Kambo is a traditional medicine used by a few indigenous groups living in the Amazon basin. Considered as a jungle vaccine, Kambo is collected from the Phyllomedusa Bicolor frog and revered by tribes as a powerful medium of cleansing.
Kambo is becoming more and more popular outside of the jungle, but lots of questions remain so we asked Andrea Ferrara- an experienced Kambo facilitator- to talk in depth about his journey with the medicine.
-How did you meet the Kambo medicine?
Andrea: I went in touch with the Kambo rituals where in the Brazilian forest, in a remote village close to Manaus. I didn’t mean to search for the medicine at that time, but I met one of the chiefs of the Katukina indigenous community and so I was coincidently introduced.
-How is your relationship with Kambo and how do you relate to people receiving it?
A: The Kambo medicine radically changed the whole perspective of my life experience on earth. It has been a strong self- discovery in many different ways and now represents the core of my research and work.
Most of the people come accross the medicine by their own, for casual circumstances or through medias, since now the all benefits of Kambo are quite known.
-Could you mention a particular situation that impressed you during your path as a facilitator?
A: In many cases I experienced the concrete proof of the effectiveness of Kambo. Everyday I witness its meaningful purpose and power. Many people get healed or find back the vigour or enter an intense journey to meet the inner- self.
-Right now, how is the state of Kambo rituals within the tribes who traditionally use it?
A: Unfortunately, the use of the medicine is strongly decreased within the indigenous tribes. There are currently about 30 tribes which actively use it. Not many, indeed.
-In your opinion, is there any risk of globalization phenomena like the Ayahusca case?
A: Kambo has already reached a certain popularity in a similar trend of Ayahuasca. It is now a rising phenomena. There are several associations with a strong gerarchy which train future generations of facilitators, but the sad part of the story is that no one of these organizations is supporting the indigenous tribes. They are money machines with not a lot of respect for the sacredness of rituals and the work of the Kambo collectors.
-Do you think this can affect the state of preservation of the frog?
A: In Peru there is an association particularly involved in the conservation of the Phillomedusa frog and this is a necessary step to take. Generally speaking, it is also essential to preserve the immense wisdom and ancestral knowledge of the Matses groups.
-How people can be educated on the correct use of Kambo without exploiting this sacred medicine?
A: As facilitators, we need to get people more involved in the real aspects of Kambo. The contribution of the indigenous tribes to the Kambo medicine, their efforts, the long process of extracting the medicine and the community perspective and wisdom have to be known, because this is the core of Kambo.
Participants need to comprehend how to correctly approach the medicine as a part of their experience and they need to demand for ethics and reliability.
-What’s your opinion on the medicinal applications of Kambo?
A: Kambo embraces a huge variety of medical applications. Its peculiar chemical cocktail made primarily of active peptides, gives an intense physical state of wellbeing and restores the body. We need to remind ouselves that Kambo acts as a powerful antibiotic, antiinflammatory and natural analgesic. One of the most effective known to men.
Kambo spreads beyond the physical realm. Its magic happens with the extraordinary cleansing, the purga. These 10 intense minutes of reset able to remove the ‘panema’, the heaviness of vital force with all the unpleasant feelings of unbalance, sickness and psychological pain. Many persons around the world are suffering this lack of vitality and creativity. Depression, mood swings, sense of unbalance and anxiety. Kambo is able to unblock a series of emotional knots in a very personal way. Like a precise scanner would tap into the right points.
The healing occurs synergistically.
-What’s the spiritual and emotional impact on human life?
A: When the Kambo spirit is transmitted accordingly to the ancestral tradition, it reveals all of its power. Great sense of lucidity, awareness, courage and energy.