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“Many Amerindian minority languages are spoken throughout Brazil, mostly in Northern Brazil. Indigenous languages with about 10,000 speakers or more are Ticuna (language isolate), Kaingang (Gean family), Kaiwá Guarani, Nheengatu (Tupian), Guajajára (Tupian), Macushi (Cariban), Terena (Arawakan), Xavante (Gean) and Mawé (Tupian). Tucano (Tucanoan) has half that number, but is widely used as a second language in the Amazon.” ref
“Indigenous peoples once comprised an estimated 2,000 tribes and nations inhabiting what is now the country of Brazil, before European contact around 1500 CE. At the time of European contact, some of the indigenous peoples were traditionally semi-nomadic tribes who subsisted on hunting, fishing, gathering and migrant agriculture. Many tribes suffered extinction as a consequence of the European settlement and many were assimilated into the Brazilian population.” ref
“The Indigenous population was decimated by European diseases, declining from a pre-Columbian high of 2 to 3 million to some 300,000 as of 1997, distributed among 200 tribes. By the 2022 IBGE census, 1,693,535 Brazilians classified themselves as Indigenous, and the same census registered 274 indigenous languages of 304 different indigenous ethnic groups. On 18 January 2007, FUNAI reported 67 remaining uncontacted tribes in Brazil, up from 40 known in 2005. With this addition Brazil passed New Guinea, becoming the country with the largest number of uncontacted peoples in the world.” ref
“Anthropological and genetic evidence indicates that most Amerindian people descended from migrant peoples from Siberia and Mongolia who entered the Americas across the Bering Strait and along the western coast of North America in at least three separate waves. According to an autosomal DNA genetic study from 2012, Native Americans descend from at least three main migrant waves from Siberia. The third migratory waves from Siberia, which are thought to have generated the Aleut, Inuit, and Yupik people, apparently did not reach farther than the southern United States and Canada, respectively.)” ref
“Several branches of haplogroup Q-M242 have been predominant pre-Columbian male lineages in indigenous peoples of the Americas. Most of them are descendants of the major founding groups who migrated from Asia into the Americas by crossing the Bering Strait. These small groups of founders must have included men from the Q-M346, Q-L54, Q-Z780, and Q-M3 lineages. Haplogroup Q-M242 has been found in approximately 94% of Indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica and South America. The second migratory wave from Siberia is thought to have generated the Athabaskan speakers, or Na-Dene languages. The indigenous people of North America, Q-M242 is found in Na-Dené speakers at an average rate of 68%. The highest frequency is 92.3% in Navajo, followed by 78.1% in Apache, and 87% in SC Apache.” ref
“The haplogroup C-M217 is now found at high frequencies among Central Asian peoples, indigenous Siberians, and some Native peoples of North America. C2a1a1-F3918 subsumes C2a1a1a-P39, which has been found at high frequency in samples of some indigenous North American populations, and C2a1a1b-FGC28881, which is now found with varying (but generally quite low) frequency all over the Eurasian steppe. The subclade C-P39 is common among males of the indigenous North American peoples whose languages belong to the Na-Dené phylum. C2b1a1a P39 Canada, USA (Found in several Indigenous peoples of North America, including some Na-Dené-, Algonquian-, or Siouan-speaking).” ref
“Males carrying C-M130 are believed to have migrated to the Americas some 6,000-8,000 years ago, and was carried by Na-Dené-speaking peoples into the northwest Pacific coast of North America. Haplogroup C-M130 being found at high frequency amongst modern Kazakhs and Mongolians as well as in some Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Manchurians. C-M217 stretches longitudinally from Central Europe and Turkey, to the Wayuu people of Colombia and Venezuela, and latitudinally from the Athabaskan peoples of Alaska to Vietnam to the Malay Archipelago.” ref
“The initial settling of the Americas was followed by a rapid expansion south down the coast, with little gene flow later, especially in South America. One exception to this is the Chibcha speakers, whose ancestry comes from both North and South America. The Muisca (also called Chibcha) are an indigenous people and culture of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, Colombia, that formed the Muisca Confederation before the Spanish conquest. The people spoke Muysccubun, a language of the Chibchan language family, also called Muysca and Mosca. They were encountered by conquistadors dispatched by the Spanish Empire in 1537 at the time of the conquest.” ref, ref
“Another study, focused on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), inherited only through the maternal line, revealed that the maternal ancestry of the Indigenous people of the Americas traces back to a few founding lineages from Siberia, which would have arrived via the Bering Strait. According to this study, the ancestors of Native Americans likely remained for a time near the Bering Strait, after which there would have been a rapid movement of settling of the Americas, taking the founding lineages to South America. According to a 2016 study, focused on mtDNA lineages, “a small population entered the Americas via a coastal route around 16,000 years ago, following previous isolation in eastern Beringia for ~2,400 to 9,000 years after separating from eastern Siberian populations. After rapidly spreading throughout the Americas, limited gene flow in South America resulted in a marked phylogeographic structure of populations, which persisted through time. All of the ancient mitochondrial lineages detected in this study were absent from modern data sets, suggesting a high extinction rate. To investigate this further, we applied a novel principal components multiple logistic regression test to Bayesian serial coalescent simulations. The analysis supported a scenario in which European colonization caused a substantial loss of pre-Columbian lineages.” ref
“Linguistic studies have backed up genetic studies, with ancient patterns having been found between the languages spoken in Siberia and those spoken in the Americas. Two 2015 autosomal DNA genetic studies confirmed the Siberian origins of the Natives of the Americas. However an ancient signal of shared ancestry with the Natives of Australia and Melanesia was detected among the Natives of the Amazon region. The migration coming out of Siberia would have happened 23,000 years ago.” ref
“Brazilian native people, unlike those in Mesoamerica and the Andean civilizations, did not keep written records or erect stone monuments, and the humid climate and acidic soil have destroyed almost all traces of their material culture, including wood and bones. Therefore, what is known about the region’s history before 1500 has been inferred and reconstructed from small-scale archaeological evidence, such as ceramics and stone arrowheads.” ref
“The most conspicuous remains of these societies are very large mounds of discarded shellfish (sambaquis) found in some coastal sites which were continuously inhabited for over 5,000 years; and the substantial “black earth” (terra preta) deposits in several places along the Amazon, which are believed to be ancient garbage dumps (middens). Recent excavations of such deposits in the middle and upper course of the Amazon have uncovered remains of some very large settlements, containing tens of thousands of homes, indicating a complex social and economic structure.” ref
“Studies of the wear patterns of the prehistoric inhabitants of coastal Brazil found that the surfaces of anterior teeth facing the tongue were more worn than surfaces facing the lips, which researchers believe was caused by using teeth to peel and shred abrasive plants.” ref
“Marajoara culture flourished on Marajó island at the mouth of the Amazon River. Archeologists have found sophisticated pottery in their excavations on the island. These pieces are large, and elaborately painted and incised with representations of plants and animals. These provided the first evidence that a complex society had existed on Marajó. Evidence of mound building further suggests that well-populated, complex, and sophisticated settlements developed on this island, as only such settlements were believed capable of such extended projects as major earthworks.” ref
“The extent, level of complexity, and resource interactions of the Marajoara culture have been disputed. Working in the 1950s in some of her earliest research, American Betty Meggers suggested that the society migrated from the Andes and settled on the island. Many researchers believed that the Andes were populated by Paleoindian migrants from North America who gradually moved south after being hunters on the plains.” ref
“In the 1980s, another American archeologist, Anna Curtenius Roosevelt, led excavations and geophysical surveys of the mound Teso dos Bichos. She concluded that the society that constructed the mounds originated on the island itself.” ref
“The pre-Columbian culture of Marajó may have developed social stratification and supported a population as large as 100,000 people. The Native Americans of the Amazon rain forest may have used their method of developing and working in Terra preta to make the land suitable for the large-scale agriculture needed to support large populations and complex social formations such as chiefdoms.” ref
Xinguano Civilisation
“The Xingu peoples built large settlements connected by roads and bridges, often bearing moats. The apex of their development was between 1200 CE and 1600 CE, with their population inflating to the tens of thousands. The Xingu are an indigenous people of Brazil living near the Xingu River. They have many cultural similarities despite their different ethnicity. Xingu people represent fifteen tribes and all four of Brazil’s indigenous language groups, but they share similar belief systems, rituals, and ceremonies.” ref, ref
“The Upper Xingu region was heavily populated prior to European and African contact. Densely populated settlements developed from 1200 to 1600 CE. Ancient roads and bridges linked communities that were often surrounded by ditches or moats. The villages were pre-planned and featured circular plazas. Archaeologists have unearthed 19 villages so far. The different tribes comprising the Xingu have not been reported to battle each other in war. The only violence seen between the groups are murdering for witchcraft and wrestling matches that take place either between people of the same tribe or between people of different tribes as a means of letting people release the anger they have towards one another, and defending themselves from invasions from other tribes.” ref
“The Xingu classify people into three different categories that they believe exist because the Sun gave people different personal traits; these categories are the Xingu people, the other indigenous people, and the white people. In a Wauja myth, the Xingu are seen as peaceful, whereas these other two groups are seen as violent. The Xingu people maintain peace within their own tribes through trade, intermarriage, and ceremonies.” ref
“One religious practice that the Xingu engage in involves fishing, as many people within the Xingu communities depend on eating fish to provide them with protein. Specifically, shamans expel smoke from herbs in an attempt to prevent the fishermen from being harmed by alligators. The community participates in the preparation of the fish, in which many fish are cooked on an open fire. Women prepare beiju, which are pancakes that are made of cassava. All of the Xingu tribes attend ceremonies to inaugurate new tribal chiefs and honor deceased chiefs.” ref
“Xingu people have historically used fire as a landscaping tool. For centuries, they have understood and utilized the environment based on oral traditions. Xingu tribes from the twenty-first century are noticing changes in the level of fire in the rainforest as well as hotter temperatures, changing rain patterns, and higher river levels. For generations, the Xingu and other tribes in the South American lowlands have been using the emergence of the Pleiades to predict the start of the rainy season, but now this method is not able to be used as consistently. Evidence of the rising river is seen in a meeting of Waurá elders about the year 2005, when turtles failed to hatch because the river rose at an earlier point in the year than what was observed in previous years.” ref
“With the exception of the hunter-gatherer Goitacases, the coastal Tupi and Tapuia tribes were primarily agriculturalists. The subtropical Guarani cultivated maize, tropical Tupi cultivated manioc (cassava), and highland Jês cultivated peanut, as the staple of their diet. Supplementary crops included beans, sweet potatoes, cará (yam), jerimum (pumpkin), and cumari (capsicum pepper).” ref
“Behind these coasts, the interior of Brazil was dominated primarily by Tapuia (Jê) people, although significant sections of the interior (notably the upper reaches of the Xingu, Teles Pires, and Juruena Rivers – the area now covered roughly by modern Mato Grosso state) were the original pre-migration Tupi-Guarani homelands. Besides the Tupi and Tapuia, it is common to identify two other indigenous mega-groups in the interior: the Caribs, who inhabited much of what is now northwestern Brazil, including both shores of the Amazon River up to the delta and the Nuaraque group, whose constituent tribes inhabited several areas, including most of the upper Amazon (west of what is now Manaus) and also significant pockets in modern Amapá and Roraima states.” ref
“The names by which the different Tupi tribes were recorded by Portuguese and French authors of the 16th century are poorly understood. Most do not seem to be proper names, but descriptions of relationship, usually familial – e.g. tupi means “first father”, tupinambá means “relatives of the ancestors”, tupiniquim means “side-neighbors”, tamoio means “grandfather”, temiminó means “grandson”, tabajara means “in-laws” and so on.” ref
“Some etymologists believe these names reflect the ordering of the migration waves of Tupi people from the interior to the coasts, e.g. first Tupi wave to reach the coast being the “grandfathers” (Tamoio), soon joined by the “relatives of the ancients” (Tupinamba), by which it could mean relatives of the Tamoio, or a Tamoio term to refer to relatives of the old Tupi back in the upper Amazon basin. The “grandsons” (Temiminó) might be a splinter. The “side-neighbors” (Tupiniquim) meant perhaps recent arrivals, still trying to jostle their way in. However, by 1870 the Tupi tribes’ population had declined to 250,000 indigenous people and by 1890 had diminished to an approximate 100,000.” ref
Environmental and territorial rights movement
“Many of the indigenous tribes’ rights and rights claims parallel the environmental and territorial rights movement. Although indigenous people have gained 21% of the Brazilian Amazon as part of indigenous land, many issues still affect the sustainability of Indigenous territories today. Climate change is one issue that indigenous tribes attribute as a reason to keep their territory.” ref
“Some indigenous peoples and conservation organizations in the Brazilian Amazon have formed alliances, such as the alliance of the A’ukre Kayapo village and the Instituto SocioAmbiental (ISA) environmental organization. They focus on environmental, education, and developmental rights. For example, Amazon Watch collaborates with various indigenous organizations in Brazil to fight for both territorial and environmental rights. “Access to natural resources by indigenous and peasant communities in Brazil has been considerably less and much more insecure,” so activists focus on more traditional conservation efforts, and expanding territorial rights for indigenous people.” ref
“Territorial rights for the indigenous populations of Brazil largely fall under socio-economic issues. There have been violent conflicts regarding rights to land between the government and the indigenous population, and political rights have done little to stop them. There have been movements of the landless (MST) that help keep land away from the elite living in Brazil.” ref
“Indigenous languages with about 10,000 speakers or more are Ticuna (language isolate), Kaingang (Gean family), Kaiwá Guarani, Nheengatu (Tupian), Guajajára (Tupian), Macushi (Cariban), Terena (Arawakan), Xavante (Gean) and Mawé (Tupian). Tucano (Tucanoan) has half that number, but is widely used as a second language in the Amazon.” ref
* Ticuna (language isolate)
“Ticuna, Tikuna, Tucuna or Tukuna is a language spoken by approximately 50,000 people in the Amazon Basin, including the countries of Brazil, Peru, and Colombia. It is the native language of the Ticuna people and is considered “stable” by ethnologue. Ticuna is generally classified as a language isolate, but may be related to the extinct Yuri language (see Tïcuna-Yuri) and there has been some research indicating similarities between Ticuna and Carabayo.” ref
* Kaingang (Southern Jê language)
“The Kaingang language (also spelled Kaingáng) is a Southern Jê language (Jê, Macro-Jê) spoken by the Kaingang people of southern Brazil. The Kaingang language is a member of the Jê family, the largest language family in the Macro-Jê stock.” ref
“Macro-Jê (also spelled Macro-Gê) is a medium-sized language family in South America, mostly in Brazil but also in the Chiquitanía region in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, as well as (formerly) in small parts of Argentina and Paraguay. It is centered on the Jê language family, with most other branches currently being single languages due to recent extinctions.” ref
* Kaiwá Guarani, Nheengatu (Tupian)
“Kaiwá is a Guarani language spoken by about 18,000 Kaiwá people in Brazil in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul and 510 people in northeastern Argentina. Guarani languages make up about half a dozen or so languages in the Tupi–Guarani language family.” ref, ref
“The Nenhengatu language is native to Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and is a Tupi–Guarani language.” ref
Tupi-Guarani or Tupian language family
“The Tupi or Tupian language family comprises some 70 languages spoken in South America, of which the best known are Tupi proper and Guarani.” ref
“The Tupi people, a subdivision of the Tupi-Guarani linguistic families, were one of the largest groups of indigenous peoples in Brazil before its colonization. Scholars believe that while they first settled in the Amazon rainforest, from about 2,900 years ago the Tupi started to migrate southward and gradually occupied the Atlantic coast of Southeast Brazil.” ref
* Guajajára/Tenetehára (Tupian)
“Tenetehára is a Tupi–Guarani language spoken in the state of Maranhão in Brazil. Sociolinguistically, it is two languages, each spoken by the Guajajara and the Tembé people, though these are mutually intelligible.” ref
* Macushi (Cariban)
“Macushi is an indigenous language of the Carib family spoken in Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. It is also referred to as Makushi, Makusi, Macuxi, Macusi, Macussi, Teweya or Teueia. It is the most populous of the Cariban languages.” ref
“The Cariban languages are a family of languages indigenous to north-eastern South America. They are widespread across northernmost South America, from the mouth of the Amazon River to the Colombian Andes, and they are also spoken in small pockets of central Brazil. Mostly within north-central South America, with extensions in the southern Caribbean and in Central America. The Cariban languages share irregular morphology with the Jê and Tupian families. Ribeiro connects them all in a Je–Tupi–Carib family. Meira, Gildea, & Hoff (2010) note that likely morphemes in proto-Tupian and proto-Cariban are good candidates for being cognates, but that work so far is insufficient to make definitive statements. Extensive lexical similarities between Cariban and various Macro-Jê languages suggest that Cariban languages had originated in the Lower Amazon region (rather than in the Guiana Highlands). There they were in contact with early forms of Macro-Jê languages, which were likely spoken in an area between the Parecis Plateau and upper Araguaia River.” ref
* Terena (Arawakan)
“Terêna language is native to Brazil and is part of the Arawakan language family. There are also many Tupi-Guarani loanwords in Terena and other southern Arawakan languages. The Terena people are a Brazilian indigenous people. The Terena are largely an agriculturally focused society, with occupational dominance focusing on agroforestry. The language of the Terena people belongs to the Arawak family, and is reported to have incorporated elements of the Mbayá-Guaikuru family as well. Linguistic studies focusing on the Bolivia-Parana subsector found the highest degree of linguistic similarity between Terena, Mojeño, and Paunaka Language than others in their subgroup. Scholars describe the Awarakan family as a language “matrix” indigenous to South American regions spanning the Terena territory within Brazil.” ref, ref
“Arawakan (Arahuacan, Maipuran Arawakan, “mainstream” Arawakan, Arawakan proper), also known as Maipurean (also Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúre), is a language family that developed among ancient indigenous peoples in South America. Branches migrated to Central America and the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean and the Atlantic, including what is now the Bahamas. Almost all present-day South American countries are known to have been home to speakers of Arawakan languages, the exceptions being Ecuador, Uruguay, and Chile. Maipurean may be related to other language families in a hypothetical Macro-Arawakan stock. As one of the most geographically widespread language families in all of the Americas, Arawakan linguistic influence can be found in many language families of South America. Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Arawa, Bora-Muinane, Guahibo, Harakmbet-Katukina, Harakmbet, Katukina-Katawixi, Irantxe, Jaqi, Karib, Kawapana, Kayuvava, Kechua, Kwaza, Leko, Macro-Jê, Macro-Mataguayo-Guaykuru, Mapudungun, Mochika, Mura-Matanawi, Nambikwara, Omurano, Pano-Takana, Pano, Takana, Puinave-Nadahup, Taruma, Tupi, Urarina, Witoto-Okaina, Yaruro, Zaparo, Saliba-Hodi, and Tikuna-Yuri language families due to contact. However, these similarities could be due to inheritance, contact, or chance.” ref
* Xavante (Gean)
“The Xavante language is an Akuwẽ (Central Jê) language (Jê, Macro-Jê) spoken by the Xavante people in the area surrounding Eastern Mato Grosso, Brazil.” ref
* Mawé (Tupian)
“The Mawé language of Brazil, also known as Sateré (Mabue, Maragua, Andira, Arapium), is one of the Tupian languages. The Mawé, also known as the Sateré or Sateré-Mawé, are an indigenous people of Brazil living in the state of Amazonas. The Mawé speak the Sateré-Mawé language, which belongs to the Tupian family.” ref, ref
* Tucano (Tucanoan)
“Tucano, also Tukano or Tucana, endonym Dahseyé (Dasea), is a Tucanoan language spoken in Amazonas, Brazil, and Colombia.” ref
Tucano people
“The Tucano people (sometimes spelt Tukano) are a group of Indigenous South Americans in the northwestern Amazon, along the Vaupés River and the surrounding area. They are mostly in Colombia, but some are in Brazil. They are usually described as being made up of many separate tribes, but that oversimplifies the social and linguistic structure of the region. The Tucano are multilingual because men must marry outside their language group: no man may have a wife who speaks his language, which would be viewed as a kind of incest.” ref
“Men choose women from various neighboring tribes who speak other languages. Furthermore, on marriage, women move into the men’s households or longhouses. Consequently, in any village several languages are used: the language of the men; the various languages spoken by women who originate from different neighboring tribes; and a widespread regional ‘trade’ language. Children are born into the multilingual environment: the child’s father speaks one language (considered the Tucano language), the child’s mother another, other women with whom the child has daily contact, and perhaps still others.” ref
“However, everyone in the community is interested in language-learning so most people can speak most of the languages. Multilingualism is taken for granted, and moving from one language to another in the course of a single conversation is very common. In fact, multilingualism is so usual that the Tucano are hardly conscious that they do speak different languages as they shift easily from one to another. They cannot readily tell an outsider how many languages they speak, and they must be suitably prompted to enumerate the languages that they speak and to describe how well they speak each one.” ref
“As mentioned above, the Tucano practice linguistic exogamy. Members of a linguistic descent group marry outside their own linguistic descent group. As a result, it is normal for Tucano people to speak two, three, or more Tucanoan languages, and any Tucano household (longhouse) is likely to be host to numerous languages. The descent groups (sometimes referred to as tribes) all have their accompanying language. The Tucano are swidden horticulturalists and grow manioc and other staples in forest clearings. They also hunt, trap, fish, and forage wild plants and animals.” ref
Amazon Rainforest
“The Amazon rainforest, also called Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin encompasses 7,000,000 km2 (2,700,000 sq mi), of which 6,000,000 km2 (2,300,000 sq mi) are covered by the rainforest. This region includes territory belonging to nine nations and 3,344 formally acknowledged indigenous territories.” ref
“The majority of the forest, 60%, is in Brazil, followed by Peru with 13%, Colombia with 10%, and with minor amounts in Bolivia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela. Four nations have “Amazonas” as the name of one of their first-level administrative regions, and France uses the name “Guiana Amazonian Park” for French Guiana’s protected rainforest area. The Amazon represents over half of Earth‘s remaining rainforests, and comprises the largest and most biodiverse tract of tropical rainforest in the world, with an estimated 390 billion individual trees in about 16,000 species.” ref
“More than 30 million people of 350 different ethnic groups live in the Amazon, which are subdivided into 9 different national political systems and 3,344 formally acknowledged indigenous territories. Indigenous peoples make up 9% of the total population, and 60 of the groups remain largely isolated. Based on archaeological evidence from an excavation at Caverna da Pedra Pintada, human inhabitants first settled in the Amazon region at least 11,200 years ago.” ref
“For a long time, it was thought that the Amazon rainforest was never more than sparsely populated, as it was impossible to sustain a large population through agriculture given the poor soil. Archeologist Betty Meggers was a prominent proponent of this idea, as described in her book Amazonia: Man and Culture in a Counterfeit Paradise. She claimed that a population density of 0.2 inhabitants per square kilometre (0.52/sq mi) is the maximum that can be sustained in the rainforest through hunting, with agriculture needed to host a larger population. However, recent anthropological findings have suggested that the region was actually densely populated. The Upano Valley sites in present-day eastern Ecuador predate all known complex Amazonian societies.” ref
Some 5 million people may have lived in the Amazon region in CE 1500, divided between dense coastal settlements, such as that at Marajó, and inland dwellers. Based on projections of food production, one estimate suggests over 8 million people living in the Amazon in 1492. By 1900, the native indigenous population had fallen to 1 million and by the early 1980s it was less than 200,000.” ref
“The first European to travel the length of the Amazon River was Francisco de Orellana in 1542. The BBC’s Unnatural Histories presents evidence that Orellana, rather than exaggerating his claims as previously thought, was correct in his observations that a complex civilization was flourishing along the Amazon in the 1540s. The Pre-Columbian agriculture in the Amazon Basin was sufficiently advanced to support prosperous and populous societies.” ref
“The BBC’s Unnatural Histories presented evidence that the Amazon rainforest, rather than being a pristine wilderness, has been shaped by man for at least 11,000 years through practices such as forest gardening and terra preta. Terra preta is found over large areas in the Amazon forest; and is now widely accepted as a product of indigenous soil management. The development of this fertile soil allowed agriculture and silviculture in the previously hostile environment; meaning that large portions of the Amazon rainforest are probably the result of centuries of human management, rather than naturally occurring as has previously been supposed. In the region of the Xingu tribe, remains of some of these large settlements in the middle of the Amazon forest were found in 2003 by Michael Heckenberger and colleagues of the University of Florida. Among those were evidence of roads, bridges, and large plazas.” ref
“In the Amazonas, there has been fighting and wars between the neighboring tribes of the Jivaro. Several tribes of the Jivaroan group, including the Shuar, practiced headhunting for trophies and headshrinking. The accounts of missionaries to the area in the borderlands between Brazil and Venezuela have recounted constant infighting in the Yanomami tribes. More than a third of the Yanomamo males, on average, died from warfare. The Munduruku were a warlike tribe that expanded along the Tapajós River and its tributaries and were feared by neighboring tribes. In the early 19th century, the Munduruku were pacified and subjugated by the Brazilians.” ref
The myth of the pristine Amazon rainforest
“Indigenous inhabitants shaped the rainforest by domesticating tree species in pre-Columbian times. Trees that were domesticated by pre-Columbian peoples still dominate the forests of the Amazon Basin. The findings put a dent in the notion that the vast rainforests were untouched by human hands before the arrival of the Spanish explorers in South America. In an article published in Science, an international team, including Florian Wittmann from the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, the scientists reported their findings.” ref
“As far back as 8,000 years ago, the peoples of Amazonia began to domesticate plants such as the Brazil nut, the cacao tree and the acai palm tree. For a long time, it was not clear to what extent the indigenous inhabitants of the forest really transformed the forest by specifically tending to or cultivating certain trees or carrying their seeds over large distances. The international team headed by Carolina Levis from the Brazilian national institute for Amazon research (INPA) therefore investigated the occurrence of 85 tree species used for food or as a construction material by the pre-Columbian inhabitants. The database contains an inventory of tree species found at approximately one thousand study sites in the Amazon Basin.” ref
More domesticated species than expected are widely distributed
“The team found that 20 out of 85 domesticated species are abundant in the entire Amazon Basin and dominate large swathes of the rainforest. A study published in 2013 and co-authored by Florian Wittmann identified 4,962 different tree species in total at the ATDN study sites. Only 227 of these were widely distributed. While only five percent of all tree species are abundant in the Amazon Basin, 24 percent of the domesticated species occur frequently there. The proportion of abundant domesticated species was thus five times greater than would have been expected if humans had not interfered.” ref
“Florian Wittmann comments on the result: “The study sheds considerable light on how many tree species were propagated by humans; for example, Bertholletia, the Brazil nut.” A researcher in Manaus (Brazil) for the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry until 2016, Wittmann is now working at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). Genetic studies have demonstrated that there are only very slight genetic differences between Brazil nut trees found in different areas of the Amazon region. Since the differences are much greater among species that have spread through the rainforest by chance, it is very probable that the species’ propagation was helped along by humans. Further investigation is required to confirm such findings concerning other trees, such as the cacao tree.” ref
Humans made their mark on the Amazon rainforest long before the arrival of the Spanish
“The study produced another finding: Around archaeological sites, the abundance and richness of domesticated trees increased. Carolina Levis and her colleagues concluded that the American indigenous populations conferred an advantage on useful trees through their activities, thereby changing the ecosystems. The scientists believe that the finding confirms that human activities shaped the Amazon rainforest before the arrival of the Spanish. Florian Wittmann agrees: “Hardly any corner of Amazonia has been left untouched by humans,” the expert on floodplains ecology says. “According to estimates, about ten million people lived there prior to European colonisation.” ref
“For years, Wittmann has been working with Brazilian scientists and oversees several of the Amazon Tree Diversity Network study sites. Nine of them, which are located approx. 150 kilometres northeast of the megacity of Manaus, deep in the jungle, were included in the study in question. The study areas each span a hectare and are situated near the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO). The primary purpose of the 325-metre tall tower is to help German and Brazilian scientists study climate issues. “We are looking at the extent to which the rainforest affects the climate and vice versa – how the atmosphere affects the rainforest,” Wittmann explains.” ref
Indigenous tree knowledges in Amazonia
“Indigenous understandings of rainforests and the plants within them reveal a way to live perennially. In Shuar culture, as in others in Amazonia, the architect or leading builder of the jea (collective extended family house) is not only the eldest member of the clan – he who has acquired the knowhow from his forebears – but also he who can select a tree with hands, eyes, nose and tongue; he who develops a relationship with the chosen tree whose permission is needed before toppling and symbolically replanting it as a column or support in a home.” ref
“The act of toppling a tree lies at the core of many syncretic (animistic, Catholic, and African) versions of stories that exist of the Tree of Abundance: a dominant origin myth in western Amazonia. In one of the Kichwa Napo Runa narratives, a formidable cedar, bearer of all seeds and fruits, grows beyond reach. In some hyperbolic versions, its vast crown covers the world. In other versions, the tree of the original seed, seed of seeds, was born from a woman. When the tree reached the skies, making its fruit inaccessible, wise elders or mythological beings had to decide whether to topple the colossal bearer of life or not. After much deliberation, they decided it was imperative to cut down the mighty tree. Eventually, severed, it tumbled down, with a thunder, and its branches cascaded into the muddy waters of Amazonian tributaries descending from the Andes.” ref
“Its splinters became myriad fish. Its trunk became the mother of all rivers, estuaries, and canals. Its fruits and seeds dispersed through the waters into the tropical rainforests of South America, to feed all. This river of fruits flows downwards and drains its countless branches to the east. From the mighty Tree of Abundance stemmed the water tree that irrigates all life. It is a symbol of the intricate system of interdependencies that sustains us. No being is insignificant in this Amazonian socio‑natural web of reciprocal relations. The Tree of Abundance is not the Tree of Life nor the Tree of Knowledge, yet, in its branches, humanity can peacefully gather and rest.” ref
South American Forest Indian
“South American forest Indian, indigenous inhabitants of the tropical forests of South America. The tribal cultures of South America are so various that they cannot be adequately summarized in a brief space. The mosaic is baffling in its complexity: the cultures have interpenetrated one another as a result of constant migratory movements and through intertribal relations, leading to the obliteration of formerly significant differences, and to new cultural systems made up of elements of heterogeneous origin. Hundreds of languages, in very irregular geographic distribution, with innumerable dialects, are or have been spoken in the tropical area of South America. Thus, only the broadest generalizations can be made; one can mention certain cultural manifestations that are present in a great number of groups, even though varying in their actual expression, and illustrate them with specific examples—but always with the qualification that in a neighboring tribe or group a distinctly contrasting idea or institution may exist.” ref
“The innumerable native peoples differ in their patterns of adaptation to their natural environment. Whether they live in the rainforest, in the gallery forests lining the rivers, in the arid savannas, or in the swamps, however, they share a common cultural background; they often combine hunting, fishing, and gathering wild plant foods with rudimentary farming. Most are relatively sedentary, but some are nomadic or semi-nomadic. Greater differences are sometimes found among neighboring groups living in the same forest than between some forest and savanna peoples. And some tribes, when migrating to open areas, maintain to a great extent the forest characteristics of their culture. On the banks of the great rivers and in zones between the forest and the savanna live tribes who gain their subsistence from farming and fishing. Hunters and gatherers, almost all of whom also practice some farming, have settled near the heads of rivers, in open land, or in gallery forests.” ref
“Tribes speaking related languages are scattered over a large part of the continent. The tribes of the Arawak and the Carib linguistic families are most numerous in the Guianas (French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and the adjacent regions of Venezuela and Brazil) as well as in other parts of the northern Amazon, but the former have representatives as far south as the Chaco and the latter as far south as the upper Xingu. The Tupí tribes extend to the south of the Amazon valley. The Ge family includes groups most of which are located in the semi-arid lands of central Brazil. In the extreme northwest of Brazil and in the jungles of eastern Peru and Bolivia live the Pano tribes. The Jívaro of Ecuador are famous headhunters. They cut off the enemy’s head, separate the soft part from the skull, and, with the help of hot sand, reduce it to the size of a fist without altering the physiognomy. They attribute great magical power to these trophies, or tsantsa.” ref
“A characteristic feature of the tropical forest cultures is their combination of farming with hunting, fishing, and gathering. Before the arrival of Europeans, the Indians of the tropical forest had no domestic animals except the dog. As is typical of most farmer-foragers, these people did not write or erect stone buildings as did the Indians of Middle America, form states with centralized political organizations, or have castes of warriors or priests. Their utensils and instruments were almost all of vegetable or animal origin, since in large sections of the area stones for making axes, arrowheads, and other objects were quite scarce. One finds evidence of metalwork only in the regions near the Andean civilizations, although objects of copper and other metals occasionally found their way across the continent, through channels of trade.” ref
“In almost all of the tropical forest area the population density was low, probably averaging less than one person per square mile. Populous centres existed only along the coast and the main rivers, particularly the Amazon; the latter, according to reports by early European explorers, was fringed with Indian villages. For the most part, however, the Indians were dispersed throughout the vast territory in innumerable tribes and tribelets. This is why a classification by languages and cultures gives only a vague idea of the complex picture of the forest populations. Peoples having the same dialect and culture might exist as separate groups, even as enemies. While some Indians considered themselves primarily members of their local group, others, like the Xerente (Sherenté), gave greater value to a common language and culture than to village divisions. But differences in dialect and culture often imposed obstacles to the recognition of tribal solidarity.” ref
“There were no permanent political associations or confederations encompassing tribes of different languages and cultures. From time to time tribes might form ephemeral confederations for warfare against a common enemy. Certain close relations sometimes existed between groups of diverse origin, especially through tribal intermarriage. The best known examples are along the Río Negro in northwest Brazil, where numerous populations, mostly Arawak and Tucano, are united in a vast network of interethnic relations. At the headwaters of the Xingu, a complex system of intertribal institutions also exists among formerly autonomous groups. Few tropical forest tribes are strictly monogamous. Polygyny with two or more women is usually restricted, however, to chiefs and other men of prestige. It is perhaps most accentuated among the Jívaro, where headhunting once killed off many of the men; it frequently takes the form of marriage with two or more sisters. Examples of polyandry are rare.” ref
“The choice of a partner is sometimes limited by the division of the tribe into clans and segments to which an individual belongs by heredity and within which marriage is prohibited. In some cases, for example in the Guianas and in the Río Negro region, the individual must find a mate outside his village or even outside his tribe (exogamy). The Terena of the southern Mato Grosso divide themselves into endogamous groups: the man and wife must come from the same group, called by ethnologists a moiety. Marriage between cross cousins, that is, between children of siblings of different sex, is considered ideal in many tribes; that of parallel cousins, children of siblings of the same sex, is frequently prohibited.” ref
“Kinship groups and household communities are based predominantly on the principle of lineage, that is, on relation through either the male or female line. Communities of extended patrilineal families were typical of the Tupí-Guaraní. In many Amazon tribes and in others farther north, the lineages or groups of lineages are patrilineal exogamous clans. Tribes with matrilineal clans, although less numerous, can be found throughout South America. In some tribes the clans number 40 or more, as among the Mundurukú; they are generally organized into two groups so that the whole tribe comprises two exogamous moieties. The dual divisions of the Ge Indians, often not related to kinship and marriage, are mainly ceremonial.” ref
“In general, the tropical forest cultures do not exhibit much social stratification. When there is inequality, it is normally made up of ethnic outsiders who do not constitute a class as such. War captives may be reduced to slavery, as among the northern Carib and Arawak, the Huitoto, and the Mundurukú. Among the extinct Tupí of the Brazilian coast, slavery was the fate of those destined for ritual sacrifice. In many cases, chiefly among the northern Carib, slavery had primarily an economic function: the captives form a servile group known as peito—the same term applied to a fiancé during the period in which he is obliged to work for his future father-in-law. The Rucuyen, a Carib tribe of French Guiana, for some time maintained in servitude a great number of the Oyampī, their Tupí neighbors. In the northwest Amazon, Arawak and Tucano tribes hunt and enslave Makú men, who are forced to work in their gardens; the Makú women and children are used as domestic servants.” ref
“A tendency to form a class of nobility has been found in many Arawak groups, who not uncommonly impose themselves over other tribes by means of intermarriage, especially among families of chiefs. In some regions, relatives of chiefs constitute a kind of nobility. In tribes divided into clans, it is common to attribute superior status to a certain clan or even to scale them in hierarchic order. Nevertheless, the local or tribal community is essentially egalitarian. The children learn through play and imitation. Boys acquire skill in the use of weapons by practicing with small bows or blowguns made by their fathers. Girls learn to cook in little clay pots and to weave on small looms; they help their mothers in the preparation of manioc flour. The young also participate in the general religious life. The transmission of moral standards is rarely of a formal nature, and there is little punishment or repression.” ref
“The institution of the couvade is found throughout the forest culture. The father of a newborn infant must observe a rigorous diet for a week or so after the infant’s birth. It is based on the idea of a mystical relation between the father and the child. Puberty rites are often quite elaborate. In many tribes, such as the Guaraní, the symbol of masculine maturity is the labret, an ornament worn in a perforation of the lip; the ritual is preceded by an instruction period during which the boys, isolated from the community, learn the religious chants and dances, and it culminates with the perforation of their lower lips. Initiation rites may be limited to boys or to girls or may be for both sexes. The initiation of the boys is generally done collectively for those who have reached the eve of sexual maturity, while that of the girls is normally held individually on the occasion of the first menstruation.” ref
“In many of the Indian cultures these rites take a central position among other important ceremonies such as funerals and fertility rites. In the Guianas and the northwest Amazon region, the initiation of the boys is very complex. The Yurupary celebration inducts the boys into the secret society of mature men. Special rites are revealed to them; they are shown the sacred trumpets or the masks representing ancestral spirits. They are subjected to violent whippings, which they must tolerate without the least expression of pain. In the Guianas, the ritual torture consists of the stings of hornets or the bites of poisonous ants. The girls’ initiation, generally more developed in the Amazon area near the Andes, is also frequently accompanied by difficult tests. Among the Tikuna (Tucuna) and other Amazonian groups, all the hair of the girl is pulled out; its regrowth symbolizes the emergence of a new adult personality.” ref
