Alex Marangon died after the shamans’ gathering: what we know and what ayahuasca is
The young 25-year-old Venetian found dead in the Piave river had participated in a spiritual gathering based on music and 'ayahuasca', a psychedelic substance used by shamans with healing functions. He may have drowned under the influence of hallucinations
BOLOGNA – Two days of “music and medicine“, with the aim of better understanding the shamans of South America and their traditions, as well as taking on ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic plant with healing functions. Alex Marangon, the young 25-year-old bartender originally from Marcon (Venice), who was found dead on Tuesday 2 July in the Piave river, had participated in this gathering in Vidor, in the province of Treviso. An investigation has been opened into his death, which occurred on the night between Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th June. The boy, according to what has been reconstructed, at a certain point between 2.30 and 3 am left the Abbey of Santa Bona di Vidor where this spiritual meeting with the associated consumption of ayuhuasca was taking place. The young man could have slipped into the river and drowned, although all hypotheses are still in play. The autopsy will be performed between July 5 and 6.
ALEX’S BODY WAS ON AN ISLAND
The body of the 26-year-old had arrived on an islet of the Piave river, in the Ciano del Montello area, about 4 kilometers away from the abbey of Vidorwhere there was the gathering-party dedicated to shamanism. The firefighters who were patrolling the area with the ‘Drago 149’ helicopter saw him. The river in that stretch is very wide and the banks, full of vegetation, are impervious. The boy could have fallen into the river by mistake and drowned: the body could have arrived so far away because it was dragged there by the current. He had some abrasions on his body and a wound in his eye, which could be compatible with this hypothesis and is more unlikely to be a sign of a fight with someone.
THE MOBILE PHONE IN THE HOTEL
The boy had left the car unlocked, with the keys and wallet on board. The cell phone, however, remained in the room of the abbey where Marangon was supposed to spend the night. It was his very united family who raised the alarm about his disappearance. Before finding the body, the mother had made an appeal asking for help to find him and inviting anyone who had seen him in the last hours to contact the family. Marangon worked as a bartender for the summer in Bolzano, he would have turned 26 on November 27.
THE RALLY ON SHAMANS AND AYAHUASCA
The ceremony-party in which Maragon participated, according to what Repubblica writes, saw the participation of about twenty people. The main ingredients were music and the ayahuasca plant, from which a hallucinogenic substance is derived, taken by the participants. Amazon shamans consider this plant healing and sacred. The celebration lasted two days and during these new age ‘ceremonies’ ayahuasca is taken under the control of a guide or shaman in a sort of spiritual rite . The ceremonies usually take place at night: the psychedelic effect arrives 20-60 minutes after taking the substance, which occurs in liquid form, and can last several hours. Ayahuasca isa psychedelic drinkthat is traditionally used as a healing medicine by the indigenous populations of the Amazon. Searching for the word ‘ayahuasca’ (sometimes abbreviated to ‘aya’) or the keywords ‘music and medicine’ on Instagram reveals that ceremonies of this type take place all over the world. Italy and are always accompanied by music and rituals.
THE HALLUCINATIONS AND THE RACE TOWARDS THE WOODS
According to some testimonies from those who attended the party, writes Repubblica, the young 25-year-old at a certain point wanted to leave the abbey at all costs, perhaps in the throes of a hallucination. He would head towards the woods. Some would have said that he started running so as not to be held back. Between the darkness and the impervious area, the young man may have slipped into the river and not been able to return to shore. The investigation by the Treviso Prosecutor’s Office will try to understand what happened.