Ñawi (Jaime Tisoy Tandioy)

We are honored to introduce Ñawi (Jaime Tisoy Tandioy) as the shaman guiding our upcoming retreat.

Ñawi is the Governor of the Inga people and comes from the respected Tisoy Tandioy family in Santiago de Putumayo, Colombia. He is widely recognized among Taitas (shamans) for his deep knowledge and for leading Yagé (Ayahuasca) healing ceremonies.

Beyond his ceremonial work, Ñawi is also a voice for the Inga Indigenous Community in political affairs, and a musician, part of the Runa Kam Inga band.

It is a true honor to work alongside Ñawi and to share his wisdom, music, and the living traditions of the Inga people with our participants.

The Inga are an Indigenous people of southern Colombia, historically known since the 15th century, when descendants of the Inca brought their language and traditions into the valleys of Putumayo. Today their population is estimated at around 20,000, with most communities living in the Sibundoy Valley and surrounding jungle.

They speak Inga Kichwa, a branch of the Quechua language, and preserve a rich heritage of plant medicine. From childhood, future healers apprentice under elder taitas, sometimes starting as early as seven or eight years old. Learning to diet with plants, observe rituals, and carry icaros, their training can last decades before they are recognized as true shamans.

For the Inga, aya_huasca (yagé) is not a drug but a sacred teacher — used to cleanse body, mind, and spirit, to heal grief and illness, and to receive guidance. Ceremonies are held in the maloka, with songs and ritual creating the setting for transformation.

Even today, the Inga are regarded as guardians of ancestral medicine, carrying forward one of the Amazon’s most respected healing traditions.