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We have been hosting ayahuasca retreats since 1996. Our center is based in the midst of the beautiful Atlantic Rainforest along the coast of Bahia in Brazil. We facilitate a safe and comfortable space for you to achieve harmony in your everyday life by aligning your mind, body, and heart with your true self.
Our 9 day and 11 day ayahuasca retreats are designed to give you a balanced experience. We have ayahuasca ceremonies every other night and in between there are activities to integrate your experiences and insights. There is also ample free time to reflect, to enjoy the beauty of the jungle, to visit the gorgeous beaches, and just to relax, let go, and enjoy the pure bliss of the moment.
Calendar and prices on our website
We have extensive experience integrating ayahuasca, psychology, shamanism, self development, modified states of consciousness, and various other modalities. We are present at all times and are dedicated in supporting you with loving care, attention, safety, and respect.The activities include workshops focused on spiritual development. The techniques covered in the workshops can be practiced even after the retreat to continue the journey of personal growth. Some of the topics include inner child integration, life progression, discovering the source of your blockages and the resources to overcome them. Another very important part of the retreat are the Yoga sessions in the morning which greatly enrich the ayahuasca experiences at night.
Spirit Vine & TheVine Center previously known as Ayahuasca-Healing have been created by Silvia Polivoy. She received her license in clinical psychology and had a private practice in Buenos Aires, Argentina for several years until she began to feel the need to make a transition from studying and healing the mind to exploring the worlds of Spirit. This took her away from the busy city streets to the more tranquil life in the jungle, moving to Brazil where in 2004 she co-founded the TheVine Center, a trans-denominational and inter-faith spiritual center located in the state of Bahia.
The nature of our nonprofit center is philosophical, religious, mystical, spiritual, educational, and cultural. All the retreats’ income’ serves to maintain the center grounds, create employment for the local community, and help preserve the jungle, having replanted thousands of native trees over the years to give but one example.
The retreats take place inside of 39 acres of lush preserved area. It is about 7 miles from Itacaré on the coast of Bahia. Our location is only minutes away from beautiful coastal beaches, which back onto the Mata Atlántica, the second largest rainforest in Brazil.
The experience of sacred tea ceremonies can be challenging for some, deeply religious for others, but profound all around. Please note that we have several programs to offer and the plant ceremonies are always optional and not required to partake in during any of our retreats. The plant ceremonies begin in the evening and go through the night. The group dynamic is very important and there will be facilitators to look after participants throughout. There will be plenty of time for group discussions and also time alone to reflect on the experiences elicited by the spirit vine tea for those that wish to partake in the plant ceremonies.
At the retreat center we grow our own ayahuasca vine and chacruna plants organically! We also have an organic garden to source vegetables for the food prepared during the retreat. We have pure spring water for drinking and also coconut water, juices, and a variety of teas.
During all our programs we follow a strict (though delicious) diet. The meals are completely vegan, gluten-free, and nutritionally balanced, prepared by our in-house chef who has specialized in vegan cuisine and has a post-graduation in functional nutrition. They include plenty of fresh vegetables cooked with delicious herbs and spices, luscious fresh tropical fruits, salads, and grains.
A note about sexual abstinence: this varies from culture to culture; some recommending as long as 30-40 days while others as little as one day or none at all like here in Brazil. For energetic purposes we recommend sexual abstinence during the retreat as well as 3 days before it begins and 3 days after the retreat concludes. As well, a drug free and no salt diet with no red meat, pork or heavy alcohol use for the same amount of time is optimal.
We fully expect you have questions about the retreats, programs and the facilities we offer. Please feel free to explore our website or watch our videos and write to us to come to one of our retreats.
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liviantix
July 21, 2018 at 3:41 pmThe experience was incredible. I will try to be objective though, with the factual questions of the “pre-Brazil” me in mind.
