Why is Tobacco Used in Some Shamanic Healing Practices?

Why Do I Use Tobacco in Shamanic Healing Sessions?

(and How Can Tobacco Be Healing?)

There’s a moment in many sessions where I mention tobacco.

And I can feel the question arise almost immediately:

Wait… tobacco?

I want to speak to this clearly, because it’s one of the most common questions I receive.

For most people, tobacco is associated with something harmful.

Something addictive.

Something to avoid.

So it’s completely natural to wonder why it would be used in a healing context.

Tobacco in this work is not what you think

The tobacco used in shamanic traditions is not approached casually.

It is not used recreationally.

It is not used habitually.

It is used intentionally, sparingly, and with deep respect.

In many lineages, tobacco is considered a master plant—

a powerful ally that supports:

• clearing energy

• grounding the body

• strengthening boundaries in the energetic field

A tool for clearing and protection

In the sessions I offer—especially individual and house clearings—tobacco is used as a support for energetic clearing.

That may look like:

• helping to remove heavy or stagnant energy

• creating a stronger, more contained energetic space

• clearing the aura

• supporting the extraction of blocks in energetic flow

• protecting the auric field

• anchoring the work so it integrates more fully

It’s not the only tool I use.

But it is one that carries a very specific kind of strength.

Why it matters

When people come into this work, they are often:

• carrying energy that isn’t theirs

• feeling overwhelmed or ungrounded

• moving through transitions that leave their system more open

Tobacco, when used in this way, helps to:

• bring the system back into stability

• reinforce energetic boundaries

• support the clearing process at a deeper level

It’s about relationship, not substance

What matters most is not the material itself—

but the relationship to it.

This work is rooted in respect.

In listening.

In using only what is truly needed.

There is no excess.

No dependency.

No casual use.

Only intention.

A note on safety and integrity

If you’ve had concerns about tobacco, you’re not wrong.In everyday contexts, it can be harmful.

But in this setting, it is used in a completely different way—

in very small amounts, within a contained and intentional practice.

And always in service of the person receiving the work.

Not everything in this work looks the way we expect it to.

Some of the most powerful tools are the ones we’ve misunderstood—

until we experience them differently.

Tobacco, in this context, is not about consumption.

It’s about clearing, grounding, and respect for the unseen layers we’re working within.

A deeper understanding of how tobacco is used in this work

There are a few important things I want to name clearly—because this is often

misunderstood.

I do not inhale tobacco smoke.

The smoke is used intentionally and externally—

blown into the space, over the body, and into the auric field.

It becomes part of the energetic work itself.

The lineage behind this work

The tobacco I work with is called Mapacho—a traditional preparation of tobacco made from Nicotiana rustica, used in Amazonian healing practices, particularly by the Shipibo people.

It is worked with in deep respect.

In these traditions, tobacco is considered a master plant—

not just a substance, but a teacher, a guide, and an ally.

It is worked with:

• in ceremony

• in prayer

• and in healing practices that support:– clearing energy

– grounding the body

– strengthening boundaries in the energetic field

It is understood as a plant ally that listens, responds, and supports the intention of the practitioner.

This is the tradition of working with tobacco as a healing plant that my work comes from.

My relationship with this work

I have spent time in the Amazon of Peru with the Shipibo, where I experienced what is known as a tobacco dieta—a traditional process of working directly with the plant in a ceremonial and contained way.

Through this experience:

• the body begins to hold the energetic imprint—or matrix—of the plant

• and the practitioner is initiated into working with it as an ally

This is what allows the work to be guided, intentional, and held with integrity.

How it works in a session

In this tradition, Mapacho is not just present—it is directed.

It is instructed to support specific aspects of the work, such as:

• clearing heavy or external energy

• assisting in energetic extraction

• opening and restoring flow in the system

• raising frequency

• blessing and protecting the field

It becomes part of the communication within the healing process.

Why I share this

I share this not to make the work seem more complex—

but to bring clarity.

Because when something is unfamiliar, it’s easy to misunderstand it.

And this work is not about using a substance.It’s about:

• relationship

• intention

• and respect for the tools that support healing at deeper levels

Everything used in this work is in service of helping you come back into your own energy—through a process that is often felt, sensed, and experienced beyond words.

A note for those who already work with tobacco:

I also want to speak to something gently—especially for those who already have a relationship with tobacco in a different form.

If you smoke cigarettes, this is not about judgment or needing to stop.

It’s about awareness.

One simple way to shift your relationship is to bring intention into the moment.

Before you smoke, you might pause and take a breath.

Offer a small prayer.

Thank the tobacco for serving you in your life—however it does.

If it helps you feel less stress, acknowledge that.

If it gives you a moment to pause, recognize that.

You might say, silently or out loud:

Thank you for supporting me.

Thank you for helping me slow down.

Show me what I truly need beneath this moment.

You can also ask the tobacco to help you:

• become more aware of when and why you reach for it

• understand what your body or emotions are asking for

• find other ways to meet those needs

This is one way this work begins to move into everyday life.

Bringing consciousness into the experience

When something becomes unconscious, it often becomes compulsive.

But when you bring awareness to it, it becomes a relationship.

And from that place, there is more choice.

More listening.

More possibility.

It slows the moment down.

It brings presence into something that may have been automatic.

And over time, that awareness can open the door to deeper understanding—

not just of the habit, but of what’s underneath it.

If you’ve been feeling off, overwhelmed, or like something in your energy or space

needs clearing, this is the kind of work I support.

Tobacco is just one of many tools I work with—alongside sound (icaros), soul

retrieval, energetic extractions, feather work (in the Wixárika lineage) and other

shamanic practices that support your system in coming back into alignment.

You can explore sessions here → Shamanic Energy Session

Or simply begin by noticing what in you is ready to shift.

This work is influenced by traditions that hold deep reverence for plants, and I approach this work with respect and care.

This article, written by Chela Gurnee was originally published on Substack on the same date, 04/08/2026: https://spacebetweenwings.substack.com/p/why-is-tobacco-used-in-some-shamanic