Tatuajes: Transferring Symbols of Power
A ritual body painting session where the Shipibo family will draw on you – in the form of an impermanent ‘tattoo’ (lasting about 10-14 days) made using a natural plant dye – the Arkana, or spiritual/energetic protection, laid on you by the shaman, during the Ayahuasca sessions.
Shipibo Ritual Body Painting
Photo Courtesy: Stephen Witte
The Arkana may be an animal, a bird, an insect, a plant or a tree, or else, an inanimated object like a stone or a geometric design. In the Shipibo world these abstract designs are intimately connected with the Shipibo cosmovision and are deeply intertwined with musical patterns: they are effectively musical pathways to the Spirit world.
Tags: arkana, ayahuasca session, ayahuasca shaman, ayahuasca shipibo, shamanic body painting, shamanic protection, shipibo body painting, shipibo ritual body painting, shipibo shamanism, shipibo-conibo shamanism
