A tragic incident during a spiritual cleansing ritual has left the community in shock and mourning. On December 1, 33-year-old Marcela Alcázar Rodríguez died after ingesting kambo—a potent, poisonous secretion from the skin of the Amazonian giant monkey frog—while attending a retreat in Durango, Mexico, as part of her Healer Training Diploma program.

Local news outlets report that what was meant to be a transformative healing experience turned fatal in a matter of moments, as Rodríguez suffered severe gastrointestinal distress after the ritual and ultimately succumbed to her symptoms despite attempts to secure medical help.

On December 1, 2016, what should have been a day of spiritual insight and self-discovery ended in unspeakable tragedy. Marcela Alcázar Rodríguez, a young

and promising participant in a healer training program, was undergoing a kambo ritual—a traditional practice rooted in South American indigenous healing traditions. Read more below