9-Day Pilgrimage and Second Birth in the Major Andean Altars
June 17 – 25, 2025
This retreat is a Sacred Pilgrimage to the major Andean altars, guided by the wisdom of San Pedro (Huachumo) medicine. It offers a transformative journey of second birth, where participants walk ancestral paths, connect with the energies of the mountains, and explore deep healing, self-love, and spiritual rebirth.
THE MEANING OF HEYOKA
It is the memory of the years along a traveled path, the present dream of capturing in the houses of the air, my personal spiritual dream.
HEYOKA is a term brought by the eagle of the north in the ancestral prophecy of the Amerindian peoples of the Americas. This term is related to people who have received mysterious powers that come from a personal relationship with the mysteries of lightning, thunder, and storms. In Mexico, they are known as Graniceros, and in Peru, as Altomisayocs. They are people with great potential to become magnificent healers.
A SACRED ALLIANCE AND THE GIFT OF SAN PEDRO (HUACHUMO)
In my personal encounter with the great master Rufino Turpo, guardian of the left side of Father Ausangate Mountain, the heart of the High Andes, after several years of connection, the possibility of a spiritual alliance was revealed during a recent conversation. He authorized me to carry the medicine of Huachumo to the greater altars of which he is the custodian.
It is an immense blessing, responsibility, and trust that has been granted to me. In June of this year, we held the first gathering of this alliance. There is so much to share. In this way, the door opens to the mysteries of what is to come, on my journey of sharing what has been entrusted to me by the mystery of the Spirit.
THE PATH OF REBIRTH: A SACRED PILGRIMAGE
Thank you to all the brothers and sisters who feel called to this gathering.
This marks the first step of Heyoka Journeys on the Inca path of the tutelary mountains of magical and mythical Peru. A wonderful school to walk with the heart. A lifetime of learning from the good customs of the native peoples.
On this occasion, we will embark on the journey to the second birth: rebirth. It is a path toward ourselves, toward a new version of who we are. The new human being, emerging from the underworld of the unconscious, stepping into the opportunity of becoming conscious, in a new flowering land.
I dream in my heart of this grand opportunity to be reborn alongside the travelers of a wonderful commitment:
The commitment to understanding love for oneself first, then love for others, and finally, love for all creation.
We will walk through the altar of the earth, toward the knowledge of the ancestral Amaru, following the footprint of the jaguar, blessed by the flight of the condor and the eagle, under a starry sky at night and illuminated by the rays of the sun by day, with the colors of the rainbow bridge.
Rufino Turpo & Family
Turpo Lineage
The Turpo lineage has been settled on the slopes of the Great Apu Ausangate since very remote times and the transmission of leadership passes through generations through the touch of 3 rays. Rufino Turpo is the current heir to this sacred relationship and guardian of the Mamacocha, Sonq’ococha, Yanacocha lagoons, the temple of Lightning, the old altar in the center of the lagoon, the stone of the codices and the magical relics of his father and grandparents. His father Nazario Turpo and his grandfather Mariano Turpo were legendary healers and very important activist leaders defending ancestral wisdom. Both played a very important role in the fight against the slavery that landowners inflicted on the indigenous population in their territory. Nazario curated the Andes exhibit at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington DC, with the Washington Post publishing an extensive article about him in August 2003. Rufino learned from them, especially from his grandfather Mariano, who turned into a mountain looking at the Apu Ausangate when he died.
Rufino and his wife Julia Condori (teacher weaver) will introduce us to the magic of the Apu Ausangate, connecting us with the family of mountains and ñustas that surround the great Apu Mayor. We will receive our sacred name in the oracle of the lagoon and we will receive the Misha (the Andean altar) with the empowerment of the energy of the Apu and Mamacocha. They will offer us an energetic cleanse at the altar of lightning and they will teach us how to invoke the flower garden that lives inside the lagoon.
This year, the Turpo lineage will generously share with us the knowledge of “Mancias” oracular readings, an ancestral technique that opens access to the invisible language of the oracular field. They will also guide us through the initiation ceremony to access these subtle fields of interpretation. It is a highly useful tool to integrate into our service practice.
Santiago Ayala
Founder of Heyoka Journeys
Santiago is a highly respected Shaman and a gifted healer. He has learned sacred teachings from many ancestral traditions. Santiago carries the blessings of his tribal chiefs, family and many indigenous elders. He is a Sun dancer, carrier of the sacred Chanupa (sacred pipe), and holds space for Vision Quests.
Santiago devoted his life to the shamanic path at age 26 after overcoming a serious illness. He is the guardian of one of the last San Pedro and Willka trees forests in southern Ecuador, preparing it in the traditional way to be used for healing purposes. His medicine songs, prayers and blessings carry a powerful intention to heal the heart with the sacred spirit of San Pedro.
Heyoka Journey: Pilgrimage & Second Birth in the Major Andean Altars
PROGRAM
DAY 1 – July 28
- Meet in Cusco Main Plaza
- Travel to Hotel in Calca
- Lunch
- Visit to Lurin Waterfall with
- Opening Offering
- Dinner & Rest
DAY 2 – June 18
- Travel to Waqra Pukara
- Ritual Offering
- Lunch
- Power Hike
- Dinner & Camp
DAY 3 – June 19
- Breakfast
- Farewell to the Sacred Sanctuary with Ceremony
- Return to Calca
- Lunch
- Rest & Dinner
DAY 4 – June 20
- Arrival at Causay Callpa Wasi in Pacchanta, Ausangate
- Travel from Cusco to Pacchanta
- Lunch
- Opening ceremony to receive the Andean mishas
- Coca leaf ritual, each participant offering prayers to Apu Ausangate at Chaupi Cocha
- Distribution of the Andean misha
- Stories and demonstrations of some ritual materials used in Turpo lineage, passed down from Altomisayoq grandparents Marino and Nazario
DAY 5 – June 21
- Journey to Mirador de Apu Mariano – Portal de Huya Wasi
Ascent to the highest point where Altomisayoq Mariano Turpo is found - From this vantage point, witness the magnificent view of all the Apus and 17 lagoons in this sacred place
- Offering for permission at this sacred site
- Receiving our spiritual names
- Energy connection at Huya Wasi, the most sacred site of the legendary Altomisayoq Mariano Turpo
- After this energetic connection, receive your sacred huyas from Master Rufino
DAY 6 – June 22
- Waka Turpo Purification – Qoychi Cocha, the Altar of Turpo
- Purification offering at Waka Turpo
- At Qoychi Cocha (Mama Cocha), a sacred site, we make a fruit offering to request permission to enter the Mother Lagoon
- Baptism in the waters of Mama Cocha Lagoon to complete our purification
DAY 7 – June 23
- Second Initiation at Amaru Cocha
- After breakfast, we set out on a long journey to reach Amaru Cocha
- Here, we receive our “second birth”
- Includes a weaving of the second birth
DAY 8 – June 24
- Ceremony at Sonq’o Cocha
- Breakfast
- Individual ceremony
- Lunch
- Descent to the first campsite
DAY 9 – June 25
- Optional Chumpi healing (additional cost)
- After this purifying and enriching experience, optional Coca readings are available (additional cost)
- Return to Cusco