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About In Person Ceremonies

 1. While Covid-19 is slowing down and the country has opened back up, we are aware that it is not "gone".  For that very reason, we are still taking certain safety precautions to keep our Members, our Clergy and ourselves safe, regardless of vaccinations.  We WILL still do a temperature and smell check on each person entering the building.  If you have a fever or loss of smell, you WILL NOT be allowed to attend the ceremony and will have to reschedule.  We are keeping our group sizes to no more than 6 (SIX) persons and we continue to use a UV light in our air handler to cleanse the air as it is pulled through.

 2.  Prior to reserving your seat in a Ceremony, we strongly advise you to do your homework about Ayahuasca!!!!  Also, please read through OUR website thoroughly, including the Frequently Asked Questions Page.  We ask that you follow the direction you find on OUR website and from OUR staff.  If you still have questions after you have done this, feel free to send Teri an email at Shamanista@ayaquest.com.  

 3.  Please understand if you sign up for a Group Ceremony that we cannot and will not turn off the music and/or lights until EVERY person is done with their journey for the night.  The music is a very integral part of the journey and the lights are a safety issue.  So, if this or people snoring or someone with a C-Pap machine or other sounds would cause a problem for you, you will need to either bring ear plugs (in case we are out) and/or an eye mask or get with Teri about  scheduling a Private Ceremony. 

 4.  Transportation to and from the Church is your responsibility.  We are in a rural area and there are no Lyft, Uber, Taxi or other transportation services so renting a car is going to be your best bet.

 5.  You should begin a VEGETARIAN diet at least one week prior to attending an in person ceremony or having a ceremony at home.  Eggs are okay, cheese (non aged) is okay, you just want to avoid meat, fermented foods and drinks, energy drinks, high amounts of caffeine, high amounts of sugar, foods high in tyramine  as well as  prescriptions, over the counter medications and herbs and/or supplements that have contraindications with MAOI's.  AVOID HIGH TYRAMINE FOODS!!!!!!!!!!  THESE INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:  AGED CHEESES (cheddar, blue, swiss, parmesan, feta, and Camembert), CURED AND/OR PROCESSED MEATS (Cured, smoked, or processed meats including dried sausages like pepperoni and salami, hot dogs, bologna, bacon, and smoked fish), PICKLED AND/OR FERMENTED VEGETABLES (sauerkraut, kimchi, pickled beets, pickled cucumbers, and pickled peppers, also tofu, miso, and soy sauce), CITRUS AND TROPICAL FRUITS (orange, grapefruit, lemon, lime, and tangerine as well as ripe bananas, pineapple, and avocado) and last but not least, ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.  

 6.  Roughly 5 days prior to your scheduled ceremony you will receive a reminder that it is upcoming and what to bring.  

 

 7.  We provide the Ceremony, Sacrament, water and snacks.  YOU are responsible for providing your own bedding (the beds are single sized roll-away), toiletries (meaning toothpaste, toothbrush, body wash, towels, etc.,).  IF YOU HAVE food allergies or dietary restrictions, you will need to bring your own snacks and food.  There is a refrigerator and a microwave on site, no stove.  DO NOT bring foods/drinks high in Tyramine (See #5 Above).  

 8.  Due to Covid-19 we WILL NOT supply pillows and/or blankets for use.  If you fail to bring them with you, you will be responsible for purchasing them prior to the start of the Ceremony.

 9.  The Church IS NOT OPEN before 4 PM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, so please, arrive STRICTLY between 4 and 5 PM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME.  In your planning you will need to take into account that we are 5 minutes from the Eastern/Central time zone change. 

10.  There are 2 ceremonies, one Friday and one Saturday and you are free to leave as early as 6 AM on Sunday.  If you are flying out of Louisville, please remember that our location is in CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, meaning it is one hour behind Louisville. 

