Kuripe
& Tepi
The two pipes used to receive rapé. One for solitude. One for ceremony. Both carry the same medicine — but they ask something different of you.
Shop PipesThe pipe is not just
a delivery tool
When you hold a kuripe or a tepi for the first time, something about the shape of it makes sense before you even know what it's for. These are not modern inventions. They are objects that have been refined over hundreds of years by people who understood — in a way we are still learning — that how you receive a medicine matters as much as the medicine itself.
In the Amazon, the pipe is treated with the same respect as the medicine it carries. It is cleaned. It is stored with care. It is never borrowed carelessly. It is, in a sense, an extension of the ceremony itself.
There are two pipes used in rapé tradition — the kuripe and the tepi. They are not interchangeable. Each serves a distinct purpose, carries a distinct energy, and asks a distinct relationship of the person using it. Understanding the difference is the first step to working with rapé well.
Kuripe
pronounced koo-ree-pay
The kuripe is a V-shaped pipe — one end goes into the nostril, the other into the mouth. You are the one blowing the medicine into yourself. This is the pipe of personal practice, of solitude, of the daily ritual. It is the pipe you reach for when you want to sit with the medicine on your own terms — before meditation, before work, before something that asks your full presence.
There is something humbling about the kuripe. You have to be steady enough to administer the medicine to yourself — to hold the intention and execute it in the same breath. That's not always easy. But it builds a direct relationship with rapé that nothing else can replicate. Every time you use it, you are both the giver and the receiver. You have to show up for yourself.
Shop Amazonian Wood Kuripe →Tepi
pronounced teh-pee
The tepi is a longer, straight blowpipe — used by one person to blow the medicine into another. One end rests at the receiver's nostril; the other at the giver's mouth. The giver blows. In that moment, two people share a breath, a medicine, and a ceremony.
This is the pipe of the circle, of the ceremony, of the healer and the facilitated. The Huni Kuin and Yawanawá use the tepi in group settings — where someone experienced holds the medicine for the people around them. There is an intimacy to the tepi that the kuripe doesn't carry. The giver is responsible for the receiver. The receiver has to trust. That trust, and that responsibility, are part of the medicine.
Shop Cabreuva Wood Tepi →One is for yourself.
One is for each other.
Most people who work with rapé regularly end up with both. The kuripe is the daily companion — the one that lives on your altar, that you reach for in the morning or before anything that matters. The tepi comes out when someone else needs the medicine, or when you step into a ceremonial space where you are holding the circle for others. Together, they cover the full range of how rapé is meant to be worked with: the personal and the communal, the solitary and the shared.
If you are just beginning, start with a kuripe. Learn to give the medicine to yourself — to hold the intention, to find the angle, to breathe through the intensity. Once that relationship is established, the tepi follows naturally.
How to use
a kuripe
Using a small spatula or the back of a spoon, place a measured amount of rapé into the nostril end of the kuripe. For beginners, a small pinch — roughly the size of a pea — is enough. Tap the side gently so it settles into the curve without falling out.
Hold the loaded pipe in both hands. Close your eyes. Take a breath. Ask yourself what you are bringing to this moment — what you want the medicine to help you with. Even thirty seconds of this changes the quality of the experience. The medicine follows intention.
Place the nostril end gently inside your left nostril first. Tilt the pipe slightly upward — not straight in, but angled toward the back of the nose. The mouth end goes between your lips, not teeth. Keep the pipe steady with both hands.
Take a full breath in through your mouth — then blow steadily and firmly through the pipe. Not a sharp burst, not a slow trickle. One confident, even breath. The medicine enters the nostril as you blow. Close your mouth immediately after and breathe through your nose.
Reload the pipe and repeat on the right nostril. Always do both — working with only one side leaves the energy unbalanced. The Huni Kuin say the left and right nostrils carry different energies, and both need to receive the medicine together.
Put the pipe down. Close your eyes. The medicine will do the rest. Keep your spine upright if you can — lying down is fine too. Breathe slowly. Let the intensity move through without fighting it. The stillness that follows is what you came for.
When someone else
holds the medicine for you
The tepi changes the dynamic of the medicine completely. When someone blows rapé into you through a tepi, you are not in control of the moment — you are receiving it. That surrender is its own practice. You have to trust the person across from you. You have to let go of the impulse to manage your own experience. For a lot of people — especially those who are used to being self-sufficient — this is harder than it sounds.
The person holding the tepi is responsible for the receiver. They set the dose. They hold the intention. Their breath carries the medicine into you — and in that breath, something of them travels too. This is why the Huni Kuin and Yawanawá are careful about who holds the tepi in ceremony. It is not just a technique. It is an act of care.
If you are on the giving end of a tepi, take that seriously. Ask the person what they need. Start gentle. Hold a clear, clean intention for them — not for the experience in general, but for this person, in this moment. The medicine will follow what you bring to the breath.
If you are receiving: close your eyes. Breathe out before the medicine arrives. Let your body be soft. Trust the person in front of you. That trust is not weakness — it is the practice.
Bamboo, bone,
and carved wood
Each material carries its own quality. The pipe you choose is part of the relationship you build with the medicine.
The most traditional material — bamboo grows throughout the Amazon and has been used for rapé pipes for as long as the medicine has been shared. Lightweight, clean-drawing, and easy to care for. A good bamboo kuripe or tepi is often the first pipe people are gifted in ceremony.
Bone pipes — often carved from deer or other forest animals — carry a particular energy in Amazonian tradition. They are considered sacred objects, often decorated with tribal markings and passed through lineages. A bone kuripe is not just a tool. It is an object of ceremony. Many practitioners feel the medicine draws differently through bone.
Handcarved wooden pipes — often from dense Amazonian hardwoods — are among the most beautiful and personal objects in rapé practice. Each one is different. Many are made by tribal artisans who carve and use them in the same tradition. A carved wooden pipe tends to become a favourite — something you keep for years, that develops its own character with use.
How to care for
your pipe
A well-cared-for pipe lasts decades. Here's what the people who've worked with these tools for years actually do.
Clean it after every use. Use a thin pipe cleaner or a folded piece of cloth through the channel to clear residual medicine. Don't leave rapé sitting in the pipe — over time it builds up and affects the draw.
Keep it dry. Moisture is the enemy of bamboo and wood pipes. After cleaning, leave it open to air for a few minutes before storing. Never seal a damp pipe in a case.
Store it with respect. Most practitioners keep their pipe on their altar or wrapped in a cloth. Not in a pocket with keys. Not thrown in a bag. The pipe holds the energy of every ceremony you've used it in — treat it accordingly.
Don't share your kuripe casually. A personal kuripe is personal. In tradition, sharing a pipe with someone is an act of ceremony — not something done without thought. If someone asks to try yours, use your discretion. Your tepi is for sharing. Your kuripe is yours.
Occasional deeper cleaning. Once a month or so, run warm water through the channel (for bamboo) or wipe with a lightly dampened cloth (for wood and bone). For bone pipes, a very small amount of natural oil — coconut or beeswax — can be applied to the outside to prevent drying and cracking.
From the altar of the forest
to the altar of your home
Each pipe in our collection is sourced from tribal artisans and makers — the same people who use them in their own ceremony.
