Healing and curaderism in the Andes

“They have another kind of huacas that are called vilcas… They heal and purge themselves with it and are also buried with it in most provinces of this kingdom. It should be noted that some wood or stone carvings resembling sheep, and with a hole as in an inkwell (which is where this vilca is pulverized), must be found and destroyed. This is called vilcana, and it is adored and revered. This vilcanas are made out of many different beautiful stones and strong woods. They have many other types of vilcas, especially purgatives.”

The San Pedro or wachuma (Trichocereus pachanoi), very abundant in the north and center of Peru, is a cactus with numerous branches that can reach up to six meters in height. Mescaline is the main psychoactive alkaloid present in this plant. The oldest evidence of the use of the San Pedro is from eight thousand years ago in the Peruvian highlands (Cueva Guitarrero) and also on the central coast of Peru, with dates bordering on four millennia (Las Aldas). Later, it appears profusely represented in the ceramic, lithic and textile art of the Cupisnique and Chavín cultures of the Central Andes. The San Pedro cactus remains central to current healing traditions in northern Peru. Its use contributes to the balance, transformation and acquisition of power of the shaman.

Extracto del documental Eduardo, The Healer (Northern coast of Perú), de Douglas Sharon y Richard Cowan, 1977, © The Pennsylvania State University, EEUU.