11.  For safety reasons, you are not to eat or drink anything but water past 12 PM (this also means no chewing gum, mints, etc.) on Friday. Fasting IS NOT recommended by us.  We have found that when people have fasted, the majority of them find it hard to let go of their "hunger pains" and enjoy their experience and it can also make it harder for the body to work with the tea as well.     

12.  We begin as close to 5 PM Friday as we can for our first ceremony.  This ceremony is lighter ceremony that is meant to get you and Mother Aya acquainted; to allow you to experience a journey and learn to navigate and what to expect. 

13.  Saturday we begin as close to 2 PM as possible.  We also order Vegetarian pizza for dinner on Saturday for everyone, so if you have a Gluten allergy, you will need to let us know.  On Sunday, you are free to leave as early as 6 AM.  

14.  For safety reasons, everyone must stay at the Church.  It is (roughly) a 1000 square foot building with an open floor plan in the ceremony room and a separate room for talking and eating.

15.  You need to bring some comfortable clothes like shorts, sweat pants, yoga pants, pajama bottoms, etc..  They do not have to be a specific color or fabric, however the fewer buckles, snaps and zippers the better.  Skirts, dresses and short shorts are not appropriate attire and are not allowed.

16.  We DO NOT allow cell phones, tablets, or watch phones to be used during the Ceremony so we ask that you let your loved ones know that you have arrived and that you will be out of contact until the next morning so they don't worry.  All items will be locked in a lock box with a timer set for after the ceremony ends.

17.  We DO NOT allow MP3's or Ipod's.  We have music that we play that works in great unison with the Ayahuasca and we ask you to respect it. We also do not allow the use of gum or mints prior to or during a ceremony.   

18.  We can't tell you what your experience will be or how long it will last.  Ayahuasca is a very individual specific sacrament, however, we can tell you that the average journey lasts roughly 3-6 hours.  

19.  You are to listen to and respect our Clerical Staff.  They have the knowledge and experience to guide you safely and we will not allow them to be disrespected.  If you are not going to listen, we cannot help you, it's that simple.

 

20.  NONE of our ceremonies listed on the website are filmed for TV.  When filming happens, we use VOLUNTEERS ONLY.  

What to Expect as far as Purging

It seems most everyone worries about the purging.  First, there are many types of purging.  There are of course, the most common-vomiting and diarrhea, which actually occurs in only about half of our members.  The other types of purges include laughter, tears, talking, tremors and some people show no signs of purging at all.  Also, 80% of the time, purges occur with the onset of the journey and tend to last less than 2 hours.  We have and provide plenty of buckets though for those who do purge by vomiting and our clerical staff is there immediately with a clean bucket for you, to take the dirty one and clean and sanitize it. 

About Us

Steve Hupp- Founder and Chief Shaman 
Aya Quest Ayahuasca in America

Steve has worked with Ayahuasca for 15 yrs, trained by a Shaman from South America on how to work with Ayahuasca. He has spent much of that time working alone and experiencing many visions and enities that called him to found Aya Quest. Steve has led over 1000's of spiritual sessions with Mother Aya. Steve prefers a quiet and relaxed enviroment to allow Mother Aya to work her Magic and Healing.

 

"We will work together in your journey to help you achieve your goals." - S. Hupp

 

Since his first experience with Mother Aya as he likes to call "her" his life has changed dramaticly, looking back on it, he describes the change he has experienced as totally profound.

 

Steve says " I am living proof of the power of Ayahuasca, that if I can change, anyone can, because I was lost in materialism, drug abuse, alchoholism and pride which led me on a 5 yr bank robbing spree that ended with me in Federal Prison, which is where I met my first Shaman who was a Cell Mate, he was there on immigration issues and was awaiting deportation, we became friends and my odessy began. Ayahuasca is an amazing and powerful tool, but YOU must do the work one day at a time."

 

That was 15 yrs ago, Steve is an example of how low you can go and how high you can fly.

 

" I will show you where to look, but I will never tell you what to see. " 

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