Complete Guide to Ajo Sacha (Mansoa Alliacea)

Ajo Sacha is a lovable plant from South America that is used for shamanic plant diets and plant baths (aka. cook you in a pot of ajo sacha soup). The leaves, bark, and roots are all used. Naturally it is revered as a virus protection plant.

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What is Ajo Sacha / Mansoa Alliacea?

This plant is known as “ajo sacha“, “ajo sacha“, and the “garlic vine“. It is cataloged under two main Latin names, Mansoa alliacea and Pseudocalyma alliaceum. For more in-depth scientific research that we do not cover, you can investigate this website.

Among the mestizos of the Amazon rainforest it is known as ajo sacha, a Spanish-Quechua name that means “forest garlic” or “wild garlic“.

While it is not of the garlic family, its leaves, vine bark, and roots have the characteristics, resemblance, smell and taste of real garlic. It is even used as substitute for Garlic in food.

Ajo Sacha Plant

Ajo Sacha grows into a cluster of vines, and it is common to plant it next to the trunk of a tree.

The flowers will range in color from a pale to deep lavender, and it blooms heavily in the Spring and Fall. Throughout the rest of the year, the plant will still have some flowers. Flowers start off purple and overtime they will become more pale, eventually fading to white. You will see 3 different color of flowers at the same time on the plant.

The plant is also burned as an incense for aromatheraputic purposes.

Mansoa alliacea has been exported overseas, and grows in the favourable climates of (for example) Puerto Rico, Southern Africa, Thailand and India. It is cultivated in the West Indies.

The plant is usually used by the native indigenous tribes who stay in the rainforest to clean their digestive system and also get an energetic body. The plant is highly respected by the natives over there by using almost all of their parts. Moreover, the plant can also be replanted after they are harvested for the diet!

Here is a simple photo of some happy young Ajo Sacha plants growing outdoors.

Ajo Sacha growing outdoors
Ajo Sacha growing outdoors

The Ajo Sacha plant exists both in male and female form. Ajo Sacha Hembra (Female) and Ajo Sacha Macho (Male). View the following images originally posted with credit to Michael Sung to view the differences between the two.

Ajo Sacha Hembra (female plant)
Ajo Sacha Hembra (female plant)
Ajo Sacha Macho (male plant)
Ajo Sacha Macho (male plant)
Ajo Sacha Macho (male plant)
Ajo Sacha Macho (male plant)

Ajo Sacha Flowers

Mansoa Alliacea in Japan
Basket of Ajo Sacha flowers by Aubrey Bambad
Basket of Ajo Sacha flowers by Aubrey Bambad

Here is a photo of the cross section of the trunk of the plant. It has an interesting shape.

Ajo Sacha Wood Trunk, Photo by Maya Ethnobotanicals

The plant thrives in tropical zones, between 20 and 26 degeres and sandy and clay soil. They are not resistant to floods and are capable of “drowning”. The plantation must coincide with the beginning of the rainy season, that is, in the months of November and December in the Amazon.

Ajo Sacha Leaves

Ajo Sacha leaves are important because they are used specifically for plant baths. Please note the following section on dietas to learn more about the plant baths. Otherwise, please enjoy this playful photo of Ajo Sacha leaves being prepared in a hostel bathroom in Peru.

Ajo Sacha leaves being prepared in a hostel bathroom via Lara Charlotte
Ajo Sacha leaves being prepared in a hostel bathroom via Lara Charlotte

River fish are eaten during plant dietas. They are not like the decadent fish we enjoy at the grocery store. If you have yet to travel to South America for a dieta, you may have heard quite a bit about them. Here are two river fish being grilled that actually are wrapped in Ajo Sacha leaves! Interesting!

Plátano and bocachico fish, being grilled while wrapped in ajo sacha leaf (credit to Michael Sung)
Plátano and bocachico fish, being grilled while wrapped in ajo sacha leaf (credit to Michael Sung)

Ajo Sacha Roots

The roots of the plant are the star when it comes to the dieta. The roots are highly prized for their medicinal properties. Here is a collection of Ajo Sacha Root photos.

Ajo Sacha Roots (credit to Rainforest Healing Center)
Ajo Sacha Roots (credit to Rainforest Healing Center)
Scraping Ajo Sacha Roots (credit to Rainforest Healing Center)
Scraping Ajo Sacha Roots (credit to Rainforest Healing Center)

In the following photo, we are looking at what appears to be the roots of a 30 year old Ajo Sacha plant!

30 year old Ajo Sacha roots
30 year old Ajo Sacha roots

Ajo Sacha Seeds

Where can I buy Ajo Sacha?

We sell Ajo Sacha in Canada. We sell the powdered root bark.

How to prepare an Ajo Sacha Tincture

Ajo Sacha Dieta

The Ajo Sacha plant is one of the Master Teacher Plants of Amazonian Shamanism. In its mildest application, the leaves are crushed and soaked in water for bathing purposes. This is an effective way to purify the body before entering the ceremony.

When someone begins their dieta with this plant in some traditions, they will bathe in a tub that is fulled with the leaves of ajo sacha plant, as if they are boiling in a big cup of garlic tea.

Ajos Sacha leaves getting ready to be cooked
Ajo Sacha leaves getting ready to be cooked
Ajos Sacha Roots soaking in water
Ajo Sacha Roots soaking in water

The “true” dieta that involves this plant has not been widely documented, so we will highlight one particular dieta as shared online:

  • The roots of the plant are soaked for up to 24 hours
  • A Curendero will prepare and bless the medicine with icaros (prayer songs) and mapacho (jungle tobacco) smoke
  • A Shaman will come deliver you the plant in your isolated Tambo/hut structure
  • You will drink the concotion with a strong taste of garlic
  • You will experience nausea and lucid dreams
  • You stay in an isolated environment in a meditative state and recieve the teachings of the plant.

