Plant Dietas

I don’t think anyone can fully understand or grasp the concept of what it means to diet with a plant until they have actually tried it. And how can you really? What does it mean to connect with a plant? What does it mean when a plant is communicating with you? Speaking on my own behalf I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into when I entered my first plant dieta, but my entire world was about to change.

It is impossible to fully and truly describe in words what it means to connect with a plant and some of the words and terms I use in this post might seem very odd and make no sense to you. The truth is that I AM guided by plants today and one of the things I am guided to do is spread awareness of exactly this: what it means to connect with plants and how the plants can help and assist us with all sorts of things. The plants are our allies and they are our friends.

The world of the plants have completely turned my life upside down

What is a plant dieta

The term dieta is used to describe an agreement a person makes with a specific plant in order to connect with it. You are building a relationship with the spirit of the plant. You can view the relationship as planting a small seed inside of you and as this seed grows bigger and bigger so will the relationship with the plant spirit. If you respect and honor this relationship you can expect to receive many teachings from the plant.

Entering a dieta with a plant is a big thing and should not be taken lightly. Many things can go wrong and you do not want to get off on the wrong foot. I recommend having someone experienced guiding you and checking your process along the way.

I am sure there are many different ways to diet with plants depending on which culture and tradition you follow. When people talk about a dieta they will usually refer to dieting the big Master Teacher Plants such as Noya Rao and Bobinsana of the Amazon or Oak and Pine in the North. I believe that all plants are teachers but not all plants should be dieted. You always want to do some research about a specific plant before you open a diet with it. With some plants I even do a much smaller meet-and-greet to connect but not do an actual extensive dieta. I will introduce you to these in future blogposts.

How does it work

I was introduced to dietas through the Shipibo tradition of the Amazon and in this tradition you begin by making a contract with the plant you wish to diet. This I mean quite literally. You list down the duration of the dieta (it is recommended to do your first dieta with a new plant for at least 2-4 weeks) along with all the things you plan to put into this dieta. This could for example include a specific amount of days fasting, being in silence and/or in solitude. The contract could also inlcude aspects you will be doing or things you will refrain from doing during the dieta.

The more you put into the dieta the stonger the result

The point of the dieta is to keep your body and mind as clean as possible in order to give the seed the best conditions to grow strong. Traditionally you will either fast completely or eat one meal a day consisting only of very basic foods and excluding everything like salt, sugar, spices and oil. In order to keep your body as clean as possible you would also exclude soap, lotions and surely anything with chemicals in it.

But it is not just about the food you ingest during the dieta. Cleanliness is also on a mental level so it is all about being aware of your thoughts, the people you surround yourself with, the music you listen to, the books you read etc. The list is never ending.

It is hard work

There are many reasons why dieting with a plant is hard work. Firstly, the contract in itself can be a challenge. Fasting, silence, solitude and whatever you have included in your contract is just hard work. It is no walk in the park and it takes dedication and devotion.

Secondly, you will become super sensitive. As the plant enters your body you will begin to feel its spirit through you. This includes its likes and dislikes so you might all of a sudden find yourself react and act in ways that are unfamiliar to you. These are ways for the plant to communicate with you. The plant can also communicate with you through your dreams or simply via your thoughts. This can feel like your intuition has just been hightened.

Thirdly, the plant is here to teach you and this will most likely take the form of life lessons and examples. You can surely expect all your triggers to be activated throughout your dieta and at least some of your themes brought to the surface. And we never really know what the plants want to teach us so these triggers can come in many varieties.

After the dieta

On top of all this the work is not done when you close your dieta. On the contrary, this is when the real work begins as you will now have to integrate your teachings. You can expect the lessons to continue in the form of tests and triggers and there can be many new things to navigate in. There is a very big chance that things within you have also changed completely, which means that the world you return to feels different and must be viewed with new eyes.

Things within me had changed dramatically and massive changes taken place

One of the biggest changes that happened for me after my first plant dieta was the fact that my sensitivety was turned up immensely. Suddenly I felt energies around me that I had never felt before. Today I am very sensitive to what I surround myself with and my entire system reacts to loud music, crowded places and negativity (in all forms). But with that sensitivety also comes a way for me to tune into myself in a way I have never been able to before and I feel guided and held in everything I do.

Why people diet with plants

So why go through all of this? If you enter the world of plants through a plant diet you can expect great healing and teachings coming your way. Building a relationship with a plant like this is like meeting a great Master Teacher. A teacher and a friend who will help you grow and become the best version of yourself. If you respect and honor this relationship, you can expect it to last for the rest of your life.