Offering to Pachamama
Everything is linked. Pachamama, Mother Earth, and also the universe give to us the air we breathe, the food we eat, the water that sustains us, and then the fire that warms us.
Overview
More about us
- We Live What We Share: The Despacho Ceremony or Offering to Mother Earth is a living tradition from the Andes. This ceremony has passed through many generations and also has honored humans' sacred relationship with nature. The elements deeply resonated with our forebears. We express gratitude to Pachamama, to Mother Earth, for it provided food, shelter, also protection. In order to keep up the sacred balance alive, to be giving back is a way of doing things, and this living tradition reminds to us that life itself truly is like a gift.
- Connect with Ancestral Wisdom! If you are visiting Cusco, join the Pumadventures Family to warmly experience firsthand this ancient ceremony. Feel the Earth's complete heartbeat with the Andes' own spirit, then step into Andean culture's complete rich wisdom and connect. We are present to aid you if you just want guidance on your trip or start a getaway. We are furthermore here, in the event that you desire to make some sacred journey and offering. We will be delighted in order to assist you to reach out to us at travel@pumadventures.com.
- Pachamama: Our Living Mother Andean spirituality is fundamentally characterized through Pachamama - Mother Earth. Each August, most of the people in the Andes dedicate themselves to honoring her, give thanks for her endless abundance and ask for her continued blessings. She is the cosmos, as well as time, as well as space itself - the very living essence which connects all beings - and not merely the land beneath our feet.
- A Heartfelt Recommendation: In the highlands of Peru, many people do revere Pachamama during each day of life. She sustains, nurtures us, and reminds us all things are deeply linked. Honoring of life means to honor her with greater consciousness, more love, and more responsibility. We invite all of you to do just that with a truly open heart as you take part in any sacred practice with real love, responsibility, and due awareness. Let us walk softly on the Earth, honoring each of Pachamama’s gifts. It is vital to keep the current of generosity alive between ourselves and the overall natural world.
Pachamama Offering / Despacho in Cusco
The Despacho ceremony, a living bridge from between our hearts and the spirit of Pachamama, Mother Earth. It is a sacred conversation with the whole universe. We express with gratitude, ask for blessings, and restore harmony in our lives in one deep way.
During each ceremony, we create a mandala-like artwork with elements from Animal, Vegetable, Mineral, and Water Kingdoms. With a prayer we give seeds and flowers, shells, and also sweets that carry a sacred meaning. With their Mesa and prayers, the Masters activates the Despacho. We honor both divine feminine and masculine energies, each part of the spirit world, and also the nourishing heart belonging to Pachamama.
During the Despacho ceremony we not only give thanks for all of the things that we have, but we also release the things that no longer serve us and then call in the life we dream of. It may be presented to aid personal changes when someone starts or sells a firm, relocates to a place, starts building a home, or just begins a new phase in love and relationships.
Each of these particular intentions – blessing of an adventure, asking for spiritual support, expressing of love and of gratitude, or celebrating of a happy occasion – can be readily placed into that sacred bundle of Despacho. We enter into the ancient cycle of giving as well as receiving by offering it to the fire, to the Earth, to the waters, or to the winds knowing that whatever we give in gratitude will return to us quite a few times over, in forms more beautiful than we could imagine.
Through the Despacho ceremony, we are gently reminded that we always walk in a relationship with spirit and with nature and with life itself, but not all alone.
Itinerary & Prices
Through the Despacho ceremony, we are gently reminded that we always walk in a relationship with spirit and with nature and with life itself, but not all alone.
Despacho Ceremony
Costs (per person, based on double occupancy)
Starting at:
$350
How to Book
Booking your ceremony is simple:
Contact Us:
- Email us at travel@pumadventures.com or write us at WhatsApp +51987555135
- Please include your name, number of participants, preferred dates, and where you are staying (Cusco or Sacred Valley).
Confirm Your Date:
- We will reply to confirm availability and help coordinate the best day and time pick up for your ceremony.
Reservation Deposit:
- To confirm your booking, we ask for a deposit (details will be shared by email or via message).
Final Details:
- Before the ceremony, we will send you all final information: the time of your pick up and any additional suggestions for your experience.
Included:
- Masters of the Rainbow Lineage.
- Explanations about The Despacho Offering Ceremony.
- Personal consultation.
- Opening ceremony.
- Despacho Offering Mother Earth Ceremony.
- You will receive advice, orientation, and guidance.
- Spiritual guide and translator (English, Spanish, and Quechua).