“The initiation of the boys assumes great importance in the social structure of some Ge groups of central Brazil, whose complex of rites begins at ten years of age and continues in cycles until 20. In one such tribe, the Xerente, candidates spend three years isolated from community life preparing themselves for manhood. In these Ge groups, those who have been initiated together form a distinct set of persons who feel united the rest of their lives. While the bands of gatherers rarely exceed a few dozen individuals, the farmers’ villages have been known to include as many as 2,000. As a rule they are much smaller, dividing whenever the population becomes too large. A characteristic arrangement is the circular village of houses placed around a central plaza. This is found, for example, in the upper Xingu, in various Ge tribes, and among the Bororo of the Mato Grosso. The plan of the Bororo village, like that of the Ge, is a real map of the social structure. Each household represents a particular segment of the local group, such as an extended family or a patrilineal or matrilineal clan. The centre of the plaza is often occupied by the men’s house, where the men spend the night and the greater part of the day, and which is at times the locus of ceremonial activities.” ref
“A great variety of economic systems is found in the tropical forest. The tribes cannot accurately be classified as hunters and gatherers on the one hand or as farmers on the other. The differences lie in the emphasis given to agriculture rather than in the presence or lack of it. The Guayakí of the forests of eastern Paraguay are one of the few tribes without any agriculture; they feed on wild honey and larvae, catch fish with arrows, and hunt jaguars and armadillos. The Sirionó of Bolivia and most of the Makú (a denomination that comprises rather heterogeneous Amazonian groups) are nomads who hunt, fish, and gather. A few Makú groups, however, influenced by their neighbors, have become more or less sedentary farmers. The same holds for the Shirianá and Waica of the Orinoco–Amazon headwaters.” ref
“The crops are chiefly bitter manioc as well as other tubers and roots, and, in the western regions, maize (corn). Some Ge tribes grow mainly sweet potatoes and yams. The forest is cleared by felling the trees (the stone axe has now been everywhere replaced by the iron axe) and, when the underbrush is dry, setting fire to it. The same plot is used for several (but never more than six) consecutive crops and then left fallow for several years until it is covered by new vegetation. The group must therefore move periodically. The slash-and-burn system does not, except in the more fertile lowlands, permit the growth of dense populations. It does, however, provide a seasonal food surplus that might in many cases, considering the available techniques, be increased. But the Indian has no incentive to store up goods in a generally egalitarian society, since goods are not a source of prestige.” ref
“The tropical forest Indians are highly inventive. They have developed many types of harpoons, arrows, traps, snares, and blowguns. In fishing they employ a variety of drugs that stun or kill the fish without making them inedible. The bow and arrow are today known everywhere; in some Amazon regions they have replaced the spear thrower, a device still in use in certain western tribes. The bow and arrow are the principal weapons of warfare, although some groups fight with clubs and lances. The techniques of basketry have a wealth of variations, mainly in the Guianas, the northwest Amazon region, and among the Ge peoples. Along with many kinds of baskets and hampers, these folk plait sifters, traps, fans, mats, and other household articles out of palm leaves and shafts of taquara, or bamboo.” ref
“The potter’s wheel was traditionally unknown, but coiled ceramics reached a high degree of development, particularly among the Arawak and Pano tribes. Among nomadic groups pottery is either nonexistent or very rudimentary; instead, the nomads use gourds, calabashes, baskets, and fibre pouches. Spinning and weaving, though well-known, remain at an elementary level since most tropical forest Indians, instead of dressing, prefer to paint the body and to embellish it with all sorts of adornments. From cotton, growing wild or planted, they make tunics, as well as belts of various types, skirts, and particularly hammocks. They use simple spindles, which they whirl like tops. The most common loom is the heddle loom: the threads of the weft, separated by heddles, are wound around a vertical frame. In regions close to the Andes, especially in eastern Bolivia, the Indians make cloth of beaten bark.” ref
“Land is generally owned by the group occupying or exploiting it—a band, a village, or a clan—and parcelled out to families or other small units for hunting, fishing, or planting. Collective tribal land or territory exists only in rare cases, when the solidarity between the various groups of a people is particularly strong. There are rigorous norms for the distribution of game among the hunter’s family and among other families to which he is associated by certain ties; the hunter himself may receive a rather small share. Cleared land almost always belongs to the family using it, but when necessary others may have access to its products. Generosity is greatly valued. This also holds for intertribal relations, when gifts are exchanged on the occasion of visits or celebrations.” ref
“Weapons and household utensils are the property of individual men and women, but canoes and other objects used collectively are not. Body adornments generally belong to the wearer. Intangible property may belong to the clan or other social unit, but it may also be individually owned, as in the case of the name or ritual functions among Ge tribes, and magical–religious chants among the Guaraní. Brisk trade among tribes is carried on in parts of the Guianas, in northwest Amazonia, and in upper Xingu. Indians of the upper Orinoco export urucu, a red dye, to groups living downriver. The Arawak frequently trade ceramic wares produced by their women; they also supply blowguns in exchange for poisonous curare and barter manioc graters. Carib tribes often trade cotton products. Some groups specialize in the manufacture of canoes, which are much in demand by neighboring groups.” ref
“The most complex trading system is that of the upper Xingu; it includes a dozen tribes, each with its own products. Commerce contributes significantly toward reducing cultural differences among the tribes, the more so because it is accompanied at times by ceremonial activities through which religious ideas and practices, as well as elements of social organization, are transmitted. The tropical forest Indians believe that their well-being depends on being able to control innumerable supernatural powers, which in personal or impersonal form permeate or inhabit objects, living beings, and nature in general. Through shamanistic rites or collective ceremonies, humans must encourage and maintain their harmonious integration in the universe, controlling the forces that govern it; their beneficial or harmful effects are largely determined by human action.” ref
“In most of the cultures, magical measures and precautions are more important than the religious cult as such. The strength and health of the body, the normal growth of children, the capacity to procreate, and even psychic qualities are obtained by magical means. For the individual these means may include the perforation of the lips, nasal septum, or ear lobes, the painting of the body, and the use of various adornments. A little stick passed through the nasal septum, such as that used by the Pawumwa of the Guaporé River, prevents sickness. The hunter or fisherman, in order to be successful and not to be panema (unlucky), as they say in many Amazonian regions, takes precautions such as scarring his arms or abstaining from certain foods. The magical devices of the hunter, the fisherman, and the warrior are considered much more important than their ability. Arrows must be treated by rubbing with a certain drug, since their magical attributes are believed to be more effective than their technical properties.” ref
“Stimulants and narcotics are of great importance in the magic and religious practices of most tropical forest Indians. Secular use of drugs is much rarer. Tobacco is known by almost all tribes. The Tupinamba shaman fumigates his rattle with tobacco, which he believes contains an animating principle that confers on the rattle the faculty of “speaking,” that is, of revealing the future. Alcoholic beverages, consumed mainly in religious festivals, are obtained by fermentation of manioc, corn, and other plants. They are unknown among the Ge, in the upper Xingu, and in some regions of Bolivia and Ecuador. Coca leaves are chewed, especially in the sub-Andean regions. Infusion of maté is taken in the Paraguay area, as well as by the Jívaro and other groups of Ecuador. Hallucinogens are used mainly in the Amazon–Orinoco area; they include species of Banisteriopsis (a tropical liana), from which is made a potion that produces visions.” ref
“In certain tribes, the use of this drug is restricted to shamanistic practices; in others, as in the Uaupés River area, it is an essential element in religious festivals in which the community revives its mythic tradition. Other narcotics in ritual use, among them the yopo, or paricá (Piptadenia), known among many northern groups, are often breathed in the form of snuff, which partners blow into one another’s nostrils; the Omagua of the upper Amazon used it as an enema. Some magical practices are reserved for the shaman, who acquires status by natural endowment, by inspiration, by apprenticeship, or by painful initiation.” ref
“The shaman may practice medicine, perform magic rites, and lead religious ceremonies. Rarely, however, is he a priest in the usual sense of the term. In many groups his influence is superior to that of the political chief; in some, as among the Guaraní, the two roles may coincide. Not uncommonly, his influence continues even after his death: in the Guianas and elsewhere, his soul becomes an auxiliary spirit of his living colleagues, helping them in their curing practices and in the control of harmful spirits; among the Rucuyen, the bodies of common individuals were cremated, while that of the shaman was kept in a special place so that his soul might live on.” ref
“In curing the sick, the shaman must remove the object causing the sickness: a small stone, a leaf, an insect, any substance that has been sent through the black magic of an evildoer. The cure consists of massages, suction, blowing, and fumigation. If the illness comes from loss of the soul, the shaman must search for and recover it. If it comes from a bad spirit, he tries to overcome the evil influence with the help of one or more auxiliary spirits. The soul has its seat in the bones, the heart, the wrist, or in other parts of the body. Some Indians believe that two or more souls are responsible for various vital functions. One finds also the idea of a purely spiritual soul. The Guaraní believe that man has an animal soul governing his temperament and his instinctive reactions but that he also has a second, spiritual one, sent by a divinity at the moment of conception. Thanks to his second soul, man thinks, speaks, and is capable of noble sentiments. After death this second soul returns to live among the gods, while the other soul wanders the Earth as a ghost menacing the living.” ref
“Nature is believed to be peopled by demons and spirits that are beneficial or malevolent, depending on man’s behavior. Besides the soul that gives life to every living thing, many plants and animals have a “mother” or “master,” as do manioc, maize, and game animals. The mythology of almost all tribes includes a creator of the universe and of people. This creator seldom sustains interest in his handiwork, and thus, there is usually no cult attached to him. Social institutions, customs, knowledge, techniques, and cultivated plants are deeds or gifts of a culture hero or a pair of them, sometimes twin brothers who may represent the Sun and Moon. A number of myths are told about these figures; sometimes the pair consists of a hero and a trickster who opposes him.” ref
“Ceremonial practices vary, depending on the tribe and its way of life. Some great collective ceremonies have been associated with war, as among the northern Carib and the coastal Tupí, both famous for cannibalism, and the headhunting Mundurukú and Jívaro. Ceremonies are often believed to be indispensable for regulating the course of the Sun and the Moon, the sequence of the seasons, the fertility of plants, the procreation of animals, and the very continuity of human life. Their objective may also be to commune with the dead or with mythical ancestors; when they are connected with the disposal of the dead, they are at the same time passage rites, by means of which the spirits of the dead are made harmless. Among the Guaraní, most religious ceremonies mean profound spiritual communion with the gods.” ref
“Corpses are commonly disposed of by ground burial within or without the house. Urn burial has also been known, especially among Tupí groups; some groups have been known to unearth bones, clean them, and then rebury them. The Tarariu (Tarairiu) of northeastern Brazil and some Pano broiled the flesh of their dead and mixed the pulverized bones and hair with water or with a manioc-base beverage that they drank. Tribes of the Caribbean coast, after drying the body by fire, allowed it to decompose and later added the powder to a drink. In other northern regions, one still finds the custom of cremating the cadaver and consuming the charred and crushed bones in a banana mush.” ref
“Artistic efforts are most commonly applied to decoration, whether of the human body, objects of practical or ritual use, or even houses. The most common body adornments are paint and feather ornaments. Tattooing has also been practiced, especially among the Mundurukú and many Arawak tribes. Magical and religious ideas are usually expressed in these adornments. The Carib tribes of the Guianas and some Tupí were outstanding in featherwork. The plumed mantles of the Tupinamba, the delicate and elaborate adornments of the Caapor of Maranhão state, and the rich and varied ones of the Mundurukú are much celebrated.” ref
“The design of ornaments is almost always geometrical, with characteristic patterns for particular tribes; the styles vary with the cultural areas. Masks, generally used in ceremonial dances, are restricted to the tribes of certain areas: the Guartegaya and Amniapé (Amniepe) of the upper Madeira, the tribes of the upper Xingu, the Karajá and the Tapirapé of the Araguáia River area, some Ge of central Brazil, and the Guaraní of southern Bolivia. The masks represent the spirits of plants, fish, and other animals, as well as mythical heroes and divinities. They are highly stylized in form but, on occasion, naturalistic in expression. The Waurá women of the upper Xingu are famous for their pots and animal-shaped bowls. Of the historic tribes, the Tapajó of the Amazon had the richest style in ceramics, excelled only by the archaeological remains of the Ilha de Marajó. Among some groups in the Guianas and western Amazonia, artistic activity includes wood carving.” ref
The Ancient Shihuahuaco: the Amazon’s tree of life
“No story is as old and universal as the tree of life. In Nordic mythology, a huge tree connects the nine worlds of the universe. In Iroquois legend, a pregnant woman creates the world by planting a tree on a turtle’s back. In his theory of evolution, Darwin shows that all organisms are interconnected in a single tree of life. While shihuahuaco fruits are not industrially commercialized, many Indigenous groups prize the seeds, and some use the bark as an antimicrobial medicine. Others, like the Boras people, make the shell-like pods into necklaces and other decorative objects.” ref
“If one species embodies the tree of life in the modern day, it might be the Dipteryx micrantha, known as the shihuahuaco in Peru. Among roughly 390 billion trees growing in the Amazon, shihuahuacos are among the tallest and most ancient. They take about one millennium to grow to full height of up to 60 m or almost 200 feet. Forest giants like the shihuahuaco are called “emergent trees” because they reach the emergent layer or overstory of the forest. The emergent layer endures heavy winds, rain and sun exposure. Despite these harsh conditions, bold animals like eagles, bats and monkeys all venture to the emergent layer.” ref
“Identified as a keystone species, the shihuahuaco sustains a staggering amount of life. During the wet season, lilac flowers blossom in its upper canopy. By the dry season, these flower clusters have morphed into heavy fruit pods or legumes (the shihuahuaco is a member of the bean family). Bats, spider monkeys, agoutis, possums, squirrels, and spiny rats all rely on these fruits. After eating them, these critters store the seeds in a special hiding place for future use. Sometimes, the animals forget where they stored the seeds, allowing the seeds to germinate and the parent tree to reproduce. A towering tree like the shihuahuaco may owe its life to the forgetfulness of a tiny squirrel 1,000 years ago!” ref
“Slow-growth species like the shihuahuaco also play a crucial role in carbon dioxide absorption. By itself, a mature shihuahuaco sequesters almost one third of an average hectare of rainforest. As a whole, the Amazon rainforest absorbs about 2 billion tons of CO2 per year, about 5% of global annual emissions. While more shihuahuacos are being cut down than ever before, more are also being planted. Which way the scale tips will decide not only the fate of the shihuahuaco but all organisms that depend on it, including us.” ref
Tree of Life
“The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world’s mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree. The tree of knowledge connecting to heaven and the underworld such as Yggdrasil and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Genesis, and the tree of life, connecting all forms of creation, are forms of the world tree or cosmic tree, and are portrayed in various religions and philosophies as the same tree. The concept of world trees is a prevalent motif in the Mesoamerican cosmovision and iconography, appearing in the pre-Columbian era. World trees embody the four cardinal directions, which represented also the fourfold nature of a central world tree, a symbolic axis mundi connecting the planes of the Underworld and the sky with that of the terrestrial world.” ref
“Depictions of world trees, both in their directional and central aspects, are found in the art and mythological traditions of cultures such as the Maya, Aztec, Izapan, Mixtec, Olmec, and others, dating to at least the Mid/Late Formative periods of the Mesoamerican chronology. The tomb of Kʼinich Janaabʼ Pakal of the Maya city-state of Palenque, who became its ajaw or leader when he was twelve years old, has tree of life inscriptions within the walls of his burial place, showing just how important it was. Among the Maya, the central world tree was conceived as or represented by a Ceiba pentandra and is known variously as a wacah chan or yax imix che in different Mayan languages.” ref
“The trunk of the tree could also be represented by an upright caiman, whose skin evokes the tree’s spiny trunk. Directional world trees are also associated with the four Year Bearers in Mesoamerican calendars and associated with the directional colors and deities. Mesoamerican codices which have this association outlined include the Dresden, Borgia, and Fejérváry-Mayer codices. It is supposed that Mesoamerican sites and ceremonial centers frequently had actual trees planted at each of the four cardinal directions, representing the quadripartite concept. World trees are frequently depicted with birds in their branches, and their roots extending into earth or water, sometimes atop a “water-monster,” symbolic of the underworld. The central world tree has also been interpreted as a representation of the band of the Milky Way.” ref
“In a myth passed down among the Iroquois, The World on the Turtle’s Back, explains the origin of the land in which a tree of life is described. According to the myth, it is found in the heavens, where the first humans lived, until a pregnant woman fell and landed in an endless sea. Saved by a giant turtle from drowning, she formed the world on its back by planting bark taken from the tree. The tree of life motif is present in the traditional Ojibway cosmology and traditions. It is sometimes described as Grandmother Cedar, or Nookomis Giizhig in Anishinaabemowin.” ref
“In the book Black Elk Speaks, Black Elk, an Oglala Lakota (Sioux) wičháša wakȟáŋ (medicine man and holy man), describes his vision in which after dancing around a dying tree that has never bloomed he is transported to the other world (spirit world) where he meets wise elders, 12 men and 12 women. The elders tell Black Elk that they will bring him to meet “Our Father, the two-legged chief” and bring him to the center of a hoop where he sees the tree in full leaf and bloom and the “chief” standing against the tree. Coming out of his trance he hopes to see that the earthly tree has bloomed, but it is dead.” ref
“The Oneidas tell that supernatural beings lived in the Skyworld above the waters which covered the earth. This tree was covered with fruits which gave them their light, and they were instructed that no one should cut into the tree otherwise a great punishment would be given. As the woman had pregnancy cravings, she sent her husband to get bark, but he accidentally dug a hole to the other world. After falling through, she came to rest on the turtle’s back, and four animals were sent out to find land, which the muskrat finally did.” ref
World Tree
“The world tree is a motif present in several religions and mythologies, particularly Indo-European, Siberian, and Native American religions. The world tree is represented as a colossal tree which supports the heavens, thereby connecting the heavens, the terrestrial world, and, through its roots, the underworld. It may also be strongly connected to the motif of the tree of life, but it is the source of wisdom of the ages. Scholarship states that many Eurasian mythologies share the motif of the “world tree”, “cosmic tree”, or “Eagle and Serpent Tree”. More specifically, it shows up in “Haitian, Finnish, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Norse, Siberian and northern Asian Shamanic folklore.” ref
“The World Tree is often identified with the Tree of Life, and also fulfills the role of an axis mundi, that is, a centre or axis of the world. It is also located at the center of the world and represents order and harmony of the cosmos. According to Loreta Senkute, each part of the tree corresponds to one of the three spheres of the world (treetops – heavens; trunk – middle world or earth; roots – underworld) and is also associated with a classical element (top part – fire; middle part – earth, soil, ground; bottom part – water).” ref
“Its branches are said to reach the skies and its roots to connect the human or earthly world with an underworld or subterranean realm. Because of this, the tree was worshipped as a mediator between Heavens and Earth. On the treetops are located the luminaries (stars) and heavenly bodies, along with an eagle’s nest; several species of birds perch among its branches; humans and animals of every kind live under its branches, and near the root is the dwelling place of snakes and every sort of reptiles.” ref
“A bird perches atop its foliage, “often …. a winged mythical creature” that represents a heavenly realm. The eagle seems to be the most frequent bird, fulfilling the role of a creator or weather deity. Its antipode is a snake or serpentine creature that crawls between the tree roots, being a “symbol of the underworld.” The imagery of the World Tree is sometimes associated with conferring immortality, either by a fruit that grows on it or by a springsource located nearby. As George Lechler also pointed out, in some descriptions this “water of life” may also flow from the roots of the tree.” ref
“The World Tree has also been compared to a World Pillar that appears in other traditions and functions as separator between the earth and the skies, upholding the latter. Another representation akin to the World Tree is a separate World Mountain. However, in some stories, the world tree is located atop the world mountain, in a combination of both motifs. A conflict between a serpentine creature and a giant bird (an eagle) occurs in Eurasian mythologies: a hero kills the serpent that menaces a nest of little birds, and their mother repays the favor – a motif comparativist Julien d’Huy dates to the Paleolithic. A parallel story is attested in the traditions of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, where the thunderbird is slotted into the role of the giant bird whose nest is menaced by a “snake-like water monster.” ref
- Among Indigenous Mesoamerican cultures, the concept of “world trees” is a prevalent motif in Mesoamerican cosmologies and iconography. The Temple of the Cross Complex at Palenque contains one of the most studied examples of the world tree in architectural motifs of all Mayan ruins. World trees embodied the four cardinal directions, which represented also the fourfold nature of a central world tree, a symbolic axis mundi connecting the planes of the Underworld and the sky with that of the terrestrial world.
- Depictions of world trees, both in their directional and central aspects, are found in the art and traditions of cultures such as the Maya, Aztec, Izapan, Mixtec, Olmec, and others, dating to at least the Mid/Late Formative periods of Mesoamerican chronology. Among the Maya, the central world tree was conceived as, or represented by, a ceiba tree, called yax imix che (‘blue-green tree of abundance’) by the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel. The trunk of the tree could also be represented by an upright caiman, whose skin evokes the tree’s spiny trunk. These depictions could also show birds perched atop the trees.
- A similarly named tree, yax cheel cab (‘first tree of the world’), was reported by 17th-century priest Andrés de Avendaño to have been worshipped by the Itzá Maya. However, scholarship suggests that this worship derives from some form of cultural interaction between “pre-Hispanic iconography and [millenary] practices” and European traditions brought by the Hispanic colonization.
- Directional world trees are also associated with the four Yearbearers in Mesoamerican calendars, and the directional colors and deities. Mesoamerican codices which have this association outlined include the Dresden, Borgia and Fejérváry-Mayer codices. It is supposed that Mesoamerican sites and ceremonial centers frequently had actual trees planted at each of the four cardinal directions, representing the quadripartite concept.
- World trees are frequently depicted with birds in their branches, and their roots extending into earth or water (sometimes atop a “water-monster”, symbolic of the underworld).
- The central world tree has also been interpreted as a representation of the band of the Milky Way.
- Izapa Stela 5 contains a possible representation of a world tree.” ref
“A common theme in most indigenous cultures of the Americas is a concept of directionality (the horizontal and vertical planes), with the vertical dimension often being represented by a world tree. Some scholars have argued that the religious importance of the horizontal and vertical dimensions in many animist cultures may derive from the human body and the position it occupies in the world as it perceives the surrounding living world. Many Indigenous cultures of the Americas have similar cosmologies regarding the directionality and the world tree, however the type of tree representing the world tree depends on the surrounding environment. For many Indigenous American peoples located in more temperate regions for example, it is the spruce rather than the ceiba that is the world tree; however the idea of cosmic directions combined with a concept of a tree uniting the directional planes is similar.” ref
World Tree/World Pillar/World Mountain relation to Shamanism?
“Romanian historian of religion, Mircea Eliade, in his monumental work Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy, suggested that the world tree was an important element in shamanistic worldview. Also, according to him, “the giant bird … hatches shamans in the branches of the World Tree”. Likewise, Roald Knutsen indicates the presence of the motif in Altaic shamanism. Representations of the world tree are reported to be portrayed in drums used in Siberian shamanistic practices. Some species of birds (eagle, raven, crane, loon, and lark) are revered as mediators between worlds and also connected to the imagery of the world tree. Another line of scholarship points to a “recurring theme” of the owl as the mediator to the upper realm, and its counterpart, the snake, as the mediator to the lower regions of the cosmos. Researcher Kristen Pearson mentions Northern Eurasian and Central Asian traditions wherein the World Tree is also associated with the horse and with deer antlers (which might resemble tree branches). Mircea Eliade proposed that the typical imagery of the world tree (bird at the top, snake at the root) “is presumably of Oriental origin.” Likewise, Roald Knutsen indicates a possible origin of the motif in Central Asia and later diffusion into other regions and cultures.” ref
“The world tree is also represented in the mythologies and folklore of North Asia and Siberia. According to Mihály Hoppál, Hungarian scholar Vilmos Diószegi located some motifs related to the world tree in Siberian shamanism and other North Asian peoples. As per Diószegi’s research, the “bird-peaked” tree holds the sun and the moon, and the underworld is “a land of snakes, lizards and frogs.” In the mythology of the Samoyeds, the world tree connects different realities (underworld, this world, upper world) together. In their mythology the world tree is also the symbol of Mother Earth who is said to give the Samoyed shaman his drum and also help him travel from one world to another. According to scholar Aado Lintrop, the larch is “often regarded” by Siberian peoples as the World Tree.” ref
INDIGENOUS MEDICINES + HERBS From Mexico to Brazil
“The root word of curanderismo is “curar”, which means “to heal”. Ismo is “the tradition/teaching or science of”. Combined, they offer us a linguistic bridge to the hundreds, if not thousands, of different tribal peoples throughout Central and South America who have each maintained their own beliefs, in the ways of accessing spirit energies.” ref
“In several cosmologies—including those of the Aztecs, the Andeans, and the Mayas—it was believed that there existed three general realms, planes, or states of consciousness. These three main layers are akin to the templates often observed in shamanic journeys. During these journeys, the practitioner was said to travel to one of these three worlds, often accompanied by a power animal or spirit helper. Usually, this spiritual voyage was also accompanied by the monotonous trance rhythms of drumming or a rattle instrument of sorts.” ref
“In many traditions, shamans also described the access point to all worlds as originating in the heart, also known as the Axis Mundi or the World Tree. This mystical tree is said to connect the three worlds. Along its trunk, the shaman would be able to travel to both the upper and the underworld. The three realms are as follows: (1) The Underworld; (2) The Middle World; and (3) The Upper World. Looking more closely at each of these realms offers insight into what each phase of the shamanic journey may have entailed (and continues to today in some traditions throughout the Latinx diasporas).” ref
“The Underworld represents primal existence, the shadow self, intuitions, fears, and experiences of past lives.
The Middle World represents our primal existence, where we generally reside in this 3D consciousness.
The Upper World represents our superego and the realm of total information.” ref
“In many cases, the original medicine cultures found some synergy with colonial European medicine. This mezcla (mix) of seemingly opposing traditions and healing systems gave rise to new ways of balancing the ancestral and scientific wisdom of each approach, which continues to be integrated into today’s curanderismo and herbal medicine practices throughout Central and South America, and in the global Latinx diasporas.” ref
“In curanderismo, a disease is not just caused by physical processes, but rather by social, psychological, emotional, and spiritual factors. Curandero/as believe that by manipulating the energetic and supernatural world, they can get to the root of dis-ease before it is physically manifested. Curandero/as also believe that all imbalances can be recovered and seen on a spiritual level; therefore, all illness can be caused, diagnosed, and cured by spiritual forces called corrientes espirituales (spiritual currents). Although several of these are casted “poisons” from others, they all offer potentials for evolution and transmutation.” ref
“MAL AIRE (“bad air”) can be when “wind” enters the body through bad intent or a “bad atmosphere” surrounding an individual or family. Children are particularly susceptible, as they are more sensitive to moods and environments. This can result in colds, shaking, and earaches, all of which may have a symbolic meaning as well as a physical presence (earache for example might result from a desire not to hear what is being said to, or around, the child).” ref
“BILIS (“bile” / “rage”) is caused by the excess secretion of bile, often triggered by chronic frustration, chronic rage, built up anger, rage-aholics, etc. It is believed this can also be transferred over ancestrally. Symptoms include gastritis, ulcers, and sharp stomach pain. A curandero/a, particularly a sobadero/a, cures bilis by relaxing the patient through touch, and prescribing soothing herbal teas and baths. Further, if a parent is rageful to their children or partner, the family can become sick with susto, or soul loss, collectively.” ref
“EMPACHO (“indigestion”) translates to the feeling of having too much sweetness in the mouth, or empachado. These are similar conditions that result from emotional causes, and are associated with a blockage of the stomach or the digestive tract. It can come from overeating, food allergies, food intolerance, eating when not hungry, or eating hard to digest foods. Metaphorically, curandero/as also use this term to describe any kind of blockage of the emotional or energy body. Empacho can cause gas, stomach cramps, diarrhea, constipation, loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting. Ultimately, this is said to distract the mind and lead to brain fog and confusion. It may be related to hormonal imbalances, but men can experience this, too. Additional symptoms include restlessness, anxiety, and irritability.” ref
“ENVIDIA (“envy” / “jealousy”) and MAL DE OJO (“evil eye”). Neighbors, close friends, or anyone desiring what is yours or resenting you for your success may stare intently with an “evil eye” and the desire to harm you. Alternatively, this could indicate a spirit intrusion of another or related kind, which works away at your soul.” ref
“SUSTO (“fright” / “shock”). The practice of soul retrieval also falls under this category—the soul as a secret essence in the body can momentarily leave as a way of coping with a challenging situation or a cluster of them. The loss of a part or parts of our soul typically manifest in negative ways, such as physical ailments, depression, ptsd, insomnia, misfortune, and random ailments. These kinds of symptoms continue to occur throughout our lives until the acknowledgment of the loss of soul has taken place. Soul pieces that have not returned or have left once again due to recurring damaging patterns allow for the manifestation of analogous circumstances that causes the soul loss in the first place. A curandero/a may incorporate sobadas into the treatment of susto, particularly when an individual has been physically abused. A powerful sobada or strong limpia can help dislodge the trauma and curb dissociation.” ref
“FLECHA VENENOSA (“poison arrow”) or a psychic poison dart. In the Amazon, this is usually called daño (harm), and is believed to be a “magical illness” often sent by a sorcerer working on behalf of a client, therefore causing the receiver to undergo a psychic attack. Common symptoms of this, specifically when it’s first sent, are random body pains, fatigue, and difficulty breathing. In the long-term, the recipient may notice the appearance of tumors, cysts, or other diseases that take physical forms in the body. Daño must be treated magically by a specialized curandero/a to remove the spiritual poison, or virote (evil thorn) or flecha venosa (poisoned arrow), and then return it to its source.” ref
“PARTERAS. Parterismo is a distinct specialty in that most curanderas are not necessarily trained to work as midwives. But, they act as a therapist to offer prenatal and postnatal support for the mother, and oftentimes for the entire family. They also act as dietitians, counselors, healers, doctors, and nurses to ensure the most optimal adaptation on a physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being for both the mother and her baby. Parteras also prescribe particular medicinal herbs during pregnancy, during labor, and afterwards for integration. Depending on the energetics of what they witness of the baby and labor or pregnancy itself, they may prescribe medicine for the entire family. Curanderas believe it is extremely important to protect the baby and the mother from unwanted energies, like envy or negativity arising from the baby’s existence. In fact, there are many herbs used to cleanse and protect against those particular moments. There is a classic tradition, for example, that the expecting mother goes out on the full moon and places a red yarn that has been tied three times in her bra if she believes she will be around negativity. The tradition dates back to ancient Mesoamerica.” ref
“HIERBERO/AS. Hierbero/as are curandero/as, but they work specifically with plant medicines. The name comes from the root word hierba, which means herb. Manny hierbero/as know how to heal and work with flowers, fruit, weeds, tree barks, vines, leaves, mushrooms, vegetables, fungi, cacti, and succulents. These kinds of curandero/as have a very deep connection with the magical healing powers of plants, dating back possibly thousands of years. The information they tend to have about these plants is ancient and passed down from generation to generation. Some curandero/as work strictly with the plants that grow in their area because they have a very established relationship with the plants that contribute to their immediate environment.” ref
“Hierbero/as have a very deep belief that the plants that grow around you are contributing to your perceptive field much more than meets the eye. They have a very deep connection to the soul essence of the plant and understand them like they would a best friend. It is not just about the plant’s medicinal qualities or spiritual healing abilities, it’s about working with a whole being and administering that personality onto someone else, which might be meeting that complement on a multi-level experience of coexistence.” ref
“Guaraná (Paullinia cupana) – Sustainably grown in Brazil. A rainforest energizer providing stamina and endurance, guaraná has been used by the indigenous tribes of South America for millennia. Today, its libido-boosting properties are celebrated alongside its evidence-based adaptogenic and protective qualities, helping shield the body from the damaging effects of stress and premature aging.” ref
“Suma (Pfaffia paniculata) – Biodynamically harvested by small-scale farmers in the Brazilian Amazon. Also known as Brazilian Ginseng, this “para toda” (for all things) brings energy and strength. Widely used as an adaptogen by indigenous peoples of the Amazon for centuries, its wide variety of applications include: as a general tonic, as an energizing, rejuvenating, and sexual tonic, and as a general cure-all for numerous different types of illnesses. In addition to being anti-inflammatory in nature, it may also act as a hormone regulator while boosting energy and libido.” ref
Ceiba (meaning “boat”) “Axis Mundi” Trees
“Ceiba is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to northern Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to 70 m (230 ft) tall or more, with a straight, largely branchless trunk that culminates in a huge, spreading canopy, and buttress roots that can be taller than a grown person. The best-known, and most widely cultivated, species is Kapok, Ceiba pentandra, one of several trees known as kapok. Ceiba is a word from the Taíno language meaning “boat” because Taínos use the wood to build their dugout canoes.” ref
“The tree plays an important part in the mythologies of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures. In addition, several Amazonian tribes of eastern Peru believe deities live in Ceiba tree species throughout the jungle. The Ceiba, or ya’axché (in the Mopan Mayan language), symbolized to the Maya civilization an axis mundi which connects the planes of the Underworld (Xibalba) and the sky with that of the terrestrial realm. This concept of a central world tree is often depicted as a Ceiba trunk. The unmistakable thick conical thorns in clusters on the trunk were reproduced by the southern lowland Maya of the Classical Period on cylindrical ceramic burial urns or incense holders. The Ceiba tree is represented by a cross and serves as an important architectural motif in the Temple of the Cross Complex at Palenque.” ref
“Ceiba Tree Park is located in San Antón, in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Its centerpiece is the historic Ceiba de Ponce, a 500-year-old Ceiba pentandra tree associated with the founding of the city. In the surroundings of the legendary Ceiba de Ponce, broken pieces of indigenous pottery, shells, and stones were found to confirm the presence of Taino Indians long before the Spaniards that later settled in the area. In 1525, Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés ordered the hanging of Aztec emperor Cuauhtemoc from a Ceiba tree after overtaking his empire.” ref
“The town of Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico was founded in 1528 by the Spanish around La Pochota, Ceiba pentandra, according to tradition. Founded in 1838, the Puerto Rican town of Ceiba is also named after this tree. The Honduran city of La Ceiba founded in 1877 was named after a particular Ceiba tree that grew down by the old docks. In 1898, the Spanish Army in Cuba surrendered to the United States under a Ceiba, which was named the Santiago Surrender Tree, outside of Santiago de Cuba.” ref
“Ceiba is also the national tree of Guatemala. The most important Ceiba in Guatemala is known as La Ceiba de Palín Escuintla which is over 400 years old. In Caracas, Venezuela, there is a 100-year-old ceiba tree in front of the San Francisco Church known as La Ceiba de San Francisco, and is an important element in the history of the city. The towering specimen near the town of Sabalito, Costa Rica, is a relict tree called “la ceiba” by residents and a survivor of one of the highest terrestrial rates of tropical deforestation. Ceiba pentandra produces a light and strong fiber (kapok) used throughout history to fill mattresses, pillows, tapestries, and dolls. Kapok has recently been replaced in commercial use by synthetic fibers.” ref
“The Ceiba tree seed is used to extract oils used to make soap and fertilizers. The Ceiba continues to be commercialized in Asia, especially in Java, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. Ceiba pentandra is the central theme in the book titled, The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry. Ceiba insignis and Ceiba speciosa are added to some versions of the hallucinogenic drink Ayahuasca. Pablo Antonio Cuadra, a Nicaraguan poet, wrote a chapter about the Ceiba tree. He used it as a symbol of the Nicaraguan ancestral roots, a cradle for the nation, and a source during the people’s exile.” ref
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Axis Mundi
“In astronomy, axis mundi is the Latin term for the axis of Earth between the celestial poles. In a geocentric coordinate system, this is the axis of rotation of the celestial sphere. Consequently, in ancient Greco-Roman astronomy, the axis mundi is the axis of rotation of the planetary spheres within the classical geocentric model of the cosmos. “In 20th-century comparative mythology, the term axis mundi – also called the cosmic axis, world axis, world pillar, center of the world, or world tree – has been greatly extended to refer to any mythological concept representing “the connection between Heaven and Earth” or the “higher and lower realms”. Mircea Eliade introduced the concept in the 1950s. Axis mundi closely relates to the mythological concept of the omphalos (navel) of the world or cosmos.” ref
“Items adduced as examples of the axis mundi by comparative mythologists include plants (notably a tree but also other types of plants such as a vine or stalk), a mountain, a column of smoke or fire, or a product of human manufacture (such as a staff, a tower, a ladder, a staircase, a maypole, a cross, a steeple, a rope, a totem pole, a pillar, a spire). Its proximity to heaven may carry implications that are chiefly religious (pagoda, temple mount, minaret, church) or secular (obelisk, lighthouse, rocket, skyscraper). The image appears in religious and secular contexts. The axis mundi symbol may be found in cultures utilizing shamanic practices or animist belief systems, in major world religions, and in technologically advanced “urban centers.” In Mircea Eliade‘s opinion: “Every Microcosm, every inhabited region, has a Centre; that is to say, a place that is sacred above all.” ref
“An axis mundi is more broadly defined as a place of connection between heavenly and the earthly realms – often a mountain or other elevated site. Tall mountains are often regarded as sacred, and some have shrines erected at the summit or base. In many religious and philosophical traditions around the world, mankind is seen as a sort of bridge between either: two worlds, the earthly and the heavenly (as in Hindu, and Taoist philosophical and theological systems); or three worlds, namely the earthly, heavenly, and the “sub-earthly” or “infra-earthly” (e.g., the underworld, as in the Ancient Greek, Incan, Mayan, and Ancient Egyptian religious systems). Spanning these philosophical systems is the belief that man traverses a sort of axis, or path, which can lead from man’s current central position in the intermediate realms into heavenly or sub-earthly realms.” ref
