Tsunu Kaxinawá Rapé (Hapé) – Huni Kuin, by Chief Assis

The Kaxinawá are also known as the Cashinauá, Caxinauá, or Kashinawa people. This name comes from kaxi or “bat” and nawa meaning “people” or “foreigners”. Their autonym is Huni Kuin or “real people”, from huni, “man”, and kuin meaning “real.” This snuff is a strong, revitalizing and rejuvenating blend of Tsunu, sacred tobacco and other herbs related to vision and clarity. It has a dark color and a strong flavor that somewhat resembles the Kuntanawa blend, and it offers a very beautiful experience for the experienced rapé user.

The Hands Behind This Medicine: Chief Assis Kaxinawá

This Tsunu comes to us from Assis Kaxinawá, chief of Aldeia Pinuyá in the Colônia 27 Indigenous Land, a few kilometers from the town of Tarauacá in the state of Acre, Brazil. His people, the Huni Kuin (Kaxinawá), are the largest Indigenous population in Acre, living across twelve Indigenous lands along the rivers of the region. Colônia 27 is one of the smallest of them all — a community of 53 families, around 240 people, who live with the forest day by day.

When Assis speaks of his village, he speaks of a life woven from hunting, fishing and planting — manioc, banana, vegetables — and from the traditions his people continue to strengthen: their language, their crafts, their songs, and the sacred medicines of the forest, including rapéh, sananga and kambô. While the modern world moves fast around them, the Huni Kuin of Pinuyá keep cultivating what the forest has always taught — patience, reciprocity, and care. They reforest their land with hardwoods, palms and sacred plants, so that what they receive from the forest is also returned to it.

“We know that everything we need is in the forest,” Assis reminds us. Every tin of this Tsunu carries that knowledge — prepared in small batches by the hands of a living community, in the traditional way, and shared with respect.

When you work with this medicine, you are in direct relationship with Assis and the families of Aldeia Pinuyá. Your support helps this community continue preserving their culture, their land and their traditions.

New to this medicine? Learn what rapéh is and how to use rapéh respectfully, and explore the benefits of rapéh for grounding, clarity, and spiritual connection.