- Private transportation to Chinchero and after the ceremony to your place.
Not Included:
- Meals.
- Tips.
Why is this ceremony meaningful and how important it is for our life?
The Despacho ceremony has importance because it makes us remember things we often forget while modern life hurries past: we are always connected with the Earth, the elements, the spirit world, and others. Life is not viewed as a singular, detached experience in the Andean tradition. Everything is linked. Pachamama, Mother Earth, and also the universe give to us the air we breathe, the food we eat, the water that sustains us, and then the fire that warms us. We stop to honor these offerings during the hallowed Despacho ritual. We offer our gratitude with love and with humility.
We restore a sense of balance and of harmony not only within ourselves but also with all of the forces of nature all around us through that offering made with a variety of seeds, a number of flowers, several sweets, and our own prayers.
The Despacho is important for our lives because it allows us to:
- Heal and realign our energy, letting go of what no longer serves us
- Ask for blessings in areas like health, love, family, career, and personal growth
- Mark life transitions – births, marriages, new journeys, or endings – with sacred intention
- Deepen our spiritual connection to the Earth and the cosmos
- Remember gratitude – the true foundation of happiness and abundance
When we take part in a Despacho, we step out of the ordinary flow of time and enter sacred time – a space where miracles, healing, and transformation become possible. The ceremony turns into a mirror which reflects back to the whole universe our inner world of ours, our dreams of ours, and our most deepest prayers that we have.
More importantly than anything else, the Despacho teaches to us at least one thing – Ayni. Life is not all about endlessly taking from around the world. In Ayni, to live is about that sacred reciprocity in which balance is always found in giving and in receiving. We live quite consciously, quite harmoniously, as well as with a more deeper sense of meaning, coupled with belonging when we all honor this very ancient wisdom.
Participation Requirements:
- Open Heart and Mind: The Despacho ceremony is a sacred spiritual practice. We invite you to come with love, gratitude, and an openness to connect deeply with Pachamama and the spirit world.
- Personal Intention: Before the ceremony, reflect on your personal intentions – whether it’s gratitude, healing, new beginnings, or simply offering thanks to Mother Earth.
- Comfortable Clothing: We recommend wearing comfortable clothes suitable for sitting outdoors and being in nature. Layering is ideal, as mountain weather can change quickly.
- Respect for Tradition: Please approach the ceremony with respect for the Andean traditions and the guidance of the Master who will be leading the offering.
- Physical Condition: The ceremony is gentle, but if you have specific mobility or health needs, let us know in advance so we can make sure your experience is comfortable.
Offering to Pachamama - Itinerary
Preparation & Connection
Today, around 8 or 9 AM, we will pick you up from your hotel in Cusco and head to the sacred mountain of Chinchero. Chinchero, known as the Town of the Rainbows, is home to some of the most important temples and enigmatic archaeological sites of the Sacred Valley.
Here, you will meet the Master and learn about his or her life and ancestral lineage. You will also gain a deeper understanding of the Andean cosmovision and the way the ceremony works. After connecting and deepening your knowledge of the Andean spiritual world during your conversation with the Master, he or she will perform the first ceremony: asking for permission from the Apus, the mountain spirits, to assist and raise the energy of the ceremony to a higher level.
Crafting the Offering
The ceremony with the Pumadventures Family is based on your personal intention. It is designed to help you connect deeply with the Andean spiritual world.
Our Masters will guide the ceremony with great respect, following the ancestral knowledge of how to use the tools and objects in the offering. They will explain each object and each step, giving deeper meaning to every part of the ritual. During the ceremony the Andean Master creates a sacred mandala using carefully chosen seeds, candies, coca leaves, and other sacred elements. As the Master builds the offering, you have the opportunity to weave your prayers and intentions into it, directing blessings to the areas of your life where they are most needed.
Offering & Closing
Once the offering is complete, it is lovingly wrapped like a gift and offered to the sacred fire – a powerful moment where your intentions are carried into the spirit world and blessings begin to flow.
You will witness a beautiful and profound exchange of energy between yourself, Pachamama, and the elements of nature. After the ceremony, around noon, we will drive you back to your hotel in Cusco or the Sacred Valley.
Types of Offerings, Sacred Materials, Symbolic Meaning & Special Dates
Types of Pachamama Offerings (Despachos)
Despachos vary depending on intention, community, and moment in life. While the structure is similar, each type of offering carries a unique energetic purpose.
1. Gratitude Despacho
This is the most common and accessible type of offering.
