Aaron Rodgers clambers into ‘the womb’, a makeshift tent in Costa Rica, and soaks up the heat. Hot rocks are placed inside the sauna as the quarterback ‘absorbs the medicine and wisdom of our ancestors’ which are ‘stored’ in the stones.
It is one of the more startling scenes in ‘Aaron Rodgers: Enigma’, the new three-part series taking fans inside the mind of the NFL’s most polarizing star. It is one of the many rituals included in the latest ayahuasca retreat he goes on in search on spiritual healing.
Before long, Rodgers’ head is spinning. He is hallucinating. Once he can take no more, the Jets star escapes. He leans against a tree and he lies down in a creek.
‘Enigma’ offers NFL fans a raw look at Rodgers’ use of psychedelics and alternative medicine as he chases an escape from perfectionism and his dogmatic upbringing in the church.
In the show, Rodgers reveals he has taken ayahuasca nine times across four different trips. This retreat in Costa Rica came last offseason.
Aaron Rodgers has lifted the lid on his famous ayahuasca retreats in his new Netflix series
The three-part docuseries follows the New York Jets QB’s return from an Achilles injury
In ‘Enigma’, cameras follow Rodgers’ journey of self-discovery in Costa Rica last offseason
He was joined by Dolphins safety Jordan Poyer, as well as some of Poyer’s family. The Miami star, who has battled alcoholism and problems in his marriage, credits Rodgers for opening his eyes to the power of ayahuasca.
‘It’s the hardest medicine possible that I’ve tried,’ Rodgers explains. ‘It’s a deeply intense spiritual journey.’
The quarterback headed to Costa Rica as he recovered from the torn Achilles which ended his first season with the Jets after just four snaps. He went in search of ‘deep healing on the self, the ego and past trauma’.
‘You have to go to some deep places in the shadow of your own self,’ Rodgers says.
Rodgers describes the ayahuasca trip as a ‘deeply intense spiritual journey’ on the show
Rodgers sits in a circle with his acquaintances in Costa Rica during the ayahuasca retreat
As well as taking ayahuasca, Rodgers is seen playing bongo drums and giving speeches to the group as they head on their spiritual journey. Through the drink, he claims, ‘we can model a new way of thinking about masculinity’ by ‘getting deep, getting emotional, tapping into the divine feminine and being vulnerable.’
For years, the quarterback’s battle for perfection on the field left him ‘always teetering on self-loathing because nothing is ever good enough’.
‘At the core of being a perfectionist – whether we admit this or not – subliminally we know we are broken,’ says Rodgers, who particularly struggled after leading the Packers to the Super Bowl.
But plant medicine, the 41-year-old claims, ‘has been a big teacher for me, for self-love, to learn how to love myself better.’
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