YAWANAWÁ 2018

JULY 2018 WE TRAVEL TO THE HEART OF THE AMAZON TO CELEBRATE INDIGENOUS CULTURE AT THE SOURCE

Beginning on the full moon July 2018 we have been invited to share in the games, music, dancing, healing, ceremonies, and sacred rituals known to the Yawanawá, indigenous tribe of Acre, Brazil, for millennia. Join us for this unique 10-day immersion as we embark on an epic journey, traveling upstream the Rio Gregório to arrive in Mutum – the spiritual center of the Yawanawá tribe deep in the rainforest – to help keep the indigenous celebration known as the Mariri Festival alive. The Mariri Festival is a time when the tribe gathers to celebrate their indigenous way of life, living in harmony with the planet, and the very forest they call home. Last year funding for the festival was lost. To keep this beautiful tradition alive and thriving, we are so very fortunate to invite you on this trip-of-a-lifetime July 2018. The success of Mariri 2018 relies on your participation. 

REJUVENATION + CELEBRATION + HEALING

When you have only the Sun and the Moon and the Stars to guide you, the body and mind return to balance. To simply be in the forest is medicinal – off the grid – without the disruptions of modern “conveniences” such as artificial light and artificial temperatures. And when you add the elements of sacred plant ceremonies and various ancient rituals such as body painting and plant baths, the experience is like no other. It is here, in the forest, where we can most rapidly heal. We make this journey not only to heal ourselves, but to support the continuation of a historic celebration – to support the tribe’s efforts to maintain an annual Mariri Festival, celebrating their very way of life.

The first 5 days we will participate in the festival. This is a beautiful celebration of indigenous culture, consisting of 5 full days of dancing, singing, plant ceremonies, and more. As an added benefit, the 5 days following the festival will be devoted to healing.  For those interested in the days after the festival we will have the opportunity to work with the Giant Monkey Tree Frog Kambo. The intensely purgative effect of Kambo is clinically known to cleanse the body of disease. The diet will be very simple while working with Kambo – no sugar, no sex, very little salt, and lots of rest. The beneficial effects of Kambo are well documented and known to include caring for anxiety, depression, PTSD, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, arthritis, diabetes, candida, high blood pressure, fertility issues, recurrent infections, and more. Because we have been invited to both the festival and to stay after the festival to work with Kambo there are 2 trips we are able to offer.

TRIP 1: MARIRI 2018 CALENDAR

July 25 meet in Cruzeiro do Sul, Swamy Hotel

July 26 travel by car to harbor + journey to Mutum by boat

July 27-31 Mariri Festival

August 1 boat to harbor + car to Cruzeiro do Sul

MARIRI 2018 COST

$1850 USD

TRIP 2: MARIRI 2018 + KAMBO CALENDAR

July 25 meet in Cruzeiro do Sul, Swamy Hotel

July 26 travel by car to harbor + journey to Mutum by boat

July 27-31 Mariri Festival

August 1-5 Kambo Diet

August 6 boat to harbor + car to Cruzeiro do Sul

MARIRI 2018 + KAMBO COST

$2400 USD

INCLUDED

hotel in Cruzeiro do Sul July 25

transportation to and from the village

food + lodging while in the village

tribal contribution for the Yawanawá

all plant medicines

NOT INCLUDED

ticket to Cruzeiro do Sul

food while traveling to and from the village

ABOUT THE YAWANAWÁ

The Yawanawá are the legal guardians of almost half a million acres of Brazilian Amazon. There are over 1,000 Yawanawá, living in 8 tribal villages along the Gregório River. The Yawanawá and their allies are dedicated to developing a model of sustainability that allows them to protect their lands and engage with the outside world on their own terms, without compromising their cultural and spiritual identity. The tribe has been working tirelessly to increase territory, reinvigorate Yawanawá culture, and establish economically and socially empowering relationships with the outside world.

ABOUT THE MARIRI FESTIVAL

The Mariri Festival serves to foster cultural regeneration of an indigenous way of life and to promote the preservation of ancient Amazonian cultures both inside and outside the forest. The festival is complete with games, songs, dances, hunting, a feast, and is a true coming together of the Yawanawá community. During the festival you can expect to receive plant baths, have your body painted, receive rume (rapé), listen to Yawanawá stories, sing their songs, take part in the preparation of the uni (ayahuasca), and to begin the Kambo diet, should you choose. This is time to align with the vibrations of the forest, to cleanse ourselves of unwanted energies, and to attend one heck of an Amazonian party!

ABOUT KAMBO

Kambo (the giant monkey tree frog, phyllomedusa bicolor) secretes, as a defense mechanism, intense medicine with very strong healing powers. The medicine will be administered directly from the frog and induces a powerful detoxifying effect. It boosts the immune system, enhances physical energy, and is used to cure many diseases. You can read more at http://www.iakp.org/about-kambo/4584758432. Please research as your heart desires. There has been copious amounts of research done on this powerful little animal since the 1980s and the findings are well-documented.

ABOUT SOFIE

The SOFIE Foundation is a §501(c)(3) committed to Saving Ourselves From Indigenous Extinction. At SOFIE we envision a world where the diversity of nature thrives, where indigenous wisdom is heard, honored, respected, and where people are of service to all of life on this planet and beyond. The mission of SOFIE is to be of service for the preservation of Indigenous Wisdom; to give a voice to the voiceless – the waters, the earth, the plants, the animals, the ancestors – in a humble and respectful way. It is our belief that all forms of life, human and nonhuman, deserve respect. And that it is our duty to be of service to this ancient wisdom in a benevolent way. Visit sofiefoundation.org to learn more.

THE OTHER MEDICINES

UNI (AYAHUASCA)

Uni is the primary medicine used by the Yawanawá to connect you to what the Yawanawá call “the force” – the spiritual dimension present that we typically do not have access to. We will participate in the brewing of the Uni tea, learn the story of Uni, and have the opportunity to sit in ceremony with the Yawanawá – a true blessing indeed!

RUME (RAPÉ)

Rume is another primary medicine of the Yawanawá. It is a tobacco medicine with strong healing powers. It is administered through the nostrils.

SANANGA

Sananga is made from the bark of the root of a plant called Apocynaceae. The juice of the bark is administered through the eyes. It is known to heal both the physical and energetic eyes and is used to relieve headaches.

PLANT BATHS

The plants baths are a detoxification process where we first steam with the plants and then are washed with the plants to help detoxify the body-mind of technologies, allowing us align with the vibration of the forest.

URUCUM AND JENIPAPO

These plants are used to paint the body. They give physical protection as well as connection to the force of the different animals and elements being painted.

 

EMAIL AMBER@SOFIEFOUNDATION.ORG TO RESERVE YOUR SPACE. WE VERY MUCH LOOK FORWARD TO SHARING THIS JOURNEY WITH YOU!

The Amazon is the pharmacy of the planet. We travel with humility and respect for the forest and for the Yawanawá people. We go to learn, to grow, and to heal… ourselves and the planet. Inquiries must also be aligned with this intention. Thank you for your support and understanding. The SOFIE Foundation is a §501(c)(3) public charity located in Los Angeles, CA.

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