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Storming Heaven: The Healers and Sages of the Andes

Dr. Alberto Villoldo had come to study the sages of the Andes, the last of the wisdom keepers that many believed had vanished at the time of the Spanish Conquest of Peru. They had only been “re-discovered” recently by his colleague, Dr. Chavez Ballon, then chief archeologist at Machu Picchu. He was joining these sages on their annual pilgrimage to Mt. Ausagate. Right before the final ascent to the glacier, they removed their ponchos and tied-on strings of Spanish moss, as they danced ecstatically masquerading as the mythical ‘pre-worldly beings’ that once roamed their land. Some would die as they gyrated at the summit of the nearly 21,000 foot-high glacier.

In this richly illustrated presentation Alberto will share the cosmology of the Andean peoples, the concept of ‘ayni’ or right relationship, and the magical world view of the shamans who live pre-Columbian in villages above the clouds in central Peru. He has spent more than 25 years studying the Andean paq’os.

The Andean sages believe that they can dream with their eyes open, and conjure the world into being newly each day. Alberto will share his images and experiences traveling with sages who were masters of the art of divination and of reading the signs of destiny.

Alberto Villoldo Ph.D. FN ’15 is a psychologist and medical anthropologist who has studied the medicine traditions of the Andes and the Amazon for over thirty years. He began his research among the jungle peoples in the Amazon basin, studying the effects of the ayahuasca, the mythical potion employed by jungle shamans to experience the realm beyond death.











When: Mon., May. 9, 2016 at 6:00 pm
Where: The Explorers Club
46 E. 70th St.
212-628-8383
Price: $25
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Dr. Alberto Villoldo had come to study the sages of the Andes, the last of the wisdom keepers that many believed had vanished at the time of the Spanish Conquest of Peru. They had only been “re-discovered” recently by his colleague, Dr. Chavez Ballon, then chief archeologist at Machu Picchu. He was joining these sages on their annual pilgrimage to Mt. Ausagate. Right before the final ascent to the glacier, they removed their ponchos and tied-on strings of Spanish moss, as they danced ecstatically masquerading as the mythical ‘pre-worldly beings’ that once roamed their land. Some would die as they gyrated at the summit of the nearly 21,000 foot-high glacier.

In this richly illustrated presentation Alberto will share the cosmology of the Andean peoples, the concept of ‘ayni’ or right relationship, and the magical world view of the shamans who live pre-Columbian in villages above the clouds in central Peru. He has spent more than 25 years studying the Andean paq’os.

The Andean sages believe that they can dream with their eyes open, and conjure the world into being newly each day. Alberto will share his images and experiences traveling with sages who were masters of the art of divination and of reading the signs of destiny.

Alberto Villoldo Ph.D. FN ’15 is a psychologist and medical anthropologist who has studied the medicine traditions of the Andes and the Amazon for over thirty years. He began his research among the jungle peoples in the Amazon basin, studying the effects of the ayahuasca, the mythical potion employed by jungle shamans to experience the realm beyond death.

Buy tickets/get more info now