“Thus, in this view, symbolic representations of a vertical axis represent a path of “ascent” or “descent” into other spiritual or material realms, and often capture a philosophy that considers human life to be a quest in which one develops insights or perfections in order to move beyond this current microcosmic realm and to engage with the grand macrocosmic order. As the abstract concept of axis mundi is present in many cultural traditions and religious beliefs, it can be thought to exist in any number of locales at once. Sacred places can constitute world centers (omphaloi), with an altar or place of prayer as the axis. Altars, incense sticks, candles, and torches form the axis by sending a column of smoke, and prayer, toward heaven. It has been suggested by Romanian religious historian Mircea Eliade that architecture of sacred places often reflects this role: “Every temple or palace – and by extension, every sacred city or royal residence – is a Sacred Mountain, thus becoming a Centre.” ref
“Plants often serve as images of the axis mundi. The image of the Cosmic Tree provides an axis symbol that unites three planes: sky (branches), earth (trunk), and underworld (roots). The Mesoamerican world tree connects the planes of the underworld and the sky with that of the terrestrial realm. The Yggdrasil, or World Ash, functions in much the same way in Norse mythology; it is the site where Odin found enlightenment. Secular structures can also function as axes mundi. In Navajo culture, the hogan acts as a symbolic cosmic center. In some Asian cultures, houses were traditionally laid out in the form of a square oriented toward the four compass directions. A traditional home was oriented toward the sky through feng shui, a system of geomancy, just as a palace would be.” ref
“Traditional Arab houses are also laid out as a square surrounding a central fountain that evokes a primordial garden paradise. Mircea Eliade noted that “the symbolism of the pillar in [European] peasant houses likewise derives from the ‘symbolic field’ of the axis mundi. In many archaic dwellings the central pillar does in fact serve as a means of communication with the heavens, with the sky.” The nomadic peoples of Mongolia and the Americas more often lived in circular structures. The central pole of the tent still operated as an axis, but a fixed reference to the four compass points was avoided.” ref
“A common shamanic concept, and a universally told story, is that of the healer traversing the axis mundi to bring back knowledge from the other world. It may be seen in the stories from Odin and the World Ash Tree to the Garden of Eden and Jacob’s Ladder to Jack and the Beanstalk and Rapunzel. It is the essence of the journey described in The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. The epic poem relates its hero’s descent and ascent through a series of spiral structures that take him through the core of the earth, from the depths of hell to celestial paradise. It is also a central tenet in the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex.” ref
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“Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (formerly Southern Cult, Southern Death Cult or Buzzard Cult), abbreviated S.E.C.C., is the name given by modern scholars to the regional stylistic similarity of artifacts, iconography, ceremonies, and mythology of the Mississippian culture. It coincided with their adoption of maize agriculture and chiefdom-level complex social organization from 1200 to 1650 CE. Due to some similarities between S.E.C.C. and contemporary Mesoamerican cultures (i.e., artwork with similar aesthetics or motifs; maize-based agriculture; and the development of sophisticated cities with large pyramidal structures), scholars from the late 1800s to mid-1900s suspected there was a connection between the two locations. One hypothesis was that Meso-Americans enslaved by conquistador Tristán de Luna y Arellano (1510-1573) may have spread artistic and religious elements to North America. However, later research indicates the two cultures have no direct links and that their civilizations developed independently.” ref
“Due to the seemingly rapid spread of S.E.C.C. traits, early scholarship described the S.E.C.C. as “a kind of religious revival in the lower Mississippi Valley” and nearby regions. As of 2004, theories suggest that the complex developed from pre-existing beliefs spread over the midwest and southeast by the Hopewell Interaction Sphere from 100 BCE to 500 CE. Other research shows the complex operated as an exchange network. This kind of network may be illustrated by a pair of shell gorgets whose representation is so similar as to suggest that they were made by the same artist. One was found in southeast Missouri, and the other found hundreds of miles away in Spiro Mounds in Oklahoma, suggesting the items were used as gifts or exchange across a wide region. Numerous other pairs of extremely similar gorgets serve to link sites across the entire Southeast.” ref
“The social organization of the Mississippian culture was based on warfare, which was represented by an array of motifs and symbols in articles made from costly raw materials, such as conches from Florida, copper from the Great Lakes area and Appalachian Mountains, lead from northern Illinois and Iowa, pottery from Tennessee, and stone tools sourced from Kansas, Texas, and southern Illinois. Such objects occur in elite burials, together with war axes, maces, and other weapons. These warrior symbols occur alongside other artifacts, which bear cosmic imagery depicting animals, humans, and legendary creatures. This symbolic imagery bound together warfare, cosmology, and nobility into a coherent whole. Some of these categories of artifacts were used as markers of chiefly office, which varied from one location to another. The term Southeast Ceremonial Complex refers to a complex, highly variable set of religious mechanisms that supported the authority of local chiefs.” ref
“With the redefinition of the complex, some scholars have suggested choosing a new name to exemplify the new understanding of the large body of art symbols classified as the S.E.C.C. Participants of a decade-long series of conferences held at Texas State University have proposed the terms “Mississippian Ideological Interaction Sphere” or “M.I.I.S.” and “Mississippian Art and Ceremonial Complex” or “M.A.C.C.” The major expression of the complex developed at the Cahokia site and is known as the Braden Style; it corresponds with the Southern Cult Period horizon defined by Muller. Other regional styles developed as a result of the fusion of ideas borrowed from the Braden Style and pre-existing local expressions of post-Hopewellian traditions.” ref
“As the major centers, such as Cahokia, collapsed and the trade networks broke down, the regional styles diverged more from the Braden Style and from each other. During the ensuing centuries, the local traditions diverged into the religious beliefs and cosmologies of the different historic tribes known to exist at the time of European contact.” ref
“Most S.E.C.C. imagery focuses on cosmology and the supernatural beings who inhabit the cosmos. The cosmological map encompassed real, knowable locations, whether in this world or the supernatural reality of the Otherworld. S.E.C.C. iconography portrayed the cosmos in three levels. The Above World, or Overworld, was the home of the Thunderers, the Sun, Moon, and Morning Star or Red Horn / “He Who Wears Human Heads For Earrings” and represented Order and Stability. The Middle World was the Earth that humans live in. The Beneath World or Under World was a cold, dark place of Chaos that was home to the Underwater Panther and Corn Mother or “Old Woman Who Never Dies.” ref
“These three worlds were connected by an axis mundi, usually portrayed as a cedar tree or a striped pole reaching from the Under World to the Over World. Each of the three levels also was believed to have its own sub-levels. Deeply ingrained in the world view was the concept of duality and opposition. The beings of the Upper and Under realms were in constant opposition to each other. Ritual and ceremony were the means by which these powerful forces could be accessed and harnessed.” ref
“The falcon is one of the most conspicuous symbols of the S.E.C.C. It was simultaneously an avatar of warriors and an object of supplication for a lengthy life, healthy family, and a long line of descendants. Its supernatural origin is placed in the Upper World with a pantheon including the Sun, Moon, and Four Stars. He is most often represented on precious materials, sometimes shell, most often on beaten copper. He dances, costumed with great ground-sweeping wings and a raptor-beaked mask. In his raised right hand he holds a club, prepared to strike. In his left he holds rattles fashioned from human skulls.” ref
“At Cahokia, the falcon imagery was elaborated in figural expression. It is associated with warfare, high-stakes gaming, and possibly family dynastic ambitions, symbolized by arrow flights and the rising of the pre-dawn morning star as metaphors for the succession of descendants into the future. Raptor imagery gained prominence during the Hopewell period, but attained its peak in the Braden Style of the early Mississippian period. It survived afterward in the Red Horn mythological cycle and native religion of the Ho-Chunk (Winnebagos), Osage, Ioway, and other plains Siouan peoples. In the Braden Style, the Birdman is divided into four categories. Various motifs are associated with the Birdman, including the forked eye motif, columnella pendants, mace or club weapons, severed heads, chunkey play (including chunkey stones, striped and broken chunkey sticks), bellows-shaped aprons, and bi-lobed arrow motifs.” ref
“The Red Horn Mythic Cycle is from the Ho Chunk, or Winnebago people. The mythic cycle of Red Horn and his sons has certain analogies with the Hero Twins mythic cycle of Mesoamerica. Redhorn was known by many names, including “Morning Star“, a reference to his celestial origin, and “He who is Struck with Deer Lungs,” a possible reference to the Bi-Lobed Arrow Motif. In the episode associated with this name, Red Horn turns into an arrow to win a race. After winning the race, Redhorn creates heads on his earlobes and makes his hair into a long red braid. Thus he becomes known as “Redhorn” and as “He who has Human Heads as Earlobes.” ref
“In another episode, Redhorn and his friends are challenged by the Giants to play ball (or possibly chunkey) with their lives staked on the outcome. The best Giant player was a woman with long red hair identical to Redhorn’s. The little heads on Redhorn’s ears caused her to laugh so much that it interfered with her game, and the Giants lost. The Giants lost all the other contests as well. Then they challenged Redhorn and his friends to a wrestling match in which they threw all but Red Horn’s friend Turtle. Since Redhorn and his fellow spirits lost two out of the three matches, they were all slain. The two wives of Redhorn were pregnant at the time of his death. The sons born to each have red hair, with the older one having heads where his earlobes should be, and the younger one having heads in place of his nipples. The older brother discovers where the Giants keep the heads of Redhorn and his friends. The two boys use their powers to steal the heads from the Giants, whom they wipe out almost completely. The boys bring back to life Redhorn, Storms as He Walks, and Turtle. In honor of this feat, Turtle and “Storms as He Walks” promise the boys special weapons.” ref
“In another episode, the sons of Redhorn decide to go on the warpath. The older brother asks “Storms as He Walks” for the Thunderbird war bundle. After some effort, it is produced, but the Thunderbirds demand that it have a case. A friend of the sons of Redhorn offers his own body as its case. The boys take the Thunderbird war bundle and with their followers go on a raid to the other side of the sky. Many S.E.C.C. images seem to be of Red Horn, his companions, and his sons. The characters in the myth seem to be tied integrally to the pipe ceremony, and its association with kinship and adoption. In fact, the Bi-Lobed Arrow Motif may be a graphic depiction of the calumet. Other images found in S.E.C.C. art show figures with long-nosed god maskettes on their ears and in place of their nipples.” ref
“The Great Serpent (or Horned Serpent) is the most well-known mythological figure from the S.E.C.C. Its roots go back to Hopewell times, if not earlier. It usually is described as horned and winged, although the wings are more an indicator of its celestial origin than an essential form of the creature. In some versions of Shawnee myths, the serpent is described as a multi-headed monster with one green and one red horn, horns being a manifestation or marker of its power. In other myths, it is described as a one-eyed buffalo with one green and one red horn. The Piasa figure of the Miami was painted on a bluff near present-day Alton, Illinois. It was described as having the body of a panther, four legs, a human head, an impossibly long tail, and horns.” ref
“Mishibizhiw, the Ojibwa underwater panther, was a combination of rattlesnake, cougar, deer, and hawk. Other native peoples also gave descriptions of the being, sometimes now referred to as the Spirit Otter, with the majority seeming to belong to one of two extremes, and a multitude in between. The Great Serpents, the great denizens of the Underworld, were described as powerful beings who were in constant antagonism with the forces of the Upper World, usually represented by the Thunderers (Birdmen or Falcon beings). Although men were to be careful of these beings, they could also be the source of great power. A Shawnee myth tells of the capture and dismemberment of Msi Kinepikwa. The pieces were distributed to the five septs of the tribe, who kept them in their sacred “medicine bundles.” ref
“S.E.C.C. motifs have been found on a variety of non-perishable materials, including marine shell, ceramics, chert (Duck River cache), carved stone, and copper (Wulfing cache and Etowah plates). Undoubtedly many other materials also were used, but haven’t survived the intervening centuries. It may be judged by looking at the remaining artifacts that S.E.C.C. practitioners worked with feathers and designs woven into cloth, practiced body painting, and possibly tattooing, as well as having pierced ears. One surviving painting found on a baked clay floor at the Wickliffe Mounds site suggests they also painted designs in and on their dwellings. Paintings displaying S.E.C.C. imagery also have been found in caves, most notably Mud Glyph Cave in Tennessee. Animal images, serpents, and warrior figures occur, as well as winged warriors, horned snakes, stylized birds, maces, and arrows. Their location underneath the Earth probably reflect aspects of Mississippian myth and cosmology concerning the (perhaps sacred) precincts beneath the earth.” ref
Legends and Folktales of the Amazon
“In the heart of the world’s largest rainforest, “Legends and Folktales of the Amazon” echo through time. These stories, rich in tradition, are passed down through generations. They paint a vivid picture of the Amazon’s mysteries and magic. Rooted in ancient beliefs and indigenous customs, these tales give insight into the Amazonian people’s connection with nature. Each story is not just an entertaining yarn but a lesson about life, survival, and respect for the environment. One such story is of the spirits that inhabit trees, believed by the indigenous groups of Manu. These spirits are protectors of the forest. They watch over the animals and plants, ensuring balance. It’s said that at night, they whisper ancient tales to those who listen.” ref
“Another popular tale speaks of ancestors returning as vibrant Amazonian birds. Their colorful plumage and enchanting songs are reminders of those who once walked the forest paths. These stories are not just tales, but a testament to the deep respect for life and death in the Amazon. The legends and folktales of the Amazon are replete with mystical creatures and supernatural events. From tales of river serpents controlling the waters’ flow to spirits bestowing blessings or curses upon villagers, the line between the physical and spiritual world is beautifully blurred. Yet, as intriguing as these tales are, visitors must approach them with respect. Tips for visiting Manu include showing reverence for these stories. This means listening intently, not mocking, and understanding their cultural significance. Legends and Folktales of the Amazon are told during tours. The Amazon River isn’t just a body of water. It’s a narrative tapestry, rich with legends, myths, and lessons. Those who traverse its waters are not just exploring a river but stepping into a world of stories, each ripple carrying a tale.” ref
“The Amazon River, meandering through the vast Amazon Rainforest, carries more than just water. It’s a vessel for the “legends and folktales of the Amazon.” The river’s depths hide mysteries that have fascinated locals and visitors alike. One of the most captivating stories is of the river dolphins, said to transform into handsome men. During nights, they emerge, seducing village women with their charm. By dawn, they return to their aquatic form, leaving only tales behind. Another legend speaks of the Yakumama, a massive serpent. This deity controls the waters, ensuring harmony in the aquatic ecosystem. Locals offer her respect, hoping for safe journeys across the river. Legends and Folktales of the Amazon are part of the living traditions. Among other river tales is the tale of the Chullachaqui, a guardian of the forests and waters. This shape-shifting spirit lures those who harm the environment, leading them astray with its deceptive appearance.” ref
“One such tale narrates the story of a selfish monkey. Consumed by greed, he hoarded all fruits, leaving none for others. The forest spirits, seeing this, transformed him into a fruit-bearing tree. The story underscores the value of sharing and community spirit. Another fable speaks of the cunning jaguar and a naive tortoise. The tortoise, despite its slow pace, outsmarts the jaguar using wit and strategy, teaching that intelligence triumphs over brute strength. The tale of the whispering trees is also notable. Trees, as per the legend, communicate with each other. They share tales of those who harm the forest, making sure that nature’s guardians are aware. The story serves as a reminder: the forest watches and remembers. Moreover, the dance of the fireflies is a favorite among children. Fireflies, once ordinary insects, were granted their glow as a reward for their kindness. The story imparts the lesson that even the smallest good deeds don’t go unnoticed.” ref
“Not every creature in the Amazon rainforest is out to get you, so long as you have good intentions, that is … According to legend, in the depths of Peru’s Amazon rainforest, lurks the Mayantu, a reptilian, goblin-like creature, with a scaly body and the face of a toad. It roams between two dimensions, the physical and the spiritual, with shape-shifting abilities that allow it to camouflage itself easily, whether it be by imitating the bark of a tree or taking the shape of an animal. Many say the Mayantu lives high up in the rainforest canopy of giant trees such as the kapok, but most sightings have taken place in wetlands and territories irrigated by streams that flow into long shallow lakes. Unlike many other mythical inhabitants of the Amazon jungle, the Mayantu is not an evil spirit, and in fact has been known to come to the aid of humans when they are in trouble and need assistance, so long as those humans pose no threat or harm to wildlife.” ref
“The Mayantu is said to possess the knowledge of the medicinal plants of the rainforest and can use these plants to cure those in need. However, he will not help those who come to the rainforest to destroy it or harm its inhabitants, and instead will attempt to cause confusion to those with bad motives. To the native Yagua Indians, many of whom live on Amazonian islands near Iquitos, the Mayantu is a deity still worshipped today, often referred to as the “God of Good” of the rainforest, a curandero (one who cures) who symbolizes the spiritual strength and harmony of the jungle and its ecosystems.” ref
“Maní, a Tupí myth of origins, is the name of an indigenous girl with very fair complexion. The Amazonian legend of Maní is related to the cult of Manioc, the native staple food that sprang from her grave. The daughter of a Tupí chief became pregnant. Her father wanted to take revenge on the man who brought shame to his family and dishonour to his pride despite her saying that she had known no man. He insisted that she revealed the name of the man and even made use of prayers, threats and finally severe punishments. As she refused to say, her father held her prisoner inside a hut and decided to kill her. So with this thought in mind the chief of the tribe went to sleep and dreamed of a white-skinned man dressed like a warrior who told him that his daughter was telling him the truth and that she had not had any contact with any man. He told him to take care of his daughter because one day she was going to bear a great gift for all his tribe.” ref
“After nine full moons she gave birth to a girl whose skin was as white as the moon and her eyes as dark as the night. That caused the surprise of not only the entire tribe, but also of the neighboring tribes who came to visit the new born child for they could not believe she was white. Happy and beautiful Maní grew up until after her first birthday, when she died unexpectedly without signs of any illness or pain. The chief was so desolate that he buried the child inside his own hut. Her mother watered her grave every single day, as it was then the custom in her tribe. One day a different kind of plant sprang up from Maní’s grave, and as no one had ever seen that kind of plant, they let it grow and no one in the tribe dared touch it. They even noticed that when the birds ate the fruits of the plant, they displayed strange symptoms, as if they were drunk. Sometime later a crack opened on the earth and the people of the tribe found a fruit that resembled the white skin tone of the dead child’s body. They picked up the fruit from the ground, peeled and cooked it, and for their surprise it tasted delicious. It even renewed their strength. They also prepared a drink which could easily put one to sleep. So, from this day on, they began using the root as their staple food and called it “mandioca”, which in Tupy language means “house (oca, in Tupi–Guarani) of Mandi= Maní.” ref
“Alternative versions for the legend exist. One says that a good spirit came down to Earth and showed the manioc to the Indians, teaching them to extract the evil spirit dwelling in it, despite failing to teach them how the plant might be reproduced. After that, one of the female Indians of the tribe, while wandering through the forest, encountered a beautiful young hunter who was no other than the manioc metamorphosed. He seduced her, and a daughter was born from this union. She led the tribe to the plantation of the shrub and taught them how to reproduce it from the fine portions of the stem.” ref
“A more elaborate version by Couto de Magalhaes tells how the chief of the tribe was about to kill his daughter when a white male warrior appeared in his dream and told him not to do so because his daughter was telling him the truth, and that she really had no contact with any man. The child born to the maiden was a boy who was named Maní. At the end of a year, the child perished unexpectedly without showing signs of illness. He was buried, and later, a strange plant grew upon his grave. The Indians opened the grave and, instead of finding the body of the child, discovered a root which they called Mani-oka (House of Mani). Another version given by Carlos Teschauer says that the child born from the union of the chief’s daughter and the white warrior not only lived long, but also taught his tribe many things. He also told them that after a year from his death they should open his grave that the greatest treasure of all, a bread-yielding root, would be then revealed to them.” ref
“The ceiba or kapok is one of the tree wonders of the world. The Aztec, Maya, and other pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures considered it sacred—a symbol of the link between heaven, earth, and the world that was believed to exist below. This was a giant tree upholding the world, with roots reaching down into the underworld. According to the folklore of Trinidad and Tobago, deep in a forest, there exists a huge kapok tree known as the Castle of the Devil. In it lives Bazil, the Demon of Death, imprisoned by a humble carpenter who had carved seven rooms out of the tree, and tricked Bazil into entering it.” ref
“The kapok tree is native to Mexico, Central America, the north of South America, the Caribbean, and tropical West Africa. It is one of the largest flowering trees in the world, often exceeding 50 meters (165 feet) in height. An extended buttress of flattened roots, reaching 10 meters (33 feet) or more up the main trunk and as much as 20 meters (65 feet) across the ground, supports this wondrous colossus, enabling it to grow in shallow soil. One of the most remarkable features of the tree is the conical thorns that protrude from the young branches and trunks. These distinctive protuberances are a regular feature of Mayan art, portrayed on pottery incense burners and cache vessels. Many funerary urns have effigies of ceiba thorns on their sides.” ref
“However, it is for the cotton-like fluff obtained from its seed pods that the kapok tree is best known. The material is inside the long, green, tamarillo-shaped fruit that surround the seeds to aid their dispersal by the wind. Kapok is waterproof and much lighter than cotton; it is most often used as a stuffing material, although it has now been largely superseded by synthetic fibres. It is now mostly grown commercially in the rainforests of South East Asia, particularly in Java, hence Java cotton, another of kapok’s names. The kapok is the national emblem of Guatemala, Puerto Rico and Equatorial Guinea, and appears on the coat of arms and flag of Equatorial Guinea. In Sierra Leone it is a symbol of freedom for the slaves that fled there.” ref
Creation stories from South America
“APAPOCÚVA: In the beginning, all as dark. Amidst the darkness, there were bats without number, who were constantly fighting one another. Eventually, Our Father – the sun – appeared in the midst of the murk and created the earth, which he placed upon the Eternal Cross to support it. Next, he made Our Mother, who gave birth to twins, Our Older Brother and Our Younger Brother. This pair continued the work of creation. Another son of Our Father was Tupa, the lord of thunder.” ref
“Thereafter, Our Father has remained aloof from his creation, preferring to leave it in the hands of the demiurgic brothers – so much so, that some believe that Our Elder Brother is to be identified with the sun. According to this account, Our Younger Brother – i.e. the moon – was singularly unsuited to the task of creation: he was constantly making mistakes, which necessitated the attentions of Our Elder Brother, who was always fixing the messes left behind by his twin. Our Elder Brother also gave fire and sacred dances to the people. The ancient bats, however, remain: their return is much to be feared, as this would herald the end of creation and a return to the chaotic state.” ref
“APURINÃ: According to their traditions, the creator was Mayuruberu, the chief of the Storks. Mayuruberu (or Maturuberu) caused a flood by making a pot of boiling water in the sun overflow. This destroyed all plant life. Indeed, the only survivors were the Apurinã, who established the new order. Mayuruberu ordered that anyone who did not work would be devoured by him.” ref
“AYMARA: Kun, the god of snow, began the work of creation. Once he had finished, he became annoyed at the early humans, which led him to cover his work with snow and ice. Thereafter, the gods of fertility send the Eagle Men, their sons, to create a new race of men, known as the Paka-Jakes, who dwell near Lake Titicaca. Another creator, who is closely associated with the enigmatic and advanced builders of the Tiwanaku complex, was Pachacamac. Pachacamac had his origins within Lake Titicaca, from where he emerged to create the universe from nothing. His early creations included rebellious giants, who he destroyed by means of flood, before creating the first humans from clay. These then emerged from a number of openings in the earth, forming the tribes.” ref
“GUARANÍ: In the beginning, Tupa created the universe from nothing. With the aid of Arasy (the moon), Tupa descended from heaven to earth, landing at Aregua, upon a hill, from where he created the world around it. Tupa was the creator of the first Guaraní, Rupave, and Sypave, to whom he bestowed the breath of life. Once Rupave and Sypave were created, Tupa left the earth. The eldest son of Rupave and Sypave was Tume Arandu, who was soon joined by his brother Marangatu. Both of these men were early leaders of the Guaraní. The third son of the couple was Japensa, a trickster figure. However, the next generation included Karena, the mother of seven monsters. One of these was killed thanks to the sacrifice of Karena’s aunt Porasy.” ref
“GUARAYO: In the beginning, the earth was a watery place. The first place to exist within this primordial cosmos was a patch of bullrushes, among which slithered the worm-like Mbir. Some time later, Mbir – also known as Miracucha – took on the form of a man, and proceeded to form the ordered cosmos from this primeval chaos. Other entities around by this stage were Zaguagua, the sun, and Abaangui. The latter wished to become human too, and, after some failures, he finally succeeded. Unfortunately, Abaangui’s human form possessed a nose of vast proportions. This led to him cutting it off: Abaangui’s nose eventually became the moon.” ref
“The earliest ancestor of the Guarayú was Tamoi (“grandfather”), who taught the people the arts of hunting, fishing and agriculture, as well as mastery of fire. Eventually, having given his people their mode of life, Tamoi departed for the west. His wife and child remained behind in the form of rocks held to be sacred by the Guarayú. Tamoi’s westward journey laid the foundations for the fate of the people after death. They too would undertake that journey, with their souls heading towards the setting sun. On the way, they would meet a figure known as the Grandfather of Worms who only allows the souls of the righteous to pass by. If an unrighteous soul encounters him, he grows so vast that he prevents ingress to the blessed realm.” ref
“INCA (TAWANTINSUYU): At the beginning of time, Viracocha awoke in Paqariq Tampu, or else rose from the great Lake Titicaca, during a time when all was dark. His first action was to illuminate the cosmos, fashioning sun, moon and stars. He made the earliest “humans” by breathing into stones, but these were a race of giants with limited intelligence. This first creation displeased Viracocha, who destroyed the giants in a deluge, before proceeding upon a second attempt, this time making use of smaller stones. The flood itself was known as Unu Pachakuti, and it resulted in the deaths of the people living around Lake Titicaca. It lasted for sixty days.” ref
“In some accounts, two people were spared in order to continue the planned development of human civilization. Some legends name the pair as Manco Cápac, the son of Inti, and Mama Uqllu. Finding this race more to his liking, Viracocha took himself off into the west, walking over the waters of the Pacific Ocean, with the promise that he would return when his people found themselves in distress. The Spanish, who recorded these native legends, were told that Viracocha was “of medium height, white, and dressed in a white robe [carrying] a staff and a book.” Viracocha was the father by Mama Qucha of Inti, god of the sun, as well as Mama Killa and Pachamama, and the sons Imahmana Viracocha and Tocapo Viracocha. This latter pair were dispatched to the other tribes to the north to see if they still adhered to Viracocha’s plans.” ref
“KAWÉSQAR: In Kawésqar tradition, creation was the work of the supreme being, Xolas. Their mythology otherwise resembles that of the Selk’nam.” ref
“KOGI (KÁGABA): The Great Mother created the universe from nothing. She created songs, seeds, nations, thunder, trees, and all that grows and lives.” ref
“MAPUCHE: There are two worlds, the Wenu Mapu and Minche Mapu, the heavens, and the underworld, in the middle of which is the inhabited world, Nag Mapu or Naq Mapu. Wenu Mapu is the home of the four-part Ngenechen: – Fuchá, the older male; Kufé, the older female; Weche Wentru, the younger male; and Ulcha Domo, the younger female.” ref
“Between Wenu Mapu and Nag Mapu lies Anka Mapu, the domain of the spirits of the ancestors. Humans dwell on Nag Mapu, while demonic entities known as the Wekufu live in Minche Mapu. Other spirits include the pillanes – a group of revered male spirits (including ancestors) – and Wangulen – their female counterparts – as well as the Ngen, spirits of nature produced by the Pu-am, the universal soul.” ref
“The Antü was the most powerful pillán, representing the sun. Another powerful member of this group was Peripillán. These two became the fathers of Ten Ten-Vilu (or Trentren-Vilu) and Coi Coi-Vilu (or Caicai-Vilu), two huge serpents representing land and water respectively. This pair fought a great battle for control, before coming to terms, which resulted in the Chilean landscape of today.” ref
“MOSETÉN: The creator of the cosmos as we know it was Dobitt, who lived in heaven, which took the form of a raft floating through space. Dobitt fashioned the first humans from clay and placed them on earth, sending his son Keri, in the form of a white condor, to check on the planet. Sadly, the rope by which Keri was descending broke, resulting in his falling to his death. From Keri’s head, Dobitt made a fish, before going to the earth to complete his work of creation, forming all the animals and plants, and teaching humans the necessary skills to survive. The sky was raised from the earth by means of a gigantic serpent.” ref
“MUNDURUC: In the beginning, there was Karusakaibo, the creator, and his assistant, the armadillo Daiiru. One day, having somehow invoked Karusakaibo’s wrath, Daiiru hid within the ground. Karusakaibo blew into the hole and stamped down with such force that Daiiru was blown out. He informed Karusakaibo of what he had found there, namely humans, and the pair reconciled. They decided to bring these first people to the earth’s surface, and attempted to do so by means of a rope of fine cotton, to the end of which Daiiru was tied.” ref
“He showed the people how to climb out, but the weight of so many of them caused the rope to break, leaving half of the people in the underworld, where they remain. As for the underworld, it is said that this is a realm opposite to our own: the sun rises there in the west and moves eastward, while the moon is there when it is daytime here. Meanwhile, those who made it to the surface emerged at Necodemos. The people who bear the most striking resemblance to Karusakaibo are the Mundurucs.” ref
“MUYSCA: The Muysca of Peru and Colombia are perhaps best known for their part in the origins of the legend of El Dorado. The world and all that is in it was the creation of the sun, who is sometimes said to have the form of an ancient bearded man by the name of Bochia. Bochia, it is said, came down to the earth to teach the people the arts of agriculture and religious observation. This led Bochia’s wife to become jealous of the time he spent with his creatures, resulting in her sending a flood in order to disrupt and devastate life on earth. The Sun, however, rectified this, and made the moon from his wife.” ref
“SELK’NAM: The Selk’nam recognize only one god, known as Temáukel. The supreme being is known among the Kawésqar as Xolas. Temáukel is said to dwell within the eastern sky of Wintek, and is credited with the creation of the heavens and primordial earth. The sky is divided into four sho’on, representing the four cardinal directions: – Wintek, the east, which signifies all the seasons and time itself; Kamuk, the north, spring, and summer; Kenénik, the west, autumn; and Kéikruk, the south, winter.” ref
“In addition to Temáukel, the Selk’nam also revere a group of subsidiary beings, the Howenh, who initially existed as humans but later came to hold power over the elements as immortals. Among them was Kénos’, the earliest inhabitant of the earth, who served as Temáukel’s demiurge in the further creation and ordering of the world. Kénos’ was succeeded by Čénuke, another powerful Howenh. Čénuke’s contemporary and rival was Kwányip, the slayer of the cannibal giant Čáskels. Humans were created by El-lal, the son of the giant Nosjthej.” ref
“SHUAR (JIVARO): In the beginning, the creator Kumpara lived with Chingaso, his wife. Together, they had a son, Etsa, who was the sun. One night, Kumpara spat forth some mud onto Etsa, producing Nantu, the moon. Etsa then prepared to marry Nantu – the manner in which she had been conceived meant that there was nothing incestuous about their relationship. Nantu, however, had other ideas, and escaped from his advances by going into the sky and painting herself in dark hues. Another who wished for her hand was the bird Auhu, but his attempt to follow her was curtailed when she cut the vine on which he was trying to reach the sky. By now incensed, Etsa decided to go to the sky himself to retrieve his bride, by means of parrots and parakeets. He caught up with Nantu, and the pair fought, resulting in eclipses. Eventually, having been brought to heel, Nantu wept, which caused her face to grow red.” ref
“Nantu later left and produced a child, Nuhi, by breathing on some clay. Auhu now reappeared on the scene and smashed Nuhi, who became the earth. Finally, Nantu agreed to marry Etsa, and they had a son, Unushi, the first of the Jivaro. Unushi was a sloth, and was given the forest in which to live. Unushi was followed by various other animals who were the offspring of Etsa and Nantu’s copulating on the earth. At some point, Chingaso sent an egg to the earth, which hatched, producing a woman, Mika, who was given to Unushi as a wife. Unushi’s parents instructed the newlyweds as to their mode of life. Unushi, however, was an idler and did little by way of work. Hence, the women of the Shuar are far more hard-working than their male counterparts.” ref
“One day, Unushi and Mika sailed down the river in a canoe. They produced a son, the water snake Ahimbi. Additionally, Chingaso sent other eggs, which produced animals, including birds which helped Unushi and Mika find food. The anaconda fashioned an axe for them. Ahimbi chopped down a tree to make his own canoe as he wished to be independent. He eventually returned from his travels to find Mika alone, as Unushi had got himself lost. Ahimbi and Mika spent the night together, but were seen by Etsa, who exiled them for incest. They wandered in search of shelter, producing offspring as they went. They found no aid from the animals, as they too wished to have nothing to do with them. Finally, when Unushi got wind of his wife and son’s predicament, he turned upon Nantu, who he blamed, and attaked her, burying her in a hole. She escaped thanks to some assistance from Auhu. However, her ingratitude led him to cry at night for her return.” ref
“After Nantu informed them of what had happened, the sons of Mika gathered together with Ahimbi at their head and slew Unushi. Mika, however, retaliated by killing the parricides, with their struggle resulting in lashing rain, lightning and thunder. From a thunderbolt sprang Masata (“War“), fully armed, who stirred up strife among men and gods. Finally, Etsa and Nantu decided that Ahimbi was the guilty party in all of this, and Etsa imprisoned him beneath the great waterfall. Now wishing to make peace, he sends up water to make rainbows, so that Etsa will see that he means well. Unfortunately, Masata intervenes to maintain the status quo, by making mist and rain to block Ahimbi’s signals. Indeed, the unfortunate Ahimbi was even responsible for the demise of Chingaso, after the great goddess sought to rescue him. Not recognising her, Ahimbi turned over her canoe and ate her.” ref
“TEHUELCHE: The Tehuelche of Patagonia believe that Kóoch ordered the primitive cosmos. Kóoch was sent by the supreme being, who does not interfere with the universe he created, to bring order to the primordial world.” ref
“WARAO: The Warao are descended from the primordial hunter, a heavenly man who dwelt within the sky world. This realm was the home of a tribe of humanoids as well as birds, but there were no land animals or fish. One day, whilst out hunting birds, the huntsman struck a bird in flight, whereupon the stricken creature fell down, striking the floor of the sky with such force that its fellow fowl managed to break through, flying away through the clouds to the earth below. Following the game, the hunter also went through the hole, seeing the fertile earth through the hole and vowing to make his way down there to enjoy the goodness on offer. In order to carry out his plan, the hunter made a rope from cotton from the heavens and tied it to a tree, lowering himself down to the surface and forever eschewing is homeland.” ref
“WAYÚU (GUAJIRO): In the beginning, Maleiwacreated the cosmos. He fashioned the first Wayuu people and instructed them in their way of life. Other important figures are the female-male pair, PulowiandJuyá, who are spiritual beings associated with procreation. Pulowi is a female, associated with wind and the dry season. Juyá is a nomad associated with hunting and the rains. Opposing them isWanülu, an evil entity associated with illness and death.” ref
“WITOTO: In the beginning, there was nothing but an illusion, Nainema. Nainema saw this illusion and brought it into himself, before beginning to think. Nainema sought the vision but, finding nothing, decided to try again. He eventually managed to tie the emptiness to a thread within the dream by means of glue. Then, he tamped down the bottom of the illusion until he could sit upon it, forming the earth he had dreampt about. From this seat, he spat forth, which created the forest. Then he lay down and made the sky above.” ref
“YAGHAN: The Yaghan have a creation myth centered upon the Yoalox-brothers, two culture heroes and lawgivers.” ref
“YANOMAMI: The world was created by Omam, who proceeded to make humans by having intercourse with a fish woman he caught in the river. Eventually, the people began to be oppressed by the Moon, who ate the souls of the offspring of the people. Suhirina, however, emerged to deal with this situation, shooting the moon with an arrow. A new people were formed from the blood which dripped from the moon. These are the Yanomami, whose strength is determined by their proximity to the center of the blood pool.” ref
“YARURO (PUMÉ): In the beginning, the world was an empty place. Within this, the water snake Puanaappeared and formed the world. Water was created byItciai, his jaguar brother, while their sisterKuma- wife of the Sun – made the Yaruro, allocating them to the clans set up in honour of the brothers. Later, the other peoples of the world were made, including the Racionales. The Yaruro had horses but were frightened, so gave them to these white-skinned people. The Sun visits his wife at night. Their children are the stars. The Moon is the sister of the Sun.” ref
“YURUCARE: A former creation was destroyed after Aymasune sent down a great fire to destroy mankind. The only survivor hid in a cave and managed to begin a new life after the end of the conflagration.” ref
Brazilian mythology
“Brazilian mythology is the subset of Brazilian folklore with cultural elements of diverse origin found in Brazil, comprising folk tales, traditions, characters and beliefs regarding places, people, and entities. Because Brazil is a melting pot of cultures, many elements of Brazilian mythology are shared by the traditions of other countries, especially its South American neighbors and Portugal.” ref
“The category was originally restricted to indigenous elements, but has been extended to include:
- Medieval Iberic traditions brought by the Portuguese settlers, some of which are forgotten or very diminished in Portugal itself; as well as other European nations folklore, such as Italy, Germany and Poland.
- African traditions brought by Africans to Brazil as slaves during the colonial times—including their religious beliefs;
- Elements originated in Brazil by the contact of the three different traditions;
- Contemporary elements that are re-elaborations of old traditions.” ref
Prominent figures in Brazilian mythology
- Alemoa – the ghost of a blond (German-like) woman that is connected to the island of Fernando de Noronha. She is said to seduce imprudent men and carry them to death. Alemoa is a nonstandard way of pronouncing “alemã” (“German female” in Portuguese).
- Anhangá – A spirit that often protects animals (especially the females and young ones) and tends to appear as a white deer with red eyes. Often mistaken for Anhanguera due to the words being similar, however, the Anhinga is not considered a devil, though it was feared. One legend involves an indigenous person who tortured a young fawn so the screams would attract the mother. When she came near, he killed her just to realize that the Anhanga had used an illusion and he had just killed his own mother!
- Anhanguera – Name used by the early Jesuit missionaires as an equivalent of the Devil.
- Bernunça – a strange beast of the folk tales of the state of Santa Catarina.
- Besta-fera – a centaur-like creature, thought to be the Devil. The name can be roughly translated as “Feral Beast”.
- Boi-Bumbá is also called Bumba Meu Boi (described below).
- Boitatá – a giant snake with bull horns and enormous fiery eyes that crawls over the open fields at night. Sometimes described as a giant fiery snake. Looking at its eyes blinds people.
- Boiuna (“The Black Snake”) – a gigantic, nocturnal serpent that is the personification of the Amazonian rivers and is feared by many anglers who live in that area. As part of the TV show, The River is a sacred area and no one is to enter.
- Boto – an Amazon river dolphin encantado that shapeshifts into a handsome man to seduce young women (Amazon). After impregnating them, he would abandon the woman and never return to her village with the same disguise again. This tale was possibly created by single mothers in an attempt to explain away to fatherless children who their fathers were.
- Bumba-meu-Boi – an ox that is part of a folk tale celebrated with dance and music by the peoples of the Brazilian north (states of Maranhão and Amazonas, where it is known as Boi-Bumbá).
- Cabeça Satânica – The wandering head is a widespread Brazilian ghost story of European origin. Appears to people that wander alone in the night as a stranger with its back turned to the victim. Its body melts to the ground and only the head with long hair, wide eyes, and a large mischievous smile remains, hopping or rolling towards the victim. Its name means “Satanic Head” or “Satan’s Head”.
- Caipora – jungle spirits that lived in trees but came out at night to haunt those who were astray.
- Capelobo – A hybrid weird creature that has the head of a anteater, the torso of a man, and the hindquarters of a goat, This creature brutally attacks and kills his victims, sucking their brains.
- Ci – Tupian primeval goddess (the name means simply “mother”).
