Anyone who has read up on Ayahuasca – the sacramental brew from South America that contains class A hallucinogenic, DMT – will have often heard the stories of life changing experiences with ‘Mother Aya.’ Some speak of curing Heroin addiction, others report its therapeutic nature in aiding depression. Concocted within jungles like the Amazon, it is a toxic brew that is administered by a shaman or healer. Once consumed, the partaking individual may at first feel nausea but is then taken on a spiritual journey guided by a master ayahuascero to a place of higher knowledge: a completely transient existence. That is what is preached, but how can you know for sure that this will be the case? Such a potent and potentially life-changing brew is unimaginable to many softened Westeners, and if a shaman is necessary to guide users along the path leading to ‘Mother Aya,’ then what happens if Ayahuasca ends up in the wrong hands?

Last week a morbid news story gaped its way onto the Internet. A Chilean cult headed by Ramon Gustavo Castillo Gaete, had allegedly sacrificed his three-week-old child with mother Natalie Guerra on a bonfire after fastening the child’s mouth up with tape to silence its screams. The PDI – the Chilean police force – are conducting a major manhunt for Gaete and his mug shot has been posted on their most wanted page. “The baby was naked. They strapped tape around her mouth to keep her from screaming. Then they placed her on a board. After calling on the spirits they threw her on the bonfire alive,” said Miguel Ampuero of the Police Investigative Unit. The cult is apparently twelve members deep and all University educated. There has been speculation that Gaete controlled the group with Ayahuasca and was last seen buying components of the concoction in Peru.

There are a few facets of this case that flag up. Cult leaders using hallucinogenic to control their sect is nothing new, Charles Manson used LSD to seduce his ‘family’ so it would seem that this kind of intoxicated control could be plausible. However there is no sufficient evidence that this is the case. There have been a number of reports on many credible news channels such as the BBC, but it has also been reported from more questionable sources. Is this purely sensationalism at its worse, another tool in fear propaganda? Or is there genuine truth to the matter?

Graham Hancock, a British writer and journalist spoke at a TED Talk in Whitechapel about his experiences with Ayahuasca and ‘Mother Aya’ (who is considered to be the spirit that is contacted when under the drink’s influence). He suggests that taking this hallucinogenic “connects us with seemingly intelligent entities which communicate with us telepathically.” TED’s scientific advisors deemed his talk well outside of orthodox scientific thinking and the presentation was consequently taken down from the site. In the presentation he talks about shamans walking the earth in order to convert Westerners from their capitalist ways before it is too late to renew our ties with spiritualism. He claims this is spurred on by such problems such as the mass deforestation of the Amazon.

If the story of Gaete is sensationalism, it is the firsts step in tarnishing the name of Ayahuasca before it is even fully known to the mainstream media. The horrific crime has taken place, but whether Ayahuasca has been used is another aspect all on its own. Ayahuasca is powerful, and logically, under specifically negative guidance, surely it could be used for ‘brainwashing’ type rituals. Yet the prospect of a world community of enlightened Ayahuasca users would surely go against the capitalist, consumerist society we currently abide in.

Whatever the outcome, it’s important to keep in mind the type of people who may have influence over these kind of sensationalist reports. It’s wise to keep your sources credible and if it smells suspicious then try to get to the bottom of it before you open your mouth. It’s incredible that these kind of medicines have been around for centuries but their full potential and properties are still emerging to the Western world. There is inevitably far more positivity than negativity that shrouds this substance when in the right hands, but when linked to stories as abhorrent as this, it’s acceptance into society will surely be stunted.