Los jardines de plantas medicinales del Bosque Curativo se basan en la agrosilvicultura adaptativa de los Matsés. Muchas de las vides y hongos medicinales que los Matsés utilizan para curarse no crecen en jardines expuestos al sol fuera de sus casas y requieren ecosistemas de selva tropical para su propagación. Para trasplantar y establecer con éxito las plantas de la selva tropical in situ se requiere una comprensión magistral de estos complejos ecosistemas.

Para una persona ajena al lugar, un bosque curativo podría parecer una franja de selva tropical anodina a lo largo de un sendero que lleva a sus granjas, a unos 10 o 15 minutos a pie de su aldea. En presencia de un maestro chamán Matsés que señala las plantas medicinales, uno se da cuenta en un momento de que, de hecho, está rodeado por una constelación de plantas medicinales cultivadas por los curanderos Matsés para su uso en el tratamiento de una diversa gama de dolencias. La ubicación del bosque curativo a 10 o 15 minutos de sus aldeas es una eficacia característica de los Matsés. Si tienes un hijo enfermo, no quieres tener que viajar 4 horas para encontrar el remedio'.

Dr. Christopher Herndon, Presidente y Cofundador de Acaté Amazon Conservation.

La idea de los bosques curativos no es un concepto ajeno, sino que se elabora a partir de prácticas tradicionales similares de los Matsés desde que se asentaron por primera vez tras el contacto inicial con el mundo exterior en la década de 1970.

Antes éramos seminómadas e íbamos al bosque a recolectar plantas. En los años 80 empezamos a quedarnos en un pueblo, así que mi padre empezó a gestionar un jardín donde se reunían todas las plantas. Ahora esta idea se está llevando a cabo en otros pueblos, con aprendices que aprenden el conocimiento de las plantas.

Antonio Manquid, Anciano Matsés.

Antonio transmite ahora los conocimientos de su padre y es un maestro influyente para los matsés más jóvenes en el proyecto del bosque curativo. Antonio ofrece sus consejos a muchos aprendices Matsés que están interesados en aprender los conocimientos medicinales tradicionales no sólo en su pueblo sino también en las comunidades vecinas.

Antes de las iniciativas de Acaté, ninguno de los chamanes matsés más ancianos que quedaban tenía aprendices para transmitir sus conocimientos ancestrales de la selva tropical acumulados durante incontables generaciones. Todo su saber curativo ancestral estaba indiscutiblemente a punto de perderse para siempre. Ahora, cinco años después, los Matsés han creado la primera enciclopedia medicinal indígena de la historia, aclamada en todo el mundo, han terminado un segundo volumen el año pasado y han restaurado los bosques curativos en más de la mitad de sus aldeas.

Estamos viendo a jóvenes hombres y mujeres matsés, que se enfrentan constantemente al racismo y la discriminación en sus interacciones con el mundo exterior, emerger como líderes con un renovado orgullo por su cultura y la determinación de continuar el orgulloso legado de su pueblo".

Dr. Christopher Herndon, Presidente y Cofundador de Acaté Amazon Conservation.

Nënë is the Matsés word for tobacco and is traditionally taken in powdered form. Like other cultural practices, the influence of outside contact in the 1970's has led to a decrease in the use of traditional plants and medicines.

Nënë has various uses, from supplying energy while traversing the jungle to serving as a tool to open conversations, tell stories, and pass on oral knowledge. In its tobacco snuff form, which involved the use of a tube fashioned from bamboo, it was also used in the transferrence of energy, from that of an elder man's courage and marksmanship to a younger man.

"Uesnid canite" is the Matsés name for the curassow bone, which is used to make another form of pipe to inhale the Nënë. The pipe is fabricated by joining two leg bones of the curassow bird at a 45-degree angle. Chambira fibre is then used to firmly tie the bones together before beeswax is applied on top to create a strong moulded hold and seal.

"The nënë has to be taken up both nostrils in order to keep a balance."

Jorge Shabac, jefe de los Matsés y maestro fabricante de "uesnid canite".

