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Product Description The Ayahuasca Test Pilots Handbook provides a practical guide to ayahuasca use, aiding seekers in making right—and safe—decisions about where to go, who to drink with, and what to expect. Ayahuasca, the Amazonian psychoactive plant brew, has become vastly popular. Once the sole purview of shamans and indigenous native people in the great Amazon rainforest, ayahuasca is now becoming well known—and widely used—around the globe. Today, foreigners from all over the world flock in ever-burgeoning numbers to the steamy Amazon, drinking bitter ayahuasca with shamans and curanderos in order to access its potent healing and spirit-enlivening effects. What began as a mere trickle of visitors in the 1980s has become a surging riptide of seekers. Chris Kilham (Fox News's "Medicine Hunter") has worked closely with South American shamans for two decades and has sat in ayahuasca ceremonies with at least 20 different shamans. Through his "Ayahuasca Test Pilots" program, Kilham has brought numerous people to the Amazon to engage in ceremonies with maestro ayahuasceros. Clear, concise, straightforward, and well informed, The Ayahuasca Test Pilots Handbook is an indispensable guide for anyone curious about this unusual plant medicine. Review “Ayahuasca is the vision vine, the plant of the gods, the most powerful tool in the repertoire of the shaman of the Northwest Amazon. More and more people from all corners of the world are discovering its wonder. It's not a simple thing, and certainly not for the fainthearted; taking ayahuasca is a chance to tear open the placenta of ordinary reality and emerge transformed. This is a book that can help you on the journey." —Wade Davis, author of One River "In the engaging style that those familiar with Chris Kilham's work have come to know and love, the Medicine Hunter provides a dense but entertaining overview of the magic Amazonian brew ayahuasca. He discusses the history, botany, chemistry, pharmacology and ethnographic context of ayahuasca, and and, true to the spirit of the title, gives readers an informative 'flight manual' describing the physical and psychological effects of the brew. Kilham also describes the dimensions and entities ayahuasca voyagers can expect to encounter in their shamanic explorations and provides a few pointers on how to keep their spirit ship sailing smoothly. The Ayahuasca Test Pilots Handbook is an excellent introduction for those new to the ayahuasca experience and a solid reference for grizzled veterans. Highly recommended!" —Dennis McKenna, author of Brotherhood of the Screaming Abyss “Chris Kilham writes convincingly and eloquently about some of his—and my—favorite medicinal plants from the Amazonian rainforest, my ‘second home’ for nearly twenty-five years. Like Chris, I have a great respect for the ayuahuasca, the entheogen.” —Dr. Jim Duke, author of Herbistatins and The Green Pharmacy "Chris Kilham continues to shine the light on nature’s medicines. In this book, he has provided the ayahuasca traveler with an essential and practical guide that is well-informed, personal, and fun. I highly recommend this book to those who want to learn from the wisdom of the plants.” —Joe Tafur, MD “People testing ayahuasca will gain much from reading this book before take-off. Chris Kilham knows his plants, his writing is fun, and the book itself is packed with knowledge.” —Jeremy Narby, author of The Cosmic Serpent “A worthy primer for anyone interested in learning about ayahuasca. Well researched, well written, on target. Chris Kilham has added another important book to the ayahuasca bookshelf.” —Peter Gorman, author of Ayahuasca in My Blood—25 Years of Medicine Dreaming "Chris Kilham is one of the world’s leading advocates of the medicinal use of traditional Amazonian ayahuasca. This book unveils the mysteries surrounding Ayahuasca and provides a strong foundation for anyone interested in journeying to the Amazon to participate in these extraordinary c