- Cobra-Grande (“The Big-Snake”) – see Boiuna.
- Corpo-Seco (“The Dried-Corpse”) – a man so evil that the earth would not rot its flesh and the devil would return his soul. He was condemned to wander fruitlessly the world until the judgment day.
- Cuca – menacing, supernatural, old hag that attacks and tortures small children who do not go to bed early. Her name comes from a very old and obsolete Portuguese word for “skull” or “cruel”.
- Curupira – a (male) jungle genie/ Demon of the Forest that protects the animals and the trees of the forests. It has red hair with the capacity to ignite and turn into fire and backward feet to confuse hunters. Hates hunters and lumberjacks. It was the first figure in the history of folklore to be documented in Brazil.
- Encantado (“The Charmed”) – someone who is magically trapped in another dimension, living an eternal, but hapless life (usually a punishment for pursuing riches at any cost or doing some wrong).
- Homem do Saco (literally, “Sack Man” or “Bag Man”) – a mid-aged or elder drifter who visits households in search of naughty young children for him to carry away with him, in his sack or bag. When the Bag Man happens to knock at a house whose residents have a naughty kid that they no longer want, these parents give the Bag Man their kid, which he puts up in his sack and carries away forever. This story was told to children as a way to make them behave and respect their parents, under the fear of being given away to the Bag Man if they didn’t act well.
- Iara – a type of freshwater mermaid (Central-West, Southeast, North).
- Iemanjá – the Afro-Brazilian sea goddess worshiped in umbanda, candomblé and another Afro-Brazilian religions.
- Jurupari – a god limited to worship by men, considered a devil by the Jesuits.
- Lobisomem – the Brazilian version of the werewolf.
- M’Boi – Serpentine god of the river. Responsible for the legend of Iguazu Falls, the tragic story of Tarobá and Naipi, a man who fell in love with a woman consecrated to M’Boi. Iguazu Falls are one of the great wonders of the world at the corner of Brazil and Argentina.
- Maní – the name of an indigenous girl with a very fair complexion. The legend is connected to Manioc, a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae native to South America.
- Mãe-do-Ouro – a powerful and lethal being that protects gold ores. Nobody has survived seeing it, so no description exists. It is usually seen from afar as a globe of fire that flies from mountain to mountain (Southeast). It can be roughly translated as “Mother of Gold” and it is possibly a popular attempt to explain the ball lightning phenomenon.
- Mapinguari – a bipedal, hairy, one-eyed giant that wanders the Amazon jungle. Considered the Brazilian version of the Yeti or the last memory of the now extinct giant sloths passed through generations by the native peoples of Brazil.
- Matinta Pereira – a malevolent hag with supernatural powers whose legend is very well known in the state of Pará.
- Moura Encantada (“Enchanted Moura”) – a beautiful moura shapeshifted into a hideous snake to guard an immense treasure. One who breaks the spell will have the gold and marry the maiden.
- Muiraquitã – a greenish amulet of supernatural qualities connected to the legend of the Icamiabas, the Brazilian Amazons.
- Mula sem Cabeça (literally “Headless Mule”) – shape taken by the woman accursed for having sex with a priest (Southeast, Northeast, Central-West, South).
- Mulher de Branco – “Lady in White”, also “Woman in White”: the most widespread type of ghost seen in Brazil. Urban legend equivalent of the Mexican La Llorona.
- Negrinho do Pastoreio – a slave boy that died an awful death (similar to Candyman‘s) for not keeping his owner’s horses. He helps people who are looking for lost things. Roughly translated as “Black Boy of Farm” or “The Little Black Farmer”.
- Pisadeira (“The Stomper”) – An old witch who steps on people’s bellies at night, leaving them breathless. It usually appears when people go to bed on a full stomach, and is associated with sleep paralysis.
- Romãozinho – an evil boy who bears the burden of immortality, cursed by his own dying mother.
- Saci Pererê – a mischievous single-legged black elf-like creature who is blamed as the culprit of anything that goes wrong at a farm (Central-West, Southeast). The Saci is known as a trickster and usually appears in farms inside wind swirls. If someone steals its red cap he’ll exchange it for a favor.
- Uaica
- Vitória Régia – tells the story of the origin of the vitória-régia, the giant water lily, in which a Tupi-Guarani young woman named Naiá falls into a lake and drowns after trying to kiss the reflection of the moon-goddess Jasy, which often turns beautiful virgin girls into stars to be her companions. Moved by the incident, the Moon then transforms her into a different kind of star, a giant water lily, also known as the “Star of the Waters.” ref
“Native American religions are the spiritual practices of the Native Americans in the United States. Ceremonial ways can vary widely and are based on the differing histories and beliefs of individual nations, tribes, and bands. Early European explorers describe individual Native American tribes and even small bands as each having their own religious practices. Theology may be monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, animistic, shamanistic, pantheistic or any combination thereof, among others. Traditional beliefs are usually passed down in the forms of oral histories, stories, allegories, and principles.” ref
Kayapos people
“The Kayapo Indians are one of the main Amerindian (native) groups that remain in the rain forest around the Amazon River in Brazil. The Kayapos resisted assimilation (absorption into the dominant culture) and were known traditionally as fierce warriors. They raided enemy tribes and sometimes fought among themselves. When the Portuguese conquerors first arrived in Brazil, there were about five million Amerindians. Today there are only about 200,000, of which a few thousand are Kayapos. They live along the Xingu River in the eastern part of the Amazon rain forest, in several scattered villages. Their lands consist of tropical rain forest and savanna (grassland). The Amazon basin, which includes the Amazon River and its tributaries such as the Xingu, is sometimes referred to as Amazonia. It includes parts of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.” ref
“The great diversity of Amerindian languages is partly due to groups of people living considerable distances from each other. Because of their relative isolation, groups developed distinct mythologies, religious customs, and languages. Even quite small groups such as the Kayapos are divided into smaller tribes with their own chiefs, although they all speak the Kayapo language. There is an interesting legend among the Kayapos who live along a lagoon. They say that if one rises at dawn and looks across the lagoon, one can see the ghost of a white man on horseback galloping along the shore. This ghostly rider is said to wear a full suit of armor, rather like a European knight, or perhaps a Portuguese conqueror. Completing a full cycle of festivals is essential to Kayapo culture. Singing, chanting, and dancing are important to Kayapo life. Men and women also sing as they go out on a hunt or work the land. They use a type of rattle or maraca and sticks to beat rhythms.” ref
“The Kayapos believe their ancestors learned how to live communally from social insects such as bees. This is why mothers and children paint each other’s bodies with patterns that look like animal or insect markings, including those of bees. The flamboyant Kayapo headdress with feathers radiating outward represents the universe. Its shaft is a symbol for the cotton rope by which the first Kayapo, it is said, descended from the sky. Kayapo fields and villages are built in a circle to reflect the Kayapo belief in a round universe. The Kayapos believe that at death a person goes to the village of the dead, where people sleep during the day and hunt at night. There, old people become younger and children become older. In that village in the afterlife, Kayapos believe they have their own traditional assembly building. Kayapo women, it is thought, are permitted only short visits to deliver food to their male relatives.” ref
“Special days for the Kayapos revolve around the seasons. In the Amazon, these are the dry season and the rainy season. Kayapo ceremonies are also linked to their holidays. For example, an initiation rite is held when a boy reaches puberty or when he receives, as a small boy, his special ancestral name. The important dry-season celebration called Bemp (after a local fish) also includes marriage rites as well as initiation and naming ceremonies. Kayapos do not divide their time into secular and religious occasions. The religious, natural, social, and festive elements are all interconnected. When children are born, the marriage ties between a husband and wife are formalized. A man may have two or three wives. Young children receive special ancestral names. Naming ceremonies are regarded as an important means of helping the child develop social ties and an identity as a Kayapo. The naming ceremonies are held in each dry or rainy season. Other seasonal rites include special dances or ceremonies related to the crops the Kayapos grow.” ref
“The language spoken by the Kayapó belongs to the Gê/Jê linguistic family, a branch of the Macro-Gê/Jê trunk. Differences in dialect exist between the various Kayapó groups emerging after the splits that gave rise to these groups, but in all of them language is a feature of wider ethnic reach, leading to recognition that they make up part of a common culture. The Kayapó, for whom oratory is a highly-valued social practice, define themselves as those who speak well, beautifully (Kaben mei), in opposition to all the groups who do not speak their language. On certain occasions, such as council or ceremonial discourses, the Kayapó men speak in a tone of voice as though someone was punching them in the stomach (ben), thereby differentiating this type of oratory from normal speech.” ref
“An ethnohistorical examination shows that the Kayapó used to live divided into three large groups: the Irã’ãmranh-re (“those who wander on the plains”), the Goroti Kumrenhtx (“the men of the true large group”) and the Porekry (“the men of the small bamboo”). The first two each numbered three thousand people and the last about one thousand, giving a total population of about seven thousand people. Sharing a common origin, these three large groups once inhabited the region bordering the lower course of the Tocantins river. This territory comprises plains cut by rivers bordered by gallery forest. Villages were never built far from the forest cover, thus allowing the Kayapó to attain the best possible use of resources from totally different biomes. But this mode of economic life was upturned with the appearance at the start of the 19th century of the first explorers and colonizers.” ref
“Producing the large quantity of high-calorie foods needed by the population is primarily a female task. Women are responsible for managing the swiddens, usually cultivated within a radius of four to six kilometres around the village. Each family possesses its own swiddens containing staple crops such as sweet potato, maize, sugar cane, bananas and manioc, extremely rich in calories. Some tropical fruits, as well as cotton and tobacco, are also planted. The Kayapó are demanding in the choice of potentially fertile lands: the ideal oasis is a tract of forest without overly dense vegetation, situated at the foot of a hill close to a river. The Kayapó distinguish between various types of terrain and forests. Selecting a convenient site for a new village or a new swidden is not a decision to be rushed into. Specialists carefully examine the soil colour and composition. The existing vegetation is likewise taken into consideration.” ref
“The men have the arduous task of cutting down the trees to clear the swiddens. The trees are felled at the start of the dry season (May) and remain there for some months until the rainy season. The nature of the soil poses a considerable problem in the tropical rainforest due to the extremely low concentration of minerals. Hence, as October approaches, the Kayapó burn the trees whose timber has had by now enough time to dry. The minerals contained in the wood remain in the ashes, forming a layer that acts as a fertilizer. After burning, the women start planting. Many varieties of crops are planted in concentric circles. This mixed culture presents a number of advantages; for example, large-leafed plants protect the soil from torrential rain and drying, while tall plants offer protection from the scalding sun. Some plants also help combat insects. Medicinal plants are usually located on the periphery of the swidden. Many of these plants produce a nectar that attracts a particular species of aggressive ant, natural enemies of phytophagic insects. Although it may appear disordered, the Kayapó swidden is organized in accordance with a highly structured logic.” ref
“The women go to the swiddens every day to collect the crops as needed. A Kayapó woman’s life is somewhat monotonous. But a few times during the year, generally during the dry season, small groups of women go to the forest to gather wild fruits and palm oil. The shortest trips last a couple of says, the longer trips a week. The women never separate completely from the village, remaining within a radius of 30 km, the territory with which they are more familiar and that is continually crossed by hunters. The life of Kayapó men is marked by an exceptional mobility. Most of men’s activities are undertaken outside the home: hunting, fishing, trekking, the manufacture of objects and tools, or simply conversation in the men’s house. As work in the swiddens is primarily a female concern, men feel under no obligation to perform domestic duties in the village. In fact, they spend most of the days in the forest hunting and fishing.” ref
“Men generally hunt alone. At dawn, they disappear one by one into the forest. A hunter lucky enough to kill prey straight away will return around midday. Others who end up pursuing a cold trail or who prove luckless will wander in the forest until nightfall. Traditional weapons are increasingly substituted by rifles. Bows, arrows and spears are only used during solemn ceremonies or when ammunition runs out. A man never returns empty-handed. Even when he fails to bring back game, he will gather medicinal plants, fibres or wild fruits to make utilitarian or decorative objects. On arriving in the village, the successful hunter hands the game to his wife or, if he is unmarried, to his mother or sister. A lot of people soon appear hoping for a share of the meat. All Kayapó men and women are thus continually located in exchange positions with a series of other people in the village.” ref
“In fact, the successful hunter is morally obliged to cede some of the meat, especially when the animal is of a respectable size. But likewise he will knock on other people’s doors when his luck runs out or when he is too ill to go out hunting. The constant exchanges ensure that the daily influx of meat is shared out within the community. It is thus rare for a family to have no meat to eat for more than a day or so. Ceremonies often lasting many months require an enormous quantity of meat. Three or four large expeditions are therefore organized each year. In principle, woman and children accompany the men, leaving the village abandoned. A new encampment is made in the forest every day, a few kilometres away from the previous one. From there, the men leave to hunt.” ref
“Apart from land turtles, all meat is eaten in the forest itself. Only the turtles are kept for the final festival. It is difficult to conserve large quantities of meat in the tropical rainforest and the turtles thus provide the simplest alternative: these animals can remain alive for a long time without eating or drinking. It is nonetheless true that transportation becomes problematic. To carry them more easily, the turtles are bound side by side between two wooden poles. These structures can carry at most 15 turtles and may measure three metres in height and weigh up to 60 kilos. Making these treks through the forest no easy task. Consequently, every day young men leave before the hunters to clear a corridor through the vegetation with their axes. The hunters, each with his load of turtles, advance slowly through the forest; they do not return to the village before assembling enough animals to hold a banquet. This generally entails finding 200 or 300 animals, which may take one or more months.” ref
“Fishing is a year-round activity, but it is above all with the onset of the dry season, when the water level is at its lowest, that fish are caught in large numbers. To achieve this, the Kayapó use timbó vines. The men beat the vines for hours with small clubs (sticks wider at one end). The liquid thereby obtained modifies the oxygen level of the water. The fish rise to float on the surface due to the lack of oxygen and thus become easy prey. But as the Kayapó live close to small rivers, they mostly catch modestly sized species of fish.” ref
“In Kayapó society, fishing is not as productive an activity as hunting. As mentioned above, the economy of this people endures a double disadvantage owing to the setting of villages in unfavourable ecological zones and to the high demographic density of the large communities. How do the Kayapó resolve this problem? The other indigenous forest groups who live in similar zones are generally of a smaller size and pursue a nomadic lifestyle. They travel continuously, moving through regions without exposure to intensive hunting activities and able to rely on the products available in the forest. They work in small swiddens that quickly meet their needs, cultivating manioc and potato.” ref
“Traditional Kayapó villages are formed by a circle of houses built around a large cleared plaza. In the middle of the village there is the men’s house, where male political associations meet on a daily basis. This center is a symbolic place, the origin, and heart of Kayapó social and ritual organization, celebrated for its complexity. Notably, this spatial and symbolic structure can also be found among other Gê/Jê groups. The village periphery is constituted by houses set in a circle, divided in regular fashion, and inhabited by extensive families. This part of the village is associated, above all, with domestic activities, the physical development of the individual, and his or her integration into the kinship groups. When the women are not working in the swiddens, they collect fruits and firewood or go to bathe.” ref
“The rest of the time is spent inside or close to the house, where they weave, look after their children, prepare food, or simply pass the time with members of their family. Conceptually, the circle of houses is women’s territory, essentially directed towards ‘female’ concerns. It involves the domain of individual relations, marked by affection and avoidance, as well as relations of reciprocity and mediation. As a whole, this peripheral zone is associated with alimentary taboos, the life cycle, kinship, and the bonds of formal friendship.” ref
“The Kayapó are monogamic. When a man marries, he leaves the men’s house to live under his wife’s roof. Women, for their part, never leave their maternal residence. Theoretically, a house shelters various conjugal families: a grandmother and her husband, along with their daughters and their husbands and children. When the number of residents becomes too large (40 people or more), the residential group splits and builds one or more new houses next to the first one. The center of the village is composed of two parts: the plaza, where most of the public activities unfold, and the men’s house. The incorporation of a young boy in the life of the men’s house takes place through friendship ties that have nothing to do with kinship ties. Thus, his incorporation in the adult men’s political groups (the male associations) is a matter lying outside of kinship, which contrasts strongly with the relations sustained on the village periphery. The center is, then, related to the male associations and the activities typically reserved to men – meetings, discourses, and the performance of public ceremonies and rituals.” ref
“In Kayapó society, there is no chief who coordinates the whole village. Each association possesses one or more chiefs, who exercises jurisdiction over their own group. Becoming a chief is not a simple task. A potential chief must follow the teachings of a more experienced chief over many years. The latter instructs approximately four youths, not only his direct descendants (sons or grandsons) – a privileged situation – but also non-related people. This teaching occurs during the night, in the house of the veteran chief. Those without any kinship tie to the instructor must offer him food. A night of instruction lasts approximately two hours, but can sometimes prolong for five or six hours. This practice is only interrupted during the long hunt expeditions or treks through the forest.” ref
“The knowledge transmitted in this way is enormous. The main teachings concern a particular repertoire of songs and recitals, whose execution comprises an essential part of the different ceremonies. This repertoire frequently involves a series of moral exhortations and encouragements for people to prepare in time for a ritual, dance in the proper way, decorate themselves in an appropriate fashion, etc. These recitals also contain ritual formulas whose purpose is to avoid catastrophes announced by natural phenomena (solar or lunar eclipses, the fall of a meteor, etc.). Knowing how to perform these songs and recitals correctly in public is one of the chief’s fundamental ritual functions. Similarly, a certain number of ‘songs of blessing’ are chanted publicly by the chief each time that ‘wild’ objects, such as war spoils, are introduced into the village. These songs must be chanted in order to avoid the appropriation of such objects becoming a source of danger, capable of causing misfortune or sickness.” ref
“This form of teaching can be found above all in warfare practices – in the case of conflicts with enemies, the chiefs assume military responsibilities – in mythology and tribal history. In-depth knowledge of the latter is extremely important during discourses and decision making. In fact, argumentation in discourses often rests upon comparisons with events or situations similar to those lived through by ancestors. Mythology assumes an important role, since myths invariably evoke moral values that can be used in an argument. As chiefs have no coercive means of imposing their decisions on their followers, their discourses comprise, as far as they go, the only available means of persuasion. It is through discourse, in which the moral values and interests of an association are placed in the forefront, that the chiefs exercise their influence and their prestige in order to put forward their ideas and make them acceptable.” ref
“However, a chief never takes a decision in the full sense of the word, he has no power. Nobody pays attention to a chief who imposes his own will and in the event that he wishes to do so, he may even be banned. A chief should be attentive to the ideas circulating within his group of followers, and whenever a consensus emerges he should formulate it rapidly, so that other men align themselves unanimously with the idea or action, apparently his own proposal. In fact, it is at this stage that the discourses become decisive: they often give the wrong impression that the chief is proposing something. He just skilfully formulates an idea for which a consensus was about to be reached. In the case of a dispute, the chief generally consults the oldest members of the association.” ref
“Eloquence is therefore crucial for the leaders. But if a chief lacks extreme eloquence, this may sometimes be compensated by other exceptional qualities. The Kayapó prefer combative rather than weak chiefs. It is interesting to note that the chief’s function is characterized by an apparent paradox: on one hand, combativeness and toughness are encouraged, on the other hand, eloquence is demanded in order to promote conciliation. The first quality (combativeness) is associated with the male virtues of physical force, indifference to pain, the capacity to be a good warrior and defend the interests of the association and community against threats. The second quality (eloquence) is indispensable for maintaining and promoting unity. This latter quality is also linked to the generosity chiefs must demonstrate in all circumstances: everyone expects them to redistribute immediately everything they obtain (in the past, war prizes; today, the presents given by visitors). The chiefs must put the interests of the group before their own individual interests: generosity is a manifest proof of this feeling of solidarity.” ref
“Moreover, chiefs must take care that individual disputes do not generate into quarrels between factions, which would put at risk the unity of the society as a whole. Individual disputes are not tolerated in the men’s house, since the center of the Kayapó village is the place for the group’s public activities and not the space where individual problems are regulated: these are usually resolved in the family environment. It is because disputes are extremely dangerous for the society’s unity that the chiefs find themselves involved in internal conflicts, either personally when there is an individual disagreement, or as leader of an association when a chief has to defend the interest of his followers. Nonetheless, chiefs from different associations must avoid such involvements wherever possible and seek mutual understanding. The final process of designating a new chief comprises precisely such a promotion of consensus.” ref
“The process of training new chiefs means that each Kayapó village always recognizes different aspirant chiefs. After initiation, some youths start to act as leaders of their peers. Others end up deciding that the function of chief does not interest them: they do not develop any political ambition and interrupt their training. The facts and acts of those who possess such an ambition are exposed – and sometimes questioned – during the following years by existing chiefs and by elders in general.” ref
“Older chiefs remain at the center of their organization’s decisions, but as they become older, they gradually delegate tasks to the younger leaders from their group of students. It is during this phase, then, that the aspirants may demonstrate their qualities. But as they have not attained an age when they can back up their discourses, since they do not belong to the association’s group of older men, they cannot yet use this powerful means of persuasion to incite their colleagues into action. As a result, during this stage, judgement is essentially based on exemplary conduct. Certain criteria are applied to judge the candidate’s aptitude: his knowledge, interest in the culture, combativeness, solidarity, and generosity. The period of apprenticeship continues until the young leader marries and joins one of the men’s associations.” ref
“After some years, the veteran chief is so old that it becomes difficult for him to take part in public activities. The young leaders become fathers of three or four children and can then enter into their association’s group of older men. It is at this moment that a successor is designated. The choice is not made through elections. The judgement of the members of the association to which the candidate belongs is an important factor: they indicate their preference. Nevertheless, the veteran chief has the final word, especially if two or more youths are revealed as serious candidates. To avoid subsequent quarrels between the different candidates, he must consult the chiefs of other associations, in order for them to propose the name of the candidate who enjoys the best reputation or who has shown the most suitable conduct. It is the chiefs of other associations who finally decide and officially proclaim their choice publicly in the village.” ref
“As stressed above, the chief’s function is characterized by a certain amount of ambiguity: on one hand, the task demands a pacifying demeanour and, one the other hand, a decisive, combative, and even aggressive demeanour. In other words, it is necessary to be aggressive towards strangers and a peacemaker within the community. This double role makes the chief’s career very difficult, and it is hardly surprising that some candidates for chiefdom withdraw during the preliminary period of their training. Moreover, few chiefs effectively respond to the commended ideal: some are very aggressive, others too pacific or insufficiently generous. Only strong chiefs succeed in attaining an equilibrium between the two roles.” ref
“Today’s chiefs are still clearly preoccupied with this problem. In fact, whites generally use them to transmit messages ,especially to obtain something from the community. This explains why the current chief’s often find themselves squeezed between the world of the whites and that of the association (or the community as a whole), with each of the parties attempting to impose its will. It is ,therefore ,the chiefs’ task to encounter a solution capable of satisfying both parties. These recent developments have inglreasingly led the communities to attribute greater decision-making powers to their chiefs, but only where negotiations with whites are concerned. Within the community, the traditional rules remain valid.” ref
“The villages is the centre of the Kayapó universe, the most socialized space. The surrounding forest is considered an anti-social space, where men can transform into animals or spirits, sicken without reason or even kill their relatives. Beings who are half-animal, half-people dwell there. The further from the village, the more anti-social the forest becomes and its associated dangers increase. As there is always the danger that the ‘social’ may be appropriated by the natural domain, escaping human control, the Kayapó engage in a symbolic appropriation of the natural, transforming it into the social through curing chants and ceremonies which establish a constant exchange between man and the world of nature.” ref
“The section of forest in which the village population hunts, fishes, and cultivates land is first socialized by the attribution of place names. Thereafter, human modifcations of the nature world are accompanied by rituals. For example, the opening of new swiddens is preceded by a dance presenting many structural similarities to the war ritual. Opening up new swiddens is indeed a symbolic war against a natural rather than human enemy. Returning from the hunt, men must sing to the spirits of the game they themselves have killed in order for the spirits to remain in the forest. Each animal species designates a song that always begins with the cry of the dead animal.” ref
“The Kayapó ritual complex consists of a very particular language: the rites express and actualize fundamental values of the society, reflecting in equal portion the image the group has of itself, the society and the universe. Each rite translates a part of this cosmological vision and establishes a link between man and nature, in which above all the human-animal relationship is reinforced. Kayapó rituals are numerous and diverse, but their importance and duration varies greatly. They divide into three main categories: the large ceremonies for confirming personal names; certain agricultural, hunting, fishing and occasional rites – for example, those performed during solar or lunar eclipses – and, finally, rites of passage. The latter are frequently solemn affairs, though short and only rarely accompanied by dances or songs: they are organized so as to announce publicly the passage of some people from one age set to another.” ref
“Examples of rites of passage include all the ceremonies qualified by the term mereremex (‘people who extend their beauty’), a reference to the highly elaborate fashion in which people decorate themselves on such occasions. Such ceremonies comprise group-based activities whose purpose is to socialize ‘wild’ or anti-social values. This applies to the attribution of names, a central theme of most Kayapó ceremonies; in fact, personal names are borrowed from nature. Shamans enter into contact with the natural spirits and learn new songs and names from them. These names, alongside the songs to which they refer, are elements borrowed from the ‘natural’ world, which must be introduced into culture at the moment of the large naming ceremonies.” ref
“On these occasions, most of the ritual sequences take place in the village’s central plaza. Here an inversion of ordinary social space may be noted: the center of the village, normally organized on the basis of friendship and non-kinship, is converted into the domain of activities in which both personal family bonds and natural – and therefore ‘wild’ elements, such as the personal names or those of killed prey – are central. The true nature of ‘beauty’, referred to by the Kayapó by the term mereremex, is not only visual, but also constituted by an interior beauty that results from the group’s activity, from the common effort required to ‘socialize’ the names of people or of other precious objects.” ref
“The Kayapó believe that the spirits of the dead live in a secluded village, somewhere in the hills. This village is organized like that of the living: in the form of a circle with one or two men’s houses, possessing male and female associations, age sets, etc. The essential difference resides in the fact that the spirits live by night and fear the light of day. For this reason, the Kayapó are afraid to remain alone in the forest during the night.” ref
“Women smoke almost the whole time they stay in the swiddens since the spirits fear the smoke. Without this precaution, many spirits would lurk near them as they went to collect potatoes and manioc and then follow them as far as the village. To confuse the plane of the spirits, the women spit in all directions before leaving the swiddens and surround themselves with a cloud of smoke. Spitting and blowing smoke are acts endowed with the same efficacy as the male songs after a successful hunting trip: both have the aim of driving away spirits.” ref
“The Kayapó bury their dead in a very precise space, outside the village circle. The grave comprises a circular well in which the body is placed in a seated position, the face always pointed to the east. The hole is covered after various personal objects of the deceased are placed below, such as gourds, weapons, and some ornaments. The spirit will take these objects to its new dwelling place. In the first weeks following the death, relatives leave a small amount of food and drink everyday by the side of the grave, since the spirit does not always immediately find the path leading to the village of the dead.” ref
“The spirits may succumb to nostalgia, which provokes a fear among the living that they may try to ‘fetch’ a member of their own family. As a result, relatives of someone who has recently died are extremely prudent: in order to scare away the spirits, they illuminate the house with large fires that produce a lot of smoke. The simple fact of looking at a spirit is mortal and the latter typically awaits for an opportune moment to capture the soul of a sick person or a weak relative.” ref
“During the naming ritual, the honored children are placed in a situation of extreme weakness: at the start of this rite, they are so to speak unfinished beings, submitted to an intense process of socialization by means of body painting, the wearing of very fine ornaments, ritual dances by male or female groups and, finally, by the ritual confirmation of their names. At the end of this process, the honored children become whole human beings again. For these reasons, the honoring of very young children is avoided during such ceremonies, since this would place them in danger, even when accompanied by adult ritual friends.” ref
“According to the Kayapó, humans are composed of internal corporal elements (blood, bones, organs, flesh and water), an exterior corporal element (skin), a spirit (mekarõ), vital energy (kadjwýnh) located in the liver, and finally social elements associated with the vital cycle and the successive phases of the system of age sets, whose critical moments coincide with the attribution of names, initiation, marriage, birth, and the reinforcing of alliance ties or formal friendships between groups and individuals.Blood is a dangerous substance of which the body must retain a precise quantity – its lack induces weakness and sickness, while its excess leads to indolence.” ref
“This explains why the Kayapó sporadically scar the thighs of adolescents. When the village elders think that the youths have become too soft or slow and attribute this attitude to the excessive accumulation of blood in their bodies, a specialist must scarify the thighs of the boys until they bleed. This is done with the help of a triangular piece of gourd edged with extremely sharp fish teeth. This specialist acts with as much care as possible, since contact with another’s blood is dangerous: it can modify the quantity of blood in the body of the contaminated person. Feared above all is contact with exterior blood (of other people or animals). Consequently, the Kayapó are very prudent; after such contact, they wash themselves as rapidly and carefully as possible. Depending on the intensity of the contact, a series of prohibitions must be observed. After an attack on an enemy village, the chest of the warriors must be tattooed and scraped with the purpose of eliminating the superfluous ‘bad’ and thus dangerous blood. As warriors are increasingly rare, only the oldest people bear these tattoos.” ref
Jê peoples
“Jê or Gê are the people who spoke Jê languages of the northern South American Caribbean coast and Brazil. In Brazil, the Jê were found in Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Piauí, Mato Grosso, Goias, Tocantins, Maranhão, and as far south as Paraguay. They include the Timbira, the Kayapó, and the Suyá of the northwestern Jê; the Xavante, the Xerente, and the Akroá of the central Jê; the Karajá; the Jeikó; the Kamakán; Maxakalí; the Guayaná; the Purí (Coroado); the Bororo (Boe); the Gavião, and others. The southern Jê include the Kaingang and the Xokleng.” ref
Kaingang People
“The Kaingang people are an Indigenous Brazilian ethnic group spread out over the three southern Brazilian states of Paraná, Santa Catarina, and Rio Grande do Sul and the southeastern state of São Paulo. The Kaingang language is a member of the Jê family. The Kaingang people were the original first inhabitants of the province of Misiones in Argentina. Their language and culture is quite distinct from the neighboring Guaraní.” ref
“The Kaingang, like other groups of the Macro-Jê language family, are characterized as socio-centric societies that recognize dualistic socio-cosmological principles, presenting a system of moieties. Among the Kaingang the moieties which gave rise to society are called Kamé and Kairu. The moiety system, as an articulating mechanism of Kaingang social organization has produced much more complex forms than those identified by the first colonizers. In the origin myth gathered by Telêmaco Borba (1882) one finds a summarized version of Kaingang dualist cosmology. In this myth, the culture heroes Kamé and Kairu produce not only the divisions among men, but also the division among the beings of nature. In this way, according to the Kaingang tradition, the Sun is Kamé and the Moon Kairu, the pine tree is Kamé and the cedar Kairu, the lizard is Kamé and the monkey Kairu, and so on. The strongest sociological expression for this dualist conception is the principle of exogamy among the moieties. According to the Kaingang tradition, marriages must be made between individuals of opposite moieties; the Kamé have to marry with the Kairu and vice-versa.” ref
“Although marriages ideally unite members of the Kamé and Kairu moieties, the children of this ideal marriage are filiated with the paternal moiety. Various ethnological records reveal the occurrence of patrilineal descent. Teschauer (1927), for example, states that according to the Kaingang tradition, “the child owes its existence exclusively to the father. The mother was only the receptacle and caretaker of the progeny (…) the social condition of the father passes to the children and not that of the mother”. Despite the pattern of patrilineal descent, the traditional residence form among the Kaingang is matrilocality – after marriage, the girl’s husband goes to live in his wife’s father’s house. This residence pattern is common among all Jê groups.” ref
“As we have seen, membership in a moiety is the result of paternal descent. The ratification of this identity occurs with the choice of a name for the newborn. Naming among the Jê, and specifically among the Kaingang, has been described as an important process for the establishment of social identities. The mythological heroes themselves, Kamé and Kairu, created and named the beings of nature. The names belong to the moieties. On being named, the children receive their social identity, which, along with paternal descent, will be their distinctive mark. In contrast to descent, which cannot be changed, names can be manipulated for the purpose of protecting the child against sicknesses or other misfortunes.” ref
“Traditional Kaingang socio-cosmological principles operate on a social structure based on the articulation of territorially localized social units, formed by interconnected families who divide ceremonial, social, educational, economic, and political responsibilities. Kaingang social morphology is based on complementary and asymmetric principles with relation to the dualist principles. The minimum Kaingang social unit is the family group formed by a nuclear family (parents and children). These family groups are part of larger social units that we can call domestic groups, which are formed, ideally, by an elderly married couple, their single sons and daughters, their married daughters, their daughters’ husbands, and grandchildren. This domestic group does not necessarily occupy the same dwelling-place, but rather the same territory.” ref
“According to historical reports (19th Century) and recent observations, we can attest that these domestic groups were formed by groups of twenty to fifty individuals. The domestic group is a fundamental social unit in the construction of Kaingang sociability, for, due to the combination of the rules of matrilocal residence (post-marital residence in the house of the bride’s father) and descent (paternal) men and women of opposite moieties live together within these units thus reproducing, in a certain way, the socio-cosmological principles of moiety dualism. Within the domestic groups, however, there is an asymmetry of status, between husband’s father, and daughter’s husband. Many authors state that it is the political dynamic established between these two social roles that is at the basis of all political organization of Jê societies and also of the Kaingang.” ref
“Further, according to the historical reports, we perceive that the domestic groups are encompassed by two other larger social units: the local groups and the político-territorial groups. The local groups correspond to the articulation among several domestic groups, which, through kinship ties, maintain a relation of mutual reciprocity. The politico-territorial units correspond to the most inclusive spheres of articulation among local groups. The same asymmetry of status postulated for the domestic group (wife’s father – daughter’s husband) occurs in the inter-relation of local groups and politico-territorial units. The great Kaingang leaders of the 19th Century were, in effect, the chiefs of politico-territorial units (põ’í bang) and maintained a relation of domination over the chiefs of the local groups (põ’í; rekakê). Thus, the historical records describe the absolute power of command of chiefs such as Nonoai, Braga, Doble, Condá, Fongue and Nicafim over vast territories of the Northwest of Rio Grande do Sul and the West of Santa Catarina. The estimated population for these político-territorial units of the 19th Century was from three hundred to five hundred individuals.” ref
“The dispersion of Kaingang groups over the fields and forests of their traditional territory did not prevent and does not prevent these Indians from recognizing a common cosmological system. Effectively, Kaingang groups even today share, besides a common mythological record, beliefs, and practices related to ritual experiences – the deep respect for the dead and the attachment to the lands where their umbilical cords are buried are indisputable expressions of the structuring value that cosmology has for these Indians.” ref
“Few studies are dedicated exclusively to the analysis of Kaingang myths. There are, nevertheless, recurring references to the myths collected by Borba (1882), Nimuendajú (1913), and Schaden (1956). We owe the first record of Kaingang mythology to Telêmaco Borba, who, in 1882, published the Kaingang origin myth and myth of the origin of corn. The origin myth narrates the story of the mythological brothers Kamé and Kairu who, after the great deluge, came out from inside Crinjijimbé mountain. “In times past, there was a great deluge that submerged all the land inhabited by our ancestors. Only the top of Crinjijimbé mountain emerged from the waters. The Caingangues, Cayrucrés, and Camés swam towards it, carrying in their mouths sticks of burning firewood. The Cayrucrés and the Camés, exhausted, drowned; their souls went to live in the center of the mountain…” ref
“After the waters had dried, the Caingangues established themselves near Crinjijimbé. The Cayrucrés e Camés, whose souls had gone to live in the center of the mountain, began to open a way through its interior; after much labor, they came out by two paths. Although Telêmaco Borba had lived for many years with the Kaingang of the region north of the present state of Paraná – which allowed him to record myths and histories as well as prepare a small dictionary of the Kaingang language – he, like his contemporaries of the 19th Century, did not recognize the existence of a system of moieties among these Indians.” ref
“Nimuendajú (1913) was the first to state that Kaingang society is organized according to a system of moieties. As he said: “Telêmaco Borba did not understand well this division into two clans (…) The division into Kañeru and Kamé is the guiding thread which passes through the whole social and religious life of this nation..”. The division into the Kamé and Kairu moieties, the guiding thread to which Nimuendajú is referring, appears in the myth of origin through the trajectory of the mythological brothers Kamé and Kairu. These are the culture heroes who give their names to the Kaingang moieties, it is they who, in the events of the myth, created the beings of nature. “Kanyerú made snakes, Kamé, jaguars. Kamé first made a jaguar and painted it, then Kanyerú made a deer. Kamé said to the jaguar: ‘Eat the deer, but do not eat us’. After that he made a tapir, ordering it to eat people and animals. The tapir, however, did not understand the order. Kamé even repeated it to him twice but in vain; after that, he said to him angrily: ‘You will eat nettle leaves, you’re good for nothing!’. Kanyeru made snakes and ordered them to bite men and animals.” ref
The mythological brothers Kamé e Kairu not only created the beings of nature, but also the rules of conduct by which men should lie, defining the formula for moiety recruitment (patrilineality) and establishing the way the moieties should be inter-related (exogamy). “They came to a large field, they joined together the Kaingang and decided to marry the young men and women. First, the Kairucrés married with the daughters of the Kamés, and the latter with the former, and since there still were some men left over, they married the daughters of the Kaingang.” ref
“The dualism expressed in the Kaingang origin myth, as analyzed in the light of Nimuendajú’s contribution, presents two fundamental classificatory properties. In the first place, the Kamé and Kairu dualism offers an all-encompassing and totalizing classificatory system – the beings of nature, including men, possess the mark of the moieties and bear values associated with them, such as: strong/weak, high/low, impulse/persistence. In the second place, Kaingang dualism, in its mythological record, offers a formula for social organization through the establishment of descent and marriage rules. Both in the version of the origin myth collected by Borba, and in that collected by Nimuendajú, the complementary between the mythological brothers Kamé and Kairu is explicit: the Kamé worked during the day to make the animals which belonged to this moiety, the Kairu, inversely, worked at night; the sun belongs to the Kamé moiety, the moon to the Kairu moiety.” ref
“Although the complementarity may effectively be expressed in the episodes of the origin myth, there are moments in this narrative which indicate asymmetry, a hierarchical relation between the moieties. In the first place, Kamé was the first to come out from inside the earth after the deluge – this is an important characteristic for the unfolding of the ritual experience, as we shall see further on. In the second place, the episodes which involve the creation of the animals present Kamé and Kairu with different powers. To combat the ming (the jaguar or tiger, as they say), created by Kamé:“Kairucré was making another animal, he had still not made its teeth, tongue and some toenails, when dawn was beginning to appear, and, since during the day he had no power to make it, he quickly put a thin stick in its mouth and said to it: You, since you have no teeth, will live eating ants – ; that is why the anteater, Tamanduá, ioty, is an unfinished and imperfect animal.” ref
“Kairu, in this myth, is a total disaster in his attempts to imitate Kamé, the result of his creation is unfinished and imperfect. In the case of the creation of the animals, one is not dealing with a complementary opposition, nor with a simple inversion, but with an opposition that evaluates in an unequal way the creations of Kamé (perfect and dangerous) and of Kairu (imperfect and unfinished). In the case of a confrontation, the creatures of Kamé are winners – once again, the Kamé come out on top. Complementarity and assymetry are characteristics expressed in the Kaingang myths. Updated narratives employ this formula to deal with themes from popular Catholicism. Perfection opposed to imperfection appears as the organizing axis of narratives about Christian figures (such as the Catholic saints or like São João Maria do Agostinho, the Monk of the Contestado movement).” ref
