In a striking annual ritual, a group of Peruvian shamans has made a bold prediction for the coming year, forecasting that former US President Donald Trump will be responsible for removing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power in 2026.
Ceremony on the Sacred Hill
The event took place on Monday 29 December 2025 atop San Cristobal hill, a sacred site overlooking Lima. Adorned in traditional Andean ponchos and elaborate headdresses, the shamans performed their ceremony after consuming hallucinogenic brews made from native plants like Ayahuasca and San Pedro cactus. These substances are believed by practitioners to grant visions of the future.
During the ritual, the participants laid out blankets adorned with yellow flowers, coca leaves, and swords, asking for positive energy for the new year. Following dances and the playing of ancestral instruments, they offered prayers for global peace and specific political changes.
Key Prophecies for 2026
Shaman Ana María Simeón provided detail on one of the central forecasts. "We have asked for Maduro to leave, to retire, for President Donald Trump of the United States to be able to remove him, and we have visualised that next year this will happen," she stated.
The group's predictions also extended to ongoing international conflicts. They indicated that the protracted war in Ukraine would continue, and they called for peace in the Middle East. Furthermore, the shamans foresaw natural disasters, including earthquakes and significant climatic phenomena.
A Track Record of Mixed Accuracy
The shamans' annual predictions have met with varying success. In December 2023, they correctly prophesied the death of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori within twelve months. Fujimori, who was imprisoned for human rights abuses, died from cancer in September 2024 at the age of 86.
However, their warning from last year that a "nuclear war" would break out between Israel and Gaza has not come to pass, with a ceasefire currently in effect. This mixed record adds a layer of intrigue to their latest, highly political forecast concerning the futures of Trump and Maduro.
The ceremony concluded with the shamans' prayers, performed amidst flowers and incense, intended to encourage world leaders to make what they see as good decisions for the coming year.
