克丘亞語
"Ayahuasca" is the hispanicized (traditional) spelling of a word in the Quechuan languages, which are spoken in the Andean states of Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, and Colombia—speakers of Quechuan languages who use the modern Alvarado orthography spell it "ayawaska". This word refers both to the liana "Banisteriopsis caapi", and to the brew prepared from it. In the Quechua languages, "aya" means "spirit, soul", or "corpse, dead body", and "waska" means "rope" or "woody vine", "liana". The word "ayahuasca" has been variously translated as "liana of the soul", "liana of the dead", and "spirit liana". It is also referred to as "la purge" due to the belief that it cures the soul, offering a deep introspective journey that allows the user to examine their emotions and ways of thinking.