“Besides having a common formula, the updated versions of the Kaingang myths always present the participation of animals which, as in the origin myths, think, speak, and act like humans. The center of ritual life among the Kaingang is occupied by the ritual of the cult to the dead. Effectively, among these Indians the stages of the life cycle either are the object of rituals restricted to the domestic environment (the case of naming ceremonies) or do not present any form of ritualization (the case of marriages). By contrast, the cult to the dead stands out not only for the importance attributed to it by the Kaingang, but also, for its community and inter-community character.” ref
“We owe the first references to the ritual of Kikikoi to Curt Nimuendajú (1913) and Herbert Baldus (1937), although the records on the drinking bouts which accompanied the funerals, in which the beverage Aquiqui was consumed go back to the first decades of the 19th Century. The Kiki, or the ritual of the Kikikoi (to eat the Kiki), as the Kaingang cult to the dead is known, has already been described as the center of the religious life of these Indians. Although this ritual today is celebrated by only a small group on the Xapecó (SC) Indigenous Land, all the Kaingang associate the Kiki with the indigenous ‘tradition’, to the ‘system of the ancients’. The historical records allow us to state that, in the past, this ritual was held in various regions.” ref
“Even in the present context of the Xapecó Indigenous Land, where the Kiki was last held in the year 2000, the holding of this ritual makes it possible to identify the articulation of this ritual experience with beliefs and practices related to Kaingang dualist cosmology. The ritual consists, fundamentally, of the performance by two groups formed by individuals belonging to each one of the clan moieties, Kamé and Kairu. Kaingang social life, we have seen, operates through the constant fusion of the two clan moieties. During the Kiki, however, the moieties act separately, forming groups of ‘classificatory or mythological consanguineal kin.’ As in the myths, the relations between the groups which act in the ritual are marked by complementarity and assymetry between the Kamé and Kairu moieties.” ref
“The holding of the Kikikoi ritual depends on a request from the kin of someone who has died during the previous year or in previous years. It is necessary that there be dead from both halves. The ritual process is marked by the meeting of the chanters around three lit fires, on different days, on the terrain of the organizer – a place known as the ‘dance plaza’ or the ‘plaza of the fires’. The date of the first fire generally occurs two months before the holding of the third and final fire. The Kaingang state that the ritual should take place between the months of January and June. The first fire (two fires are lit, one for each moiety) precedes the cutting (the felling) of the pine tree (Araucaria augustifolia), which will be used for the konkéi (trough), a container where the beverage which has the name of the ritual – ‘kiki’ (about 70 litres of honey and 250 litres of water) is poured. The second fire (there are four fires, two for each moiety) occurs on the following night and precedes the beginning of the preparation of the konkéi.” ref
“The third fire, the most important stage of the ritual, articulates a greater number of people and events. About two months after the pouring of the beverage into the konkéi, six fires are lit – three of the Kamé and three of the Kairu – parallel to the konkéi. The chanters remain throughout the night around the fires, accompanied by other members of the respective moieties, chanting and praying. During this stage, certain women, the péin, do the facial paintings (with dyes made from the mixture of carbon and water), the purpose of which is to protect the participants from the spirits of the dead of each moiety. It is these women who are prepared to enter into contact with the objects of the dead, without running the risks derived from this act. The chanters from one moiety direct their chants to the dead from the opposite moiety. They pray, sing, and play wind instruments (made of bamboo – turu) and rattles (made of gourds and corn grain – xik-xi). At dawn, the groups leave the dance plaza in the direction of the cemetery, where once again prayers are said for the dead at their tombs. When they return to the dance plaza the groups mix together in dances around the fires. The ritual is concluded with the consumption of the drink, the Kiki.” ref
“The Kikikoi can be defined as an effort by society to ratify the power of the world of the living over the dangers associated with the nearness of the dead. In these efforts the Kaingang articulate themes such as the complementarity of the moieties, naming, the integration of distinct communities, control over territory and the mythological-historical interaction with nature. The great effort demanded in the holding of this ritual, associated with the formal necessity of integrating different communities, means that it is only held on some indigenous lands. Even these days, the holding of the ritual of the Kiki on the Xapecó Indigenous Land depends on the participation of the guests (chanters and dancers) who reside on the Palmas Indigenous Land.” ref
“From the 1940s on, with the intensification of the presence of the Indian Protection Service inside the Kaingang Indigenous Lands, the ritual of the Kiki was gradually abandoned. The “civilizing” pressures condemned both the drinking bouts, which marked the festive stages of the ritual, and the inter-community articulation necessary for the holding of the Kiki. The strongest, or better said, the most visible expression of Kaingang religiosity was strongly combated. Equally combated were the Kaingang shamans, many of whom had their houses burned and were forced to abandon their lands, still in the decades of the 40s and ‘50s. The shamans, whom the Kaingang call Kuiã, demonstrate, as in the Kikkikoi, a deep and dangerous knowledge (dangerous in the eyes of the “civilizers”), a capacity for manipulating the relation between Nature, Culture, and the Supernatural.” ref
“The kuiã (shamans), effectively are not only concerned with curing but also with knowledge, or the capacity to “see and know what’s what” (as one Kaingang from the Rio da Várzea Indigenous Land/RS, said). According to a scholar of Kaingang shamanism Robert Crépeau (1997), the power of the kuiã is acquired through the “companions”or animal guides. To initiate the relation with the ‘animal companion’, someone who wishes to become a kuiã should go to the “virgin forest”, cut palmtree leaves and make recipients where he will put water to attract the ‘companion’. Several days later, the initiant should return to the virgin forest, and he will know which animal drank the prepared water. If he himself drinks and bathes himself with this water he will come to have the animal as ‘companion’and guide. The power of the kuiã depends on the type of ‘animal companion’ that he possesses. The strongest, who have the mig (jaguar, tiger) as guide, will be able to bring people whose spirits have been seduced by the dead back to life, journeying to Numbé (the intermediate place between the world of the living and the world of the dead).” ref
“Besides his curing power, the kuiã develop the capacity to see what is about to happen to those who live in the group. In the case of a struggle between rival groups – an old Kaingang responsible for the present-day organization of the Kiki ritual, explained– the kuiã know when the adversaries are preparing an attack. If the group to be attacked also has a kuiã, he will know that an attack is being prepared, “they converse only amongst themselves, like a telephone”. With their guides or animal ‘companions’, the kuiã thus occupy a strategic position in the organization of the social and political life of the Kaingang communities. The respect the kuiã have for their animal guides is very special. Even though the Kaingang are traditionally hunters, the kuiã cannot hunt these animals.” ref
“Although the activities of the kuiã are not restricted to the domain of curing, this is one of their principal attributes. It is also the animal ‘companions’ who teach the kuiã the treatment of sickness with the ‘forest remedies’. This knowledge is not limited to the activities of the kuiã; many people know the ‘forest remedies’. There are, in effect, numerous categories of knowers of forest remedies, such as : curers, remedy specialists, and midwives according to several researches that have been undertaken (Oliveira, 1996; Haverroth, 1997). As one old kuiã from the Palmas indigenous land(PR) stated, everything that exists in nature is a remedy. The fundamental condition for considering plants to be ‘forest remedies’ is their location in the virgin forest – the ‘remedies of the forest’ cannot be cultivated, being in the forest is the condition for the plant’s maintaining its force and the remedy produced, its efficacy.” ref
Kaingang shamanism, therefore, is an expression of the strict relation that these Indians conceive as existing between society, nature, and the supernatural. The shaman is a mediator who acts in the relations between the domains of the supernatural and the natural, and his reputation is especially built on his skills in curing and his capacity to see and know.” ref
“Kaingang ceramics is comprised of pots made of clay in various sizes and shapes. The archaeological remains of the ancestors of the southern Jê may be seen in ceramics and lithic industry for food processing. They also utilized lithic artifacts such as handgrinders made of stone (or pestles), crude or polished stone axes, choppers, scrapers, and shards which were utilized in activities such as the felling of trees, the opening of clearings, gathering of honey and palm cabbage, in agriculture, for gathering edible insects, in the building of shelters and scaffolding for hunting platforms. The woven objects reveal graphic forms and shapes related to the dualist cosmology of the Kaingang, providing evidence for the symbolic organization of the social, natural, and supernatural worlds in the two halves, kamé and kairu. Téi or ror are the names for the marks (ra) or graphic forms (kong gãr) that identify, respectively, the moieties kamé and kairu.” ref
“As a general rule, graphic forms, morphologies, and positions/spaces considered as lines, long, high, open are called téi and represent the moiety kamé. On the other hand, the graphic forms, morphologies, and positions/spaces seen as rounded, quadrangular, diamond-shaped, low, closed, are called ror and represent the moiety kairu. Several graphic forms, however, can present a fusion of the téi and ror patterns and are called ianhiá (mixed mark) and appeared on the nettle mantles (kurã; kurú) of some chiefs, on the trunks of pine trees which marked the limits of the territories for gathering pine nuts of each local group, on the arrows of several chiefs and even on the body paintings.” ref
“Kaingang graphic art also appears on the Southern Proto-Jê rock paintings and archaeological ceramics. For Baptista da Silva, the most fundamental and important connection for the perception of this system of visual representations is that which links the graphic forms of archaeological ceramics (recognized as Proto-Jê of the South) with the rock art of Southern Brazil, making it possible to compare the set thus formed with the historical graphic art of the Southern Jê societies. Such a comparison is fully possible in relation to the Kaingang. As for the Xokleng, it is partially possible.” ref
Ticuna People
“The Ticuna (also Magüta, Tucuna, Tikuna, or Tukuna) are an indigenous people of Brazil (36,000), Colombia (6,000), and Peru (7,000). They are the most numerous tribe in the Brazilian Amazon. The Ticuna were originally a tribe that lived far away from the rivers and whose expansion was kept in check by neighboring people. Their historical lack of access to waterways and their practice of endogamy has led to the Ticuna being culturally and genetically distinct from other Amazonian tribes.” ref
“Ticuna people speak the Ticuna language, which is usually identified as a language isolate, although it might possibly be related to the extinct Yuri language thus forming the hypothetical Ticuna–Yuri grouping. The Ticuna language was once thought to be an Arawakan language, but this has now been discredited as more likely the Ticuna have adopted many linguistic features due to a long history of interaction with Arawakan-speaking tribes.” ref
“The Ticuna follow the rules of exogamy, in which members of the same moiety are not permitted to marry. In the past, it was common practice for a maternal uncle to marry his niece. Today, however, marriage generally occurs within the same generation. Due to the influence of Catholic missionaries, cross-cousin marriages and polygyny, which were acceptable and common in the past, are no longer viewed as permissible practices. Divorce is permissible, but infrequent.” ref
“The name “Ticuna” is apparently of foreign origin; perhaps it comes from the Tupí, “Taco-una,” which means “men painted black” or “black skins.” This name was given them by their neighbors because formerly the Ticuna often painted their bodies black with genipapo (Genipa Americana) juice. In their daily conversations the Ticuna call themselves “Due’e,” which means “people.” Formerly, the Ticuna occupied the headwaters and central courses of small tributaries on the left side of the Amazon River and its headwaters, which flow into the Putumayo, from 71°15′ to 68°40′ W. In 1990s, their territory covers areas of Peru, Colombia, and Brazil. Most of the Ticuna live near the Amazon.” ref
“According to their creation myth, the Ticuna originated in the Eware ravine, near the Colombian-Brazilian border. Formerly the left bank of the Amazon, as well as its islands, were occupied by the Omagua, who were the enemies of the Ticuna. The banks of the Río Putumayo were inhabited by Arawak, Mariaté, Yumana, and Pasé Indians, who had become almost completely extinct by the middle of the ninteenth century. To the west of the Ticuna lived the Peba and the Yagua; the latter are still their neighbors.” ref
“Formerly, the Ticuna lived in communal houses that were removed from each other and located in the middle of the jungle, in the area called terra firme, that is, on land above the flood line. The houses were large, had an oval floor plan, and a central section in which ceremonies were held. They accommodated various nuclear families. Communication between the houses was by way of foot trails. River navigation was of little significance. Later the communal houses were gradually replaced by rectangular houses with two-sided roofs and no walls. The new houses stood dispersed in the periodically inundated Amazon River area and were occupied by nuclear families. Both the change in settlement, from terra firme to land subject to flooding, and the substitution of one-family houses for communal houses, have substantially transformed the Ticuna way of life. The Indians have learned how to make good canoes, have adopted new techniques for fishing in large rivers, and have acquired new cultivation practices.” ref
“The Ticuna are horticulturists, fishermen, hunters, gatherers, and traders. Which activities are more important for their diet depends in great measure on the location of their settlements. The subsistence of those who live in the middle of the forest is based on horticulture, fishing, and gathering, whereas the others depend more on horticulture, fishing, and trade. Shifting horticulture is practiced by the slash-and-burn method. The main products are sweet and bitter manioc, maize, various kinds of bananas and plantains, and fruit trees. For hunting, firearms and, to a lesser degree, blowguns are used. Mammals are more important sources of food than birds or reptiles because of the amount of meat they supply. Fishing is the main source of animal protein, and surplus fish are sold to the non-Indian population. Most of the fruit gathered is consumed by the children. The Ticuna also collect beetle larvae and ants.” ref
“Men are in charge of getting animal protein (fish and game) and clearing the forest for cultivation. Women gather wild fruit, plant, and prepare the food and drink. Construction of houses and the production of hunting and fishing gear and musical instruments are male activities. Men also make wooden sculptures and ritual masks, whereas women make cordage, baskets, and pots. Some young men work as lumberjacks and ranch hands, and some women work as domestic servants. According to Roberto Cardoso de Oliveira (1961, 22), the Ticuna have Dakota-type social organization.” ref
“Ticuna society is organized in clans and moieties that govern daily behavior. Clans are identified by specific names of birds, insects, mammals, and plants. Clans that are identified by a bird’s name constitute one moiety, the Feather people, and all the others form the second moiety, the Non-Feather people. Previously the personal names of Ticuna were emblematic of the clan to which they belonged. This custom is weakening. In 1990s, relations between Ticuna women and White men have resulted in individuals who do not have a clan. Despite the effects of contact, however, clan and moiety are still the basis of Ticuna identity.” ref
“The basic rule governing moieties is based on moiety exogamy. Marriage must take place between members of different moieties. Formerly, the preferred form of marriage was for the maternal uncle to marry his niece. The most common form of marriage in 1990s is between people of the same generation. Cross-cousin marriage, which was permissible under traditional rules, is considered incestuous by the Catholic missionaries. Also, polygyny, which was practiced frequently in former times (a man could be married to several women, who were generally sisters), has now given way to monogamy. Children belong to their father’s clan. In times past, residence tended to be uxorilocal; now it is neolocal. Divorce is infrequent among the Ticuna.” ref
“Ticuna society is divided into two unnamed exogamic moieties (a person can only marry with a member of the other moiety), each of which is composed of clans. These patrilineal clan groups (where clan belonging is transmitted from father to son) are recognized by a name general to all of them, kï´a. In Portuguese, the Indians translate the term as ‘nação,’, or nation. The set of clans or nations identified by names of birds forms one moiety, while the others, identified by names of plants, form the other. Even the Jaguar and Leafcutter Ant clans (see the table below), a mammal and an insect, are associated with the ‘Plant’ moiety for reasons described in Ticuna mythology. Being a member of a clan confers the individual with a social position, without which he or she would not be recognized as Ticuna. Each Ticuna clan is constituted by other units, the subclans. In this social system, each individual belongs simultaneously and necessarily to various social units (exogamic moiety, clan, and subclan), with each level nested in the others.” ref
“The naming mechanism integral to the system allows an individual’s social belonging to be clearly identified. A man’s name – such as kvai´tats´inï(n)-kï, for example, which means ‘macaw flapping wings while perched’ and which refers to one of the qualities of the macaw (which names the clan), more specifically the red macaw (which names the subclan) – makes up part of the repertoire of proper names available to the members of each clan group. Thus the simple enunciation of a name allows its owner to be classified as a member of a certain clan and subclan and of one of the moieties.” ref
“We can note, therefore, that the Ticuna clan system contains the following nested sequence of classes: name-quality of the eponym (which provides the clan name; for example, the macaw) – subclan –clan – moiety. Transformed into signs, the clan eponyms provide a kind of code, an important plane of reference for social behavior. Hence by pronouncing the name kvai´tats´inï(n)-kï, as in the example given above, the individual’s belonging to a certain clan is affirmed, which precludes him or her from marrying not only people from their own clan, but also those from their moiety. In counterpart, those individuals who are classified as members of the opposite moiety become potential spouses, giving rise to the moiety exogamy characteristic of the Ticuna.” ref
“Here we can introduce an observation that helps elucidate the mythic foundations of Ticuna dualism. We have referred to the role of Yo´i as the creator of the clan organization. One of the myths collected by Nimuendajú relates that Yo´i and Ipi, the cultural heroes, after they had fished a large number of people from the river (the recently created Ticuna), were unable to distinguish them due to an absence of any classification. “But Yo´i separated them, placing his own people to the east and those of Ipi to the west. Then he told them to cook a jacururu (white-eared puffbird) and obliged everyone to drink the cooking broth. In this way, each person discovered to which clan he or she belonged, and Yo´i told the members of the two groups to marry each other” (Nimuendajú, 1952: 129-30). As can be seen, the myth explicates the Ticuna moiety exogamy.” ref
“In the anthropological study of kinship, a moiety (/ˈmɔɪəti/) is a descent group that coexists with only one other descent group within a society. In such cases, the community usually has unilineal descent (either patri- or matrilineal) so that any individual belongs to one of the two moiety groups by birth, and all marriages take place between members of opposite moieties. It is an exogamous clan system with only two clans. In the case of a patrilineal descent system, one can interpret a moiety system as one in which women are exchanged between the two moieties. Moiety societies operate particularly among the indigenous peoples of North America, Australia (see Australian Aboriginal kinship for details of Aboriginal moieties), and Indonesia.” ref
“In the past, the chiefs of local groups were the heads of large families and were endowed with magical powers, intelligence, and ability to deal with strangers. One of their roles was that of counselor. These traditional chiefs were replaced, through contact with the Whites, by taxáuas in Brazil and by curaca in Peru and Colombia. They became mere figureheads who were manipulated by the group. Now village chiefs are called captain in Brazil and curaca in the other two countries. Their role is that of spokesmen vis-à-vis official authorities, mediators between their own community and others, and organizers of collective work. Efforts are being made to establish paramount authorities, one in Brazil and one in Colombia.” ref
“The shamanic institution among the Ticuna is disappearing because of interference of Catholics and Protestants. The greatest fear, however, lies in the possible retaliation by supernatural powers against those who break the law, especially the rules against incest. Until the middle of the twentieth century, the punishment for incest was death. If there is a homicide by sorcery and the guilty party has been identified, it will be incumbent upon the dead person’s relatives to avenge the murder. The Ticuna judicial system has been modified in many ways, and in certain cases its operation is left to others.” ref
“Ancient religion, some portion of which remains, teaches that the world is controlled by spirits and forces that determine the course of events. Both Portuguese and Spanish missionaries began their evangelical work during the first centuries of discovery and conquest, so the majority of Ticuna are now Catholic. Since the beginning of the twentieth century, there have been various messianic movements. Ta’e is the divinity who inhabits the World Above, and who gives the Ticuna their souls. The most important mythical beings are the Yo’i and Ipi, two brothers who function as culture heroes and who confront several demons of the Intermediate World and the World Below. Nutapa was the first man, from whom the mythical brothers and their sisters were born. Me’tare was a powerful shaman who conducted the first female initiation ceremony.” ref
“For the Ticuna there are two kinds of beings: mortal and immortal. Immortals do not die because of any inherent qualities of theirs, but because they go to enchanted places where life is eternal. Although the location of these places is known to the living, nobody can reach them because of their inaccessibility. The souls of the mortals, of which there are two, just as in the case of the immortals, set out in different directions at the moment of death: one goes to the World Above, while the other one remains roaming around the place where the dead person lived.” ref
“The Ticuna are the most numerous people in Brazilian Amazonia. According to Ticuna oral tradition, it was Yo´i [one of the principal culture heroes] who fished the first Ticuna from the red waters of the Eware creek (close to the springs of the São Jerônimo river). These were the Magüta (literally, ‘group of people fished with a rod´;’ from the verb magü, ‘fish with a rod,’, and the collectivizing suffix -ta), who first lived near to the house of Yo´i, on Taiwegine mountain. Even today, this is a sacred location for the Ticuna, the place where some of the immortals reside and where the material remains of their beliefs are to be found (such as the remains of the house or the fishing rod used by Yo´i).” ref
“According to their myths, the Ticuna originally came from the Eware creek, situated on the springs of the São Jerônimo (Tonatü) creek, an affluent of the left shore of the Solimões (Amazon) river on the section between Tabatinga and São Paulo de Olivença. Even today this is the area with the highest concentration of Ticuna, where 42 of the current 59 villages are situated.” This people lived on the upper courses of the left-shore affluents of the Solimões, on the section where the latter enters Brazilian territory as far as the Içá/Putumayo river. There was a large exodus towards the Solimões.” ref
“In accounts of the past, warfare and rivalry appear to constitute essential dimensions of Ticuna existence. Even today the Indians talk extensively about the wars between the different ‘nations,’, stating that the attacks between the groups were frequent with many deaths on both sides. Older people looks to display their displeasure with these aspects of the past, comparing the tranquil coexistence of contemporary life in the villages with the fear and bellicosity of the time of their grandfathers. Cardoso de Oliveira also mentions reports of these conflicts and wars between the nations (patrilineal clan groups).” ref
“Using contemporary accounts, we can establish that all the people living in the same maloca submitted to the same code of authority, which provided for the existence of just two specialized roles, the tó-ü and the yuücü. The leadership exercised by the tó-ü was restricted to a narrow range of contexts. The best translation would be that of a war leader or chief. Each nation had just one chief, who commanded everyone when defending or attacking another nation. The basis for his recognition as a chief “was that he defended the settlements, defended them from the enemies”. This figure could also be called by the name daru, as well as the usual tó-ü.” ref
“Due to his specialized function and his excessive strength, the tó-ü could not work in the swidden or fish: “he could not waste his strength on what just anyone could do (…) the others did everything for him.”. His strength was such that any ordinary activity was doomed to failure: “he would grab a machete to clear some forest and he would strike with such force that the machete would break.” The word itself, tó-ü, used to designate this military chief is also used to refer to the ka’apor capuchin monkey, an animal greatly admired by the Ticuna for its great agility, making it very difficult to catch or take by surprise.” ref
“Informants also distinguish the tó-ü, as an element from their own tradition, from other titles used by the whites to establish chiefs among any Indian groups:
“The tó-ü was the real chief of the Ticuna, the true one… The tuxaua was not part of Ticuna tradition. He was a chief of the Indians, like the Mayoruna or other peoples have too.” ref
“In other accounts, the description of the tó-ü as the protector of the people of his nation comes strongly to the foreground, making clear that his function was not only exercised in war, but also in the daily lives of malocas isolated in the forest, maintaining rivalries with other nations. Because of his defence or affirmation of the group at crucial moments, the tó-ü was undoubtedly closely identified with his nation – an important symbol and factor of this unity. The yuücü on the other hand (currently the terms employed are yuücü for the sorcerer and ngetacü for the shaman) exert strictly private and personal functions and are not identified with the group with the same intensity as the tó-ü. In addition, each nation may have more than one shaman or sorcerer, each possessing a different level of prestige and being attributed with distinct levels of effectiveness.” ref
“At all events, the shamans also took part in these wars and conflicts. Generally, the transfer of a group from one location to another is explained as the search for “a beautiful place to live,” a move associated with the fear of the sicknesses sent by the yuücü, as well as the need to flee from epidemics and floods. Nimuendajú writes that a good shaman is capable of using magic to protect his group of epidemics, announced by a green-tinged halo around the sun. Likewise, there was no rigid correlation between a given nation and a certain territory. The borders of a group’s hunting, fishing, and resource gathering areas oscillated frequently, depending on the pressures exerted by other clans over the same areas. However, there exist some sites that were not occupied or claimed by any of the nations, although they were (and are) unanimously recognized as points of origin of all the Ticuna. This is the case of the Taiwegüne mountain and the Eware creek, both situated on the upper São Jerônimo river. Usually, though, the rights of a nation to a certain territory were linked to the existence of a real (and changeable) occupation, derived from the need to use the area effectively, as well as the military commitment and capacity to maintain these limits.” ref
“Pottery making is an ideally female task, though men also produce ceramics. Another surface that enables the pleasure of designing and colouring objects are the screens made from the bark of certain species of fig tree, or tururi as they are called regionally. The tururi, also the name given to this type of screen, is a recent invention and emerged from the re-application of techniques and raw materials traditionally used in the manufacture of masks. The tururis are painted exclusively for sale. The recognized specialists in the art of painting the tururi are men, most of them young or middle-aged. The list of designed figures is infinite. There is a clear preference for depictions of animals (jaguars, turtles, snakes, butterflies, tapirs, caymans and various species of birds and fishes), which in some cases are combined with floral elements or anthropomorphic figures.” ref
“In the ritual sphere, the surfaces most representative of the graphic arts are the masks, shields, outside walls of the shelter in which young woman stay in reclusion, and the body. In fabricating the masks, the Ticuna use as the basic raw material the inner bark of certain trees and the decorative motifs may cover the entire surface. On the upper part or ‘head,’ the decorations serves to highlight the features of the supernatural entity, though the largest number of designs are found on the bark covering the body. Manufacture and use of the masks are a male activity. Men are also responsible for making most of the ritual objects, such as some of the adornments of the worecü initiate, musical instruments, the reclusion shelter, the sculpted dance sticks and so on.” ref
“Face painting, on the other hand, can be undertaken by either sex and is used today solely during rituals by all participants, including children. This painting, applied on the first day of the festival using genipap, has the social function of identifying the clan or nation, as the Ticuna say, of each person. It is possible to detect various natural elements on some of the facial decorations, representing the animals and plants that give name to the clans. As well as the social function of specifying one’s clan, painting oneself during the festival is a social obligation. The body painting of initiated young people and children, follows rigidly established norms.” ref
Xavante People
“The Xavante (also Shavante, Chavante, Akuen, A’uwe, Akwe, Awen, or Akwen) are an indigenous people, comprising about 30,000 individuals within the territory of eastern Mato Grosso state in Brazil. They speak the Xavante language, part of the Jê language family. A 2015 genetic study reached a surprising conclusion about the origins of the Xavante people. Unlike other Native American peoples, the Paiter-Surui, Karitiana, and Xavante have an ancestry partially related to indigenous Australasian populations of the Andaman Islands, New Guinea, and Australia. Scientists speculate that the relationship derives from an earlier people, called “Population Y“, in East Asia from whence both groups diverged 15,000 to 30,000 years ago, the future Australasians migrating south and the remote ancestors of the Xavante northward finding their way to the New World and to the interior Amazon Basin.” ref
“The people may be most famous for their dualistic societal structure. Two clans, the Âwawẽ and Po’reza’õno compose the culture, and marriage is not allowed between members of the same clan. An example of inter-clan relationships are the traditional log races, where the two clans compete in a race to carry palm tree trunks weighing as much as 80 kg to a defined point. The Xavante are also known for their complex initiation rituals for young males, such as when small wooden sticks are inserted in the earlobes at the age of fourteen. As time passes, the size of these adornments is increased for the rest of their lives.” ref
“The old Xavante told dramatic stories about the separation of their people from the Xerente. In one of these versions, a huge dolphin reared up in the middle of the Araguaia, blocking the river and terrifying the “relatives” who had not yet crossed over. Another version talked of a large number of dolphins who carried the Xavante across the turbulent waters of the Araguaia. In both stories those who remained behind on the east bank of the river were abandoned forever. They were, according to the old people, the ancestors of the people who are today known as the Xerente. Once they had crossed the Araguaia, the Xavante established themselves in the region of the Roncador mountains, in what is today the state of Mato Grosso. Their original community,Tsõrepre, went through various cisions over the years.” ref
“The Xavante- who call themselves the A´uwe (people ) – together with the Xerente, who call themselves the Akwe, and live in the state of Tocantins, make up an ethnolinguistic group known in anthropological literature as Acuen, belonging to the Jê linguistic family. of the Macro- Jê trunk. The traditional basic diet consists of products collected mostly by the women: wild roots, nuts, fruit, and other vegetables. Collecting is supplemented by the men’s contribution from hunting and fishing. Game and fish provide proteins and can be preserved by smoking. The Xavante obtained these foods on hunting and collecting excursions: long trips, sometimes lasting months, made by groups of extended families. In the dry season, the groups of travelers met in large semi-permanent villages to hold their ceremonial activities.” ref
“This pattern of occupation, involving prolonged excursions, meant that the territory needed by the Xavantes for their subsistence stretched over an area which they could explore during the entire year. On these expeditions, the territory of each group was explored separately by the social segments made up of the households which were most closely linked by kinship. They communicated by means of smoke signals, so they could all meet together at the end of the expedition. Each day they camped to rest. The camps were a miniature version of the base village, the houses being disposed like a horseshoe, and in the distribution of the domestic groups inside.” ref
“Game has a prominent place in the diet and in social life. For the men, hunting is not only an important economic duty but a mark of male capacity, as it demands qualities of physical resistance, speed, agility, vigilance and agressivity. It is a central component of some ceremonies, like the Wai’a, and marriage celebrations, when the men go out on long hunts.” ref
Krenak People
“The Krenak or Borun are the last of the Botocudo do Leste (Eastern Botocudo), name given by the Portuguese in the end of the 18th Century to the groups that wore plugs in the ears and lips. They are also known as Aimoré, the name given to them by the Tupi, and as Grén or Krén, their self-denomination. The Krenak belong to the linguistic group Macro-Jê, and speak a language called Borun.” ref
“At the time of contact, the Krenak were predominantly semi-nomadic hunters and gatherers, and their social organization was characterized by the constant fractioning of the group and by the labor division established along sex and age lines. Their religious system was centered in the figures of the Marét and on the enchanted spirits of their dead, the Nanitiong, who were responsible for the fecundation of the women and for announcing deaths. The Marét, who inhabit superior levels, were the great organizers of natural phenomena; among them, the most important was the Marét-khamaknian, the hero who created Man and the World, a benevolent being who was the civilizer of mankind.” ref
“Other entities of the Botocudo religious pantheon were the spirits of nature – the Tokón. They were responsible for choosing their intermediaries on Earth, the shamans, with whom they had contact during the rituals and who, almost always, were the political leaders of the group as well. There were also the souls, spirits that inhabited the bodies of humans and were acquired usually when the child turned 4-years old and had the first lip and ear plugs placed. The main soul left the body during sleep, and when it got lost the person became ill; before a person died, his/her main soul died inside the body. The other six souls that inhabited the body followed the corpse to the tomb, crying while floating above it. They were invisible to the community members present in the burial ceremony.” ref
“If their needs for nourishment and light were not met, these complementary souls could become jaguars and threaten the village, because, if they did not eat, they would starve to death. A few years after the person’s death, good spirits would come from the superior level to take them to their space, from which they would not come back. From the bones of the dead there appeared spirits that would live in the underworld, which is where the sun shines while it’s dark on the Earth. These were large, evil, black spirits that wandered in the village attacking the living, especially the women, digging up the dead, frightening everyone by hitting hard on the ground and beating up animals until killing them. The victims defended themselves by trying to beat these spirits and avoiding going out at night.” ref
Karaja People
“The name of this people in their own language is Iny, meaning ‘us.’ The name Karajá is not an original auto-denomination. Rather, it is a Tupi name that can be roughly translated as ‘large monkey.’ According to the linguist Aryon dall’Igna Rodrigues, the Karajá family belongs to the Macro-Gê linguistic trunk and divides into three languages: Karajá, Javaé and Xambioá. Each of these possesses distinctive forms of speech depending on the sex of the speaker. But despite these differences everyone understands each other.” ref
“Historical studies tell us that the Karajá were once at war with other indigenous peoples such as the Kayapó, Tapirapé, Xavante, Xerente, Avá-Canoeiro and, less frequently, the Bororo and Apinayé, as they sought to protect their territory. This contact led to an exchange of cultural practices between the Karajá, Tapirapé and Xikrin (Kayapó). Among the Karajá, the birth of a child is marked socially by the teknonymy rule: the parents cease to be called by their own names and become known as x’s father or x’s mother. In the man’s case, the new father enters another male grade. The man is taken to be responsible for fertilization. Various copulations are needed to form the child gradually in the mother’s womb, which is considered simply a receptacle. After birth, the new-born is washed with warm water and painted with red annatto dye.” ref
“During infancy the child’s time is spent mostly with its mother or grandmothers. However, the difference between the sexes becomes more evident when the boy reaches the age of seven or eight and has his lower lip pierced with howler monkey bone. Later – when he reaches an age range between ten and twelve years – the boy takes part in a large male initiation festival called Hetohoky or Big House. The boys are painted with bluish-black genipap and remain confined for seven days in a ritual house called the Big House. Their hair is cut and the boy is called jyre or giant river otter. During her first menstrual period, the girl is looked after by her maternal grandmother and remains confined in isolation. Her public re-appearance, when she is elaborately decorated with painted body designs and feather adornments in order to dance with the Aruanãs, is highly esteemed by men.” ref
“Ideally, a marriage is arranged by the couple’s grandmothers, preferably from the same village, once the young spouses are able to have sexual relations. However, the most common marriage simply involves the boy going to the girl’s house, an event which may be precipitated if one of her male kinsfolk surprises the couple during a secret encounter. Once married, the man goes to live in his wife’s mother’s house following the matrilocal rule. When the family becomes numerous, the couple constructs their own house as an annex to the house they left, spatially manifesting the extended family. Thus, the oldest woman assumes a central role within the domestic unit, while a man as he becomes older loses his political prestige in the men’s plaza, though in compensation he becomes a focus of spiritual power, normally performing shamanic activities.” ref
“The Karajá establish a large social division between the genders, socially defining the roles of men and women as foreseen in myths. Men are responsible for defending the territory, clearing swiddens, domestic and collective fishing trips, the construction of dwellings, formalized political discussions in the Aruanã House or the men’s plaza, negotiations with non-indigenous Brazilian society and the performance of the principal ritual activities, since they are equated symbolically with the important category of the dead.” ref
“Women are responsible for the education of children until the age of initiation for boys and in a permanent way for girls, focusing here on domestic tasks such as cooking, collecting swidden products, arranging the marriage of children (normally managed by grandmothers), the painting and decoration of children, girls and men during the group’s rituals, and the manufacture of ceramic dolls, which became an important source of family income in the aftermath of contact. On the ritual plane, women are responsible for the preparation of foods for the main festivals and for the affective memory of the village, which is expressed through ritual wailing of a special form when someone becomes ill or dies.” ref
“The Karajá prefer monogamy and divorce is censured by the group. If a married man’s infidelity becomes public, the male kinsfolk of the abandoned woman strike the offending man in front of the entire village in dramatic fashion – an event which can rapidly escalate by provoking heated exchanges between the involved domestic groups: this may even result in the burning of the house of the offending husband’s family. Women with a public sexual life, once married and with their own domestic units, cease to be exposed to the community’s disapproving comments, since starting a family is an important cultural aspect for the Karajá.” ref
“The village is the basic unit of social and political organization. Decision making is made by male members of the extended families, who discuss their positions in the Aruanã House. Factional rivalry between groups of men disputing political power in the village is common. As a result of contact, one of the village’s men is elected ‘chief’ and is held responsible for tackling political issues with external agents, such as FUNAI, universities, NGOs, state governments and so on.” ref
“The Karajá also have an intriguing chiefdom which in the past seems to have had two functions: one ritual, the other social. A child – male or female – was chosen by the ritual chief from among those related to him on his paternal side to be educated as his successor. Today, both the ritual chief and the chosen child still receive the same indigenous names: ióló and deridu. Political disputes between villages are also common, but maintaining solidarity between them – motivated in the past by wars against other ethnic groups and nowadays by the struggles to demarcate their lands and remove illegal land squatters and farmers from the Ilha do Bananal – is reinforced by the rituals which stimulate and celebrate the meetings between villages.” ref
“Karajá material culture includes house building techniques, cotton weaving, feather decorations, and artifacts made from straw, wood, minerals, shell, gourds, tree bark, and pottery. Body painting is symbolically important to the group. During puberty, adolescents of both sexes used to receive omarura, and two circles tattooed on their faces: a mixture of genipap and charcoal soot was applied to the blood-covered face cut with payara fish teeth. In response to the prejudice of populations in riverside towns such as São Félix do Araguaia, adolescents nowadays just paint the two circles during the ritual period. Body painting is undertaken by women. Men are painted with different designs, depending on their age grades, using genipap juice, charcoal soot, and annatto dye. Some of the more common patterns are black stripes and bands on the arms and legs. The hands, feet, and face are painted with a small number of designs representing natural species, especially fauna.” ref
“Feather decorations are very elaborate and possess a direct relationship to rituals. Now that macaw parrots – highly prized birds for the Karajá – are more difficult to capture, the variations previously seen in this art form have decreased, leaving only a few decorations such as the lori lori and aheto designs, widely used in the boys’ initiation ritual. The Karajá origin myth tells that they used to live in a village at the bottom of the river, where they lived and formed the community of the Berahatxi Mahadu, or the underwater people. Fat and content, they inhabited a cold and confined space. Interested in finding out about the surface world, a young Karajá man found a passage, inysedena, the place of our people’s mother in the Ilha do Bananal. Fascinated by the beaches and abundance of the Araguaia River and by the existence of so much space to wander and live in, the youth summoned other Karajá, and they ascended to the surface.” ref
“Some time later they met sickness and death. They tried to return, but the passage was blocked and guarded by a giant snake at the orders of Koboi, chief of the underwater people. So they decided to spread out up and downriver along the Araguaia. Through the mythological hero Kynyxiwe who loved among them, they came to know about fish and many other good things of the Araguaia. After many adventures, the hero married a young Karajá woman and went to live in the village in the sky, whose people, the Biu Mahadu, taught the Karajá how to make swiddens.” ref
“There is a symbolic correspondence between the vertical distribution of the above mentioned mythic peoples and the actual Karajá villages along the Araguaia river valley. The Xambioá are the Iraru Mahadu, the Downriver People, to the north of the Araguaia. The Karajá on the southern tip of the island and the Aruanã are some of the representatives of the Upriver People, or Ibóó Mahadu, while the Javaé according to some authors are the Midriver People or Itua Mahadu. This distribution of the Karajá villages along the Araguaia also corresponds to the distribution of houses in a single village, such as Santa Isabel for example, whose houses form two straight parallel lines. If we imagine these two parallel lines of houses cut by two transversal lines, three segments are formed: the upper houses (upriver), the middle houses, and the lower houses (downriver).” ref
“In the male initiation ritual, known as Hetohoky or Big House, the men also divide into high, low and middle men: equally, the spatial layout of the ritual houses involves the small house (downriver), the big house (upriver) and the Aruanã house, which is always located in the middle of the other two. The locations of Karajá villages possess a rationale for being at a particular spot in relation to the Araguaia, mirroring the layout of the dwelling houses, the cemeteries, the ritual houses, each following a specific Karajá cultural symbolism.” ref
“Myths approach highly diverse themes such as (among many others): the origin, extermination, and resumption of the Karajá, the origin of agriculture, deer and tobacco, the origin of rain, the origin of the sun and moon, the Aruanã origin myth, the warrior women, and the origin of Whites. Normally, these myths are associated with rituals and social themes, such as gender roles, marriage, shamanism and political power, illness and death, kinship, swiddens, and/or fishing trips.” ref
“The Karajá ritual structure is based around two major rituals: the male initiation rite (the Hetohoky), and the Aruanã Festival. These follow annual cycles based on the rise and fall of the Araguaia river level. The many smaller rites include collective fishing with timbó poison, the honey festival, the fish festival, as well as numerous others interspersed in the main Aruanã and Hetohoky rituals.” ref
Bororo People
