Inner Mastery, once touted as the world's first ayahuasca multinational, has collapsed amid allegations of spiritual fraud. Founded in 2013 by Argentine entrepreneur Alberto Varela, the company expanded rapidly, boasting centres in 14 countries and hosting retreats across Europe and the Americas. At its peak in the late 2010s, it claimed 130 staff running 1,000 retreats for 30,000 customers annually.
The organisation stripped the traditional Amazonian ceremony of its religious connotations, rebranding it as a tool for individual self-realisation. Participants, many seeking relief from trauma or addiction, paid thousands of euros for training programmes. Former attendees described a culture of gruelling unpaid labour, with sessions often running from morning until dawn. 'It was relentless. We barely slept,' said Dalia, a therapist who joined in 2017 after her mother's death.
Despite the promises of healing, a darker reality emerged. Former members reported that Varela's teachings encouraged followers to cut ties with outsiders, whom he dismissed as 'NPCs' incapable of independent thought. The company operated communes where employees lived for a fee, and launched a cryptocurrency. Critics now argue that the entire enterprise was built on deception. 'People pay to be told lies,' one former participant said.
