The Andean tradition
In many ways, I feel that the Andean tradition has been a thread throughout my life and even through my personal ancestral lineage. My maternal grandmother travelled very intrepidly to Peru in the 70s and spent time with the Quechua people, though I know little else about her experience. I was, however, gifted a very sacred woven rainbow chumpi belt that she had been given. My real introduction to the tradition wasn’t until many years later (2021), through one of my first teachers and mentors in shamanic energy medicine, Claudio Silvano, who is now retired. Part of my rigorous training with Claudio was to build my mesa - medicine bundle. The mesa is part of the initiation process of becoming a paqo - a carrier of the tradition, often translated as a healer or mystic. It was during those two years working with Claudio that I knew I wanted to follow the path of the paqo and to deepen my practice and my connection with the Andean tradition. This led me to seek out Joan Parisi Wilcox, a renowned teacher of the Andean healing arts, who has dedicated much of her life to preserving the teachings of two distinct lineages from Q’ero and Wasao, in the south-central Andean.
Through working with Joan, I have been fortunate enough to have been initiated into the living lineages of three highly esteemed master paqos of the last generation: don Benito Qoriwaman (Cusco lineage), don Andres Espinosa (Q’ero lineage), and don Melchor Desa (Cusco lineage). Joan has been a practitioner of the tradition for 30 years and a teacher since 2015. She has worked closely with the Andean paqos, particularly in the process of writing Masters of the Living Energy, a book that anyone interested in this path should read. The teachings of these lineages have been passed down through families and widsdom-keepers for at least 1000 years, to the time of the Inca Empire - though it is understood to have existed for thousands of years before that.
The teachings of these lineages continue to be lovingly preserved not only through the families of wisdom-keepers in the Andes, but by teachers like don Juan Nuñez del Prado and his son, don Ivan, as well as my primary teacher, Joan - and also through people like me. As someone who now shares my knowledge in this tradition, I remain dedicated as a student and view the journey as a lifelong commitment to deepening my practice. In 2026, I began learning from Maestro Puma Fredy Quispe Singona, widsom-keeper of the Qanchis Illya lineage (Chinchero, Peru). Joan continues to be my primary mentor.
At its heart, the Andean tradition is a grounded and embodied spirituality that enables us to integrate spirit, body, earth and purpose without bypassing the human experience. Joan Parisi Wilcox says that on this path our goal is not to escape or transcend our humanness, but to “live more fully, naturally, and joyously as whole and healed human beings”. Practising the tradition does not mean that our lives become free of challenges, disruption or struggle. Rather, it allows us to welcome these experiences with an open heart - to greet them no differently than we might do with experiences of ease and joy. It is a path towards being in love with all of life, of descending into the heart of our humanness, where our Inka Seed, our drop of the mystery lives and pulses within us - ready to be expressed through us.
The Andean tradition is framed by its own cosmovision - a highly comprehensive understanding of the cosmos that shapes and frames how we interpret, and interact with the universe, nature, and humanity - the world of living energy. Its underlying principles are about the interconnectedness between the physical, spiritual, and natural worlds. It is a mystical tradition, emphasising the importance of our direct personal experience, rather than simply being about following a system or rules imposed on us. Indeed, one of the foundational aspects of the path is the personal relationships we cultivate and nurture with the teqse apukuna (universal spirit beings) - Sun, Moon, Wind/Air, Earth, and Water, as well as all the other nature beings. These powerful beings serve as important guides and allies in our work and assist us on our path of conscious evolution and in the awakening and deepening of our personal medicine.
Practicing this tradition provides us with a truly beautiful way of coming to know ourselves as whole beings, denying no aspect of who we are - what I like to call ‘holding the paradox of everything all at once’. In working with the practices and following the teachings, we are working towards releasing our heaviness, integrating all our experiences, and empowering our energy body so that we can fully embody our luminosity. This is the realisation of our true potential as spiritual beings in human form.