“The Bororo are indigenous people of Brazil, living in the state of Mato Grosso. They also extended into Bolivia and the Brazilian state of Goiás. The Bororo, whose name means “village court” in their language, are also known as the Araés, Araripoconé, Boe, Coroados, Coxiponé, Cuiabá, and Porrudos people. The Bororo people speak Bororo Proper, which belongs to the Bororo language family in the Macro-Ge language family.” ref
“The Bororo are a small people in the Amazon rainforest living in the southwest of the Brazilian region of Mato Grosso. The literal translation of the word “boror” is “village courtyard“. It’s no coincidence that Bororo’s homes are traditionally arranged in a circle that will be a kind of spatiotis or patio for them, which will act as the main space of Bororo’s life. This square, if so called, is so important that it has given the same name to this group of people as it is within that typical courtyard that the Bororo people concentrate most of the social phenomena and spirit-Religious. In the complex social organization of Bororo, the classification of individuals is governed by several number of factors including clan membership, blood descent, and group of residence (referring to where a family lives in the village). This last detail is important because in the spatial distribution of homes each clan occupies a precise role. The aldeia (village) is divided into two exogamic half-Exerae and Tugarége-each divided into four clans, consisting of several families.” ref
“A curious aspect for a people that may sometimes seem primitive is that woman has a very particular role in the concept of Bororo society, and indeed the rule of the offspring predicts that this is matriarchal, and that the infant then receives a name that Join the mother clan. The importance of these rules is also noted in marriage. After a Bororo wedding, the man will have to live in the house of his bride and will also have obligations to his family, such as fishing, hunting, working and, if necessary, making ornamental items for his bride’s brother. Although it seems that man is totally devoted and devoted entirely to his wife after marriage, it is this complexity of conjugal relationships that is the cause of frequent separations, making it possible for a man to live in multiple homes throughout his life. Despite everything that has so far been explained, it may lead to thinking that the husband’s obligations to his wife are at the top of the pyramid because of their importance, another truth of the Bororo culture is that a man always maintains a bond with his much more important family Of what binds her to her bride.” ref
“It is true that an adult male, although married, maintains a number of obligations to the women of his family, namely his sisters. For example, it is their custom that a man is more concerned with his grandchildren, “iwagedu” in Bororo, than his own children; The only obligation of a father to his children is to banish them, a physical and non-cultural obligation. The complex organization of their lives also reflects on how one lives in the home. In fact, although two families of different nuclei (having blood ties even outside that exact space) live under the same roof, they can divide the interior spaces of the house; It is not by chance that the ends of the house are more private areas where you can put this division into practice, and the center of the house is a shared space devoted to visits, small daily rituals, and eating meals. The Bororo home is usually left with doors and windows open to allow it to be able to control what is inside (in the center), except when rituals are held inside which women cannot attend or during mourning. One last interesting thing to consider is that, in mourning, the house becomes a space between the domestic domain and the public-legal domain (as Sylvia Caiuby Novaes observes) since the end of funerals must be destroyed after it has been completely empty throughout the mourning period.” ref
“Totemism: Lucien Lévy-Bruhl quotes Karl von den Steinen (1894) and comments: “The Trumai (a tribe of northern Brazil) say that they are aquatic animals. The Bororo (neighboring tribe) boast of being araras red). ‘This does not only mean that after their death they become araras, nor that the araras are metamorphosed Bororó, and must be treated as such. Den Steinen, who did not want to believe it, but who had to surrender to their formal assertion, the Bororó coldly say that they are now araras, exactly as if a caterpillar said it was a butterfly. It is not a name they give; it is not a relationship they proclaim. What they want to convey is an essential identity … For a mentality governed by the law of participation, there is no difficulty there. All societies of the totemic form include collective representations of the same kind, implying a similar identity between the individuals of a totemic group and their totem.” ref
“Among the Bororo the political unit is the village (Boe Ewa), formed by a group of houses built on a circle, with the men’s house (Baito) at the center. West of the Baito is the ceremonial court, called Bororo, where the society’s most important ceremonies are held. Even in the villages where the houses are disposed in a linear way because of the influence of missionaries or of government agents, the village circularity is considered the ideal representation of the social space and of the cosmological universe. In the complex Bororo social organization individuals are classified according to their clan, their lineage and their residential group. Descent among the bororo is matrilineal; thus the newborn receives a name that will identify him/her to his/her mother’s clan. However, although that is the ideal norm of conduct, in practice this may be manipulated in order to satisfy other interests.” ref
“In the spatial distribution of the houses around the village circle each clan occupies a specific place. The village is divided into two exogamic halves – Exerae and Tugarége -, each of them subdivided into four main clans, which are composed of several lineages. There is a hierarchy among lineages manifested in categories such as larger/smaller, more important/less important/ older brother/younger brother. People who belong to the same clan but to hierarchically different lineages are not supposed to live in the same house.” ref
“In the traditional political structure, three powers can be identified: the Boe eimejera, who is the chief of war, of the village and of the ceremonial; the Bári, who is the shaman of the spirits and of nature; and the Aroe Etawarare, who is the shaman of the souls of the dead. Here is a classic model of a Bororo village, with the divisions into two exogamous and clan halves, with each clan’s great heroes and chiefs. Usually two or three nuclear families live in each village house. Residential groups are uxorilocal, a rule according to which a man who gets married is supposed to move into his wife’s house but continues to be a member of his old lineage. For that reason, in one given house there can live people from different social categories, clans and lineages. Marriage among the Bororo is rather unstable and there is a high rate of separations, so a man may live in several houses along his life.” ref
“In general, the ties of an individual with his original group are stronger than those with his wife’s group, despite the fact that he has a more intense contact with the latter’s members and owes them obligations such as hunting and fishing for them, working on his father-in-law’s field and making ornaments for his wife’s brother. But such activities, claims Novaes, only mark physically his presence in the group. Regarding his original group, however, the man is in charge of taking care of his sisters’ future, and it is through them that he projects himself socially. It is to his sisters’ children – his iwagedu – and not to his own that a man passes on his names and the ritual rules associated with them.” ref
“Besides, even though he lives away from home, the man has the responsibility for the cultural heritage of his group of origin and represents it in the ritual activities: chanting, dancing and manufacturing of ornaments, as well as specific ritual services. Regarding his own children, he is in charge of their physical survival, but it is the responsibility of his brother-in-law, his wife’s brother, their cultural formation. In spite of dividing the same roof, the nuclear families that make up a domestic group establish internal divisions among them. The space for each family is located on the house’s extremities, never in the center. In their area they keep all their belongings, eat, sleep and receive their visitors.” ref
“The center of the house is not exclusive of any of the families and is the place where the visitors considered important are received and where rituals are held. It is the space that represents that social unit (clan or lineage) which certain members of the nuclear families are part of. During the day doors and windows are kept permanently open so as to control what is going on in the village. In the rituals in which women cannot participate doors and windows are closed. The same happens during mourning, because mourners keep themselves away from social life and cannot look at the village center. During the funeral the mourners’ house is kept empty, and afterwards it should be destroyed. For those reasons Sylvia Caiuby Novaes recognized in the bororo house a space for the contact between the domestic and the political-juridical realms.” ref
“Rituals are a constant in Bororo life. The most important rites of passage (in which people pass from one social category to another) are naming, initiation and funeral. According to Novaes, “In the naming ritual the child is formally introduced into the Bororo society of his/her iedaga (the person who gives the name is the mother’s brother) and of the women of his/her father’s clan, who ornament him/her for the ritual. These persons synthesize in a clear way the attributes that form the personality of the Bororo and that integrates in a consistent way juridical aspects( transmitted by the iedada and associated with matrilinearity) and aspects of a more mystical character (associated with patrilinearity).” With his/her name, the child begins to be associated with a social category – a clan’s lineage – linked to a cultural hero of bororo society who, in mythical times, established the fundaments of social life, which has to be continued by concrete human beings.” ref
“Bororo villages maintain their autonomy and present political situations that are consequence of the different solutions derived from the process of contact. At Meruri village, the choice of the Boe eimejera, the ‘chief’, is made through direct voting and do not follow traditional orientations, thus expressing a clear separation between political and ceremonial leadership. In the other villages, the political organization still follows the traditional form. The relations among the Bororo villages are oriented by the social, political and, especially, religious relationships, in which traditional funeral is an essential factor.” ref
Rikbaktsa People
“The Rikbaktsa are an indigenous ethnic group from the Mato Grosso region of Brazil. Rikbaktsa (Rikbaktsa rik, person + bak, human being + tsa [plural suffix]), the group’s self-denomination, can be translated as “the human beings”. Variant spellings include Ricbacta, Erikbaktsa, Erigpaktsa, Erigpagtsá, Erigpactsa, Erikbaktsá, Arikpaktsá, and Aripaktsá. Locally, they are also called Canoeiros (Canoe People), alluding to their aptitude in canoe use, or—more rarely—Orelhas de Pau (Wooden Ears), alluding to their practice of enlarging their earlobes with wooden plugs.” ref
“The Rikbaktsa live in the Amazon rain forest of northwest Mato Grosso. There are no pre-20th century historical references to the Rikbaktsa, and there have been no archeological studies to date their occupation of their traditional lands. However, oral histories, geographic references in their myths, and their detailed knowledge of nearby flora and fauna suggest that they have lived on the land for some time. Though scientific, commercial, and strategic expeditions have visited the region surrounding the Rikbaktsa since the 17th century, they stayed on the waterways and did not venture into the forests in which the Rikbaktsa lived.” ref
“The native language of the Rikbaktsa, called either Rikbaktsa or Erikbaktsa, is a Macro-Gê language/Macro-Jê linguistic branch. As in other indigenous languages, word endings indicate the gender of the speaker. Reciprocity is the most important factor in Rikbaktsa political relations. Women are exchanged among clans for marriage, and goods and labour are offered to other clans. Breaks in reciprocity among subgroups often cause divisions between Rikbaktsa subgroups, which is influential in determining the distance of villages from their neighbors. While there were serious pre-contact rivalries between Rikbaktsa of various rivers, their present-day struggle for survival has encouraged group cohesion as well as, on occasion, alliances with other indigenous societies.” ref
“Traditionally, the Rikbaktsa have had no chiefs, and each domestic group theoretically is its own political unit. (Centralized leadership structures imposed on the Rikbaktsa by missionaries were unsuccessful.) Traditionally the Rikbaktsa did not have “chiefs,” although they had and have leaders whose influence goes beyond their own house or village. Centralized chiefdoms imposed by missionaries were of short duration and not very effective. The most influential leaders are those who have the largest group of relatives or brothers-in-law. Without centralized leadership, social control is maintained primarily through gossip, ostracism, and social avoidance. Despite the lack of official leaders, there are influential community members that shape others’ behavior beyond the confines of their houses or villages. Such leaders have often been those with great personal capacities as well as those with many relatives. In recent years, young men who are familiar with Western society and have responded well to contact have also been influential.” ref, ref
“Oral story-telling and myth are important to the Rikbaktsa. The Rikbaktsa believe in reincarnation, and that future incarnations are dependent on the life one led. The virtuous may be reincarnated as human beings or night monkeys (which are never hunted by the Rikbaktsa), while the villainous are reincarnated as dangerous animals like jaguars or poisonous snakes. However, the Rikbaktsa believe that all organisms were once human and that they were transformed into animals for good. Sickness is seen as resulting from the breaking of taboos, from spells, or from poisoning by enemies. Rikbaktsa traditional medicine uses plant matter and ritual purification.” ref
“For the Rikbaktsa, music, rituals, and traditional dress have served as a unifying element in the face of contact with the outside world. Hunting, fishing, gathering, and agriculture are ritualized with ceremonies throughout the year. The two largest ceremonies are the January green maize ceremony and the May forest-clearing ceremony. Ceremonies often involve body paint, feather ornaments, flute-playing of traditional songs, and the performance of mythical stories and recent fights.” ref
Rites of passage
“Boys are given their “child” name at birth. Starting when he is between three and five years old, he starts hunting with his father and being taught about hunting, animals, and local geography. By age eight or ten, boys can make and use their own bow and arrows. Once a boy has mastered the bow and arrow, at age eleven or twelve, his nose is pierced during the ceremony of the maize and he receives his second name. At this point, the boy may spend time in the men’s house, where he learns about ceremonies, myths, traditional medicine, and flute-playing, and assumes more household and village responsibilities.” ref
“Traditionally, when the boy is capable of hunting large animals and is knowledgeable about traditional ceremonies, around age 14 or 15, he would have his ears pierced in a ritual celebration. This now-obsolete rite marked the boys’ transition into manhood and eligibility for marriage. Traditionally, the young man would then participate in a warring expedition against neighboring tribes. However, this tradition has also been abandoned; today, young men instead actively participate in the tribe’s recovery and maintenance of their territory. Shortly after these rituals, or after marriage, the young man receives his third, “adult” name. Today, ear-piercing is not necessary for a young man to receive his adult name, so long as he is old enough and knowledgeable enough. Some men also change their names again later in life as they achieve a higher social status.” ref
“Girls traditionally had their noses pierced around age 12, though today some Rikbaktsa practice this and others do not. At this age, girls take “forest medicine” to reduce the pain that will be felt when they give birth later. Traditionally, fathers decided when their daughters would have their faces tattooed in a ceremony, after which they are considered women and eligible for marriage, though, this ritual of passage is no longer practiced. Following nose piercing and perhaps tattooing and her wedding, a woman is entitled to receive a new name to replace her child name.” ref
“Though agriculture is central to the timing of tribal life, the Rikbaksta consider themselves hunter-gatherers rather than farmers. Traditional knowledge of natural resources is transmitted between generations and among group members freely; this, combined with the abundance of resources in the rain forest, allows for egalitarianism within the tribe. Each residence, which consists of a man, his wife, his single sons, his daughters (both single and married), his sons-in-law, and his grandchildren, generally produces and consumes its own food. Cooperation among a larger group occurs only during agricultural rituals and a few other occasions, but is complemented by a system of reciprocal kinship relationships.” ref
“The Rikbaktsa use slash-and-burn agriculture, where ½–2 hectare planting fields are cleared by fire every 2 or 3 years. Old fields are generally left fallow and eventually retaken by the forest. The Rikbaktsa regularly plant rice, cassava, maize, yams, beans, cotton, urucu, bananas, peanuts, sugarcane, and pumpkin. On occasion limes, oranges, tangerines, pineapple, mangoes, and other fruits are also planted.” ref
“Division of Labor. There is a sex-based division of labor. Men hunt, catch the large fish, clear land, and make arrows and bows, clubs, flutes, and featherwork items. Women catch small fish, gather and prepare food, take care of the children, spin cotton, weave hammocks, sew, and make pottery, seed necklaces, and bracelets from armadillo tails and nut burrs. Planting and harvesting is done by men and women. The sale of market products and the use of money is an almost exclusively male prerogative. Land Tenure. Land belongs to the entire community. The choice of where to plant, live, and hunt is based on kinship. There is no permanent division of the land. The shifting-cultivation system and the depletion of animals and other resources around the villages results in a constant repositioning of kin groups within the territory.” ref
“Rikbaktsa society is divided into exogamous moieties, which are associated with the yellow macaw and the arara cabeçuda —a kind of scarlet macaw—and subdivided into various clans that are associated with animals and plants. In the past the clans were more numerous and had associated body painting, ornaments, and special activities. Nowadays these associations are found only among moieties and apparently no longer exist among clans. Descent and filiation are patrilineal. Kinship terminology is similar to that of the Iroquois system.” ref
“Marriage is between moieties. During the 1970s there were some incestuous marriages among the members of the same moiety, partly because of the drastic population loss after contact and partly brought about by the Jesuits’ interference with traditional Rikbaktsa marriage rules. Since the 1980s the Rikbaktsa have adhered firmly to traditional practices. The preferred form of marriage is between cross cousins. Residence is uxorilocal. The norm is monogamy, but polygyny is permitted and occasionally practiced. The marriage ceremony is quite informal. After agreement has been reached between the parents of the pair, the village chief removes the bridegroom’s hammock from his house (or from the makyry) and ties it next to that of his wife in his father-in-law’s house. The bridegroom will live with his in-laws during the first years of his marriage and later move to live near his married brothers. Divorce is common, especially during the first months of marriage, and is easily obtained by either of the two partners.” ref
“Children accompany their parents, helping them with their tasks. They become familiar with the forest and its resources and secrets through shared living and teachings transmitted by myths told by the oldest men of the local group. Of the traditional rites of passage, only boys’ ear piercing remains. This is performed during a large feast at the end of the ritual cycle that accompanies land clearing. Formerly girls’ faces and boys’ chests were tattooed in a rite of passage leading to adulthood. This was followed by a period of ritual seclusion, which could last over a month and during which they could not be exposed to sunshine or seen by anyone who was not a very close relative. Reclusion, tattooing, and boys’ use of earplugs (some old men wear light wooden ones 15 centimeters in diameter) were abandoned after contact. Traditionally, after reaching the age of 12, boys lived in the makyry, where their education was completed by a mentor. Nowadays they live with their parents until they marry and then move to the home of their father-in-law, who serves as their tutor.” ref
“The Rikbaktsa believe in an immanent universal order that harmoniously unites all living things, both in the natural and supernatural worlds. In primordial times all living beings spoke “the same language,” but the secret of this compatibility was lost. Nowadays only the initiated can understand and intervene (always for the purpose of restoring original harmony) with forces that govern the world. Rikbaktsa religion is pantheistic, and apparently there is no belief in a Supreme Being. Forests and rivers are the habitat of a large number of mythical and supernatural beings, which are always remembered in myths and songs known to almost the entire community. The Rikbaktsa believe that animals and stars are human beings who in mythical times broke some taboo and suffered for it by being transformed. The Rikbaktsa have several shamans with considerable influence. Their traditional knowledge is not effective, however, in the treatment of illnesses introduced by Whites.” ref
“Shamanistic knowledge is passed on, by means of a long and dangerous initiation, to those young men who show the greatest inclination for it. Initiates live in seclusion for over a year, guided by an experienced shaman. During this time they learn about the power of certain plants (with curative or poisonous properties) and how to control specific supernatural forces. Jesuit catechization has not changed traditional religious beliefs but has made their practice more secretive. Illness is seen as a bodily imbalance caused by breaking taboos or as the result of magic or poison. In curing, medicinal herbs are used as well as rituals of purification. The Rikbaktsa believe that the destiny of the dead is determined by the life they lived on earth. Those who lived better lives can make the transition to a happy world in which there is abundance, peace, and youth. Others can be reincarnated as animals (a certain kind of monkey, jaguar, or snake).” ref
“The Rikbaktsa, also known as “Orelhas de Pau” (Wooden Ears) or “Canoeiros” (Canoe People), were reputed as ferocious warriors. Labor division is basically between men and women. The economic and political autonomy of the domestic groups, constituted as production and consumption units, is counterbalanced by the system of kinship relations (socially created) and of the ritual kind. Such system of reciprocal relations is the link with the larger community, the entire Rikbaktsa people. A break in reciprocity, which happens occasionally, is the cause of conflicts and differentiates the ties that exist between the various Rikbaktsa subgroups. The Rikbaktsa see themselves much more as hunters and gatherers than as farmers, even though agriculture – and the ritual ceremonies associated with it – plays a central role in their social life’s pace and organization.” ref
“Traditional villages used to be comprised of one or two houses, inhabited by extended families (the house owner and his wife, their single children and their married daughters with their husbands and children), and a men’s house (rodeio, in Portuguese; makyry in Erikbaktsa), where the widowers and the young single men used to live. The Rikbaktsa divide the beings of the universe in two series, opposed but also complementary to each other. Such division, although used for other beings as well, operates more extensively in the Rikbaktsa society and, configured in the kinship system, provides the most encompassing classifying principle through which they organize their social life. The Rikbaktsa society is divided in exogamous Halves, one associated with the yellow macaw (Makwaratsa) and the other to the big-headed macaw – in reality, a variety of the red macaw – (Hazobtisa), each one of them subdivided into various clans, which in turn are associated with animals and plants.” ref
“Lineages are patrilineal, based on the belief that a child is generated by the father and always looks like him and never like his/her mother. In addition, the Rikbaktsa seem to believe that any man who copulates with a pregnant woman participates in the paternity. They say that the son takes his father’s place, is his continuation. The ties between father and child go beyond the moment of generation, and are considered a vital link (even more so than social ties) that is maintained all life long. The preferred marriage is between crossed cousins, and the rule of residence is uxorilocal, that is, the groom moves into his in-law’s house. The general norm is monogamy, but poliginy is allowed and occasionally practiced. Wedding ceremonies are very simple.” ref
“Once the agreement between the families of the couple – and between the bride and the groom – is made, the village leader removes the groom’s hammock from his house (or from the men’s house) and ties it next to the bride’s, on her father’s house. The couple lives in the wife’s father’s house during the next few years, and moves away only after the family has become larger – then the family moves close to the husband’s married brothers’ houses. Divorce is common, especially during the first years of marriage, and is easily obtained by any of the partners.” ref
“Along with the relations of alliance among the patrilineal groups created through marriage, the classification principles of kinship determine the distribution of the individuals in the villages and establish relations of prestige and influence, being the heart of the Rikbaktsa’s internal political relationships. Relations between individuals, based on those principles, are classified through a system made up of more than sixty names, most of them forming reciprocal pairs. Marriages are between persons of different Halves.” ref
“The position a person occupies in the Rikbaktsa society is defined by the age group, sex, clan and Half. Gender places him/her in either side of the labor division and defines the chores he/she will perform along his/her life. This trajectory – and the social roles that will be assumed in it – is made along with other persons of the same sex and age group, who undergo together the same rituals that mark their entry into adult life. His/her belonging to a clan of a determined kinship Half, on the other hand, defines his/her marriage possibilities, his/her role and his/her obligations in the collective ritual celebrations, which are organized on the basis of the reciprocity of rights and obligations that each Half has via-a-vis the other. On the other hand, as they grow older, people are entitled to assume increasingly central positions in the organization of social life, until old age comes and place them in the highest level of respectability.” ref
“Each clan has a fixed stock of names, established in an immemorial past, which were used by all past generations and are continuously used by the living ones. There are children names and adult names. Along his/her life, a person may have three or four names; each time it changes, the former name is apt to be given to someone else. The members of the father’s clan suggest the names, but the final decision regarding its adequacy belongs to the old men, not all of them of the same clan (but everyone of the same age group).” ref
“They meet before the ceremony that takes place along with the clearing of the roças for planting and decide who is going to get a new name (both children and adults) and which one it shall be. During the ceremony, in the evening chant, the “owner of the ceremony” announces the names and the individuals who got them. A child may get the “child name” that his father, grandfather or older brother has already used. Even though it is more common be given names whose last users have died at a very old age after a full life, a man can get a name that has already been used by his father, grandfather or another clan member even if he is still alive.” ref
Pataxo People
“The Pataxó, Patxohã ( “language of the pataxó warrior”), is a language of the Macro-Jê trunk and of the Maxakalí linguistic family. Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied noted the existence of cultural similarities between the Pataxó and Maxacali, such as the use of hanging bags; the foreskin tied with a vine; the small piercing of the lower lip, in which they sometimes used a bamboo plug; the pataxó-style hair shaving; the similar construction of huts; and the use of cauim [a lightly fermented beverage]. It is important, however, to remember that besides the fact that these characteristics are widely shared by the tribes of the eastern coast, as the prince rightly pointed out, many others similarities could be due to mutual exchanges in contexts of interaction.” ref
“In Pataxó oral tradition, both the Bakira and the Habiá are living beings, and the second are described by those who see and communicate with them as swarthy, speakers of the current language, with normal size and human aspect, and with the peculiarity of not eating salt. There is also the somsim saperé, a man with one leg wrapped around the other, full of wounds. He is human and invisible. But, just as humans, the “critters of the wild” can also charm. Caipora, for example, is a woman, owner of the bush stock. It is a secret…because she is an enchanted one. It is largely commented that at Pé do Monte [hillfoot] “there’s human critter under the ground.” The boitatá is also an invisible man with fire over his head. The giburinha is also invisible, a little man that, as his tracks show, has only a few centimeters. But he likes women and gets them pregnant. Barra Velha produced four female gibura. He gnaws mangaba, caxandó, guaru, the woman eats it…when the boy is not born small, and born with tooth, he is a gibura product. There is also a kind of water blackmen, enchanted water people, who, when notice a woman, she dives deep with him, and they have sex. Their skin is dark like the otter’s.” ref
“The “old time marriages” used to be performed at an early age. Many women said that, in the 1970s, they got married when they were “modern, small.” According to this expression, it was the husband who “raised” them. “He was already a grown man, and I was a girl. I was a girl, but I had the body for it.” In situations where certain emotional relationships gave rise to rumors – “people said he fooled around with that girl” – everyone’s expectation was that those involved would then live together. Sexual intercourse before marriage was characterized as theft, with frequent comments about theft among villages.” ref
Awê Ritual
“The Awê Ritual is the only one considered “of the ancient.” It is “something that has always existed and that even the elders’ grandparents did not know when it started (…). It seems that when an Awê was held in the old times, a single song/dance was performed all along. But holding an Awê is an expression that today refers to different festival contexts (…) it encompasses a varied set of choreographies, each with a particular meaning”. The Awê requires cauim [manioc beer], and eventually aluá, a brew made of milled corn or husks of fruit such as pineapple, among others.” ref
“On the other hand, the existence of Toré among the Pataxó has always been denied: “The Toré is from the north, it is not ours.” Some people, like the Shaman Manoel Santana, react very negatively to the possibility of admitting this practice, on the grounds that “we can not copy that, no, that is not ours, when the northern people come we’ll be embarrassed and we can not sing it there. Each people represent what is their own. How can we represent something that is other’s?” ref
“Indigenous rituals, in the Northeast ethnographic context, have a strong emphasis on its private character, in the form of “secret”. Therefore, it is common the reference to a Toré that can be shared with non-indigenous workers, and another, a private one, in which participation is the sole prerogative of indigenous persons. The Awê of the Pataxó established in the extreme south of Bahia seems to emphasize public expression, opposed to what has been observed in relation to Toré, considered by them as “of the Northeastern Indians, from further up there.” Sandro Campos Neves notes, however, that the Awê performed in the Coroa Vermelha village is presented both in the public context as well as in intimate and exclusive contexts, such as land resumption celebrations or celebrations in the Jaqueira Reserve.” ref
“According to the description made by Grunewald, the leader Nelson Saracura believes that the Indians of Coroa Vrmelha are “recovering an ancestral ceremony,” but that this process of recovery can not be shown to non-indigenous people, “because it requires the existence of secret in the ritual, the secret is the security of it, the secret is our way of resisting as an indigenous area”. Saracura states that the Coroa Vermelha community intends to represent “both parts”, meaning both the Awê (from Barra Velha) and the Toré (from the Paraguassu-Caramuru Indigenous Reserve, home to the Pataxó Hãhãhãe or northern Pataxó, among other ethnicities). Nevertheless, Saracura’s statement should not be taken so strictly, because he is a Kariri-Sapuyá – one of the ethnic groups established since 1938 in that reserve – who most probably favors the union of the two pataxó branches.” ref
“Among the Pataxó of Carmésia (Minas Gerais), records point to the existence of a ritual that would follow a general pattern closer to that of the Toré. With regard to the relationship between the Pataxó of Bahia and of Minas Gerais, there are often journeys undertaken by representatives of the cultural mobilization movement from Coroa Vermelha and Barra Velha to Minas Gerais, in order to share pataxó traditions. Researchers of the Patxohã language from the two aforementioned villages periodically travel to the other ones, including those in Minas Gerais, to conduct refresher courses for teachers, aiming not only at the exchange of produced knowledge, but also to assure, according to their own arguments, the “unity” of their identity.” ref
Guarani People
“The Guaraní are an Indigenous group native to South-Central South America, an Indigenous people of Paraguay. Guaraní is spoken across South-Central South America in countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay. In Paraguay, Guaraní is an official language and is taught in schools. Guaraní practice their own religion, worshiping multiple gods. They are led by the village shaman who they believe communicates with the spirit world.” ref
“The Guaranís were once one of the most influential Amerindian peoples in the southern part of South America. Eventually they established their settlements in the tropical forests of Paraguay and southern Brazil and also extended their settlements into northern Argentina. Before the Spanish conquest, during the 15th century, the Guaranís warred with Amerindians as far as the southern limits of the vast Inca Empire, bringing back gold, which they wore as ornaments. In the 16th century the Spanish conquerors found Guaraní settlements over a very wide area, including the islands of the Plata River, parts of the Paraná River delta, along the Uruguayan coast, and along the Paraguay River. Large concentrations of Guaranís lived in the Province of Guairá in Paraguay, where some of them still live today.” ref
“Today, the Guaranís who have retained their traditional way of life live in scattered settlements in Paraguay and in southern Brazil. Over the centuries, they migrated over vast areas, sometimes undertaking long journeys that led them to settle in widely diverse regions: forests and coastal areas, near sierras, and in river deltas. It is thought that the Brazilian settlements date from the 19th century. They also made their way into northern Argentina, particularly the province of Misiones.” ref
“The Guaraní language is part of the Tupí-Guaraní language family, a family that includes many indigenous languages south of the Amazon. The two predominant branches of this family, Tupí and Guaraní, would have probably come from a common proto-language nearly 2000 years ago. The Guaraní language is still widely spoken in Paraguay, a legacy of the influence this distinctive Amerindian people once wielded. However, the wide usage of the language is complemented by two other Guaraní languages that are both secret and sacred. In effect, the Guaranís have a “secular,” a “secret,” and a “sacred” language. The sacred language is used exclusively by male and female elders of the tribe, who receive divine messages and transmit them to the rest of the tribe. The secret language is a priestly language used only by initiates and shamans and is called Ñe’e pará, meaning “the words of our fathers.” ref
“Guaraní folklore is very rich, and many myths hint at their origin in a very poetic way. According to the foundational myth, it was Tupã the god responsible for the world’s creation. To accomplish this titanic task, Tupã would have descended to the earth in the region known as Paraguay with the objective of creating the oceans, forests, stars, and animals. Then, using clay, Tupã would have sculpted statues of man and woman breathing life into the human forms. Guaraní myths stated that their race was the first race of people in the cosmos.” ref
“Among the mbyás, a group of Guaranís who have preserved much of their original literature, the Creator, called by them Ñande Ru, gave birth to his son, Pa’í Reté Kuaray, whose body was like the sun, and he is the father of the Guaraní race. Pa’í taught his people not only sacred dances and songs, but also agricultural skills and ethics. He is the destroyer of evil beings and created the honey bee as a sweet offering to humankind. He entrusted to four gods the care of his creation. After the Creator Ñande Ru created the first earth, it was destroyed by a great flood through the will of the gods. Then, the Creator asked the son of Jakaira, the God of Spring, to create another earth. Since then, the four gods send the souls of boys to earth, and the wives of the gods send the souls of girls to earth.” ref
“The Guaranís are a very religious, even mystical, people, and during a long history of suffering they have had messianic, heroic figures who have led them in a quest for a better life and a search for Paradise, which they call the Land Without Evil. Sometimes these quests have taken physical form in long treks or river journeys. A famous Guaraní hero is the chief Aropoty Yu. The Paraguayan president sent a military expedition in 1844 against the Guaranís, and in 1876 it was still the case that no one could enter Guaraní territory without the consent of Aropoty Yu.” ref
“Not all Guaranís profess identical beliefs. Among the three major groups that remain today, known as the Chiripás, the Mbayás, and the Pai-Kaiovás, there are some interesting differences. Generally, they believe that every person has an earthly soul and a divine one. Dreams come from the divine soul and are the source of inspiration for the shamans, who mediate between the divine and earthly realms and who also have the task of identifying evildoers and protecting the tribe as well as curing illness. Some Guaranís believe in reincarnation; others, who have had more Christian influences, believe that evildoers go to a land of darkness, whereas good people go to the Land Without Evil.” ref
“Shamans often isolate themselves for periods of time in jungles or forests and live austerely, with a basic vegetarian diet. Among the Guaranís, it is thought that every man and woman eventually receives a protective chant from a dead relative, which is divinely inspired. It is then taught to the rest of the community. Powerful shamans sometimes receive many chants or songs. They are called to their vocation in this manner. The Guaraní also believe that all living things, including plants, animals, and water, have protective spirits, and that malevolent spirits also exist.” ref
“It is thought that the moment of conception of a child is revealed to the parents in dreams. The Guaranís who believe in reincarnation think that a person who has died can reveal that he or she will reincarnate in a particular body. A pregnant woman follows strict dietary rules, eating some special foods and avoiding others.” ref
“After a child is born, both the father and the mother are in a critical state known as aku. The father participates sympathetically in the birth pains of the mother, expressing his suffering, and after the child is born the father retires to his hammock for a time, avoiding all magic rites that might be considered harmful to the child, because it is his duty to protect the child. He has to maintain a strict diet and avoid hunting. The mother of the child avoids all heavy work for a time. Among some Guaranís, the shaman has to determine from what part of the sky the child’s soul originated and give the child a special name.” ref
“When a boy becomes an adolescent he undergoes initiation rites in seclusion with a group, under the direction of the shaman. His lower lip is perforated with a piece of wood. He follows a strict diet based on corn for several days. Afterwards he can use adult words and adult ways of addressing people. During the initiation rites, the boy is instructed in appropriate behavior, which includes guidance on working hard, refraining from harming others, being moderate in his habits, not drinking excessively, and never beating his wife. When a girl reaches adolescence she is secluded for a time under the care of female relatives. Her mother gives her guidance on her future marriage.” ref
“Guaranís are allowed informal marriages that are, in effect, a trial period. The young man takes the girl to his parents’ house to live there for a time, without formal marriage ceremonies. If he wishes to marry her, he approaches his future father-in-law for permission. The father of the girl is mainly an intermediary, but it is the mother who can object if she feels the match is unsuitable. When a couple forms a family, they are expected to raise their children with kindness and tolerance, and not to hit the children.” ref
“Burial rites still include aspects that are closely guarded secrets. Traditionally, the Guaraní were buried in large pottery jars that were then covered with a bowl. The funeral urns were then buried. Some are buried under the ground inside the hut itself, which is then immediately abandoned. It is thought by some Guaranís that the earthly soul wanders, whereas the divine soul goes either to the land of darkness or to the Land Without Evil. Many Paraguayan Guaranís bury their dead in the bush. Then, the dead person’s house is burned. The mention of his or her name becomes taboo.” ref
“Traditional greetings to visitors obliged the female hosts to wail and mourn, reciting the admirable deeds of the visitor’s dead relatives. The guest had to cover his or her face with the hands and show appropriate expressions of sorrow, such as crying. Some of these traditional greetings have fallen into disuse. There are particular celebrations among some groups, particularly the Chiripás, which offer young people a way of getting to know each other and that constitute dating rituals. These celebrations are known as kotyú. These are ritual dances that allude to important myths, but at the same time allow young men to dance with young women and to express their love. During the kotyú dances, both formal and friendly or even romantic greetings are exchanged.” ref
“Although the Guaranís have never recognized a central authority, the disappearance of their traditional large clan houses in most areas has also undermined the family structure with its shared tasks and support systems. Some marriage customs are changing, with young people having more say in the choice of marriage partners. In earlier times, child betrothals were sometimes practiced. Chiefs also had several wives in earlier times, although this is no longer the case.” ref
Tupi-Guarani mythology
“The Tupi-Guarani mythology is the set of narratives about the gods and spirits of the different Tupi-Guarani peoples, ancient and current. Together with the cosmogonies, anthropogonies, and rituals, they form part of the religion of these peoples. The Guarani people live in the south-central part of South America, especially in Paraguay and parts of the surrounding areas of Argentina, Brazil, and Bolivia. The Tupi people were one of the most numerous peoples indigenous to Brazil, occupying largely the Atlantic coast of Brazil and In the Amazon where there are Tupi towns with no connection to the outside, heavily mixing with the Portuguese colonizers.” ref
“There exist no written records of the ancient myths and legends associated with the Guarani people. The Guarani language was not a written language until modern times, so their religious beliefs have largely been passed down through word of mouth. As such, accounts of the various gods and related myths and legends can vary from one locale to the next, and the regional differences may be so extreme as to completely redefine the role a specific deity plays in the Guarani belief system.” ref
“The primary figure in most Guarani creation legends is Tupã, the supreme god of all creation. With the help of the moon goddess Arasy, Tupã descended upon the Earth in a location specified as a hill in the region of Areguá, and from that location created all that is found upon the face of the earth, including the ocean, forests, and the animals. It is also said that the stars were placed in the sky at this point. Tupã then created humanity (according to most Guarani myths, the Guarani were naturally the first race of people to be made, with every other civilization being born from it) in an elaborate ceremony, forming clay statues of man and woman with a mixture of various elements from nature. After breathing life into the human forms, he left them with the spirits of good and evil and departed.” ref
“The original humans created by Tupã were Rupave and Sypave, whose names mean “Father of the people” and “Mother of the people”, respectively. The pair had three sons and a large but unspecified number of daughters. The first of their sons was Tumé Arandú, considered to be the wisest of men and the great prophet of the Guarani people. Second of their sons was Marangatú, a benevolent and generous leader of his people, and father of Kerana, the mother of the seven legendary monsters of Guarani myth (see below). Their third son was Japeusá, who was from birth considered a liar, a thief and a trickster, always doing things backwards to confuse people and take advantage of them.” ref
“He eventually committed suicide, drowning himself in the water, but he was resurrected as a crab, and since then all crabs are cursed to walk backwards much as Japeusá did. Among the daughters of the Rupave and Supave was Porâsý, notable for sacrificing her own life in order to rid the world of one of the seven legendary monsters, diminishing their power (and thus the power of evil as a whole). Several of the first humans were considered to have ascended upon their deaths and become minor deities.” ref
“Kerana, the beautiful daughter of Marangatu, was captured by the personification or spirit of evil called Tau. Together the two had seven sons who were cursed of the high goddess Arasy, and all but one were born as hideous monsters. The seven are considered primary figures in Guarani mythology, and while several of the lesser gods or even the original humans are forgotten in the verbal tradition of some areas, these seven were generally maintained in the legends. Some of them are even believed in down to modern times in some rural areas.” ref
“The seven sons of Tau and Kerana are, in order of their births:
- Teju Jagua, god or spirit of caverns and fruits
- Mbói Tu’ĩ, god of waterways and aquatic creatures
- Moñái, god of the open fields. He was defeated by the sacrifice of Porâsý
- Jasy Jatere, god of the yerba mate plant and also of the siesta, only of the seven to not appear as a monster
- Kurupi, god of sexuality and fertility
- Ao Ao, god of hills and mountains
- Luison (or Luisõ), god of death and all things related to it
- Angatupyry , spirit or personification of good, opposite to Tau
- Pytajovái, god of war
- Pombero, a popular spirit of mischief
- Abaangui, a god credited with the creation of the moon; may only figure as an adaptation of outlying Guarani tribes
- Jurupari , a god limited to worship by men, generally limited to isolated tribes in Brazil
- Jande Jari, “our grandmother”, spirit of the river Parapetí in Bolivia
- Mala Visiõ, According to one version of the legend, Mala Vision was a beautiful woman maddened by jealousy, that one night she murdered her husband and dumped his body in a cave by covering it with burning coals to cremate his body totally believing that he was maintaining relationships with other women. On the seventh night after the event, with lightning, throwing sparks, the corpse of her husband stood before the woman who dropped dead of fright. Since that day the lost soul of the woman goes through canyons and hills on stormy nights, crying plaintive and eerie. Mala Visiõ is presented as the spirit of a beautiful woman dressed in white, tall and deformed shrouded in transparent fumes.
