A CPACT cultural immersion elective
Peru Dieta: Pacha Tinkuay
An encounter of the worlds
Pacha Tinkuay translates to "encounter of the worlds" or "integration of realms", symbolising the alignment of the three primary realms in Andean cosmology. It is a twelve-day cultural immersion dieta retreat held deep in the Peruvian Amazon, alongside training in preparation and integration, and a certificate that can be completed on its own.
The journey
A dieta held with rigour and reverence
Blending research-backed methods with ancient Indigenous wisdom, the Pacha Tinkuay program offers participants a deeply personal dieta experience alongside training in preparation and integration. Ideal for therapists, students, and allied health professionals, it provides the opportunity to experience dieta while learning evidence-informed techniques for supporting clients in altered states of consciousness.
The retreat is held at the Piompiri Healing Centre near Pucallpa, Peru, with First Nations curanderos of the Asháninka lineage. It runs across twelve days and one hundred hours of in-person immersion, woven throughout by the SWIM model and the EMPATHS values that shape every Anam Cara program.
Rather than abandoning our own traditions, we weave them together, bridging worlds with both rigour and reverence to cultivate mutual respect and holistic healing.
Backed by research
Grounded in study, co-designed with community
The Pacha Tinkuay program is based on Dr Alana (Lani) Roy's research into Australian vegetalista ayahuasca dieteros. Her Swinburne University study included sixty-five hours of interviews with thirty-five participants, focusing on the dieta experience, preparation, cultural context, and integration.
From this, a harm reduction toolkit was co-designed with the dietero community to support safe and meaningful journeys with master plants.
Grounded in wisdom
Meeting a living tradition with respect
As Westerners engaging with ancient plant medicine traditions, it is essential to do so with respect and cultural sensitivity. Pacha Tinkuay offers a rare opportunity to learn from Indigenous curanderos while integrating their wisdom with modern, evidence-informed approaches.
We create a safe, supportive space for both personal and professional growth, helping participants navigate altered states and integrate those experiences into everyday life. We honour the teachings of curanderos while weaving them into our own lives.
The land and its keepers
Photographs from the Amazon
Program inclusions
Two intertwined offerings
The dieta retreat and the certificate can be journeyed together, or the certificate can be completed on its own.
Peru Cultural Immersion Dieta Retreat
In-person, Pucallpa, Peru
This immersive retreat offers a rare opportunity to experience the profound practice of dieta, guided by Indigenous curanderos in the heart of Peru. Rooted in ancient wisdom and modern psychological insight, it gives participants the chance to deepen their spiritual connection, engage in traditional ceremonies, and explore the rich cultural heritage of plant medicine.
Dieta Preparation & Integration Certificate
In-person plus self-paced online
This training certification in dieta preparation and integration is designed for therapists, students, and allied health professionals who want to deepen their understanding of altered states and support others in their journeys. If you have completed your dieta, or are seeking to complete it through someone else, you can take the certificate on its own, without the Peru retreat.
Within the retreat
- Medicine-assisted practices to guide deep inner exploration
- Engagement with a non-psychoactive master plant to help cleanse and align energy with the plant medicine
- Asháninka lineage ceremonies and icaros
- Dietary simplicity to cleanse the body and prepare for deep work
Certificate requirements
- Three preparation sessions and three integration sessions, held in person
- Six self-paced online modules
- A comprehensive Dietero Toolkit and access to the Anam Cara learning platform
- Ongoing guidance for preparation, integration, and harm reduction
Feeling called to dieta?
What Pacha Tinkuay offers you
A deeply personal dieta
An experience that supports both inner transformation and your professional work with altered states of consciousness.
Grit and grace
The capacity to navigate your dieta journey, weaving ancient wisdom into daily life for personal and collective growth.
A deepened connection
To your own experience, the plants, and the icaros; learning to integrate their teachings beyond ceremony, into both personal life and clinical practice.
Tools for solo journeys
Activating your voice, intuition, and medicine in service of your clients and community.
A living toolkit
A comprehensive Dietero Toolkit and Anam Cara learning platform as an ongoing guide for preparation, integration, and harm reduction.
Strengthened capacity
To ethically support others in psychedelic and ceremonial spaces, grounded in lived experience, cultural awareness, and evidence-informed tools.
The shape of the days
A twelve-day arc
One hundred hours of in-person immersion, moving from arrival through ceremony to closing and integration.
- Day 1Arrival
Arrival and orientation in Pucallpa, settling into the rhythm of the land and one another.
- Day 2Opening
The opening ceremony, welcoming participants into the container of the dieta.
- Days 3–10Deep work
Three medicine-assisted ceremonies held by the curanderos, each followed by integration days to rest, reflect, and let insight settle into the body.
- Day 11Closing
The closing council, gathering the threads of the journey and honouring what has moved.
- Day 12Departure
Departure, carrying the teachings homeward into ongoing integration and practice.
The curanderos and their lineage
Held by the Asháninka
The retreat is guided by First Nations curanderos of the Asháninka lineage at the Piompiri Healing Centre in Pucallpa, carrying more than twenty years in curanderismo and the Amazonian traditional healing arts. Their ceremonies and icaros are the heart of the immersion.
Alongside them, the program is facilitated by Dr Alana (Lani) Roy, and translation is held by Maria Alejandra Gonzalez Bueno, a native Spanish speaker and biomedical scientist who interprets throughout the retreat so that meaning can move faithfully between worlds.
An elective within the certificate
Part of the CPACT pathway
Pacha Tinkuay is one of six contemplative electives within the Certificate of Psychedelic and Contemplative Therapies. It contributes one hundred hours toward the elective portion of CPACT, and can also be completed standalone and later recognised as Recognised Prior Learning.
Feeling the call of the Amazon?
Places on the Peru Dieta are limited and held with care. Begin a conversation with our intake team to learn about dates, pricing, and preparation.