Detailed Information:
Icaros are medicine songs, used as part of the toolkit of shamans and curanderos in the Peruvian Amazon Basin. The doctor spirits teach the shamans their
icaros. THey are expressed in the form of song and are a major system of delivery of the shamans? spiritual energy. They are used to bring on
mareaci?n (the visionary effects of the ayahuasca), take
mareaci?n away, call in different plant spirits, call in the spirits of others or the deceased, take away dark spirits and dark energies, and manage the ceremony.
Icaros are either whistled or sung, and can be expressed in any language. The shamans generally sing in a spirit dialect that is a mixture of their native language (i.e.
Quechua, Shipibo-Conibo, Ash?ninka, etc.), Spanish, and different evocative sounds.
Icaros represent a system of communication between the shaman and the spirits, and the shaman and the participants in the ceremony. The shamans believe that every living thing has an
icaro and that these
icaros can be learned. The singing is sometimes accompanied by the
chakapa, shacapa, a leaf rattle that is used to carry the rhythm of the ceremony. The shaman will use his shacapa to direct energy and the
icaros, as well as send away dark or unwanted energies. Each
icaro is used to contact a different spirit, for use of healing. From Wikipedia.
