#39 The Love, The Gift and The Responsibility with Dr. Joe Tafur
Dr. Tafur has been an Integrative Medicine activist throughout his medical career - while in medical school at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine, and during his Family Medicine Residency at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). While a resident, he collaborated on research projects with the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine and the Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine. After residency, Dr. Tafur subsequently completed a two-year Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship at the UCSD Department of Psychiatry under psychoneuroimmunology expert Dr. Paul Mills.
Dr. Tafur has observed that modern medicine struggles with certain mental and psychosomatic health problems because the system fails to address the emotional and spiritual dimensions of these illnesses. Under the guidance of master shamans, Dr. Tafur has learned about the importance of acknowledging the emotional body and its role in modern disease, and how spiritual approaches can be used to heal the emotional body and, in turn, the mind and physical body.
In Peru, Dr. Tafur learned how Ayahuasca shamanism (a ceremony involving the use of Ayahuasca, a traditional medicinal Amazonian plant known for its spiritual properties) could be used to heal the emotional body. After observing hundreds of people experience this kind of spiritual and emotional healing, Dr. Tafur recognized the broader value of spiritual healing techniques.
Dr. Tafur is the author of The Fellowship of the River, a fascinating account of his journey through the Amazon jungle as he comes to understand how psychoactive plants interact with the complex network that connects our minds and hearts to our physical anatomy. Dr. Tafur serves on the board of Modern Spirit, a non-profit organization dedicated to demonstrating the value of spiritual healing in modern healthcare by illuminating the intersection between biology, emotion, and spirituality.
This second interview with Dr. Tafur further explores the practice of plant medicine as a transformative method of self-healing, with insights into how one can achieve continuous and lasting spiritual healing and growth.
“Spiritual practice is spiritual healing, and spiritual healing is spiritual practice, and both can help to heal the emotional body and in turn, the mind-body.”
“In this next wave of consciousness, the purpose of spiritual practice is to nourish our spiritual well-being.”
NOTES
Dr. Joe Tafur describes the ideal conditions for the use of Ayahuasca.
Ayahuasca has been transformative for many people, but it is not for everyone. Dr. Tafur describes those candidates/situations that may not be an appropriate fit for plant medicine. He emphasizes that plant medicine should not be considered a quick fix.
Dr. Tafur talks describes the conditions and practices that support lasting spiritual benefits of Ayahuasca.
Dr. Tafur explains how “The Love”, “The Gift” and “The Responsibility” apply to the importance of commitment in the use of plant medicine.
In addition to fully becoming immersed in indigenous culture, there are other ways to explore Ayahuasca. Dr. Tafur recommends www.iceers.org as a good source of guidelines.
Dr. Tafur offers encouraging insights about how spiritual practices are starting to become integrated into western medicine.
Click on the image below to view Dr. Tafur’s book:
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