VOICES from THE AMAZON

WATCH EXCLUSIVE DOCUMENTARIES ABOUT INDIGENOUS NATIONS

THE GUIDANCE OF YAJÉ - ANCESTRAL SIEKOPAI MEDICINE

Do you know what the most important month is to drink yajé (ayahuasca)? How about the true purpose of preparing our body through a dieta?

Discover these, and many other aspects of ancestral indigenous lore through the wisdom of elder healers and leaders of the Siekopai community of Ecuador in The Guidance of Yajé - Ancestral Siekopai Medicine.

Directed by Siekopai leader Jimmy Piaguaje and produced by filmmaker Kumiko Hayashi, this short film will give you a glimpse of the importance of yajé for the Siekopai nation, the role this sacred medicine has played in the preservation of their culture, and the shamanic secrets passed on to the current generation of healers by ancestral wisdom keepers.

AYAHUASCA & THE HUNI KUIN CULTURAL RENAISSANCE

Alongside the Psychedelic Renaissance, is a Great Shamanic Revival that sees indigenous wisdom keepers traveling around the world sharing their knowledge, spirituality and culture to an industrialized world hungry for meaning and authentic connection. 

Filmed in the Huni Kuin community of Novo Futuro in Acre, Brazil, this mini documentary shares the tribe's decision to open their village to outsiders and seek alliances with people from the Global North. 

Directed by Brazilian filmmakers Lara Jacoski and Patrick Belem from Bem-Te-Vi Produções, you will witness the Huni Kuin people’s long process of recovering their roots, remembering their culture, and emergence into better times, the era of indigenous rights. 

HEAR FROM INDIGENOUS WISDOM KEEPERS AND THOUGHT LEADERS

Taita Giovanni Moriano
Taita Giovanni Moriano

Traditional Doctor of Yagé Medicine

Exploring the Wisdom of Yagé: “The ceremony is only 50% of the work”

Taita Giovanni (born Luis Evelio Moriano) is a traditional healer from the Awá community of Putumayo, Colombia. He has been serving yagé for over 30 years and founded his maloka, “Inkal Awá” (“people of the river and the mountain”), in Medellín 25 years ago.

In this interview, we explore the ways in which yagé is used inside and outside of the jungle, the training process of becoming a taita and the prominence of charlatan shamans, and the pre-and post-ceremony work that’s necessary to receive the benefits of the medicine.

Fernando Choa Falla

Witoto Author

The Wonders of Mambe and Ambil: An Author's Perspective

Fernando, whose spiritual name is Nɨmairatofe (meaning “tree of wisdom”), is an author, speaker, and ancestral wisdom keeper from the Witoto indigenous community of Amazonas, Colombia. He is the author of three books and is currently working on his fourth.

In this interview, Fernando gives us an insight into the sacredness of mambe and ambil for his community and how these medicines allowed him to develop his own wisdom about the ‘why’ of the world.

Roberto Piaguaje

Traditional Siekopai Healer

Ancestral Teachings of the Siekopai Healers

Roberto is a connoisseur of medicinal plants native to the Amazon Rainforest. He lives in the present day Siekopai territory located in the Northern Ecuadorian Amazon. He is one of the true wise men of the indigenous Siekopai Nation.

In this interview, he shares various ancestral teachings that were passed on to him by his elders and speaks of the importance of preparing the body every time yajé (ayahuasca) is drunk. He also shares about the ways to undergo a proper dieta so as to allow the body to connect with celestial beings, and the spiritual relevance of the Kakotëkawë period for drinking as a Siekopai native.

Juana Payaguaje

Siekopai Wisdom Keeper

 Drinking Yajé as a Siekopai Woman

Juana is a wise woman from the Siekopai Nation. She holds the traditional practices of women’s healthcare that were taught to her by the Siekopai grandmothers. She knows the care that women must take into account when drinking yajé (ayahuasca) and other plant medicines.

In this interview, she harnesses the guidance that she received from her grandmothers, who were dedicated yajé drinkers, to offer the do’s and don’ts to women who drink yajé.

Jimmy Piaguaje

Siekopai Leader, Filmmaker

Yajé and the Siekopai Cultural Sovereignty

Jimmy is a young indigenous leader of the Siekopai nation. He is a communicator for the organization Alianza Ceibo, partner of Amazon Frontlines. He is currently producing his feature length fiction film, Wajokone, about his grandparents confronting the first Spanish invaders.

In this interview, he discusses the changes he has undergone in his personal life through yajé (ayahuasca) that led to the changes in the community in order to continue to protect their territory and culture.

Victoria Corisepa Dreve

Harakbut leader

Plant Medicines and Leadership: The Story of a Harakbut Elder

Victoria is from the 2000-strong Amazonian Harakbut tribe of the village of Shintuya in the Madre de Dios region of Peru. She has dedicated herself over the past few years to growing her knowledge of the wider world and of the political dynamics that directly affect the series of communal lands across which her people are spread.

In this interview from the first Harakbut Women's Congress, she talks about the rights of the women in her culture and the oppressive, extractive activities of mining and logging industries, as well as about ayahuasca as a powerful medicine, leadership skill promoter, and tool for reconnecting to cultural roots.

Jaime Corisepa
Jaime Corisepa Neri

Ex President of FENAMAD

Ayahuasca & Sacred Allyship: The Emancipation of Harakbut Women

After serving 2 years in the Peruvian army, Jaime Corisepa Neri, born Mek Topo of the Harakbut community, started working for the National Federation of Río Madre de Dios and tributaries (FENAMAD). He became president of this organization in 2010 and currently in the process of creating a self-governing body for the Harakbut Nation.

In this interview from the first Harakbut Women's Congress, he talks about the role of ayahuasca in strengthening the Harakbut cultural identity, and the work he's doing to support the rallying of Harakbut women to reclaim their social, cultural, and economic sovereignty.

Cecilio Soria Gonzales

Shipibo cultural communicator

Shipibo and Harakbut: A Cross-Cultural Amazonian Alliance

Cecilio is a lawyer and Shipibo communicator, one of the founders of AIDESEP (Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest), ex-president of REDCIP (The Peruvian Network of Indigenous Communicators), two times councilman of the district of Coronel Portillo, ex-national director of the CCP (Peruvian Farmers’ Confederation), and the founder of Voz Indigena: La Hora Shipiba, a magazine and radio show about indigenous nations published in Shipibo and Spanish.

A promoter of the Shipibo culture and Shipibo empowerment, in this interview from the first Harakbut Women's Congress he talks about the cross-cultural alliances with the Harakbut nation and the importance of protecting the rights of Peru's indigenous populations.