Peruvian shamans gather to make 2023 prophesies
- In Peru, shamans see end of Russia-Ukraine war in 2023, but ‘many dead’ in natural disasters in North America
- The shaman ceremony, atop a sacred hill in Peru’s capital, is performed every year in late December
Atop a sacred hill in Lima, Peruvian shamans scatter coca leaves and flower petals while a snake named Maria slithers over posters of world leaders including Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
It’s the time of year that the shamans beat drums, chant, blow smoke and drink a potent hallucinogenic brew to make their divinations for the 12 months ahead.
What did they see on the proverbial cards for 2023?
The war in Ukraine will end. Brazilian football icon Pele will die. There will be “many dead” due to natural disasters in North America. And Lula will have a difficult start to his third presidential term.
“There will be peace (in Ukraine) this coming year, it will not go beyond August,” shaman Cleofe Sedano said after the vibrant ceremony.
Colleague Walter Alarcon, dressed in a colourful poncho and holding a conch shell that he blows like a bugle, said there would also be “many dead, many natural disasters”, in North America.
As for Pele, Sedano said: “All of us in the whole world appreciate him because he was a good football player. We wish that he continues to accompany us, but next year is his appointed date”.