Noya Rao Diet: Experience Plant Spirit Communion
I hosted this beautiful tree in a month-long Noya Rao plant diet. A plant diet is a commitment to ingesting a plant or tree for a period of time to get to know the spirit of our plant friends. These plant dietas are common among the Shapibo tribes of Peru and a cornerstone to developing our relationship with the plant world. It’s a time of reflection and communion.
During the diet, we spend as much time as possible alone or in nature. There are two types of diets, one is in isolation in the jungle, and the other is at home—this is called a remote diet. These remote diets allow us to connect with a plant without going to the jungle; it’s an excellent way to communicate with a plant spirit from the comfort of our own homes.
We follow a strict diet—similar to the diet before a plant ceremony—removing anything that doesn’t serve our higher selves. We abstain from sexual relations and maintain a clean way of living. It’s a beautiful experience, and I highly recommend it to anyone on the medicine path. You can listen to a discussion of being on dieta on the Cura Medicina podcast: Healing Power of Bobinsana Dieta with Erin Crabtree.
The Noya Rao Tree
The Noya Rao tree, also called the “Tree of Light,” is associated with goddess energy. It is the only tree in the Shapibo cosmology that lacks a dark side. Noya Rao glows faintly in the dark, emitting a pale bluish luminescence. The tree’s leaves are shaped like hearts. Legends say Noya Rao was not originally from Earth. It descended from the heavens, a celestial gift to humanity in times of chaos. The light it emits is a reminder of its star-born origins, linking the healer to other worlds.
During my Noya Rao diet I drank tea made from the bark of the tree and worked with a pipe from Peru that was made from the wood of the Noya Rao tree. My dreams were vivid and full of life lessons. My heart was cracked wide open, and my ego smashed by the tree’s bioluminescent light. The following is an ode to Noaya Rao, the tree of light—it is a summary of all that I learned in my dieta.
Noya Rao Pipe
Ode To Roya Rao
To the flying tree of light, to the bioluminescent leaves that compost fragments of my ego into seedlings of love.
To Niwee Pura, the pure energy of the cosmos and the sparkles of insight that drip from Noya Rao’s canopy.
To the molting of my defenses and the blossoming of my connective tissue provoked by the embers of my heart.
To the unraveling mysteries hidden in my dreams, unveiling crystals of wisdom and delight.
To the ferocity of love that illuminates the parts of my soul lost in the barren ground of my egoic self, waiting patiently to be free.
To the trust in the path that steps out of the shadows and into the heart-first expression of creativity and vitality.
To my responsibility to the collective and embracing my soul’s purpose of wholehearted service unconditionally, without expectation, while releasing control and free-falling toward my destiny.
To reclaiming my enthusiasm for life, deeply rooted in love and devotion.
To releasing the vehicles and behaviors of my past self and trusting the unknown future while manifesting a vibrant heart and calm mind.
To the tree of light and love embodied by the Goddess, invoked by this time, this body, this soul, and this life for the good of all.
To love, the greatest form of protection and the stewardship of tender care that echoes in my soul and ignites my inner flame.
To the leaf of the heart that illuminates songs unsung and words unspoken.
To the quiet mind that drops comparison and rests in the silence of the stars.
To the goddess of light, love, and the mother of all plants.
To the call of the journey, flying off the moon toward the mountain path of service, guided by plant and tree brothers and sisters.
To replenishing my heart and manifesting creative expression rooted in my soul’s true purpose.
To the burning village and castle gates that reveal the truth of self while understanding how words, actions, and thoughts create my kingdom.
To devotion, the soil of reciprocity that feeds the goddess and gives wings to open-hearted connection.
To finding balance and harmony while embracing necessary change.
To the teachers and the teachings, the guides that lumi-nate my path.
To the otorongo inside the car, scratching to be released and set free.
To sacred prayer and healing knowledge, and the responsibility to protect and preserve for eternity.
To trusting and playing and dancing toward joy as Noya Rao’s branches embrace my being, and her heart-shaped leaves illuminate my path.
To releasing the past and cultivating gracefully the unknown.
To honoring beauty without fear or shame while leaning into connection and community with the seen and unseen worlds.
To humility and service as a practice of devotion.
To discernment of self and forgiveness when the self overexerts its needs.
To the light that harvests humility as the shadow of self rehabilitates.
To the server, the guardian of divine grace.
Derek
Ode to Noya Rao
10/17/25
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