Knowledge Share Description
In this in person knowledge share we will be learning about Fapqua, a fermented maiz/corn drink originally made by the Muisca people of the Andean region of Colombia. Fapqua is an ancestral food, medicine and ceremonial beverage that has been preserved and protected by Muisca grandmothers. Due to colonization fapqua/chicha was outlawed and continues to be a misunderstood food, being advertised as a dirty drink that makes you sick. Originally the fapqua was fermented by the wisest grandmother in the community, chewing the maiz in her mouth and then spitting it out; this was a way of passing on her wisdom through the fermented beverage to the community. The saliva helps inoculate the maiz and begin the fermentation process. This fermentation technique is not isolated to Colombia only, it is an ancient and still alive technology that continues to be implemented all throughout the Andes by indigenous communities. The intention of this knowledge share is to further restore our relationship to maiz/corn, a sacred food that has been foundational to indigenous peoples diets from North to South America/Abya Yala. We will be learning to make Fapqua and understand the cultural significance and importance of this medicinal food.
We will learn and experience
how to cook and grind *maiz
how to ferment maiz/corn
integrating medicinal herbs into the Fapqua
the full process for how to make fapqua/ chicha
the History and meaning of Fapqua
some transmissions from the Muisca grandmothers on Fapqua
tasting and sharing Fapqua in community
We will be integrating maiz/corn grown on these lands
Cost
Sliding Scale $35 - $75
$35 low income
$50 - standard
$75 - pay-it-forward (if you have financial abundance, this is our pay-it-forward option to fund our full tuition scholarships)
No one turned away for lack of funds! If you are in need of financial support please email connect@herbancura.com with subject Maiz
Accessibility Information
This knowledge share will be in Spanish. Simultaneous Spanish-English interpretation will be provided using interpretation equipment in order to create a multilingual space. We will have two interpreters.
Knowledge share is taking place on a second floor of a brown stone. Not wheel-chair accessible.
In Person Gathering
This in person knowledge share will take place in Brooklyn, NY on Lenape Territory at Casa Siento
97 Stuyvesant Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11221
5:00pm - 8:00pm Eastern Standard Time
Facilitator
Abuela Carmen Atizerecha, born in Antioquia, Colombia, descended from the Arahuac of the Sierra Nevada. Through her own journey of decolonization and tracing her roots she met Muisca grandmothers who shared their prayer and their wisdom of the Fapqua. Through their teachings and blessings, Abuela Atizerecha has been sharing about Fapqua as a prayer to connect to our ancestral memory and bring healing to maiz and the earth. Fapqua uplifts the sacredness of maiz as a nourishing food that has and continues to sustain indigenous peoples of the Americas. Abuela Atizerecha is passionate about bringing people together around maiz and these ancestral teachings to learn how to be humans again on the earth. She has been working and learning from the Arahuac, Wiwa, and Kogi community of the Sierra Nevada for over 25 years.