Rapé

What is Rapé?
Shamanic snuff is often made of several Amazonian plants, the core of most rapé snuffs is the tobacco species Nicotiana rustica. This Amazonian tobacco, also known as mapacho, is used extensively in tribal rituals and is much stronger than N. tabacum, the type of tobacco found in cigarettes.

In addition to the tobacco, rapé usually includes the alkaline ashes of other plants such as cinnamon, tonka bean, clover, banana peel, or mint, but many shamans keep the exact ingredients of their particular rapé a secret.

The tobacco and other ingredients are ground into a fine powder, which is then blown or snorted high into each of the nostril cavities through a ceremonial pipe made of bone or bamboo. While it’s ideal to do this using a two-person pipe and an experienced shaman or practitioner administering the snuff, there are also pipes designed for use by one person.

Rapé is a cleansing medicine, so after taking it, you may experience side effects such as vomiting, sweating, and diarrhea.

Pronounced “ha-peh” or “rapay”, Rapé is a fine, ground-up shamanic snuff.

It contains Nicotiana Rustica, a type of tobacco also known as mapacho. It’s different from the tobacco used in cigarettes, which is Nicotiana Tabacum.

Although it contains tobacco, you don’t want to smoke Rapé. Instead, it’s administered into your nose.

You don’t want to smoke it because it also contains other medicinal and sacred plants, including parts from tree bark, leaves, seeds, and various plants. Once collected, the components become pulverized with a pestle, and strained through a mesh.

The result is a fine, light-colored powder. Different combinations of plants provide different uses and effects, and the exact recipe is often kept secret by the shaman.

Although this is an admittedly uncomfortable part of the experience, some people say the pain is an integral part of the spiritual and physical cleansing process—by purging deep-seated toxins, you come out the other side of the experience feeling calmer, more focused, and more in line with your true self.

Rapé is used traditionally to:

Helps focus and sharpen the mind.
Clears a person or space of distracting, bad energies in preparation for intention setting.
Detoxes both body and mind and clears your energetic field. Because of this, rapé is often used in conjunction with ayahuasca ceremonies.
Clears sinuses of mucus and bacteria, thereby helping to combat colds and respiratory ailments.
Provides a calming, grounding effect on the emotions that lasts much longer that the initial sensation.
Can be used in conjunction with other treatments for addiction and mental illness.