Attempting to treat drug addiction with the ritual use of ayahuasca, a psychotropic drink, may seem crazy or at least very daring. When Takiwasi (Centre for the Rehabilitation of Drug Addiction and Research on Traditional Medicines) was born in September 1992 in Theraporto, Peru, the idea of the founders was to systematically study and use the knowledge of Amazonian shamanic healers to treat drug addicts. The ongoing research for three and a half years seems to be an effective, low-cost and culturally adaptable alternative therapy. The initial results are encouraging. This article was previously published in MAPS Bulletin 6 (3) 1996