Went to this retreat in July after a friend, who went 3 times, kept raving about it. His recommendations and the videos on the website gave me the confidence to go as a single female traveller. The ceremonies felt very safe and there was constant support from Silvia and Rohan throughout. Moreover, Silvia and Rohan made sure that everyone has the tools to navigate the information given in those ceremonies, and therefore put the magical aspect of the medicine in a useful and usable context. Silvia’s experience in group work was extremely insightful and we all learned from hearing the experiences of others.
The beaches near the retreat are very beyond beautiful – and added a Robinson Crusoe dimension to the whole experience. The food was delicious and very creative – came back with a couple of recipes I managed to replicate at home.
On a personal level, the ayahuasca experience opened some windows into my past which I have tried hard to keep shut for years. It also showed me clearly the path of bringing mind and body together after decades of over-intellectualising all my experiences. My meditation is deeper and I observe around me much more now. My critical sense can finally rest in the backseat, which is a true relief.
In conclusion, didn’t know one could travel so far by staying in one place. Through ceremonies and group work, Spirit Vine offered a charmed environment for both going deeper within and embracing the universal nature. I will go back and recommend the experience to my friends. Taking a leaf from Allen Ginsberg, this is only the beginning.
DougM
July 19, 2018 at 11:19 amI participated in the July 2018 at Spirit Vine. It exceeded my expectations in every single way. I am deeply grateful to Silvia and Rohan for their care and attention to every deal. First and foremost, Silvia is a deeply wise woman who has created the perfect scaffolding for working with ayahuasca safely and effectively. This includes creating a beautiful retreat center where she has obviously attended to every detail, from the grounds to the accommodation to the food. Silvia is a trained psychotherapist and as such her workshops really help to provide tools to work effectively with the medicine and get the most out of your journeys (I say this after having been to Peru and taking part in a more “traditional” set of ceremonies with a shaman). Silvia and Rohan take care at every level, from measuring and adjusting the amount of ayahuasca for each participant down to the milliliter, playing exceptional music during the ceremony, and creating a space for everyone to feel comfortable and attend to their own journey. I cannot wait to go back. Spirit Vine was truly soul healing.
Scott
July 19, 2018 at 10:00 amDate of retreat: Early April 2018
When I first started investigating Aya two years ago, I was immediately drawn to Silvia and Spirit Vine was my first choice although I ended up doing my first retreat in Peru, that was 18 months ago. The Peru trip was great but I knew I wanted to experience Spirit Vine at some stage and it certainly lived up to expectations. Some insights below.
Accommodation / facilities:
Top draw, can’t find fault with anything. There was limited wi-fi on our balcony, not so much inside, but for me that was a good thing, may be an issue for others. Good wi-fi was always available in the main lodge. The food was probably the best vegetarian food I’ve ever had and there was plenty. The retreat itself is just stunning and the staff were attentive and unobtrusive
Workshops:
I learnt so much from others during the workshops and it was a real privilege being able to witness Sylvia draw on her years of professional therapeutic work as she gently guided us along this path of healing and exploration.
Brazilian energy:
The Aya experience I had in Brazil seemed to have a different, calmer energy to Peru, where I had been before, I’m told this was down to the setting. I found the Sprit Vine experience gentler, although I did see a lot of familiar scenes and experience some of the same “spiritual ceremonies” with elders/guides
.
Silvia:
Don’t know how she does it but she managed to bring a really interesting mix of people together, something like 14 different nationalities. Loved the fact that she was all about teaching us to go inside and find the answers from within, that we already have the knowledge and not to rely on “experts” (including her) to tell us what they think. It’s not a perfect process and is work but she patiently strives to give us tools we can use in a practical sense to explore our perceptions and experiences and interpret what comes up in the ceremonies.
Group dynamics:
Silvia’s assistant Rohan is a very interesting guy who is a great listener with a lot of cool stories. Interaction between Silvia, Rohan and the group was very easy and caring. Nice balance of energy with Silvia and Rohan always making sure they were at opposite sides of the dinner table so it was easy to listen and learn.
