Yawanawa Tribe Singing Circle & Cultural exchange

About this event

On the 7th of May in Overijssel, we are organizing a Singing Circle & Cultural Exchange with the Yawavake Yawanawá family of Pajé Yawakashahu.

This is a beautiful opportunity to connect with and learn about the Yawanawá culture through their songs, stories, and presence. Their music carries prayers, teachings, and a deep connection to the forest and their ancestors.

During this gathering, we will sit together, listen, and learn their traditional chants. You are welcome to join in, but there is no pressure—simply being present is already enough.

This space is open to everyone. Whether you already feel connected to this path or are simply curious to learn more, you are welcome exactly as you are.

The Yawanawá travel to Europe to share their traditions and to support their community in the Amazon. The contributions from these gatherings help fund important projects in their village, Mushinú—such as access to clean drinking water, reforestation, community facilities, and education for the younger generations.

By joining this evening, you directly support the tribe. Everything they earn here goes back to their community and to the preservation of their traditions in the rainforest.

They will also bring handmade crafts from their village, such as jewelry, kuripés, tepis, and their own sacred hapé. If you feel called to support them in this way, please bring some extra cash.

After the circle, there will be an optional hapé ceremony for those who feel called to go a bit deeper.

There is also an option to stay overnight at the location for an additional €15 (cash).

About the family -

Pajé Yawakashahu (Pajé meaning shaman/spiritual leader)

is known for the joy and depth he brings to his ceremonies. A profound connoisseur of Yawanawá culture, he is the son of the renowned leader and great Pajé Yawarani, who was a pioneer in the revival of Yawanawá traditions and lived until the age of 106. Recognized throughout Brazil for the beauty of his work, Yawakashahu is emerging as a distinguished pajé of the Acrean Amazon. During our gathering in May, he will offer a glimpse into the vast richness of the Amazon — a unique and profound opportunity.

Vari Rua,

a young warrior of the Yawanawá people and part of the Yawavake lineage, is the son of Pajé Yawakashahu. He is deeply rooted in an ancestral line of shamans, healers, and spiritual guardians who carry the living wisdom of the forest. As a devoted student of his culture, Vari Rua walks his path in close connection with his family and elders. He is increasingly recognized for his musical gift, weaving traditional melodies and prayers into songs that radiate joy, presence, and deep healing. His music opens hearts, supports transformation, and brings lightness and harmony into the ceremony.
As a young carrier of ancient knowledge, Vari Rua embodies the continuity of Yawanawá traditions — an emerging voice from the heart of the world’s largest forest, honoring the past while shaping the future through song, spirit, and devotion.

Tsaka,

began her international journey at just 13 years old, walking alongside great masters such as Biraci, Putanny, and Tawahu and his family.
Now, at the age of 16, she embodies the strength, grace, and wisdom of Yawanawá women. Her voice carries both sweetness and power, touching the hearts of all who hear her. Born into a lineage of great leaders, she is the daughter of a revered master of sacred medicines and prayers from the Sacred Village, and the granddaughter of the well-known Pajé Yawarani. Through her presence, song, and spirit, Tsaka carries the living legacy of her ancestors into the future.

The Yawanawá are an indigenous people from the Amazon rainforest in Brazil, living in deep relationship with nature, spirit, and community. Their culture is rooted in harmony—with the forest, with each other, and with the unseen worlds that guide their lives.

For the Yawanawá, the forest is not just a place—it is a living teacher. Every plant carries medicine, every animal carries wisdom, and every sound holds meaning. Their traditions are passed down through generations not through books, but through songs, stories, rituals, and direct experience.

One of the most powerful aspects of their culture is their music. Their sacred chants, often received through visions and dreams, are considered medicine. These songs are used in ceremonies to bring healing, clarity, and connection—to oneself, to the community, and to the spirit world.

At the center of their spiritual life stands the pajé (spiritual leader), who carries deep knowledge of the medicines, the songs, and the traditions of the tribe. The pajé is a guide between worlds, holding the wisdom of the ancestors and helping others reconnect to their essence.

During this ceremony, Pajé Yawakashahu Yawanawá will share more about the Yawanawá culture in his own words. Through his presence, stories, and songs, you will have the opportunity to experience this ancient wisdom directly—from the source.

This is not just something to learn about, but something to feel. A moment to sit, listen, and reconnect with a way of life that remembers our deep connection to the Earth. 🌿


A short story of the yawanawa ~ Deep in the heart of the Amazon, where the forest breathes like a living being, the Yawanawá people say that the world is made of songs.

Long ago, before outsiders ever reached their land, a young boy named Nahu felt something missing inside him. He could hear the elders sing during ceremonies, their voices rising with the fire, calling spirits, animals, and ancestors—but when he tried to sing, nothing came. His voice felt empty.

One night, his grandmother took him into the forest.

“Listen,” she said.

At first, Nahu heard only silence. But slowly… the forest revealed itself. The hum of insects, the rhythm of the river, the whisper of leaves, the distant call of a bird. It wasn’t noise—it was music.

“The songs are already here,” she told him. “We do not create them. We remember them.”

Days later, during a sacred ceremony, Nahu sat quietly, no longer trying to force anything. He simply listened—deeply. And then, like a wind moving through him, a melody arose. Soft at first, then stronger. It wasn’t his mind speaking—it was something older.

The elders smiled.

From that day on, Nahu understood:
Among the Yawanawá, songs are not just sung…
They are received—from the forest, from the spirits, from the memory of those who walked before.

And every voice, when it opens, becomes a bridge between worlds. 🌿