- Plata Yvyguy , (Buried Treasure), many treasures were buried during the Paraguayan War, it’s a tradition that if someone is to see a headless white dog that disappears and re-appears all the time in their own house, it means that Plata Yvyguy is buried under it.
- The Celestial Jaguar, According to a version of the legend, the mother of the heavenly twins, known as Sun and Moon, was killed by the Celestial Jaguars. The twins were raised by the jaguars until a bird told them how their mother had been killed. The twins went on a rampage, killing all jaguars except one which was pregnant and the mother of today’s primitive jaguars. Now, jaguars are a wild beast that are to be feared by the Guarani. It is common for the animal to be part of the beginning and end of a person’s life. The meat will be eaten by a child’s mother while she is pregnant and the jaguars themselves represent the souls of the dead in temples. Those that are sick, elderly, and slow-moving have also been known to have been left behind to the jaguars.” ref
Makushi people
“The Macushi (Makuusi, Portuguese: Macuxi) are an indigenous people living in the borderlands of southern Guyana, northern Brazil in the state of Roraima, and in an eastern part of Venezuela. Macushi people speak the Macushi language, a Macushi-Kapon language, which is part of the Carib language family. They live in villages linked together by tracks and paths, with houses built round a central courtyard. When married, the Macushi couple lives in the wife’s family’s village, and the father-in-law is of great importance in Macushi kinship.” ref
“Similar to other indigenous groups in the area, Macushi traditional life relies a great deal on the bitter cassava, and cultivation tasks are divided by gender. Men traditionally clear the land and women tend and harvest. In Macushi lore, cassava was created for cultivation purpose and is overseen by a Cassava Mother (kisera yan). Women are the main processors, and the main products are cassava bread, farine, parakari, wo (drink), starch tapioca, and casereep. Village status is correlated to success in cassava farming.” ref
“Macushi oral history describes them as descendants of the sun’s children, the benevolent Insikiran (Inshkirung) and his malevolent brother Makunaima (or Negi) who created fire, as well as diseases, and they also believe they discovered Washacá, the Tree of Life. The Macushi believe in the life principle – stkaton – and they believe it comes from the sun. Similar to other Amerindian groups (such as Patamona or Akawaio people) is the importance of the piaiman, a medicine-man or spiritual leader, and belief in keinaimi (kanaima), a type of evil spirit that is personified as an “outsider” that brings death and misfortune. Kanaima have been associated with shape-shifting (usually animals such as jaguars, bats, or armadillos) and attacks are often directed at individuals when they are alone, in which they would be assaulted and die some days later. Another use of the term applies spiritual context to stealth, assassin-like tactics as a form of protection, but can come back to harm the beneficiaries as well.” ref
“Macushi is an indigenous language of the Carib family spoken in Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. It is also referred to as Makushi, Makusi, Macuxi, Macusi, Macussi, Teweya or Teueia. It is the most populous of the Cariban languages. The Cariban languages are a family of languages indigenous to north-eastern South America. They are widespread across northernmost South America, from the mouth of the Amazon River to the Colombian Andes, and they are also spoken in small pockets of central Brazil. The languages of the Cariban family are relatively closely related. There are about three dozen, but most are spoken only by a few hundred people. Macushi is the only language among them with numerous speakers, estimated at 30,000.” ref, ref
“The Cariban languages share irregular morphology with the Jê and Tupian families. Ribeiro connects them all in a Je–Tupi–Carib family. Meira, Gildea, & Hoff (2010) note that likely morphemes in proto-Tupian and proto-Cariban are good candidates for being cognates, but that work so far is insufficient to make definitive statements. Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Guato, Kawapana, Nambikwara, Taruma, Warao, Arawak, Bororo, Jeoromitxi, Karaja, Rikbaktsa, and Tupi language families due to contact. Extensive lexical similarities between Cariban and various Macro-Jê languages suggest that Cariban languages had originated in the Lower Amazon region (rather than in the Guiana Highlands). There they were in contact with early forms of Macro-Jê languages, which were likely spoken in an area between the Parecis Plateau and upper Araguaia River.” ref
“The traditional division of labor was women cook, tend babies, clean house, wash clothes, make pottery, and weave cotton. The men are mainly responsible for subsistence agriculture and other related activities. Both men and women undertake permanent or seasonal migration in search of wage labor. Two types of kin groups have been described: small village clusters with independent households of kindred joined through work reciprocity, and linked hamlets of kin living at a distance and joined through shared rituals or dancing. Descent is bilateral.” ref
“Although polygamous marriage has long been a part of Makushi culture, most marriages today are monogamous. There is quite a bit of freedom in the choice of marriage partners. In the past, marriages theoretically were arranged by the parents. Marriages are usually endogamous. Cross-cousin marriage is allowed and desirable. The couple resides for a short time with the wife’s family. Generally, after the first son is born, an independent family household is established, but matrilocality, as the prevailing rule of residence, is still practiced.” ref
“The people who cook and eat around the same hearth are considered a family. This group not only lives and consumes goods together but also farms cooperatively. The nuclear family is the minimal family unit. Membership in the household unit requires that one perform an acceptable amount of work. Infants and children are raised both by parents and siblings, who almost never use physical punishment in child rearing. Each settlement has a chief; there is no chief of the tribe as a whole.” ref
“Makushi society is organized on the basis of age, kinship, and rule of residence. There are no social classes, since the Makushi are a tribal society. They have retained some degree of sociocultural stability in their process of integration into Brazilian society. The majority live in tribal villages, but some are dispersed among regional people. There is no physical segregation in their daily contact with Brazilians, but the latter control the wages for their manual labor, and there is evident discrimination in regard to commercial activities and economic opportunities. Land ownership is also an interethnic issue.” ref
“Shamanism has great influence in Makushi society. The shaman or medicine man is the religious head of the village and the controller of all kinds of spirits. The office of shaman was formerly hereditary, but this is apparently no longer the case. The shaman uses traditional home remedies in curing.” ref
Terena people
“The Terena people are a Brazilian indigenous people that originally inhabited the northeastern region of the Paraguayan Chaco west of the Paraguay River in the mid-nineteenth century. However, they presently reside mainly in the municipalities of Aquidauana and Miranda within the Brazilian state Mato Grosso do Sul, as well as Mato Grosso and São Paulo. Historically, marriage and romantic relationships between those who are direct blood relatives, or “consanguineal” kin, are not permitted among the Terena.” ref
“The language of the Terena people belongs to the Arawak family, and is reported to have incorporated elements of the Mbayá-Guaikuru family as well. Linguistic studies focusing on the Bolivia-Parana subsector found the highest degree of linguistic similarity between Terena, Mojeño, and Paunaka Language than others in their subgroup. Scholars describe the Awarakan family as a language “matrix” indigenous to South American regions spanning the Terena territory within Brazil. Etymology is deeply integrated into kinship relationships among the Terena, reflected in familial word structuring and terminology.” ref
“Arawakan/Maipurean languages, Arawakan (Arahuacan, Maipuran Arawakan, “mainstream” Arawakan, Arawakan proper), also known as Maipurean (also Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúre), is a language family that developed among ancient indigenous peoples in South America. Branches migrated to Central America and the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean and the Atlantic, including what is now the Bahamas. Almost all present-day South American countries are known to have been home to speakers of Arawakan languages, the exceptions being Ecuador, Uruguay, and Chile. Maipurean may be related to other language families in a hypothetical Macro-Arawakan stock.” ref
“As one of the most geographically widespread language families in all of the Americas, Arawakan linguistic influence can be found in many language families of South America. Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Arawa, Bora-Muinane, Guahibo, Harakmbet-Katukina, Harakmbet, Katukina-Katawixi, Irantxe, Jaqi, Karib, Kawapana, Kayuvava, Kechua, Kwaza, Leko, Macro-Jê, Macro-Mataguayo-Guaykuru, Mapudungun, Mochika, Mura-Matanawi, Nambikwara, Omurano, Pano-Takana, Pano, Takana, Puinave-Nadahup, Taruma, Tupi, Urarina, Witoto-Okaina, Yaruro, Zaparo, Saliba-Hodi, and Tikuna-Yuri language families due to contact. However, these similarities could be due to inheritance, contact, or chance.” ref
“The religious life of the Terena was oriented toward shamanism. According to the Terena’s conception of the world, all human, animal, and plant beings possessed a soul ( hoipihapati ) that survives after death. Personifications of natural forces inhabited the mythical-symbolical universe of the Terena. One of the most important myths is that of the Yurikoyuvakai, the civilizing twin heroes, who gave the Terena their tools. It is this myth that justifies the division into ceremonial halves in traditional Terena society.” ref
“In traditional Terena society the shaman ( koixomuneti ) was the main figure in activities connected with the supernatural world. In addition to functioning as a healer, the koixomuneti was an important counselor in warring expeditions, since he or she predicted future events. The koixomuneti’s apprenticeship took several months, during which the candidate went through a period of solitude and fasting under the guidance of an experienced koixomuneti. A person generally became a shaman after a revelation in a dream or by being selected by a koixomuneti among his (or her) kin. At this time there still are a few practicing village koixomuneti (both men and women), performing a shamanic ritual that combines traditional elements with Christianity. The koixomuneti are always practicing Catholics.” ref
“The great ceremonial feast of the Terena used to be the Oheokoti, consisting of sacred as well as profane rituals. This ceremony was performed when the Pleiades reached their highest point in the skies (April/May) and was linked to the start of the harvest. The ceremony began with shamanic rituals and continued with fun and games, ending in a large feast. At present only the shamanic ritual is still practiced in a few Terena villages. Traditional Terena dancers wear special costumes and paint. Skirts are made of rhea feathers, the bird being important in Terena mythology. The dancers are accompanied by a flute player and the sound of a drum. Today, the “wood-beating” dance ( kohixotikipahé ) is performed during the National Indian Day celebrations. Two groups of dancers take part in this dance. Another surviving dance is the women’s putu-putu.” ref
“Practically all Terena adults are familiar with the more widely used medicinal plants. The koixomuneti is generally consulted when the more common treatments do not work or if “witchcraft” is suspected. Techniques used by the koixomuneti include suction and fumigation. In addition to the koixomuneti, there are prestigious healers in the villages, who also are frequently consulted. Their treatment generally involves plant therapy. FUNAI operates an infirmary at each indigenous post; however, they have neither supplies of medication nor the structure required to serve the population.” ref
“The Terena used to bury their dead with the head facing west. They believed that after death the spirit moved on to the “land of the dead,” which is to the west, in the direction of the Chaco, their old habitat. The koixomuneti helped the spirit in its voyage to the land of the dead. The Terena traditionally burn the dead person’s house or replace the entrance door so that if the spirit of the deceased returns, looking for company, it would not recognize its old abode. At present burial and mourning follow the patterns current among the Brazilian population.” ref
Tucano People
“The Tucano people (sometimes spelt Tukano) are a group of Indigenous South Americans in the northwestern Amazon, along the Vaupés River and the surrounding area. They are mostly in Colombia, but some are in Brazil. They are usually described as being made up of many separate tribes, but that oversimplifies the social and linguistic structure of the region. The Tucano are multilingual because men must marry outside their language group: no man may have a wife who speaks his language, which would be viewed as a kind of incest. Men choose women from various neighboring tribes who speak other languages. Furthermore, on marriage, women move into the men’s households or longhouses.” ref
“These indigenous groups speak languages of the Eastern Tukanoan family (only Tariana is of Arawak origin) and participate in a wide-ranging network of exchanges, which include marriages, rituals and commerce, which form a definite socio-cultural complex, called the “social system of the Uaupés/Pira-Paraná”. This, in turn, is part of a broader culture area, including populations of the Arawak and Maku language families. The Eastern Tukanoan language family includes at least 16 languages, among which is Tukano proper which has the largest number of speakers. It is used not only by the Tukano, but also by other groups of the Brazilian Uaupés and on its tributaries, the Tiquié and Papuri. Thus, Tukano has come to be used as a sort of trade language, allowing for communication among peoples with quite different paternal languages and, in many cases, which are mutually incomprehensible.” ref
“Consequently, in any village several languages are used: the language of the men; the various languages spoken by women who originate from different neighboring tribes; and a widespread regional ‘trade’ language. Children are born into the multilingual environment: the child’s father speaks one language (considered the Tucano language), the child’s mother another, other women with whom the child has daily contact, and perhaps still others. However, everyone in the community is interested in language-learning so most people can speak most of the languages. The Tucano are swidden horticulturalists and grow manioc and other staples in forest clearings. They also hunt, trap, fish, and forage wild plants and animals.” ref
“Multilingualism is taken for granted, and moving from one language to another in the course of a single conversation is very common. In fact, multilingualism is so usual that the Tucano are hardly conscious that they do speak different languages as they shift easily from one to another. They cannot readily tell an outsider how many languages they speak, and they must be suitably prompted to enumerate the languages that they speak and to describe how well they speak each one. The Tucano practice linguistic exogamy. Members of a linguistic descent group marry outside their own linguistic descent group. As a result, it is normal for Tucano people to speak two, three, or more Tucanoan languages, and any Tucano household (longhouse) is likely to be host to numerous languages.” ref
“The Tukano are a group of tribes speaking languages of the Eastern Tukanoan language family. The Tukano tribes speak languages of the Eastern Tukanoan language family, which in turn is part of the Macro Tukanoan division of the Andean Equatorial macro phylum. The unusual feature of various Eastern Tukanoan-speaking groups is the high degree of multilingualism existing between them (e.g., the Cubeo, Makuna, Barasana, etc., each speak a different language), yet most of the groups practice linguistic exogamy in which wives are obtained from a group speaking a different language. Hence there is considerable commonality across these groups.” ref
“The settlement pattern of the Tukano is one of dispersed villages located along river systems. Each community shifts its residence every three to five years within a large geographical area, as soil depletion necessitates the clearing of new crop lands. Communities range in size from 20 to 100 people, and frequently a whole community is housed in a single, multi-family dwelling called a MALOCA or longhouse. The community is typically made up of all the members of a patrilineal sib, the most important unit of social organization among the Tukano.” ref
“Tukano subsistence activities include fishing, hunting, collecting, and horticulture; the relative importance of each depending on seasonal abundance. Fish are the most important source of protein in the diet. Fishing is a male activity, done either collectively or by individuals, and includes a variety of techniques, such as the use of bow and arrows, lines, nets, weirs, and poisons. Hunting, a secondary male activity, is accomplished through the use of shotguns, blowpipes, bow and arrows, and poison. Deer, peccaries, tapirs, squirrels, monkeys, jaguars, capybaras, pacas, birds, and other tropical forest fauna are the major game animals. A number of insects and reptiles round out the list of Tukano animal foods.” ref
“Large areas of forest near Tukano villages are cleared for cultivation by the slash-and-burn method. Horticulture is largely, but not exclusively, a female activity. Bitter manioc (cassava) is the most important crop grown and is the dietary staple of the Tukano. Manioc cultivation and subsequent processing to remove poisonous substances from the root, occupy much of the women’s time. Other crops include squash, melons, yams, sweet potatoes, calabash, sugarcane, bananas, plantains, citrus fruit, and pineapples.” ref
“The entire northwest Amazon area is a vastly complex trading network. All kinds of objects, such as household implements, ornaments, musical instruments, ceremonial objects, plants, pets, and magical substances, are in a constant state of exchange. Trade with other non-Tukanoan groups is also common, with, for example, poison (used in fishing and hunting) and raw materials for making ornaments coming from the Makú and manioc-grating boards from the Arawak-speaking Kuripako.” ref
“As with subsistence activities, there is a marked distinction between the sexes in domestic activities. Women weave from plant fibers the bags and garters used by men. They also wash and mend clothing, sweep the MALOCA, gather firewood, fetch water, and manufacture pottery. Men produce all the baskets and wood items used by both sexes, construct houses, hunt and fish, and make canoes, fishing gear, and weapons. They also manufacture the ritual equipment used in various ceremonies. Men are also directly involved in coca growing and processing. In general women’s activities more directly serve their families. They are responsible for preparing all foods, as well as the planting, tending, and processing of almost all edible cultigens, although men share responsibility for some fruit trees, corn, and pineapple plants. Primarily it is also the women who are involved in most of the gathering activities. In general, the economic activities of both men and women are complementary to one another in respect to subsistence contributions.” ref
“The Tukano recognize jurisdiction over rather than actual ownership of land. For example, a tribe will hold jurisdiction over a specific territory; a phratry over a river or a particular section of a river; and a sib over a smaller segment of river frontage. The periodic change of settlement sites occur within these boundaries. Tukanoans have implicit usufruct rights to resources in these areas, but the concepts of “tribal lands,” “inalienable rights,” or “title” are foreign ones to the Tukano.” ref
“Individuals have the right to use but not ownership of land under the jurisdiction of their sib for the purpose of cultivation, hunting, or fishing. Crops grown on the land, however, are considered the property of the cultivator. This jurisdiction or dominion over land is sanctioned by traditions of origin from the first ancestors and their subsequent travels and settlements. Place names thus become part of the traditional claim to a territory, for they identify ancestral sites, fishing areas, old orchards, and manioc plantations.” ref
“The Tukano longhouse community is typically made up of all the members of a patrilineal sib. Sibs are named, exogamous and localized kinship units, and have important social, economic, political, and ritual functions in the society. They are the largest units within which there is any kind of authority structure. The sib headman achieves leadership status through a combination of personal abilities, and relationship to the previous headman. His powers are limited to persuasion, however, and his term in this role lasts as long as the sib members accept his leadership. The sibs are hierarchically ordered, and each sib belongs to one of five phratries.” ref
“Each of these phratries is composed of up to twenty or thirty ranked sibs and derives its origin from mythical ancestors or “totemic” concepts. The major importance of the phratry is its function as an exogamous unit. The usefulness of the term “tribe” among the Tukano is questionable. Observers use it to identify Tukano groups that share common descent and language, but the Tukano themselves have no overarching sense of the tribe as a political or territorial unit, and recognize no tribal leaders.” ref
“Kinship terminology is related to the Dravidian model, in which ego’s generation is either “classificatory siblings” or “classificatory cross-cousins.” In this system classificatory siblings of the opposite sex to ego are prohibited from marriage, and classificatory cross-cousins of the opposite sex to ego are potentially marriageable. According to Århem, “the Dravidian type of terminology is generally characterized by classification according to generation, distinction of sex, distinction of two kinds of relatives in the three medial generations and distinction of relative age in the central generational level… The central features of this type of terminology is the division of terms into two opposed classes in the medial generation, as for example, the opposition between cross and parallel relatives or as an opposition between consanguineal and affinal terms.” ref
“Marriage among the various Eastern Tukanoan groups is basically a kind of movement in which people, goods, and intangible commodities, such as prestige, follow marital paths which link families and settlements. Sib and phratry exogamy is observed and marriage to real or classificatory cross-cousins is the preferred, but not obligatory pattern. Ideally, in Tukanoan marriage, sisters are exchanged, but in actual practice this seldom occurs because of demographics and other factors. As noted above, marriage is prohibited by incest prohibitions within patrilineal descent groups, but when language is the marker of patrilineal descent, as it is for most Eastern Tukanoan societies, the result is linguistic exogamy. In such a system wives typically come from a group speaking a different language than that of their husbands, and thus they become the principal mediators between groups speaking diverse languages. According to Århem, the Makuna flatly contradict the ideal rule of linguistic exogamy.” ref
“Although they do marry into other language groups, they also marry among other Makuna speakers. Chernela suggests that this was a recent phenomenon as the result of depopulation. In the household situation, the wife invariably uses the language of the husband in talking to her children, but since she is usually not the only woman from her linguistic group in a large longhouse community, she will frequently find time during the day to converse with these other women in their own language. Marriage arrangements include the payment of bride price. A form of marriage by abduction is also to be noted among the Eastern Tukanoans. Most marriages are monogamous, the exception being a few headmen with more than one wife. Divorce is usually accomplished by the wife returning to her paternal sib, while her children remain in their own or father’s sib.” ref
“The basic political and ceremonial unit of the northwest Amazon is the longhouse or residence group, consisting of one or more nuclear families each with their own specific location in the large communal house or MALOCA which they jointly occupy. Several related nuclear families form an extended family unit within the longhouse. As the result of dissension or for the purpose of establishing independence, brothers (real or classificatory) may move away from the original residence group and establish their own longhouse units. These units, often separated from one another by several hours of paddling on the river, and speaking a distinct language, constitute a linguistic group or so-called tribe. Over the years socio-cultural change has brought about the gradual disappearance of the MALOCAS, succeeded in turn by the POVOADOS, or clustering of individual family residences within a specified area.” ref
“In general, information on property and inheritance is little covered in the literature on the Tukano. Ritual property, such as sets of names for sacred musical instruments, sets of dances, chants about ancestral origins, traditions of origins expressed in myths, etc., are the exclusive property of the sib and phratry descent lines who transmit knowledge of these things to their own membership. Although not strictly speaking “ritual property”, language too could be included in the list, for it is ideally descent determined and forms the medium of expression of many of the items listed above. Several non-ritual items and techniques are also associated with descent lines, so that particular weaving styles, types of leaves used for roofing, special cooked dishes, etc. are described as belonging to one or another group.” ref
“With very young children both parents are involved in the nurturing process, with the sex of the child irrelevant. As the child matures, he or she spends increasingly more time with the same sex parent learning from them the basic skills necessary for later life as an adult Tukano, and promoting the assumption of adult responsibilities at an early age. From the Western point of view parents are very permissive and access to them by the child is never denied. Refusal to grant a child’s request or demand seldom progresses to an outright rejection. The child is simply distracted, amused in some other way, or bought off with a treat. Children learn proper behavior either by imitation or gentle suggestion from the parents. When children disobey or otherwise cause displeasure to the parent they are rarely directly punished, and most often disapproval is not even apparent. Eventually a point is reached in the maturation process in which the parents begin to exert more authority over the child and expect them to be more responsible for their actions.” ref
“Actions applied by parents at this time duplicate those techniques of social control found in other areas of Tukanoan life, namely: ignoring the behavior, collective ostracism, laughing to the point of ridicule, and other similar methods. At puberty both boys and girls undergo ceremonial initiation into the tribe under the close scrutiny of the PAJÉ or shaman. The PAJÉ teaches the young men the traditional legends, their rights and duties as members of the group, the ritual practices (including their introduction to the sacred musical instruments), and verifies their ability to assume adult status in the society by means of interrogation, and through their ability to withstand various physical ordeals (e.g., flagellation, fasts, etc.). Young women are instructed by the PAJÉ in theoretical and practical instructions about maternity and related obligations. The shaman also gives them practical instructions in sex education, either personally, by means of the KUMÚ (an elder person of status in the village), or with another young man of her or her father’s choice. This part of the young woman’s initiation ritual is essential before she can marry.” ref
“In the Eastern Tukanoan region of the northwest Amazon, those social units of particular importance are the nuclear family, lineage, sib, tribe, phratry, the residential or longhouse groups, and the linguistic group. Several nuclear families constitute a lineage, and several lineages form a sib which is the primary unit of social organization among the Tukano. Several sibs together form a tribe which has its own separate history and is identifiable by a distinct language. The tribe is, therefore, co-extensive with the linguistic group. The identifying language of the linguistic group is thus the father tongue, the longhouse language, and the tribal language of each member, but it is not the language that identifies the mother’s linguistic group.” ref
“With few exceptions, the tribe is aligned with one of five phratries. Each phratry represents a named exogamous group of sibs that marry into the other phratries of the region. As noted previously, the longhouse or residential group is the basic political and ceremonial unit in the northwest Amazon. In time, the well-established longhouse group becomes a cluster of lineages, as brothers move away from the original household and establish their own independent longhouse units. Shaming, ridicule, fear of sorcery, and the force of public opinion, seem to be the primary means of exerting social control in Tukano society.” ref
“The most common sources of conflict among the Tukano are the accusation or suspicion of sorcery following death, unsuccessful marriage arrangements, disputes over the ceremonial feather headdresses, and bride capture. Disputes and the competition for power within Tukano society are expressed in the language of communal ritual; individuals are either not invited to attend a given ceremony, or if they are, will not come. Thus communal rituals serve to display, channel, control, and settle disputes. When disputes arise between local and territorial groups, neighbors and co-residents, who are generally kinsmen, exert pressure to prevent the disagreement from escalating into fullscale violence. In the traditional culture serious disputes between neighbors and co-residents were settled by sham fights with wooden clubs. Within the residence or longhouse community, conflict is expressed by physical separation from the main group.” ref
“Conflicts between higher-order social segments often turn to conflicts between local groupings: a dispute, for example, between members of two segments of the same sib, living in different local groups, tend to turn into a conflict between the two local groups rather than between the two sib-segments involved. Until recently war and feuds between different territorial groups were not uncommon. By the early 1970s feuds and large scale raiding have been suppressed by the national administration, although latent hostility between peoples of different territories still exists.” ref
“The Tukanoans conceive of their physical world as much more than appears to the senses. The world as we now know it was different in ancestral times, and this world of the ancestors is re-created during sacred ceremonies. In this physical perception of the world, for example, the sky represents not only a sky but the underside of the level of the universe above this one. At the peak of the most sacred point in Tukanoan rituals, all aspects of “space” — vertical, horizontal, and temporal — are transformed. The longhouse itself now becomes the universe, the ceremonial participants the ancestors, and the realities behind the outward appearance of space, time, and matter are revealed. All of these characteristics — insubstantiality, mutability, and multiple reality — are crucial factors in the Tukanoan conception of the universe.” ref
“In general, Tukano religious beliefs center around an elaborate cosmology depicting five separate levels of the universe, and a mythology of origins based on the mythical being called the Manioc-stick Anaconda. The Tukano also express belief in a somewhat vague all-powerful good spirit or god, and a multitude of lesser spirits, both good and evil, which have a great influence on individuals and to a large extent rule their lives. The Tukano also believe in an immortal soul for they acknowledge the existence of the spirits of the dead, usually their own ancestors. These spirits form the basis of a cult of ancestors around which major rituals revolve. It is in connection with ancestor ritual that mourning ceremonies are held and the sacred musical instruments played. Shamanism is also a very important part of the Tukano religious system.” ref
“Most religious rituals of the Tukano are performed by the PAJÉ (shaman) who serves as an intermediary between society and the supernatural world. The PAJÉ directs the ceremonies of the life cycle — naming, initiations, and burial rites — acts as a curer, and at times practices sorcery and poisoning (of individuals). The institution of shamanism goes back to mythical times; shamans are said to have been among the first passengers of the anaconda-canoe in the origin myth. The office of shaman is not hereditary, although there may be some degree of family traditions in a shaman’s calling. The special traits that seem to characterize the shaman are: interest in the natural history of the area, in oral traditions, myths, disease, altered state of consciousness, and in dream interpretation. One of the most important functions of the shaman is, through the use of hallucinogenic drugs, to fly to remote regions of the universe in order to acquire esoteric knowledge.” ref
“The principal ceremonies in which the shaman participates are: curing rituals, the exchange of marriage partners in the DABUCURÍ ceremony, the name giving ceremony held for infants, and in male and female initiation rites (Reichel-Dolmatoff 1987: 7 ff.). The term KOMŨÁ (KUMU sing.) is generally applied by the Tukano to elders or people of status in the community. Among the Desana, however, the term refers to individuals with priestly functions different from the activities of the PAJÉ, and holding a very respected position in the society. Although at times the KUMU may intervene in rites of the life cycle, this individual’s main public function seems to be in pronouncing the GO’A MËË BAYÁRI or “songs of god” which are sometimes sung on the occasion of large gatherings when gifts of food are distributed between phratries.” ref
“The principal ceremonies of the Tukano are those related to the life cycle, initiation, marriage and death. Most of these are rituals over which the PAJÉ presides, and are concerned with ideas of fertilization and rebirth. The first of these is the name-giving ceremony during which the infant is incorporated into the social group, receiving in the process the name of a patrilineal male or female relative (often of ancestral origin). Male initiation, which may involve several boys of the same age group, is another occasion in which death and subsequent rebirth form an important part of the religious symbolism. During this initiation, boys are taught the sacred lore associated with the large YURUPARÍ trumpets, and in fact the literature frequently refers to the boy’s initiation rituals as the YURUPARÍ ceremonies. The female initiation rites are also similar in their emphasis on transformation and rebirth. The ritual curing of illness through shamanistic performance, is in all essence, considered as the shedding of a placenta and a process of rebirth.” ref
“In addition to the above, a recurrent ceremony or semi-secular festival is that of the DABUCURÍ. This ceremony involves the gathering of two or more exogamic groups (phratries) for the purpose of sister exchange. This exchange of marriage partners is almost always accompanied by the mutual exchange of fruits or other foods. During the two or three days of this ceremony, shaman and elders sing and recite lengthy genealogical or origin myths, while other participants engage in various other recreational pursuits (e.g., singing, dancing, etc.). This ceremony again places emphasis on reciprocity and fertility, for the ritual recitals refer to the fecundity of women and the desire to transform potential enemies into allies. Among most Tukano groups, rituals associated with death involve prayers and chants for the deceased to ensure that the spirit of the dead person leaves quickly on his or her journey to the land of the dead. The Cubeo, however, have much more complex ceremonies for the dead.” ref
“These are known collectively as ÓYNE (weeping) and may take place as late as a year after death. The ÓYNE consists of two parts, the first of which is a long, three day section, followed a month later by a one-day concluding ceremony at which the dead is finally evicted from the community. The Tukano dead are interred beneath the floor of their MALOCA, in a coffin-canoe, wrapped in his or her hammock and accompanied by the personal possessions of the deceased. These possessions include pottery or a basket in the case of a woman, or a bow and arrows, coca pouch, or snuff-shell in the case of a man. Shortly after the burial, sometimes the following night, a feast takes place in the MALOCA of the deceased. This feast consists of traditional masked dances, along with libations poured over the grave of the dead person. Mourning ceremonies for the Cubeo, as reported by Goldman, were far more elaborate. Mortuary endocannibalism, in which the bones of the dead were ground up, added to chicha beer, and consumed, was reported by both Wallace and Koch-Grünberg at the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but the information was based on second-hand reports and never properly authenticated.” ref
“Goldman observed what he thought to be this custom during his field work among the Cubeo in 1939-1940, but he could not confirm that the bones he observed being ground up were actually human. Strong elements of an ancestor cult permeate many of the rituals of the Tukano, especially those in which the sib dead are mourned, when an infant receives a sib name, and in male initiation ceremonies in which the sacred musical instruments are used. After death the spirits of the deceased go to “dead-people spirit” houses where their ancestors live.” ref
“These houses are found in specific locations depending on an individual’s language group (e.g., Tuyukas go to a longhouse on Behuya stream on the upper Paca River, and Bará go to Pamüri Wi at Yuruparí Rapids in the Vaupés). Not all the spirits of the dead go directly to the “dead-people spirit” houses, however, for those involved in various acts of theft, incest, murder, etc., or who have met accidental but bloody deaths, may wander around their graves and never complete the journey to the house of the dead. These spirits are the ones who are potentially harmful to the living and may be banished only by the prayers of the shaman.” ref
“Tukano oral literature, rich in content, centers primarily around mythological tale of origin. These myths contain a relatively concise statement of cosmology and provide the basis for the establishment of various cultural institutions and religious codes. Singing and dancing, accompanied by a variety of musical instruments, form an important part of Tukano ritual and festival events. The two basic types of songs are the religious songs sung at ritual dances, performed exclusively by men, and the secular songs sung for amusement by women. The former are always sung in choir, without solos, and in only one voice, while the latter are sung by one or more singers simultaneously or alternately, sometimes repeating the same theme, and sometimes not.” ref
“Musical instruments consist primarily of idiophones (rhythm tubes and sticks, rattles, snappers, maracas), membranophones (drums), and aerophones (flutes, whistles, panpipes, trumpets). Instruments are given names, and play an important part in boy’s initiation ceremonies (e.g., the YURUPARÍ trumpets). As noted previously, the Tukano are regionally specialized in the production of various craft products. The Tukano proper manufacture decorated benches or footstools, the Desana are specialists in making baskets and mats, while the Bará and Tuyuka (Tuyuca) excel in the construction of canoes. Tukano decorative designs are mostly limited to triangles and crosses, and rely more heavily on color than form. These designs are applied to a great variety of artifacts including the elaborate masks and headdresses constructed and used in certain ceremonials (e.g., the mourning rituals), tools, dance aprons, ornaments, the bark walls of their MALOCAS, and even to body painting. These designs are also woven into baskets. Pottery, however, is usually undecorated except for the pot containing the narcotic YAJÉ used by the elders during certain festivals and curing sessions.” ref
“Diseases are believed to result from the failure to observe specific food restrictions, or as the result of sorcery. Most individuals have considerable practical knowledge of how to cure specific diseases using a number of medicinal herbs found in the natural environment. These herbs are used effectively to heal wounds, cuts, infections, relieve stomachache, and even cure snake bite. These treatment procedures are often accompanied by magical ones as well. For more serious diseases, especially those thought to be caused by sorcery, the PAJÉ is consulted. The shaman’s curing procedures usually include sucking out the evil object from the body, or pouring shamanized (magically prepared) water over the patient.” ref
“Together with their neighbors, the Tukanoans make up an open-ended socio-political system that is integrated through networks of reciprocal exchange involving visiting, trade, intermarriage, and ritual feasting. This regional system depends upon an interplay between similarity and difference, between things that give its component groups some measure of collective identity and things that make them different from each other and create interdependence between them. Let us begin with the similarities. The Tukanoans share a continuous geographical area and the same basic way of life involving both hunting and gathering but with a predominant emphasis on fishing and on slash-and-burn agriculture with bitter manioc as the principal crop. In the past they all lived in communal houses or malocas of more or less uniform architectural style: a large rectangular building with a massive gabled roof and a door at each end. They speak closely-related languages with many features of grammar and much of their vocabulary in common.” ref
“These shared conventions regarding life-style, spatial organisation, language, speech, dress, music, dance mean that Uaupés peoples partake in a common system of verbal and non-verbal communication that receives its fullest expression at inter-community rituals. Each group has their own origin stories but they also share a body of broadly identical mythology. The myths explain the origins of the cosmos, describing a dangerous, undifferentiated world with no clear boundaries of space and time, and no difference between people and animals. They explain how the deeds of the first beings created the physical features of the landscape, and how the world was gradually made safe for the emergence of true human beings.” ref
“Finally, a key origin myth explains how an Anaconda-ancestor entered the world-house through the “water-door” in the East and traveled up the Río Negro and Uaupés with the ancestors of all humanity inside his body. Initially, in the form of feather ornaments, these spirit ancestors were transformed into human beings over the course of their journey. When they reached the rapids of Ipanoré, the centre of the world, they emerged from a hole in the rocks and moved to their respective territories. These shared narratives give the Uaupés peoples a common understanding of the cosmos, of the place of human beings within it, and of the relations that should pertain between different peoples and between them and other beings.” ref
“Each group has its own language, its own set of personal names, its own dance-songs, and its own genealogies and narratives of origin. Each has a particular Anaconda ancestor that brought the people to their own particular territory. The body of this Anaconda is at once the stretch of river on which they live, the malocas they inhabit, and the individual members of the group, each one a reincarnation of the original. Language, names, songs, stories, and other verbal property act as emblems of identity, affirm territorial rights and ritual prerogatives, and manifest aspects of the life, soul, and spirit of the group.” ref
“Each group also owns one or more sets of Yuruparí, sacred palm-wood flutes, and trumpets that are the bones of their ancestor and which embody his breath and song. Alongside feasting and ceremonial exchange, the rites surrounding the ancestral musical instruments, condensed symbols of group identity, spirit, and power, form the other major component of Tukanoan ritual life. Ceremonial exchange emphasizes the equivalence and mutual interdependence between the different groups; the Yuruparí rites emphasize the unique identity of each one.” ref
“The Tukano, Barasana, Desana, etc., are patrilineal and exogamous: individuals belong to their father’s group and speak his language but must marry partners from other groups who speak other languages. Externally, groups are equal but different; internally each is made up of a number of named clans ranked in a hierarchy. The ancestors of these clans were the sons of the Anaconda-ancestor, and their birth order, the order of emergence from their father’s body, determines their position: higher-ranking clans are collectively “elder brothers to those below. Clan rank is correlated with status and prestige and loosely correlated with residence: higher ranking clans tend to live in favoured downstream locations with lower ranking clans often living upstream or in headwater areas.” ref
“Clan rank also has ritual correlates: top ranking clans, the “head of the Anaconda”, are “chiefs” or “headmen” who control the group’s dance ornaments and Yuruparí and sponsor major rituals; middle ranking clans are specialist dancers and chanters; below them come shamans; and at the bottom are servant clans, the “tail of the Anaconda”, who are sometimes identified with the semi-nomadic “Makú” (A pejorative term with connotations of ‘servant, slave, uncivilised, etc.” ) who live in the interfluvial zones.” ref
