“Strong Root” Apprenticeship

A Strong Root for Future Generations

The Koshi Tapon Apprenticeship is a community-led educational initiative rooted in our vision to ensure the transmission of ancestral knowledge within Shipibo-Konibo communities for generations to come. At its heart, this apprenticeship supports the next generation of Shipibo-Konibo youth in carrying forward the cultural wisdom, healing traditions, and ways of life upheld here at Jakon Rate.

Developed in collaboration with partners including Pacha Nishi and The Center for Shamanic Education and Exchange, Koshi Tapon reflects a shared commitment to strengthening Indigenous-led education and ensuring that knowledge transmission remains in the hands of the Shipibo-Konibo community.

The Meaning of “Koshi Tapon”

“Koshi Tapon” can be understood as “strong root.” It speaks to the cultivation of stability, identity, and depth—qualities that allow a person to stand firmly in who they are, while remaining in right relationship with the land, community, plants, ancestors, spirits, and culture. This apprenticeship is a process of rooting ancestral knowledge within the community itself—cultivating a strong foundation that supports the long-term continuity and growth of Shipibo-Konibo wisdom for generations to come.

“It was the most beautiful experience I’ve had in my life. I am making the reality I was dreaming of: to be a teacher and a healer (Onanya), and in the future to help others with medicinal plants.”

— Gustavo, Koshi Tapon Apprentice, 2026

We offer this unique program as an immersive, multi-week experience (typically around two months), during which participants live and learn within the rhythms of community life at Jakon Rate. Throughout their apprenticeship, Shipibo-Konibo students learn directly from elders through daily workshops, regenerative forest study, medicinal plant preparation, and ceremony. The program also emphasizes reflection, integration, and ongoing dialogue between apprentices and their teachers.

Apprentices learn with:

• Marcos Urquia Maynas — forest ecology, reforestation, and the living systems of the Amazon

• Doña Delia Mahua — preparation of medicinal plants, remedios, and vegetalismo

• Maestra Manuela Mahua & Robertina Mahua — ceremony, song, and spiritual practice

What distinguishes this apprenticeship is its holistic nature. Apprentices are immersed in ecological knowledge, land stewardship, and plant medicine with an ecologist and vegetalista, while also engaging deeply with ceremonial preparation, ikaros, and singing in ceremony alongside the onanyabo.

At Jakon Rate, we believe that the transmission of knowledge must remain guided by those to whom it belongs. The Koshi Tapon Apprenticeship reflects our ongoing commitment to Indigenous-led education, ethical collaboration, cultural continuity over generations, and deep respect for the wisdom of the Shipibo-Konibo people. We support this program as part of a broader vision: a future where Indigenous communities like ourselves are resourced to sustain our own knowledge systems on our own terms.

If you would like to learn more about the Koshi Tapon Apprenticeship, support this initiative, or explore ways to engage respectfully, we invite you to reach out or connect with our community.