Song of the Amazon

art by: Katherine Skaggs

The word “shaman” has been co-opted from its Evenki (Siberian) origins due to the limited vocabulary of anthropologists, and in its current context is used as a blanket term to describe a wide range of practitioners who enter altered states of consciousness and communicate with the spirit world for a variety of purposes.
 
Because this word is used by many who are unfamiliar with the culturally specific terms used to describe healers, seers and medicine people, the term “shaman” is a generalized term that is used to describe legitimate practitioners, but is also often used by frauds and amateurs. In some traditional indigenous spiritual communities, the words “shaman” and “shamanism” have taken on a negative context because of exploitation and appropriation.
 
In this insightful article, Ben Boomer of the The Center for Shamanic Education and Exchange, discusses these concerns, and how engaging with the intact spiritual traditions of another culture with proper respect, reciprocity, and gratitude can be beneficial for those seeking a deeper relationship with life.

Our Indiegogo campaign has ended! We want to express how truly grateful we are to each and every one of you who donated and helped spread the word about this project.

The money that was raised will help us to acquire much needed software and equipment that will help us continue with filming and animation as we embark on the creation of this exciting film!
 

This crowdfunding campaign is only the beginning for Song of the Amazon! We’ve learned so much during this time, and plan to take the valuable new information we have learned through this process with us moving forward. We are in it for the long haul on this project of the heart, and we feel very blessed to have you along for the journey!
 

ICHABIRES IRAKE! (Shipibo for thank you very much!)

We are very excited to share this animation test short for Song of the Amazon!

Song of the Amazon is a mind-expanding animated film we are creating to share the cosmology, visionary art, and wisdom of the Shipibo-Konibo people of the Peruvian Amazon.

Art, myth and story have always been powerful catalysts for change. By sharing the creative voice of the Shipibo people and their worldview of nature as a wise and conscious teacher to humanity, we expand consciousness, allowing us to rediscover our own connection to each other and live harmoniously with our planet.

We need your help to make this visionary film that will share vital knowledge from the heart of nature and awaken humanity to create a better world. Please Join the Song and contribute to our indiegogo crowdfunding campaign today.

According to the cosmology of the Amazonian Shipibo-Konibo people, the primordial anaconda Ronin, brought the Universe into existence by singing a song that was depicted in the patterns of her skin. This conveys an understanding that existence is essentially comprised of vibrations, encapsulating the connection between the energetic and material worlds and expressing the link between light and sound.

This sheds light on the popular understanding and perhaps over simplification of the complex geometric designs seen in Shipibo art. These intricate patterns, called kené, are seen in Shipibo pottery, embroidery, ink work and visionary paintings and are thought to be illustrations of the underlying vibrational make up of the universe.

The serpentine energy of Ronin can be seen expressed in these traditional Shipibo kené designs, and every plant, animal and person is thought to possess their own unique design. The visionary state brought about by ayahuasca medicine is thought to reveal these energetic patterns to the ayahuasca healers. Spiritual imbalance and illness in a patient can be perceived as breaks in or misalignment of that person’s kené. Disorder in a person’s pattern can be repaired by healers through the application of medicinal animal or plant vibrations via healing songs called icaros. These songs are sung as a tool, which can correct imbalances in a person by bringing their energetic designs back into cohesive harmony.

video by Keith Rozendal

In posting this informative video, we feel the need to respond the video’s conclusion that the true meanings behind the kené designs have been lost. This limited view acts on an anthropological presumption that this knowledge is purely cultural or mythological and does not consider the ability humans have to connect directly with the spirits of the plants and animals to regain and recover the deeper meanings existing behind the kené pattern. Nor does it recognize that these deeper meanings are a result of an experiential knowingness that comes from the realm of each individual’s relationship with their own specific plant and animal teachers and allies.