Sipapu - A Poem
by Rosalind Mance, Qollasuyu, July 2011
Glide the La Torre river gazing at banks of many-shaded trees
Watch turtles sunbathe on rocks, and butterflies play tag.
Happy to be moving yet be still together, words are for later.
Now sit on the river bank
Surprised by a host of butterflies sifting nutrients from the mud
While we lunch from platters of banana leaves
Venture on forest trails to find a lake
We'll build a path here from Sipapu Boris says
Back on the river, destination still imagined but unknown
And then Sipapu
Climb the steep bank on steps carved out of mud
Over the top to see the lodge set in a clearing
Wooden beams and tall thatched roof
Comforting as the wood carver's cottage of any fairy tale
Follow the magic path of tree rings sliced from a single tree
Up to the open porch.
Awareness of trees living and breathing, on every side, around, above, below.
Roam the clearing seeing shapes of small lodge cabins, a ceremonial center, gardens, fruit bearing trees, hidden corners for sacred being with the land.
Find a sweet spot with trees overlooking the small boundary stream that runs down to the river.
Sit here and gaze across the water towards the light of the setting sun.
Inside we marvel at mattresses and linens, toilet and shower, mosquito screens and flowered crockery with home cooked meals.
Eight of us bears of different sizes each happy with a bed to fit
Out in the forest on a night time prowl
Spider webs as large as bicycle wheels
Rustle of hidden creatures
Smell of moss and leaf manure
Husks dropped on the ground by monkeys feeding overhead
Everywhere the trees are stretching, flowing, whispering, and breathing deep as the wind.
Back in the clearing stars took over the sky
We became fragments of being suspended beneath the ceiling of the universe
A night to sleep and rest, a breakfast fit for kings
Time in the forest when early morning light shone sideways through tangled vines
Insects and monkeys caught in sharp relief against leaves or sky
Learning of fruits and leaves, bark, sap and roots used by local healers in their work
Again the sense of tree roots growing underneath the path.
Ceremony to show our gratitude for this sacred place.
Offerings of love to support the work of making manifest its full potential.
Through me came "wisdom of the trees"
Tending the ironwood tree, offering water and tobacco, washing off cocoons of leaf eating larvae, singing songs of love.
What is my experience of Sipapu?
I experienced an intense joy on climbing up the mud steps and looking out at Sipapu's lodge. Now some weeks later I feel both joy and wonder at the magic of this place, wild yet welcoming, full of gentle love yet bursting wide open with chaotic life energy.
If there is order in this chaotic exuberance it is an order that is right out there, nothing internal about it. It is an order born of being fully released, let go, undone, abandoned, unhindered, even unhinged, but ultimately open, and ultimately open to creativity. This chaos is always clear, never jumbled, twisted nor mistaken. I call the rain forest forest because, to my ears, a jungle sounds like jumble; for me clarity comes easier f I listen to any input my senses send on.
I experience Sipapu as a place where ultimate stillness and abandoned chaos coexist, as indeed they must for life and renewal of life to go on. The experience of being in such a place, where the energies of stillness and of chaos are so strong yet balanced, brings me back to a precious inside remembering of how it is to be most fully alive. (So yes, you bet I'll be going back).