This painting, by Amazon Indian Nixiwaka Yawanawá, represents spiritual rebirth during a Shamanic initiation ceremony in the Amazon rainforest. The spirit Vana is invoked. Vana is the owner of all the plants and is the most powerful rainforest spirit. A unique and powerful painting that brings the tribal power of the Yawanawá people to all who view.

This painting represents
the spiritual rebirth of a
person who experiences
the Yawanawá initiation
into becoming a Shaman.
The ceremony begins
with the root of Rare, a
sacred plant considered
by the Yawanawá to be
the most powerful plant of the Rainforest. It invokes
the spirit Vana who is considered to be the owner of
all the plants and the most powerful spirit in the Rainforest. The ceremony to become a Shaman involves
the person in undertaking a diet where he abstains
from specific things and focuses on his spirituality for
a period that could be as long as six months, when he
is alone in the Rainforest apart from being watched
over by his Shaman mentor. The plants are the door to
the spiritual world. The ceremony makes the connection
with the spirits and the person is transformed into a
spiritual being able to see visions, heal and guide the tribe as a Shaman." Nixiwaka Yawanawá

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