Granfather Rufino Criollo Quenamá

Heir to the ancient Payaguaje and Quenamá lineages, from the Siona and Cofán traditions,
Grandfather Rufino is one of the last guardians of the true ancestral science of Yagé.

Initiated at the age of eight, he was chosen and trained to become a master of the medicine and the spirit world.
His apprenticeship was long and demanding:
he learned from eleven different taitas and spent years in isolation,
far from the noise of the western world,
to receive the purest knowledge as it was handed down by the ancestors.

In 1996, with the blessing and permission of his elders,
he began to travel beyond the jungle, carrying the medicine across territories and borders.
Since then, he has dedicated his life to serving humanity:
sharing the teachings of Yagé, protecting his community, and walking as a living bridge between worlds.

Grandfather Rufino does not only share ceremonies;
he transmits the living spirit of the jungle:
its strength, its humility, its love.

During the retreat, he will guide part of the Yagé ceremonies
and offer traditional tobacco cleanses, working with profound wisdom,
purity of intention, and the sweetness of a true elder.

In his presence, one feels both the power and the gentleness of the forest.
With each word, each song, each silence, he reminds us:
we are not alone on this path.
The spirits are listening.