Purpose:
- Express gratitude for life, health, family, and opportunities
- Honor the blessings already received
- Strengthen harmony with nature
Gratitude despachos are ideal for first-time participants and travelers seeking a meaningful cultural experience.
2. Healing Despacho
Focused on emotional, spiritual, or energetic healing.
Purpose:
- Restore balance after illness or emotional hardship
- Release heavy or stagnant energies
- Support physical and spiritual well-being
These ceremonies are often accompanied by prayers, energy cleansing, and coca leaf readings.
3. Life Transition Despacho
Performed during major life changes.
Common occasions:
- New beginnings
- Marriage or commitment ceremonies
- Birth of a child
- Moving to a new place
- Starting a new project or business
This type of offering asks Pachamama and the Apus for guidance, protection, and alignment.
4. Protection Despacho
Designed to create energetic shielding and spiritual protection.
Purpose:
- Protect individuals, families, or travelers
- Safeguard journeys and important undertakings
- Strengthen spiritual boundaries
Protection despachos are often requested by travelers before trekking or entering sacred mountain areas.
5. Community or Seasonal Despacho
Performed by entire communities during agricultural or cosmic cycles.
Purpose:
- Honor seasonal changes
- Support collective harmony
- Celebrate solstices, equinoxes, or harvest times
These ceremonies emphasize collective energy and ancestral continuity.
Sacred Materials Used in a Pachamama Offering
Each element in a despacho has meaning. Nothing is placed randomly; everything speaks in the symbolic language of the Andes.
🌸 Flowers and petals
- Represent beauty, joy, and impermanence
- Used to create harmony and attract positive energy
🌽 Corn (maíz)
- Symbol of sustenance and abundance
- Represents life, nourishment, and gratitude for harvest
🍬 Sweets and sugar figures
- Offer joy and sweetness to Pachamama
- Used to invite happiness, love, and harmony
🍃 Coca leaves
- Sacred messenger between worlds
- Used to communicate intention and respect
🐚 Seashells (Conchas)
- Represent water and feminine energy
- Symbolize emotional flow and balance
🕯️ Candles
- Represent light, clarity, and transformation
- Used to illuminate intentions
🧶 Wool and threads
- Symbolize connection, weaving of life, and unity
- Often used to bind intentions together
🪙 Coins
- Represent material stability and reciprocity
- Offered as acknowledgment of Earth’s generosity
🌿 Incense and herbs
- Used for purification and prayer
Commonly palo santo, copal, or Andean herbs
Symbolic Meaning of the Despacho Ceremony
Sacred reciprocity (Ayni)
At the heart of the Pachamama Offering is Ayni, the Andean law of reciprocity. Humans receive from Earth; in return, they must give back with respect and gratitude.
The despacho is a gesture of balance, not a request born of desire, but a prayer born of humility.
The living Earth
In Andean cosmology, Pachamama is not symbolic — she is alive, conscious, and responsive. The offering is a way to:
- Acknowledge Earth’s presence
- Heal the relationship between human and nature
- Restore energetic harmony
The Mesa as a sacred map
The despacho is arranged on a sacred cloth known as a mesa, which represents the universe. Each item is placed intentionally to reflect:
- Upper world (Apus, spirit realm)
- Middle world (human life)
- Inner world (emotions, ancestors)
Transformation through release
After the ceremony, the offering is traditionally:
- Burned
- Buried
- Placed in water
This act symbolizes transformation — releasing intentions into the natural elements.
Preparation for a Pachamama Offering Ceremony
Mental and emotional preparation
Participants are encouraged to:
- Approach the ceremony with respect and openness
- Release expectations
- Focus on gratitude rather than demands
Physical preparation
While no strict rules exist, it is recommended to:
- Eat light meals
- Avoid alcohol beforehand
- Wear comfortable, respectful clothing
Setting intentions
Intentions should be:
- Clear
- Positive
- Rooted in harmony rather than ego
Examples:
- “I ask for balance and clarity.”
- “I offer gratitude for my journey.”
Special Days for Pachamama Offerings
The Significance of August 1st
Why August 1st is sacred
In Andean tradition, August is Pachamama’s month, and August 1st marks the moment when Mother Earth opens to receive offerings.
This date is considered the most powerful time to:
- Heal relationships with nature
- Ask for protection for the year ahead
- Cleanse heavy energies
Communities across the Andes perform ceremonies at dawn, offering food, coca leaves, chicha, and prayers.
Other meaningful dates
- Solstices and equinoxes
- New moon ceremonies
- Agricultural cycles
Each moment carries a different energetic quality.
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