In the Shipibo-Conibo tradition, becoming a maestra is not something you decide one day and work toward as a goal. It is something that happens to you over time, often without you realizing when it truly began. Many Shipibo maestras say the path does not start with ayahuasca, or even with learning songs — it starts when life itself begins to shape a person through illness, hardship, sensitivity, dreams, and a natural closeness to the unseen world. As Shipibo maestra Doña Alic