Daniel is one of many Matsés elders who still produce and use Nënë but like many other ancestral practices it is rare for the younger generation to be engaged in the Nënë tradition.

We documented the whole process with Daniel, first going to his chakra to collect the tobacco leaves, which he harvests 4 times a year, giving sufficient time for the plants to replenish.

On route back to the village, he collects bark from a species of wild cacao tree (called "senad dëbiate" in Matsés or "cacahuillo" in local Spanish; (sp. Theobroma subincanum). The bark gets burnt so that later its ashes get added to the tobacco snuff. The ash has no physiological effect alone, but functions to release the alkaloids from the tobacco, making its effects quicker and more intense.

The central veins are removed from the leaves before being placed on a readily made frame above an open fire. The cacahuillo bark is also added on top to dry alongside the tobacco leaves.

The leaves are now crumbled and mixed by hand with the ashes of the cacahuillo bark. Finally, the powder is put in a bamboo mortar before being smashed repeatedly with a wooden pestle until it forms into a very fine powder. The final step is to sift the powder to remove any large particles.

Kambo:

"Acaté' is the name of the NGO (Acaté Amazon Conservation) who we and the Matsés work with but the organization was named for the word in the Matsés language for a large and poisonous tree frog found throughout the northern Amazon. The acaté frog (Latin name: Phyllomedusa bicolor) plays a key role in Matsés culture, through hunting ceremonies and also its history in Matsés mythology, showing how they learnt to hunt. Below is an elder’s account of the legend.

'Before the rubber boom, the Matsés made peaceful contact with a tribe called Camumbos (meaning ‘The Jaguar People’). The Camumbos taught the Matsés to make and use bows and arrows. Before that, the Matsés used blowguns for hunting. The Camumbos also taught the Matsés to use the poison from the acaté frog, which was part of their hunting culture. The frog venom was applied to give hunters better marksmanship and make them more energetic. The Camumbos are also the ones from whom the Matsés copied their facial tattoos and the men’s facial ornaments."

Daniel Bai - Anciano Matsés.

Acaté, which is also known as "sapo" or "kambo" has been traditionally used by the Matsés for generations. This jungle tradition is generally practised by Matsés men in order to improve their hunting prowess and strength. The acaté is generally taken on rainy days as the energy and marksmanship is expected to be long-lasting. Hence, the benefits of acaté are for future hunts when the weather is dry, and also for having energy for other types of work. Acaté also has a role in knowledge or skill transmission, for example, if a hunter is down on his luck for a period of time on bringing back game, he will ask one of the best hunters to apply acaté venom to him.

The frog, which is easy to find due to its distinctive voice, gets tied and stretched out onto a quickly made rectangular frame. After some minutes of aggravating and disturbing the frog with small sticks, the frog, in defence, would produce a sticky secretion through the skin, which is collected and stored on a carved stick for future ritual use. The frog is then released back to the jungle, unharmed.

The secretion of the frog is most commonly applied to superficial burns on the arm or chest. The effects are strong, the poison enters the body, and a short-lived but intense heightened heart rate, struggle, and intense feeling of discomfort follows, often inducing strong vomiting. Thereafter, the short-term effect is weakness, and the Matsés generally rest in a hammock to recover for a few hours. If it stops raining, they might go do some work in the afternoon. It is on the following days that they expect to have the stamina and focus for hunting.

A handful of regional Panoan Amazonian ethnic groups, including the Amahuaca, Katukina, Kaxinawá, Kulina, Yawanawá, and Marubo, also use this frog species for similar practices in their culture. It should be noted that in recent years the use of the monkey frog venom (known as sapo or kambo) outside of Indigenous cultures has risen tremendously in correlation with the wider use of all rainforest medicines in places as far off as Miami and London.

For the Matsés, the use of acaté outside of their culture has caused internal conflicts due to the unregulated sale and also the general Matsés view that part of their culture is being taken with little recognition coming back to its origins. Additionally, peptides have been patented from the frog secretions without Matsés permission or acceptance.

"I do not agree with Acaté leaving our lands, the outside people are misappropriating our traditional practices."

Antonio Manquid , Matsés Elder