Chronicling the practices, legends, and wisdom of the vanishing traditions of the upper Amazon, this book reveals the area's indigenous peoples' approach to living in harmony with the natural world. Rainforest Medicine features in-depth essays on plant-based medicine and indigenous science from four distinct Amazonian societies: deep forest and urban, lowland rainforest and mountain. The book is illustrated with unique botanical and cultural drawings by Secoya elder and traditional healer Agustin Payaguaje and horticulturalist Thomas Y. Wang as well as by the author himself. Payaguaje shares his sincere imaginal view into the spiritual life of the Secoya; plates of petroglyphs from the sacred valley of Cotundo relate to an ancient language, and other illustrations show traditional Secoya ayahuasca symbols and indigenous origin myths. Two color sections showcase photos of the plants and people of the region, and include plates of previously unpublished full-color paintings by Pablo Cesar Amaringo (1938-2009), an acclaimed Peruvian artist renowned for his intricate, colorful depictions of his visions from drinking the entheogenic plant brew, ayahuasca ("vine of the soul" in Quechua languages). Today the once-dense mysterious rainforest realms are under assault as the indiscriminate colonial frontier of resource extraction moves across the region; as the forest disappears, the traditional human legacy of sustainable utilization of this rich ecosystem is also being buried under modern realities. With over 20 years experience of ground-level environmental and cultural conservation, author Jonathon Miller Weisberger's commitment to preserving the fascinating, unfathomably precious relics of the indigenous legacy shines through. Chief among these treasures is the "shimmering" "golden" plant-medicine science of ayahuasca or yajé, a rainforest vine that was popularized in the 1950s by Western travelers such as William Burroughs and Alan Ginsberg. It has been sampled, reviled, and celebrated by outsiders ever since. Currently sought after by many in the industrialized West for its powerful psychotropic and life-transforming effects, this sacred brew is often imbibed by visitors to the upper Amazon and curious seekers in faraway venues, sometimes with little to no working knowledge of its principles and precepts. Perceiving that there is an evident need for in-depth information on ayahuasca if it is to be used beyond its traditional context for healing and spiritual illumination in the future, Miller Weisberger focuses on the fundamental knowledge and practices that guide the use of ayahuasca in indigenous cultures. Weaving first-person narrative with anthropological and ethnobotanical information, Rainforest Medicine aims to preserve both the record and ongoing reality of ayahuasca's unique tradition and, of course, the priceless forest that gave birth to these sacred vines. Featuring words from Amazonian shamans--the living torchbearers of these sophisticated spiritual practices--the book stands as testimony to this sacred plant medicine's power in shaping and healing individuals, communities, and nature alike.

In the mysterious and pristine forests of the tropics, a wealth of ethnobotanical panaceas and shamanic knowledge promises cures for everything from cancer and AIDS to the common cold. To access such miracles, we need only to discover and protect these medicinal treasures before they succumb to the corrosive forces of the modern world. A compelling biocultural story, certainly, and a popular perspective on the lands and peoples of equatorial latitudes—but true? Only in part. In The Ethnobotany of Eden, geographer Robert A. Voeks unravels the long lianas of history and occasional strands of truth that gave rise to this irresistible jungle medicine narrative. By exploring the interconnected worlds of anthropology, botany, and geography, Voeks shows that well-intentioned scientists and environmentalists originally crafted the jungle narrative with the primary goal of saving the world’s tropical rainforests from destruction. It was a strategy deployed to address a pressing environmental problem, one that appeared at a propitious point in history just as the Western world was taking a more globalized view of environmental issues. And yet, although supported by science and its practitioners, the story was also underpinned by a persuasive mix of myth, sentimentality, and nostalgia for a long-lost tropical Eden. Resurrecting the fascinating history of plant prospecting in the tropics, from the colonial era to the present day, The Ethnobotany of Eden rewrites with modern science the degradation narrative we’ve built up around tropical forests, revealing the entangled origins of our fables of forest cures.

"One of the best pieces of ethnomusicological research of the last ten years. Roseman shows just how central musical ideas and practices are to a way of knowing and imagining the world, to a way of transforming ordinary experiences, and to penetrating belief systems more broadly."—Steven Feld, University of Texas, Austin "An exciting contribution to interpretive medical anthropology. Moving analytically between Temiar cultural constrictions of illness and health, and the humanely organized sounds of healing ceremonies, Roseman explicates the culural logic whereby aesthetic configurations participate in a comprehensive, therapeutically effective pattern of reality. This author has brocaded medical anthropology with ethnomusicology, producing a shimmering postmodern ethnographic tapestry of great subtlety and strength."—Barbara Tedlock, SUNY, Buffalo

"Jungle Medicine" is a story of medicine and magic. The author, Connie Grauds, is a pharmacist and a shamana. She stands with her feet firmly planted in two very different worlds...the world of the rational and the world of the irrational. "Jungle Medicine" is a memoir of the author's decade of shamanic apprenticeship in the jungles of Peru. This book takes the reader on a vivid personal journey into deep jungle medicine and magic.

A doctor's astounding story of promising new treatments from the rainforests of Brazil for diseases that compromise the immune system. During a working visit to Brazil, Dr. Thomas David was given a packet of leaves and bark by a native patient as thanks for his work, and a shaman gave him a recipe for a tea used by the rainforest people to treat a variety of ailments. Dr. David began using these plants in his clinical research in Europe and soon discovered that they were producing amazing results among patients suffering from cancer, AIDS, and other diseases that compromise the immune system. Preliminary studies performed at Stanford and Harvard have substantiated his findings, bringing Dr. David international attention for his groundbreaking work. Dr. David's story is significant not only for its account of research that may herald a major breakthrough in curing diseases that have been the scourge of the modern world, but also for its emphasis on the vast and largely unrecognized pharmacopoeia of the rainforest that is in imminent danger of being lost forever.

Rainforests contain an amazing abundance of plant life. What's most exciting is that scientists and researchers have only just begun to uncover the medicinal qualities of these plants, which offer new approaches to health and healing. "The Healing Power of Rainforest Herbs is a valuable guide to these herbs and their uses. Detailing more than fifty rainforest botanicals, this book provides preparation instructions, presents the history of the herbs' uses by indigenous peoples, and describes current usage by natural health practitioners throughout the world. Helpful tables provide a quick guide for choosing the most appropriate botanicals for specific ailments. Here is a unique book that offers a blend of ancient and modern knowledge in an accessible reference format.

The work of Rosita Arvigo and Michael Balick to bring the knowledge of the Mayan healers to the Western reader deserves due credit. This revised and enlarged second edition includes much additional information about the major herbs in the Mayan pharmacopoeia. Their work proves that the rainforest has more value to mankind alive than cut down