Walking this path is often referred to as sumaq kawsay - which means ‘to live a good (or beautiful) life’. One of the things I love most about the path of a paqo is that it’s about embodying joyousness and being at play in the world of living energy. Its essence is so much about lightheartedness, even though it is also deeply serious, reverent work. The sacred practices of the tradition are called pukllay, which means ‘play’ in the native Quechua language.
The energy practices are simple, practical and above all (speaking from experience) very effective. Part of the nature of the tradition is to be able to do the practices in our ordinary daily life and in an ordinary state of consciousness. We view our human life as our spiritual life and as our greatest teacher, with every moment an opportunity to learn and grow.
Integrity
One of the most important things to me as an initiate, practitioner and teacher of the Andean tradition is upholding integrity and having pure intentions around how I share the knowledge and wisdom I have received.
Seeking integrity led me to work with Joan Wilcox, my primary teacher and mentor. Joan has dedicated much of her life to preserving the teachings of this tradition, just as her teacher, don Juan Nuñez del Prado - and his son don Ivan, have done. As far as I know, there are no better teachers of this tradition for those of us learning the tradition outside of the Andes. They have served lovingly, respectfully, and honourably as chakarunas (bridges), sharing the incredible wealth of these teachings with other initiates of this path like myself.
My ‘medicine’ is unique - just as yours is, and everybody else’s is. I believe that no two people ever offer the same ‘medicine’. My ‘medicine’ is a culmination of everything in my life that has led me here: my personal experiences and depth of personal healing; my training and personal practice; and my continued journey of learning and growth. The teachings and practices of the Andean tradition are a significant part of what I offer but not in any way its entirety. What I offer is a ‘weaving’ of these teachings and practices into my own energy artistry and other practices that I have learned or created and developed over many years of doing this kind of work and walking this path.
In order to uphold the integrity of the teachings, I do my absolute best to be as clear as possible about what I share and offer - i.e. what is ‘my’ medicine, and what has been shared with me as a direct teaching or practice that has been passed down through the lineages.
The Andean tradition provides us with a truly beautiful way of coming to know ourselves as whole beings, denying no aspect of who we are. In working with the practices and following the teachings, we move towards releasing our heaviness, integrating all our experiences, and empowering our energy body so that we can fully embody the luminous essence at the heart of who we are.
Why this work?
We live in a culture that can draw us away from our bodies, our intuition, our relationship with the natural world and the deeper currents of our own lives.
The Andean medicine tradition offers another way of knowing; one that is embodied, experiential and relational. Rather than placing knowledge outside of ourselves, this work invites us into practices through which we can remember what the body already knows.
This is not about acquiring another set of ideas or becoming someone different. It is about waking up to a relationship with the medicine that is already alive within us, and remembering our place within the living world around us.
This is the work of awakening to the wisdom of the heart.
If you’d like to learn more about opportunities to work with me, let’s make a time to connect - I’d love to hear from you.
Disclaimer:
The work that I offer, in all aspects, is an alternative, spiritual and experiential approach to wellbeing. It is important for me [Alexandra Skye Gibson / Sowelu Soul Medicine], to be clear that I am not a therapist or medical professional, registered or otherwise, and I do not provide medical or psychotherapeutic advice, diagnosis, or prescriptions. The energy practices I work with and the intuitive guidance I offer are not intended to diagnose, prevent, treat or cure any illness, disease or condition, and are not a substitute for appropriate medical or psychotherapeutic care. If you have any health concern, it is always recommended that you seek support from a qualified medical or mental health professional.
Energy medicine / energy healing is a collective term used to describe a broad field of modalities, generally understood as working with subtle aspects of human experience to support balance, awareness and wellbeing. It is considered a gentle, non-invasive approach to holistic wellbeing.
The teachings and guidance I offer — whether in sessions, classes, writings on my website, social media, or in my blog — are educational, philosophical, and spiritual in nature, drawing on a range of wisdom traditions, including Indigenous knowledge shared with me through mentors and teachers of those traditions, as well as my own study, practice, and intuitive experience with energetic modalities.