Review: 'Ayahuasca, Ritual and Religion in Brazil'

Originally published in 2010 'Ayahuasca, Ritual and Religion in Brazil' is a collection of essays and articles, edited by Beatriz Caiuby Labate and Edward MacRae, on the emergence of ayahuasca-using religious movements in Brazil. Many of the articles are available for the first time in English and as a collection it represents a wide range of approaches on the topic, generally derived from the human sciences.

The story of the Brazilian ayahuasca-using religions finds its roots in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century when migrant workers, on the rubber plantations in the Acre area of Brazil, came into contact with the indigenous, Amazonian peoples. A combination of the local shamanic practice of ayahuasca use, elements of Catholicism and the emerging Afro-Brazilian religions, helped create a hotbed of spiritual movement in Brazil, which continues to evolve and expand to this day. This collection of anthropological writings seeks to help fill the gap of English-language research in the area, which to date is relatively sparse. And as these movements begin to make inroads into North America and Europe, these articles are timely in helping to develop the groundwork for a more global understanding.