Music:
The only concern I had before the retreat was that they used recorded music. This turned out to be the most amazing, mind blowing music that totally worked and had the shamanistic songs interwoven in a really original way. Silvia could make a fortune off those soundtracks!
Itacare:
Close enough but not too close to the retreat. It’s a good ideal to stay a few extra days and explore / wind down after the retreat. English in the area is not widespread, use google translate and try to learn basics of Portuguese. After the retreat I stayed for a few days of surfing in Itacare and it was fantastic to be able to hang around in the evenings with a few of the new friends from the retreat who did the same.
Health / Life changes:
I have kept up with a mainly vegetarian diet and feel amazing for it, although I will occasionally eat meat in the future if at friends’ houses, etc. Because I had done Aya before it now feels more normal for me. I haven’t experienced any drastic changes, this is what I expected anyway. I do feel like I’ve had a spiritual “tune-up” like some of my antennae have been adjusted.
Thank you Silvia and Rohan
Jodi
July 17, 2018 at 3:38 pmIt is very difficult to know where to begin with this review. I find so much of what I want to say in the words I have seen written here by others…
I had done zero research and I had no desire to try ayahuasca about two or three months ago.
My friend was sitting at her computer on a weekend away and announced she had finally booked her trip to Spirit Vine. I looked over at her. I saw the website and I saw and heard Sylvia talking in a video. I immediately knew all I needed to know. It was very obvious to me that this woman was sharp and that I wanted to go and see her, never mind any thing about ayahuasca. The insight she had was so apparent and I knew that I wanted to be there. I booked that night and my experience was life changing. Literally a change of life.
I knew I had wanted to change. I had even known some of what I needed to do to change. I was just not able to do it. It was a hurdle I was not able to jump. I had climbed over many others before – but I had hit a wall. What I needed was the space. The peace. The love. The knowledge. The sounds. The feelings. The tools. The clarity. The Sylvia. The Rohan. The time. The friends. The beach. The coconuts. The birds. The bats. The beauty. The music. The words. The food. The talks. THE SENSE. The skills. The experience. The time of my life.
All these things and so much more I found at Spirit Vine. And I have managed to bring bits of these home with me. After nervously thinking when I set off to go there; that I may even end up calling home and saying “pack my things up, I’m not coming back!”, I managed to prepare myself for home while there, to give myself the tools I would need when I got back and I created a new space in my life for my life.
I remind myself now that Spirit Vine is always there and going back feels like the most natural thing to me and something I am extremely (understatement!) excited for. The desperate need for change is gone. I would return to continue my journey with myself and to reconnect with Sylvia, Rohan and friends I made and not out of the desperate and necessary feeling to change which I first arrived with. I will return for myself. Simply because I love it.
Spirit Vine changed my life. While there I managed to understand what life is and what my life is and I managed to finally click some of the most important pieces of my life into place. I am so excited to be awake in my own life. Caring for and about myself.
Excited for myself.
Thank you Sylvia and thank you Rohan. Thank you to everyone who makes that wonderful space happen and exist. Please never stop. The importance of this space is not able to be put into words.
See you soon!
“One hour!”
starrice
July 15, 2018 at 2:12 pmSpirit Vine is the absolute perfect place to experience the beauty of ayahuasca and begin the journey towards the higher self.
The center/grounds/food/care are pure light, pure magic. Silvia and Rohan are exceptional caregivers and facilitators to all on the journey, giving guidance and individual attention when needed. I felt safe and comforted throughout my entire stay, which was important since this was my first time in Brazil and first experience with the plant medicine. Silvia’s workshops were powerful preparations for the ceremonies that followed every other evening of my stay and the group share after was crucial to our growth as we each learned so much from everyone’s inner journey with the medicine. I am so grateful for this truly transformational experience and all the incredible insights I received during my stay. There is much more work to do–it is endless– I am already planning my return. Can’t recommend this place enough. Thank you Spirit Vine for bringing me back to my self!