The Ayni Program
Sacred reciprocity ceremonies rooted in Indigenous Kichwa tradition.
What is Ayni?
Ayni is a Kichwa word for sacred reciprocity.
One way to understand Ayni is through a simple metaphor:
Imagine receiving fruit from a tree. You are nourished. You benefit from its life. In gratitude, you care for the tree so that it may continue to live and bear fruit. And because others also receive fruit from the tree, you are not alone in caring for the tree.
Ayni is the ethic that transforms gratitude into action. It is not payment, obligation, or exchange. It is collective care for the sources of life that sustain us.
The Ayni Ceremony
An Ayni Ceremony is a formal way of enacting this ethic in community. The Office of the Three Sisters holds its Ayni Ceremony every Sky Day on its program calendar.
How the Office Prepares
Before each ceremony, the Office prepares a needs assessment. These are shared in advance — similar to a wedding registry. Participants who feel gratitude for the programs of the Three Sisters are invited to review the needs and consider which way they would like to offer support.
A Core Ethic
You are asked to offer only what is well within your capacity. It is a core ethic of regenerative stewardship to receive only what is easy, available, and joyful for others to give. This ensures that the programs of the Office are never exploitative in nature.
What Happens on Sky Day
On the day of the ceremony, participants gather in a circle around a community offering table. Each person brings their chosen offering:
- If it is a physical item, it is placed on the table
- If it is too large or is an act of service, a written note describing the offering is placed on the table instead
- If someone is offering music, they may share live during the gathering
- If someone brings food, it is placed on the table to be shared
Once all offerings are present and everyone has gathered, the facilitator opens the ceremonial container and briefly reminds the group of the purpose of Ayni. Then, each offering is acknowledged publicly. Individuals or small groups are thanked for the specific needs they have helped to meet with a short story of gratitude and applause.
The ceremony concludes with closing songs and a spiritual clearing using smudging herbs, preparing everyone to return to the world in renewed relationship.
The Personal Ayni Note
The Personal Ayni Note is a redeemable note of sacred reciprocity stewarded by the Office of the Three Sisters Ayni Program. It provides a formal structure for community members to express gratitude and make offerings in the spirit of Ayni.
Each note records what was received with gratitude, what is offered in reciprocity, the form of offering (financial, material, act of service, emotional, spiritual, teaching, or other), and the conditions under which the offering may be received.
Rimanakuy
A Rimanakuy is Kichwa for “speaking from the heart” — a ceremony to gather knowledge, stories, and perspectives towards researching and resolving community needs and issues. It is a key component of the community-based action research employed by the Office of the Three Sisters.
Rimanakuy gatherings are structured conversations where participants are invited to reflect together and share whatever wisdom, questions, or forms of support feel present for them. Participants may choose to:
- Join an email list to receive updates as the work develops
- Have a follow-up conversation to explore the topic more deeply
- Make an offering as an individual
- Form a small collaborative team (a minga) of three or more people who meet weekly for the duration of one lunar cycle
Get Involved
If you are interested in participating in an Ayni Ceremony or issuing an Ayni Note in support of the Ayni Program, please contact Alana at alana.gamage@gmail.com.