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16 The Journal of Shamanic Practice VOLUME 5 ISSUE 2 FALL 2012 The reality nowadays is that the different medicine traditions are being mixed becoming a hybrid. The next generation of shamans emerging from the West as well as Peru have to be cross-pollinators. Peru is a melting pot of geographically different shamanic traditions San Pedro shamans from the arid coasts mountain shamans of the high Andes and jaguar shamans from the jungles. Modern day Peruvian shamans are mixing these spiritual systems in various ways. You cannot just use one system one tool one approach. There are many approaches. Because of progress because of modern communication you cannot just use the mountain system based upon Inka cosmology. The Qero is one of many native Quechua ethnic groups. There are a number of different Quechua groups throughout the Andes Mountains. The long and massive mountain range has not only created diversity but also cultural styles in all the different deep valleys and high mountain steppes. I love the mountain system because it does not rely on psychotropic medicines. Its clear. But getting to that level of clarity is a different ballgame. It is an uphill battle for a lot of us to be living in that energy in our contemporary urban lives with that degree of serenity like the shamans do here with a degree of clarity as well. Bryon I am aware that the Altomesayoks are the master shamans and only are a tiny fraction of the larger group of shamans practicing Peruvian medicine today. Peru- vian shamanism also includes Pampame- sayoks visionaries mystics and healers who each share a global vision with a desire to create a better word for humanity through living in right-relationship with the land. Don Manuels vision of the new shamans emerging from the West included all of these individuals not just the Altomesayoks. Altomesayoks take on an incredibly difcult training process. They have given up the se- duction of city to become channels in service of the Apus and are chosen directly by the mountain spirits. For those of us willing to make the commitment to train to become Altomesayoks who wish to carry on the tradition of working with the Apus what do you tell us to do Herrera As the medicine people say it takes heart. The approach is very simple if your heart is collective enough. It sounds simple but this is a tremendous undertak- ing. You begin with serving the collective the spirit energy of all living things and through working with the collective you heal the individual person. In the West our approach is to heal ourselves rst and then heal others which also works. Becom- ing an Altomesayok is a big undertaking particularly for those whose guiding mythol- ogy is based on individuality. Don Manuel had the strong belief that one should be able to embody the collective the lineage of Paqos the lineage of the land the lineage of moun- tain angels or Apus. With this kind of embodiment then you can serve the col- lective and conversely the collective can serve in your healing and transformation. Bryon So for Westerners the next phase is working with collective experience. Herrera Yes but it is more than having visionary experience. It is important to grow corn with the experience you have brought back to the village. The focus is the col- lective goal living in right-relationship with the land with our communities and ourselves. One way to participate in the collective is to exercise vision of wholeness and well-being for all. The vision has to be fed constantly so it becomes an active part of our lives. When the vision germinates the fruits will always come home into our villages our homes. It will feed our people. First we need to map our sense of self identity in the world our journey as a person. Second we need to identify our place actively in the collective. Bryon Is the collective goal to try to save the earth and to work on connecting the energy Herrera In the West the collective goal is that we believe that we need to save ourselves. We have a deep shadow aspect in our lives that requires healing. We are always striving toward something rather than living in connection with Pacham- ama. We want to either save the earth or save ourselves. But more importantly more than saving ourselves or saving the earth we need to reformulate our guiding myths on being in right-relationship with the land and ourselves. In the mountain shamans cosmo-vision theres nothing to be saved only creating a relationship with the collec- tive of high reciprocity and great love. The task of the shaman is to nd his or her place in the land and creation. When an intimate relationship with the land takes place and the shaman ceases to identify as a sole individual but instead as an active part and conduit of the collective of the land. For example the Apu mountain spirits are collective entities and Altome- sayok shamans identify themselves as part of the mountain collective. In time and with effort these shamans are able to acquire larger proportions of mountain medicine. Bryon It seems that you are making a distinction between the Western sense of the collective goal and the Qero sense of the collective goal. Is the collective goal of the Qero to live in ayni high reciprocity gratitude and great love with all things and then to live the personal goal fully Herrera The shaman needs to be in right-relationship in ayni at all times with the universe. The shamans ayni grows when his or her intent increases through love and purity. Then the universe mirrors this intent and reciprocates twofold. When shamans cease to inform themselves from a personal frame of reference and the col- lective perspective becomes their identity then the goal becomes to provide minka or collective ayni and to become the collective embodiment of right-relationship. What I love about the Qero is they believe in living life to the fullest. We dont need to save anything not the land or ourselves. Walk in ayni with the land water the land live life to the fullest.