Jessica Lewis |
As Hapé continues to grow in popularity across the UK and Europe, more people are feeling called to deepen their relationship with this sacred Amazonian medicine. Some would like to develop a stronger and more sacred personal practice, while others feel called to facilitate Hapé circles, offer Hapé within healing sessions, or serve medicine within ceremonial settings.
While the interest in Hapé is growing, proper training remains rare.
Over the years, I have spoken with many people who have received Hapé from facilitators who had little or no training. Although the medicine itself is incredibly powerful, the way it is prepared, held, administered, and served matters enormously. This is why I offer one to one Hapé Initiation and Facilitator Training in the UK, providing students with a traditional, respectful, and grounded foundation for working with this sacred medicine.
Hapé, also known as Rapé and pronounced “ha-PAY”, is a sacred Amazonian medicine traditionally used by Indigenous tribes including the Yawanawá, Huni Kuin, Katukina, Matsés, Nukini, and many others. A lot Hapé blends are made from Nicotiana rustica, a powerful ceremonial tobacco, combined with ashes from medicinal trees and plants. Each blend carries unique qualities depending on the plants used, the intentions behind its creation, and the traditions of the people who make it.
For generations, Hapé has been used as a prayer medicine, helping people clear mental distraction, strengthen focus, prepare for healing work, and deepen their connection to spirit, nature, and their ancestors.
One of the biggest misconceptions in the modern medicine community is that anyone can receive Hapé and immediately begin serving it to others. Working with Hapé is about far more than putting hapé into a tepi. Tobacco is a sacred prayer medicine that carries intention. Traditionally, it is worked with consciously, respectfully, and with a deep understanding of the energetic dynamics involved. The medicine is not simply administered, it is transmitted within a ceremonial relationship.
Receiving Hapé from another person involves much more than the medicine itself. Presence, intention, awareness, and energetic responsibility all play a role in the process. This is why discernment and proper training are so important for anyone wishing to serve others. As Hapé becomes increasingly available outside of the Amazon, there is a growing need for facilitators who understand not only how to administer it, but how to hold space, honour its Indigenous roots, and work with the medicine safely and respectfully.
A Hapé initiation is much more than a training course. It is a shamanic initiation process designed to deepen your connection with the spirit of tobacco and the teachings of Hapé. It is often a powerful healing experience that can support personal transformation, release, and spiritual growth.
Students frequently arrive seeking practical training and leave with a much deeper understanding of themselves, their relationship with prayer, and their connection to this sacred medicine.The initiation process creates an opportunity to work with Hapé in a way that honours traditional wisdom while developing the confidence and responsibility needed to serve it appropriately.
This training is suitable for:
You do not need to be planning to serve others to benefit from this training. Many people attend simply to gain a more authentic understanding of this powerful medicine, and to work with this medicine with integrity and a deeper understanding
I cover a variation of topics on tobacco and hapé to help you on your path so you can carry this medicine in the most sacred, and respectful way.
You will learn:
One of the core teachings within my training is understanding tobacco as a prayer medicine. Across Indigenous traditions, tobacco has long been used ceremonially as a bridge between the physical and spiritual worlds. Hapé continues this relationship, helping to carry prayer, intention, focus, and healing.
When approached in this way, Hapé becomes more than a grounding tool or wellness trend. It becomes a sacred practice rooted in relationship, respect, reciprocity, and prayer. This understanding creates a fundamentally different way of working with the medicine, one that honours both the lineage it comes from and the responsibility of serving it to others.
As someone who has spent nearly two decades studying plant medicine traditions and working alongside Indigenous communities from Peru and Brazil, protecting the integrity of these medicines is deeply important to me. The rapid growth of Hapé worldwide has brought many benefits, but it has also created misunderstanding around how the medicine should be approached, used, and shared.
My intention with every initiation is to help bridge this gap by passing on practical knowledge, traditional teachings, and a deeper understanding of the sacred nature of tobacco, so that those working with Hapé can do so in a way that honours its origins.
If you feel called to deepen your relationship with Hapé, gain confidence in serving others, or simply learn more about this powerful Amazonian medicine, my one to one Hapé Initiation and Facilitator Training offers a unique opportunity to learn in a safe, supportive, and traditional setting.
Whether your intention is personal healing, professional development, or becoming a guardian of sacred tobacco teachings, this initiation provides the foundations needed to work with Hapé respectfully, responsibly, and with integrity.
The initiations I offer are done on a one to one basis, although have initiated friends that wanted to go through this experience together.
Ready to begin your journey?
Learn more about my Hapé Initiation & Facilitator Training in the UK and arrange a call to discuss whether the initiation is right for you.
