/UniverseWithinPodcast