Cacao Circle of the Sweet Word With Manari Ushigua and Florencia Fridman

A Conversation From the Heart Guided By the Wisdom of the Amazon, Ceremonial Cacao + Sacred Sound

Tuesday, April 30th

The circle of the sweet word is an ancestral technology that has been practiced by ancient traditions and indigenous communities since the beginning of time to communicate the living wisdom expressed from the sweetness of the heart. 

The circle of the sweet word is a space of the ancestral living where the cultivation and growth of the sacred wisdom is guided by the elders, setting the container and everyone becomes an active participant through listening and speaking the language of the heart. This activates a path of hope, where the new seeds germinate through conversation and thought to weave a common understanding of the materialization of the sacred knowledge. The fruit of these seeds continue flourishing in the places where they are experienced and shared. 

Sacred circles have been and will continue to be a path where we learn and remember day by day the sacred knowledge and understanding that resides in the earth, water, fire, air, and all beings that have been in deep conversation with the origin of life to continue writing the story for the world.

Through this path toward sumak kawsay- a life well lived- the realization of importance of the circle of the sweet word has been implemented as an ancient technology to revitalize the sacred instruction and ancient wisdom and therefore continue weaving the more beautiful world our hearts know is possible. As the systems of modern society continue to shift and mold, it is a time of deep listening and learning once again the living wisdom.

We will begin the evening in ceremony connecting with the sacred beverage of Cacao and stories from the Sapara community of the Amazon shared by Manari Ushigua and Florencia Fridman. We will then open the space for questions from those who attend the circle about how to invite sumak kawsay- a life well lived- through practices to implement them in our daily lives.

Date: Tuesday, April 30
Time: 6:30 - 9pm EDT

Location:
Gospel, NYC

281 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10012

“In our ancestral land, the natural world, everything is clean, uncontaminated and healthy, the land is respected, the earth is in perfect equilibrium. When we ourselves are sick we understand that we must ask ourselves how we are relating with the energy of the natural world. We use the knowledge of the plants and our dreams to understand how the body is, and how our connection with nature has weakened or broken. Using bad words or thoughts can affect our health, but we can reorient ourselves and cure our sickness with the plants.

It’s wonderful when you walk in the jungle. You stand and look up where there are thousands and thousands of trees, and if you think how many lives are there you can connect with them, because you are also a living being. By connecting with them they can teach you many things. Stand among the trees and look at them, see how they are connected with each other. From there come all the pure air, pure smells, all the things we humans like, so that’s why we say that the jungle is alive. Like us, it has life, it needs to be there, because we also need it in order to be, to practise sumak kawsay (living well). (And yes, the Kichwa of Sarayaku, who are relatives and neighbours of the Sápara, have spearheaded the concept of sumak kawsay to the general population in Ecuador.) There are lots of people who when they talk of living well talk of having a house, a spouse, a wife, babies and a jungle with lots of animals, they say that’s living well. But it’s not about that, it’s about you as a person being content inside yourself, at one with nature – it’s there you will discover how to live well. Not in the material world, only in the spiritual world, that is living well. Because the term sumak kawsay is from the spirit world, and not from the material world. It’s even included in our Ecuadorian constitution, and our Indigenous concept has inspired many people – politicians, intellectuals, students, activists all over the world – to change the way they see the world. But now the concept is also misinterpreted: somebody builds a hundred-mile motorway and they say that they are carrying out a public policy to put into practice ‘living well’. It’s not about that, it’s about being a good person, a person who is aware – that’s what sumak kawsay is about.”

**Insert from conversation with Manari Ushigua shared by Zoë Tryon

IN COMPANY WITH…

  • MANARI USHIGUA

    Manari Ushigua is the leader of the Sápara Nation in the Ecuadorian Amazon. He is a traditional healer, dreamer, and defender of indigenous rights and lands. He also has founded the Naku Center which is an ecotourism project that intends to protect the rainforest, connect visitors with the spirit world, and immerse themselves in the magic of the Amazon rainforest.

    Ushigua’s ancestors were powerful shamans of the Sapara Nation who live in the Amazon rainforest along the border of Ecuador and Peru, and he was designated as the successor to his father, his grandfather and his great-grandfather, taking on the role of healer and leader of the nation – the akameno (authority).

    Once a nation of about 200,000 people, the Sápara are now in risk of extinction with a population of about 700 due to enslavement during the rubber boom, land grabs and intermarriage with neighbouring tribes. Today only 3 people speak their native language fluently. Manari and the Sapara have opened their teachings to the world to keep their wisdom alive.

  • FLORENCIA FRIDMAN

    Florencia Fridman is a self-empowerment artist working globally with heart opening therapies involving Ceremonial Grade Cacao, yoga, sound journeys, and breath as instruments for transformation. Florencia is passionate about supporting the voices of indigenous nations, wisdom keepers, and guardians of the sacred lands. She works with the Mayan tradition from Guatemala and the the Sapara Nation of Ecuador.

    She shares her passion for Theobroma Cacao through education and ceremony globally. Florencia has opened for Deepak Chopra, has facilitated ceremonies for the corporate world at Spotify, and has been a guest to teach at NYU.

    Florencia is the co-Founder of Cacao Laboratory, a Ceremonial Cacao brand aiming to bring awareness of a regenerative world through the voice of Cacao. She is also the founder of Florecer Community, bridging modern and ancient wisdom to create a more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.

We’d love for you to join us

Let’s share a conversation from the hearts.

Please reach out with any questions to hello@flourishingonesness.com