Here is a report written by someone who worked with the plant for many years in dietas:

One of the things that really struck me was its ability to help you stalk (hunt down what you really want in life) After months of drinking Ajo as a tea, I felt remarkably stronger, more grounded and more focused in my goals. I felt also more confident and powerful, as if I could face anyone without reservation. This feeling has stayed with me. It also gives you wonderfully instructive dreams that have a way of really hitting it home. From the dreams alone I have learned so much about my own past patterns and habits. How exactly these plant medicines work is to me still mystery…but they do certainly work, each in their own unique ways!

Very interesting!

Ajo Sacha also carries a pervasive light quality – subtle and difficult to pinpoint in solid form, but which promotes a sense of calm and tranquility in the dieter, and teaches greater confidence in establishing healthy boundaries in relationships.

Ajo Sacha is an excellent beginner’s Dieta with low risk of turning ‘malogrado’ (which can happen when discipline of food, mind and sex are not applied well during Dieta, and is a more serious risk with some of the advanced Teacher Plants). Ajo Sacha is often combined with other strong Master plants such as Bobinsana, Pinon Blanco or Renaquilla to help balance the energies in the diet. Ajo Sacha is known to be a plant which can infuse a pervasive light into the dieter’s energy-body, invigorate the blood and immune system, and expel aggressive spirits associated with sexual trauma and addictions.

The Ajo Sacha is also good for “protection” of the participant. It will form an astral shield around them which can help prevent from spiritual attacks. When reading many accounts of dietas, protection and vitality are two very big reocurring themes which arise.

Really beautiful, brought me through my darkness and then I just bathed in her light for months and months. Have used her strength to help transmute a life threatening illness. Powerful.

 

❤ Was my first dieta ❤ Was really helpful in clearing lots of junk from psyche after working my ass off in a very toxic environment in order to earn money to come to Peru and learn from the maestros 😛 My first ceremony on dieta with Ajo Sacha, i spent pretty much the whole night looking at animations- mostly of Mr Penny Bags from monopoly, flashing money and diamond rings, casinos, dollar signs… It took a few days for me to realize that Ajo Sacha was helping me to purge this toxic capitalist environment from my energy and mind, haha.

 

Ajo Sacha for me grows more powerful over time. After dieting on several plants since Ajo, Im surprised that Ajo still feels the strongest for me. Many have told me Ajo is gentle and beautiful. I would agree but I would add that the power of Ajo’s light is ferocious and transcendent. She opens portals to dimensions and realms I have never conceived of…I hold a deep deep love for Ajo and super grateful that she resides in me

 

A lot of times I see people use Ajo Sacha for removing harmful energies or witchcraft as well as protection from those energies… Like a protective and cleansing plant. Also used in similar ways to garlic – for bacteria or things like that…. It can have other uses as well, but this is what I see a lot of people use it for. When you develop your own relationship with a plant you may be surprised how it shows up for you…. Sometimes your needs will dictate what the plant will offer.

Ajo Sacha Dreams

The following quote from “The Garden of Peace” Ayahuasca center in Peru gives the following testament towards the dream powders of Ajo Sacha:

Ajo Sacha (Mansoa alliacea), also known as “The Dream Teacher Extraordinaire” is a plant that certainly lives up to its title. Those who use this plant often have very profound dreams. It is said to remove bad luck and negative energies attached to the person working with the medicine as well. It also helps to strengthen your will power and spirit. Medicinally, Ajo Sacha is a powerful blood cleanser, fights inflammation, colds/flus, digestion issues (including Candida), epilepsy, and rheumatism.

What are the effects of drinking Ajo Sacha tea?

Health benefits of Ajo Sacha

Ajo sacha is a common and respected plant remedy in the Amazon. Capsules of the plant’s leaves are sold in stores in Brazil and Peru, and it is found as an ingredient in other various multi-herb formulas for cold and flu, pain, inflammation and arthritis in general. The use of ajo sacha is just catching on here in the U.S. market; a few products are now available and it is showing up in several formulas for colds and arthritis.

When ingested in a tea, the Ajo Sacha is considered to be:

  • analgesic
  • anti-inflammatory
  • anti-rheumatic

and a treatment for:

  • arthritis
  • rheymatism
  • body aches and pain
  • injuries
  • cold
  • uterine disorders
  • epilepsy
  • inflammation
  • digestive issues such as Candida overgrowth

It is believed that the plant works its benefits in the body through purifying the blood of the person who drinks it. Legend also says it is used to ward off negative energy or ‘evil spirits’ in Amazonian cultures.

Anti-cancer properties of Ajo Sacha

Ajo sacha’s has been studied for its anti-cancer actions in three studies. Researchers first reported in 1992 that ajo sacha’s anti-cancer actions came from the well-known and well-studied anticancerous naphthoquinones chemicals found in the plant. But research published in 2015 indicates that the anticancer actions could also be coming from the organosulfur compounds. A third research group published a preliminary in vitro study in 2015 that just showed a crude leaf extract was active at low dosages against a mouse cancer cell line.

Preparing Ajo Sacha flower to drink at home

The leaves of the plant are consumed, some people eat them in capsules but ideally you want to drink it as a tea. Here is a sample recipe on how to work with the plant:

  • Use 2 tsp. of the powdered leaves for each 8 oz. of water.
  • Using medium-high heat, bring the mixture to a boil in an open pot.
  • Reduce the heat to medium-low and place a lid on the pot.
  • Allow the mixture to simmer for 20 minutes.
  • Pour the mixture through a fine strainer and allow it to cool for a time before drinking.
  • One cup is taken 2 to 3 times daily.

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