New Years, New You: Ayni Despacho Ceremony
Your Ultimate Guide to a New You and New Year's Celebrations! Everything You Need to Know About Gratitude Ceremony.
"Reciprocity Ceremony" is Ayni Despacho in Quechua language of wisdom-keepers from the Q’ero lineage of Peru. Central to their cosmic alignment is the understanding that the universe is benign, and only seems exploitative when we are out of balance. They believe that the world mirrors back our own state of ayni or right relationship. Coming back into ayni, allows the Universe to work on our behalf once again, restoring the flow of synchronicity in reciprocity.
The gift is used to transmit intentions of gratitude, using earth elements as the sacred messengers. It has been said that the paco, is a sacred chef, mixing ingredients from timeless recipes and creating a living prayer bundle, an act of love that honors a connection to all living beings.
December 31st was a new level in 2022. Choosing to partake in sacred Ayni Despacho ceremony this year was exciting, refreshing and adventurous. The cosmic alignment with the New Year's celebration, location on the ocean shores and the spiritual beings gathered in the same intention was truly multidimensional. Ayni Despacho ceremonies are perfect for daily gratitude blessings, astrological alignments, birthdays, weddings, celebrations and seasonal wholistic wellness.
A gathering of 15 people perfectly aligned to work together at the level of a soul in this mission designed by the Divine. This New Year's Ayni Despacho Ceremony was led by an amazing energy healer, naturopath, QHHs practitioner and a true Light Being Angelica. Angelica offers energy healing, intuitive spiritual counseling, chakra cleansing and shamanic journeying through Soul Revive.
A despacho is a sacred creation in that it holds symbolic elements and the prayers of the participants. As the shamans add the elements to the despacho, the vibration of the participants and the room raises. The despacho becomes a living prayer that brings energy shifts and healing. All ingredients have significance and each receive prayer before being placed on the paper.
By calling in the helping spirits of the earth, the mountains, the elements, the animal archetypes, the sky, the ancestors, at the start and throughout, the Shaman sets the stage for support in carrying the prayers to spirit/creator. In the physical realm, a large piece of white paper serves as a ‘wrapping’ for all of the offerings.
The Qintu is a an offering representing the three worlds - the earth, the world below, and the world above. Salt is spread across the paper base as a cleansing element.
Corn and other grains are used to nourish participants and the Pachamama (the Earth) as well as seeds represent planting dreams and wishes. Red wine is poured to the earth as an offering and as a reminder of her life blood, and white wine is poured as an offering to the mountain spirits.
Gold and silver elements, such as metalic threads or beads represent the sun (light) and the moon (dark). Beans bring abundance and prosperity, while minerals represent the earth’s food. Fresh red flowers represent the feminine, while white signifies the masculine: a sacred balanced relationship. Cotton balls speak for the water through clouds in the sky.
Rainbow yarn visually depict the rainbow bridge between this world and the world of spirit, in a network with the planetary grid and human chakras. The animal world is honored sweetly with animal crackers, and sweet Pachamama is honored with cacao and chocolate. The honoring of this world’s measure for opportunity is layered here with bills of paper money, chocolate coins, and frog candy - a symbol of abundance. True sweetness of life lives in the candies and lots of sugar added to the mix. Paper confetti is sprinkled both on and around the despacho, celebrating life itself.
Final Blessings
When the despacho is complete, all are invited to be open to receive from the energy vortex that has been created by bringing hands to the heart and honoring a moment of silence to say Thank You together. Also used as a vehicle to cleanse each participant’s aura, as it's swept across the meridians of the bodies, one by one, before it is released on its journey to spirit.
Transformation: What is the desired timeline?
Empowerment: Any, Aya and Kuti Despacho
Offer Reflection: What are you growing?
Transformation: What is the desired timeline?
This will often be known at the outset of the ceremony, thus guiding the process. The practitioner cues into the energy of the bundle, asking without words if the package will be offered to fire for immediate transmutation; to flowing water, like a river or the sea, for a gentler, slower release; or directly to the earth by being buried, which is the slowest of the vehicles of transmutation.
When we can truly say thank you for an experience, we have come to completion with it. Allow yourself to feel the healing effects of feeling full of gratitude. This was very palpable in the room and outside as the ceremony was happening and was felt for some time after.
Empowerment: Ayni, Aya and Kuti Despacho
The despacho ceremony is used to honor milestones of life: births and birthdays; marriage unions; holidays; new years, solstices, and equinoxes; new moons and full moons. The earthkeepers teach us that any process can be supported with ceremony, which invites the quieting of the mind and the opening of the heart to speak and lead. This is the language of the soul. Thus the practice of the sacred despacho offers the message of gratitude to Pachamama, our mother and our home, and to the unseen worlds, in a way that goes beyond words. Three types of despachos reflecting these intentions are ayni, aya, and kuti.
The aya despacho honors the dead. It is a ceremony for the deceased soul, supporting the soul’s journey into the afterlife. But this despacho also celebrates life, specifically the life of the one being honored. Red, green, blue, purple, gold, and white paper, layered over a black paper base, creates a rainbow offering and forms a bridge for the soul from this earthly world to the shamanic upper world, where the soul thrives with the stars.
The kuti despacho is created for the removal of obstacles, such as clearing away the effects of sorcery or malign intent. The base is black with the intent of clearing, cleansing, restoring, and forgiving. Spices are added to this bundle for heat. Most often, the kuti despacho is burned in a sacred fire ceremony, releasing all attachments cleanly and quickly.