“This hierarchy of specialized roles and ritual prerogatives is most evident during collective rituals where genealogies are recited and where relations of rank and respect are emphasized. In a more subtle way, it is also reflected in everyday life. The inhabitants of a maloca are typically a group of closely-related men, the children of the same father or of two or more brothers, who live together with their wives and children. When a woman marries, she leaves her natal maloca and goes to live with her husband. In symbolic terms, the maloca replicates the world in miniature, and the maloca community is both a replication and a future precursor of the ideal clan organization described above. Here, the father of the maloca community would be the Anaconda-ancestor of the whole group, and his sons the ancestors of its component clans. In real life, too, the eldest son and senior brother are typically the maloca headman, and quite often, his younger brothers are dancers, chanters, or shamans, sometimes in the appropriate order of birth.” ref
“The inhabitants of neighboring malocas make up loosely-knit communities that tend to form around charismatic leaders who host major feasts and sponsor the building of large malocas that act as ceremonial centers. Much of Tukanoan ritual and religious life is focused upon sacred objects such as feather ornaments and Yuruparí, on sacred substances such as red carayurú paint, beeswax, and varieties of coca, tobacco, and ayahuasca, and on less tangible wealth in the form of names, spells, songs, and chants. As manifestations of its spirit-powers, all such items are collectively owned by the group and integral to its identity, and, at a collective level, large-scale public rituals express the group’s internal structure and its relations to others. At the same time, those who have extensive esoteric ritual knowledge, who control sacred property, and who sponsor public rituals can advance their position and become powerful in their own right.” ref
“As basic principles, Tukanoan cosmology combines shifting perspective, replication of organization at different scales of existence, and analogous organization of different levels of experience. The world is made up of three basic layers: sky, earth, and underworld. Each layer is a world in itself, with its own particular beings, and each may be understood in both abstract and concrete terms. In different contexts, the “sky” might be the world of the sun, moon, and stars, the world of high-flying birds, the flat tops of the tepuis from which waterfalls cascade, the tree-top world of the forest, or even a head adorned with a head-dress of red-and-yellow macaw feathers, the colors of the sun.” ref
“Likewise, the “underworld” might be the River of the Dead beneath the earth, the yellow clay beneath the topsoil where people are buried, or the aquatic world of earthly rivers. But what is “sky” or “underworld” depends not only on scale and context but also on perspective: at night the sun, sky and day are below the earth with the dark underworld above. A story tells of man who finds the corpse of a star-woman who fell to earth when buried by her family in the sky above: to them she is dead in the underworld; to him she is alive on earth. The man marries the star-woman and goes with her to visit her family. To the man, the stars are spirits of the dead who live by night; to them, it is he who is a spirit, and it is his day that is night.” ref
“In this schema, marriages between different groups also take on cosmic dimensions. All groups have an Anaconda-ancestor, but these anacondas can also manifest themselves as jaguars or harpy-eagles – in a transformational and perspectival world, the powerful predators of sky, earth, and water are equivalent and complementary. The Barasana typically marry the Bará; in myth Yeba, or “Earth”, the Barasana ancestor in jaguar form, married Yawira, daughter of Fish Anaconda, the ancestor of the Bará. The Bará, Makuna, and others are Fish or Water People, the Barasana and Tukano are Earth People, and the Tatuyo and Desana are Sky People.” ref
“In symbolic terms, the maloca is the world, and the world is a maloca. The thatched roof is the sky, the supporting house posts are mountains, the walls are the chains of hills that seem to surround the visible landscape at the world’s edge, and beneath the floor runs the River of the Dead. The maloca has two doors, a men’s door or “water door” in the East and a woman’s door in the West, with a long ridge pole, “the path of the Sun”, running along the top of the house between the two. In this equatorial region, the earthly rivers flow from East to West or from women’s door to men’s door; to complete a closed circuit of water, the River of the Dead flows from East to West.” ref
“If the maloca is the world, so also is it a body, at once the canoe-like body of the Anaconda-ancestor and the bodies of his children contained within. These children are the inhabitants of the house, replications of the original ancestor, the containers of future generations, and future ancestors in their own right. But, if the maloca is a human body, here too things are a matter of perspective. Seen from the men’s end, the maloca’s painted front is a man’s face, the men’s door is his mouth, the ridgepole and lateral spars are his spine and ribs, the center of the house is his heart, and the rear, women’s door is his anus. Seen from the women’s end and from their perspective, the spine, ribs, and heart remain constant, but the rest of the body is reversed: the women’s door is her mouth, the men’s door is her vagina, and the interior of the house is her womb.” ref
“Once these principles of replication and transformation have been grasped, further elaborations and inferences may follow. If rivers flow through the world-house and the body is a kind of house then it might follow that the human gut and genitals are “rivers” – and even that parasitic worms are “anacondas”. An amusing story describes the world from a worm’s point of view: when his human host drinks cashirí (manioc beer), the rain is thick and sticky; when he drinks farinha, it rains stones, and when he eats beijú, it rains big rocks. This tale illustrates an important point: sometimes myths make cosmology explicit, but more often, it is simply taken for granted, and people must work it out for themselves.” ref
“Armed with these basic principles, we can begin to see how some life processes are understood in cosmological terms and how these relate to ritual practices associated with the life cycle. Digestion, defecation, decay, and death all involve a passive flow from high to low, from upstream to downstream, from West to East. Life itself is a movement, sometimes a struggle, against this current: plants grow up towards the sun, and people must grow upwards as they mature. The Sun or Yeba Hakü (in barasana language), the “Father of the Universe”, the source of light and life, moves constantly against the current, up the rivers of the earth from East to West by day and up the underworld river by night to appear again in the East.” ref
“The Anaconda-ancestor who brought humanity to the world also travelled Sun-like from East towards the West, stopping when he reached the middle of the world. This move from East to the West was also a move upwards from water onto land. The Anaconda, an aquatic being, was the very river up which he travelled and the beings inside him only took on human form when they emerged onto dry land; before this they were “fish people”, spirits in the form of feather-ornaments. Animals are referred to as wai-bükürã, “mature fishes”; logically human beings are also “mature fishes”, beings that are half-way between the spirit-fishes they once were and the spirit-birds they will become.” ref
“The story of the Anaconda ancestor is a sacred narrative of primordial origins – and probably also a story of the Tukanoans” historical migrations. It can also be understood as a story about ecology, about the annual upriver migrations of Amazonian fish that come to spawn in headwater regions, and one about human reproduction. Human reproduction also involves an upward, “East -West” penetration of a “water door”, an upward flow of semen, and a passage from the watery world of the womb to the dry terrestrial plane of human existence. No wonder then that “to be born” is hoe-hea, “to cross to a higher level.” ref
“But birth also involves a movement down the birth canal – cosmologically a movement from West to East and, in social terms, a movement from mother to father or from women to men. To understand this we must begin with death. Some Uaupés Indians, the Cubeo in particular, stage elaborate mourning rites with dancers in painted bark-cloth masks become fish, animals and other forest beings who welcome the dead soul to their spirit world. But Tukanoan burial itself is a simple affair: the grave is the maloca floor and the coffin a canoe cut in half.” ref
“Tukanoans share a notion of reincarnation: at death, an aspect of the dead person’s soul returns to the “house of transformation”, the group’s origin site, a notion of reincarnation shared by all Tukanoans. Later the soul returns to the world of the living to be joined to the body of a new-born baby when the baby receives its name. People are named after a recently dead relative on the father’s side, a father’s father for a boy or a father’s mother for a girl. Each group owns a limited set of personal names which are kept alive by being transmitted back to the living. The visible aspect of these name-souls are the feather headdresses worn by dancers, ornaments that are also buried with the dead. The underworld river is described as being awash with ornaments, and you will remember that, in the origin story, the spirits inside the Anaconda-canoe traveled in the form of dance ornaments.” ref
“Buried in canoes, the souls of the dead fall to the underworld river below. From there they drift downstream to the West and to the upstream regions of the world above. Women give birth, not in the maloca, but in a roça located inland, upstream and behind the house – also the West. The new-born baby is first bathed in the river then brought into the maloca through the rear, women’s door. Confined inside the house for about a week with its mother and father, it is then again bathed in the river and given a name. Thus, in cosmological terms, babies do indeed come from women, water, the river, and the West.” ref
“Thus far we have been mainly concerned with the life cycle and with descent from ancestors, linear notions of time that are linked to cyclical ideas of reincarnation and rebirth. Now it is time to turn to the other main component of Tukanoan religious ideas, the relations between human beings, animals and the forest. Masa, the word for “people”, is a relative concept. It can refer to one group as against another, to all Tukanoans as against their non-Tukanoan neighbors, to Indians as against White, to human beings as against animals, and finally to living things, trees included, as against inanimate objects.” ref
“In myth and shamanic discourse, animals are people and share their culture: they live in organized maloca communities, plant gardens, hunt, and fish, drink beer, wear ornaments, take part in inter-community feasts and play their own Yuruparí. All creatures that can see and hear, that communicate with their own kind, and that act intentionally are “people” – but people of different kinds. They are different because they have different bodies, habits and behaviours and see things from different bodily perspectives. Just as stars see living humans as dead spirits, so also do animals see humans as animals. To vulture eyes, when humans go fishing, they fish in rotting corpses and catch maggots; to jaguar eyes, humans are dangerous predators who drink blood as beer; to fish it is wonder that humans can breathe underwater. But of course humans see things the other way round.” ref
“In everyday life, people emphasize their difference from animals, but in the spirit world, one which is also that of ritual, shamanism, dreaming, and ayahuasca visions, perspectives are merged, differences are abolished, the past is present, and people and animals remain as one. This has important practical implications for, where animals are people, hunting animals for their meat is tantamount to warfare and cannibalism. Many illnesses are thus diagnosed as the revenge of the animals that humans kill and eat as food. The risk from animals is proportionate to their habitat and to size: tapirs are more dangerous than monkeys, animals more dangerous than fish, and large fish more dangerous than small one.” ref
“Risk also relates to contact with the metaphysical realm. A birth in this world is a provokes resentment amongst animal-spirits – for them it is a death. Human babies, recent immigrants from the spirit world whose souls are not yet firmly anchored to their bodies, must be protected from jealous tapirs who threaten to ingest them through their anuses – a birth in reverse. As visitors to the spirit world, menstruating women and men who take part in rituals are all temporarily placed in a child-like status and must adjust their diet to avoid dangerous foods. To make fish or meat safe to eat, a shaman must first blow spells to remove the “weapons,” the qualities that give a creature its identity and which can cause harm by compromising the consumer’s specifically human identity.” ref
“The personified, subjective, and intentional qualities that apply to animals and fish also extend to the cosmos as a whole. The myths of Uaupés peoples are also myths of their landscape whose features, the hills and mountains, rivers, rocks and rapids, have names that evoke the stories of their ancestral creation. To travel by trail or canoe is to follow these stories and to partake in the acts of creation they describe. Further stories tell of historical migrations so that the landscape is doubly crafted – first by the primordial acts of creation and then by more recent acts of house building and garden making.” ref
The powers of ancestral creation infused throughout the landscape extend to the plants, fishes, animals, and human beings that inhabit it, as well as to the objects that people make from the materials that it provides. In myth, everyday objects such as canoes, stools, baskets, and pots emerge as animated beings with a potency and agency of their own – as we have already seen, just as animals may be people, so too can malocas be the bodies of their creators. Crafted objects encapsulate two kinds of potency: the powers of the natural materials from which they are made and the skills and intentions of their makers. It follows from this that making things has an important religious dimension. During their initiation rites, young men and women are systematically trained in crafting, a training that is as much intellectual and spiritual as it is technical. Making things is both self-making and world-making, a form of meditation that gives insight into the interconnectedness of objects, bodies, people, houses, and the world.” ref
“Although they might be described as “religion”, the cosmological ideas described above also form the premise and taken-for-granted backdrop of everyday life. This is so partly because here religion is not a discrete domain but rather an aspect or dimension of all knowledge, experience and practice. It is also so because life in a landscape imbued with ancestral powers and where ordinary things have an extra-ordinary metaphysical dimension is potentially hazardous. To survive and prosper, and to ensure the well-being of themselves and their families, all adults need some ability to handle and control the creative and destructive forces that surround them. Technical and metaphysical know-how go together and are not sharply distinguished. To sustain themselves in the local environment, adult men must know both the natural resources of their territory and also its spiritual assets and dangers, they must combine routine chores with ritual procedures, and must have a basic competence in both hunting and fishing and in the spells that render meat and fish safe to eat. Likewise, women, the “mothers of food” whose manioc tubers are their “children”, must manage the material and spiritual dimensions of production and reproduction, of their gardens, their kitchens, and their bodies, as a single integrated whole.” ref
“In Amazonia, ritual specialists with special powers and access to esoteric religious knowledge are often referred to as ‘shamans’, a label that can obscure as much as it reveals. As indicated above, in order to operate successfully all adult men must be shamans to some extent. Those who are publicly recognised as such are individuals with greater ritual knowledge and a special ability to “read” what lies behind sacred narratives, who chose to deploy their skills and knowledge on behalf of others, and who acquire recognition as experts. ‘Shamans’ are thus those who, at any one time, stand out from their fellows – but there are always others waiting in the wings.” ref
“A second point relates to gender. With rare exceptions, ritual experts are always men – but the capacity of women to menstruate and to bear children is spoken of as their, female, equivalent of the powers signaled by the men’s control of feather ornaments and Yuruparí. It might, therefore, be said that if men acquire their shamanic capacities through culture, women are already ‘shamans’ by nature. It thus comes as no surprise that, in Tukanoan mythology, the Universe People, the ancestral heroes who pave the way for the creation of humanity, are created by a female deity who the Barasana call Romi Kumu or ‘Woman Shaman’, known as the “Old Woman of the Earth” (Ye”pa Büküo, Yeba Büro) in Tukano and Desana.” ref
“Finally, the label ‘shaman” obscures an important distinction between two quite different ritual specialists, the yai and the kumu. The yai corresponds to the prototypical Amazonian shaman or payé. His main tasks involve dealing with other people and with the outside world of animals and the forest. He plays an important role in hunting, providing animals for hunters to kill by releasing spirit animals from their houses in the hills, a potentially dangerous activity that can cause compensatory conversions, from living to dead, in the human world. The payé is an expert in curing the sickness and diseases caused by sorcery from vengeful creatures and jealous human beings, illnesses that typically manifest themselves as spines, hair, and other objects lodged in the body. Curing is done either by throwing water over the patient or by blowing smoke over the body and manipulating with the hands, but always involves sucking objects or substances from the patient’s body.” ref
“Yai means “jaguar,” a term which gives some indication of the status of the payé in Tukanoan society. The jaguar is a powerful but also a potentially dangerous animal and those who have the power and knowledge to counteract sorcery may also practice sorcery themselves. Whether a particular payé is considered to be “good” or “bad” depends on whether or not he is a trusted kinsman or neighbor. The term yai also has connotations of wildness and lack of control that allude to the slightly marginal position of many payés and to the fact that their powers are individual, idiosyncratic, and often associated with the use of potent hallucinogenic snuffs.” ref
“Although both yai and kumu are part-time specialists, the kumu is more a savant and a priest than a shaman. His powers and authority are founded on an exhaustive knowledge of mythology and ritual procedures, knowledge that only comes after years of training and practice. This means that those who are recognized as kumu are usually older men, often men whose fathers or paternal uncles had the same status, so the role of kumu may become hereditary. As a knowledgeable senior man, the kumu is typically also a headmen and leader of his community and will exert considerable authority over a much wider area. Compared to the sometimes morally ambiguous yai, the kumu enjoys a much higher status and also a much greater degree of trust, a trust that relates to his prominent ritual role.” ref
“The kumu plays an important role in the prevention of illness and misfortune. He is an expert in blowing spells over the flesh of fish and animals to convert their substance to a vegetable-like form. He also officiates at rites of passage and effects the major transitions of birth, initiation and death, transitions that ensure the socialization of individuals and the passage of the generations, and which maintain ordered relations between the ancestors and their living descendants. It is the kumu who names newborn babies, and it is he who conducts the public, collective rites of initiation for young boys and the more individual and private rites that are held when young girls reach puberty. Such transitions involve a necessary and potentially beneficial contact between living people, the spirits, and the dead. This contact can be dangerous and it is the kumu who takes on responsibility for protecting people from harm. For those who enjoyed the protection of a particular kumu during their own birth or initiation, he is their guu or “tortoise”, an allusion to this animal’s hard, protective carapace.” ref
“The kumu’s other major function is to officiate at dance feasts, drinking parties, and ceremonial exchanges and to conduct and supervise the rituals at which the Yuruparí instruments are played, rituals that involve direct contact with dead ancestors. Those involved in such rites put their lives in the hands of the kumu and it is only the most knowledgeable and respected who are entrusted with this role. By the same token, to sponsor such rites is to claim recognition as a kumu.” ref
“As “people” and as component parts of an animated cosmos, human beings, animals, plants and fish make up a single participatory system, a system that is engaged and reanimated during Yuruparí rites. These rites promote the reproduction of plants and animals and ensure the regular ordering of the seasons and the continuing fertility of nature. In supervising and promoting these rites, the most important kumus come to embody the life-giving powers and identities of Yeba Hakü, the “Father of the Universe”, of Romi Kumu, “Woman Kumu” and of Yuruparí, the source and spirit of plant life. As the masters of public ritual they are life-givers in their own right. It is to these rituals that we now turn.” ref
“The yearly round is punctuated by a series of collective feasts, each with its own songs, dances, and appropriate musical instruments, that mark important events in the human and natural worlds – births, initiations, marriages and deaths, the felling and planting of gardens and the building of houses, the migrations of fishes and birds, and the seasonal availability of forest fruits and other gathered foods. These ritual gatherings are referred to as ‘houses’, a term that connotes at once an occasion, a group of people, and a symbolic world. They take three basic forms: cashirís (beer feasts), dabukuris or ceremonial exchanges, and Yuruparí rites involving sacred flutes and trumpets.” ref
“Cashirís are primarily social occasions where one maloca community invites its neighbors to dance and drink cashirí, sometimes as a reward for their help in the felling of a new garden or the construction of a new house, sometimes to mark the naming of a child, the marriage of a young woman, or the final stage of initiation for young boys, and sometimes purely for enjoyment and to reinforce social ties. The guests are the main dancers, and in return for their dancing, the men of the host community offer them large amounts of cashirí prepared by their women.” ref
“Dressed in feather headdresses and other ornaments, the dancers dance all night round and round the large canoe-like cashirí trough that forms the centerpiece of the occasion; it is a matter of honor that they consume all the cashirí before they leave in the morning. Their dances are of two kinds, either relatively slow, formal dances with the men in a continuous line and the women tucked in between them, or much faster, less formal dances where each dancer dances on his own, playing a set of panpipes as part of a chorus, and vying with the others to attract the female partner of his choice. Between these sessions of dancing, hosts and guest sit facing one another, passing gifts of coca and cigars to and fro, as they recite their pedigrees in collective chants led by a specialist chanter. The kumu sits apart from them, blowing spells over gourds of coca, tobacco, and ayahuasca; he then offers these substances to the participants to protect them from danger and to allow the dancers to see and experience in their dancing the journeys of origin and mythical events that their songs and chants recount.” ref
“Cashirís may involve communities related as either brothers and as in-laws but dabukuris are, above all, occasions that celebrate and reinforce ties of marriage and affinity. The gifts are given in the name of a particular man to his or brother-in-law father-in-law: in the charter myth of the dabukuri, the story of Yeba and Yawira (mentioned in Cosmological aspects), the gift was from Yeba to his father-in-law Fish Anaconda. The ritual begins with the arrival of the guests in the evening. Treated as strangers and potential enemies by their hosts, they do not enter the maloca but remain outside, dancing and chanting on their own. In the morning, they parade into the maloca dressed in their finery and blowing pottery or balsa-wood trumpets. They present their gifts to their hosts and then begin a dance that will last all day and through the night. Remaining aloof, their hosts ply them with cashirí but as the day wears on, they mingle more and more with their guests, dancing and chanting with them, breaking down of the barriers that were established, in dramatic form, at the beginning of the proceedings. In the morning, when the dancing ends, hosts and guests eat together on equal terms in a huge communal meal, the two groups now as a single integrated community.” ref
“These exchanges have a double rationale and movement: in the short term, guests dance and offer fish or meat in return for cashirí supplied by their hosts; in the longer term, communities exchange one kind of product for another – fish for meat or meat for fish – and alternate the roles of host and guest. Both exchanges relate to marriage, the first one reflecting the exchange of meat or fish for manioc products between husband and wife, the second reflecting the exchange of different kinds of women between inter-married groups. In more cosmological terms, these exchanges are intimately linked with the breeding cycles and seasonal availability of fish and animal species. The dances not only recall the ritualized displays and dancing movements of migrating fish and birds but also ensure the continuing fertility of nature and the availability of the species on which they depend.” ref
“The rituals involving sacred Yuruparí musical instruments are the fullest expression of the Indians” religious life for they encapsulate and synthesize a number of key themes: ancestry, descent, and group identity, sex and reproduction, relations between men and women, growth and maturation, death, regeneration, and the integration of the human life cycle with cosmic time. Concerned more with male identity and intra-group relations than with marriage and inter-group relations, and more with the fertility of trees and plants than with the life-cycles of animals, they are the complement of the festivals described above.” ref
“The palm-wood flutes and trumpets of each group are at once a single and multiple entity, the group ancestor and his paired bones or sons, the ancestors of the group’s component clans. When the instruments are assembled and played, the ancestor comes back to life as those who play them assume the identities of the clan ancestors and enter into direct contact with their father. This process abolishes the normal separation between past and present, dead and living, ancestor and descendant, and re-establishes the primordial order of the myths of origin described earlier. The rites usually involve a clan or clan segment acting as an isolated group and thus serve to establish its identity as a collective unit undifferentiated with respect to the outside but segmented in an ordered hierarchy within.” ref
“Yuruparí instruments may only be seen and handled by adult men. According to sacred myths, it was originally women who owned the flutes whilst men were charged with the manioc processing and other female chores. The myths add another significant detail: when women had the flutes, men menstruated, and when the men took away the flutes, they also caused women to menstruate. These myths, and the rituals that dramatize them, can be understood as a complex and ambiguous discourse on the respective powers and capacities of men and women, one that we have already encountered above in relation to women’s shamanic powers. Here the implication would be that the complementary reproductive capacities of men and women, their ‘flutes’, are at once identical and opposed, at once equal and unequal.” ref
“There are two types of Yuruparí ritual, one a more sacred and elaborate annual event that marks the beginning of the year, the other held periodically throughout the year to mark the maturation of different species of tree-fruits. At the tree fruit ceremony, men present large amounts of wild fruits to those of another community, usually their brothers, bringing them into the house to the bellowing sounds of bark-wrapped trumpets whilst the women and children remain hidden behind screens in the rear. In the evening, the screens are removed, and the women rejoin the men. They dance through the night till dawn then distribute the fruits to the assembled company.” ref
“The full Yuruparí rites, where different and more sacred instruments are played, are tied to the movements of the sun and the Pleiades and take place at the end of the summer and onset of the rainy season, the season of forest fruits. They elaborate further on the themes of growth, maturation and periodicity, and the integration of human and cosmic time-cycles, but here the immediate focus is on the growth and development of young men who undergo a process of initiation that leads to their incorporation as full adults into the group of senior men.” ref
“At the start of the rite, the boys are taken from their mothers and brought to the men’s end of the house, out of sight of the women who are confined in the rear. Under the care of ritual guardians and an officiating kumu, they are given ayahuasca and shown the instruments for the first time as they sit motionless and crouched foetus-like on the floor. As the instruments are played over the boys” heads, bodies,s and genital,s they are whipped by the kumu across their bodies and legs, actions which impart the vitality and spirit-forces of the ancestors and cause the boys to grow up hard, strong, and sexually potent. The men then bathe the boys in the river together with the instruments, pouring water from the flutes over the initiates” heads. This action alludes to the Anaconda ancestor vomiting the first people from his mouth – and also to the bathing of babies after their birth as described earlier.” ref
“But this time the birth is a rebirth orchestrated by the senior men and, like the Anaconda-ancestor who entered the world through the “water door” in the East, the reborn initiates now enter the house through the men’s door. At the end of the rite, the initiates are confined for a month in a special compartment out of the sight of the women. Strictly supervised by the kumu, they bathe each day, keep to a rigorous diet, and learn to make baskets. Their seclusion ends with a big dance. As a sign that they are ready to become husbands and fathers, the initiates give their baskets to female partners who paint their bodies with red paint in return.” ref
“Like many initiation rites, this one is replete with symbols of death, rebirth and regeneration. At the start of the rite, the boys are painted black and ritually “killed” with doses of tobacco snuff; following their rebirth in the river, they are secluded like new-born babies, then emerge to be painted red. In the ritual’s mythic charter, Yuruparí, in anaconda-form, swallows initiates, digests them in his stomach in parallel to their period of seclusion. then returns them to their parents, vomiting them up as bones. To punish him, the parents burn Yuruparí to death on a fire. But he does not die: his soul ascends to heaven, and from his ashes grows a palm tree, the prototypical source of forest fruits and source of the Yuruparí instruments made from its trunk.” ref
“As in slash-and-burn agriculture, where fertility and human life come from the annual burning of the forest, this ensemble of myth and ritual implies that life and death follow one another like the seasons, that mortal humans achieve immortality through their children, that the periodicity of women is like that of the seasons, that the growth of men and trees are as one, and that, in the end, the fertility of human beings and the cosmos are linked together as one grand system. As they expand the maloca to cosmic proportions, abolish the separations between human beings and the spirit world, and engage the reproductive capacities of men and women, the Yuruparí rituals thus encapsulate and put in motion much of the cosmology that has been outlined above.” ref
Galibi-Marworno People
“The Galibi-Marworno, inhabitants of the vast savannahs and flooded plains of northern Amapá – a country of white birds and dark alligators – call themselves a “mixed and united” people. Their food is simple and healthy: fish, manioc cereal and tucupi (a seasoning prepared of pepper and manioc juice). In their festivals, there must be caxiri, the wine of the Indians, of the shamans and the karuãna spirits. The Great Festival is for Holy Mary, the axis-mundi is the Turé pole, the Great Snake their favorite story, but the real hero is Iaicaicani.” ref
“Galibi-Marworno is a very recent self-designation, which has become fixed mainly in the last decade. In some contexts, it has come to substitute the term “Galibi of the Uaçá” or, simply, “of the Uaçá”, “Uaçauara [= from the Uaçá]” or “mun Uaçá” (“people of the Uaçá”, in patois, the creole language widely used in the region). Those who use this name as a self-designation belong to a people who derive from ethnically diverse populations: Aruã, Maraon, Karipuna (speakers of língua geral, derived from Tupi), “Galibi” (speakers of língua geral, derived from Galibi) and even non-Indians.” ref
“Galibi, the first term comprising the self-designation, results from the application of this name to the entire population of the Uaçá River by the Border Inspection Commission and the Indian Protection Service. The Galibi-Marworno do not identify themselves, nor recognize kinship with, the Galibi population of the coast of Guiana (who actually call themselves Kaliña/Cariban: Galibi [Kaliña]) who have a small number of families living in the vicinity of the Uaçá River: a group that migrated from French Guiana in the 1950s and settled on the Brazilian banks of the lower Oiapoque River.” ref, ref
“The Kalina, also known as the Caribs or mainland Caribs and by several other names, are an Indigenous people native to the northern coastal areas of South America. Today, the Kalina live largely in villages on the rivers and coasts of Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and Brazil. They speak a Cariban language known as Carib. They may be related to the Island Caribs of the Caribbean, though their languages are unrelated.” ref
“The Cariban languages are a family of languages indigenous to north-eastern South America. They are widespread across northernmost South America, from the mouth of the Amazon River to the Colombian Andes, and they are also spoken in small pockets of central Brazil. The languages of the Cariban family are relatively closely related. There are about three dozen, but most are spoken only by a few hundred people. Macushi is the only language among them with numerous speakers, estimated at 30,000. The Cariban family is well known among linguists partly because one language in the family—Hixkaryana—has a default word order of object–verb–subject. Prior to their discovery of this, linguists believed that this order did not exist in any spoken natural language. The Cariban languages are closely related. In many cases where one of the languages is more distinct, this is due to influence from neighboring languages rather than an indication that it is not closely related.” ref
“The Cariban languages share irregular morphology with the Jê and Tupian families. Ribeiro connects them all in a Je–Tupi–Carib family. Meira, Gildea, & Hoff (2010) note that likely morphemes in proto-Tupian and proto-Cariban are good candidates for being cognates, but that work so far is insufficient to make definitive statements. Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Guato, Kawapana, Nambikwara, Taruma, Warao, Arawak, Bororo, Jeoromitxi, Karaja, Rikbaktsa, and Tupi language families due to contact. Extensive lexical similarities between Cariban and various Macro-Jê languages suggest that Cariban languages had originated in the Lower Amazon region (rather than in the Guiana Highlands). There they were in contact with early forms of Macro-Jê languages, which were likely spoken in an area between the Parecis Plateau and upper Araguaia River.” ref
“The weak historical clues available indicate that before 1492, the Kali’na inhabited the coast (from the mouth of the Amazon River to that of the Orinoco), dividing their territory with the Arawak, against whom they fought during their expansion toward the east and the Amazon River. Making up for lack of written records, archaeologists have to date uncovered 273 Amerindian archeological sites on only 310 km² of the land recovered from the Sinnamary River by the Petit-Saut Dam. Some date back as far as two thousand years, establishing the antiquity of the Amerindian presence in this area.” ref
“They were prolific travelers even though they weren’t nomads. They often traveled by land and by sea as far as the area around the Orinoco river to visit family, trade, and marry. The Kali’nas in Brazil are localized in two groups. The Galibi do Oiapoque can only be found in São José dos Galibi, a village founded in 1950 on the right bank of the Oyapock River by several families who came from the region of the Mana River. The Galibi Marworno or Uaçá Galibi mainly live along the Uaçá River further land inwards. The main settlement is Kumarumã. The Galibi Marworno were originally from French Guiana, but mixed with the Arua and Marworno Amerindians. The term Galibi Marworno is a recent self-designation of the group.” ref
“Marworno, the second term of the self-designation, has more to do with the active presence of assistance agencies and reflects a more recent movement over the last three decades. The terms Maruane or Maruanu refer to one of the ancestral ethnic groups of the present population and began to be used by the neighboring Palikur and Karipuna in order to represent their difference from the Galibi-Kaliña families. The collective labor in the gardens is organized by the system of “invitation”, the maiuhi, or traditional work parties organized among neighbors for the benefit of one. The manufacture of canoes, as well as the felling of trees, is done collectively through the system of “invitation”, in the free periods between agricultural tasks.” ref
“The village is located on a large island on the left side of the mid-Uaçá River. The houses are arranged in the form of a half-moon, bordering on a submerged field. The village has grown a great deal in the last few years and is not limited only to the cluster of houses bordering the field, but rather extends into the interior of the island. Presently, there are 163 houses occupied by, on average, six to ten people. The houses are very close to one another, and the space available for new construction is already scarce. A great deal of the forest has already been destroyed, and the soil is showing signs of erosion at various points. The spatial distribution of the houses on the island is organized in four “points”. The oldest is the point of the Mango or the Captain. In the middle of the island is Vila Nova Street. Then, Bacaba Point street. The street of the port or post, also called Point of the Group in the past, because of the school, does not include indigenous dwellings.” ref
“Many families still live according to the traditional ways: the men, after marriage, live in the house of the parents of their wives for two to three years, sufficient time for the marriage to consolidate, generally with the birth of one or two children. Time, also, for the young married husband to get the material necessary for the construction of a new house. Traditional chieftaincy was comprised of the chiefs of the local groups, extended families that occupied the islands of the upper Uaçá. Several of these families had more prestige, however, with more numerous families. These succeeded in bringing together local groups for the festivals of Turé or of Holy Mary, when much caxiri was consumed. In this way a network of sociability was formed on the upper Uaçá. There are chiefs who are remembered today as being authoritarian and feared, who at times promoted alliances which were not always beneficial to the families.” ref
“To discuss and settle internal questions, the chief, vice-chief, and counselors get together with the community after calling everyone together. Every year, an internal assembly is held to discuss political strategies, economic projects, and internal questions. The general assemblies, which are held every two years, however, cover all topics. With all of this political change, the traditional ways of administration have become more complicated, and the chiefs say that they are tired and sometimes worn out. But one thing is certain: in moments of crisis, the Indians act together and are firm in their resistance.” ref
“The myths recorded among the Galibi-Marworno relate and interpret notable historical facts, always localized in the specific environment of the Uaçá which, in turn, is also in some way submitted to interpretation, such as the rivers and lakes, the mountains, and strange geological formations. One example is the myth of the war between the Galibi and the Palikur, a veritable founding metaphor for the interethnic relations in the region, the setting for which extends from the upper Urucauá to the Maroni River in French Guiana. Several versions of this myth have been recorded among the Palikur of Kumenê, Galibi-Marworno, and Palikur of Kumarumã. The last is undoubtedly the richest and most complex. In this version, the confrontation between the two nations, which lasted for decades, ends on the one hand, a relation of affinity between enemies, that is, Palikur maternal uncle/Galibi sister’s son, warrior chiefs of their respective nations and, on the other, the relationship of kinship between beings of this world and of the invisible world, that is, a Galibi, the first of his “nation”, is born from the union of a Palikur woman, of this world, and a karuãna, invisible being, father.” ref
“Another example is the myth of the shaman Uruçu, who really existed and lived on Bambu island. They say that this shaman, having been persecuted and captured by slavehunters from Caienne, succeeded in escaping at high sea, by transforming himself into a snake or jaguar at the bottom of the sea, thanks to the help of his karuãna and pakará and maráca which he had taken with him. On returning to the Uaçá, he fled to the upper Tapamuru (tributary of the Uaçá), where he requested that his spirit helpers, the karuãna, interrupt the flow of this river with enormous displacements of earth, in order to remain protected from any further attacks. This river actually has this feature: obstructed in its mid-course, it flows underground in its riverbed.” ref
“Another myth of great importance in Galibi-Marwono cosmology is the myth of the Great Snake. The Galibi-Marwono narrate the myth making reference to the Palikur Indians. The interesting feature is that this version, from a people whose social organization shows a matrifocal tendency, inverts that of the Palikur, who have patrilineal descent. The myth makes reference to Tipoca mountain, a very salient elevation in the level countryside of the middle Uaçá River. There one can find seashells and seasnails, probably the remains of a time when there was communication between that mountain and the sea, a fact which is still being investigated geologically.” ref
“The narrative recounts that on Tipoca mountain, there used to live in the past many Palikur, in large villages, especially on Caraimura point. The Great Snake lived there with his wife and son on Tipoca point. His “breath” was located at the place called Mamã dji lo, and it was through this hole that he threw the rest of his food and also would go out into this world. The Indians liked to bathe in the lake, and the Great Snake, who only ate meat, would come out of his hole, go to Caraimura Point, and kill many Palikur that he saw as monkeys. Human flesh for him was game, he only ate monkeys and thus each day he would kill several Indians. His wife did not like to eat meat; she only ate the seafood that her husband would bring for her. (In the Palikur version, it’s the female snake who is the devourer of people, and the male snake is a vegetarian and healer).” ref
“One day, a little Indian boy named Iaicaicani went to the island of Mamã dji lo, with bow and arrows to kill parrots and tucanos, which are very numerous in that place. Suddenly, he fell into a hole. As if in a dream, he found himself in another world. There he came upon a woman who asked him: “what are you doing here?” “I’m lost”, he answered. Then the woman said: “I will give you a bath, I am afraid that my husband will kill you”. After giving him a bath, she hid him underneath a pot. When the male snake arrived, his wife filled his belly with monkey and cachiri. He had also brought crabs and lobster for his wife. He smelt something different, tasty. Several times his wife denied that there was something different in the house, but she ended up confessing that there was a little Indian boy, and pled with him not to kill him. Fortunately, the snake had already eaten and his belly was full. “Well,” Tipoca [ the Great Snake]said, “you will be like my son and will play with little Tipoca.” ref
“Iaicaicani succeeded in escaping and returned to his village to tell what was happening. Then, the Palikur asked his help in preparing a trap to kill the snake. Iaicaicani revealed that the snakes rested on top of the rocks at a certain time of the day, and the Indians planned a trap to kill them at that time. Iacaicani asked his kin to kill only the male and not the female. The Indians, however, killed both. Iacaicani and little Tipoca, who had gone for a walk, came back because little Tipoca heard thunder, the voice of his father. He went crazy when he saw what had happened with his parents and went away to live in Marapuwera lake, where another snake of the same name, his paternal uncle, lived. Iacaicani visited his kin and said: “I could have returned to live with you, but you killed the female snake, a sign that you don’t want me to come back”. He left, and everyone wept a lot. “I am going to Marapuwera, to live with little Tipoca”. The story says that he also transformed into a snake, and his karuanã can be called by the pajés in curing sessions and at the time of the Turé ritual. Even so, he is considered to be a little hero.” ref
“It is evident in this, and in other, myths, that the Galibi-Marwono are aware of the changing conditions of inhabited space. In fact the region is one of the confluence of the Uaçá River basin with the open sea, a region which geologically is in constant redefinition. Such geological changes are themes for mythic narratives, which deal with beings that occupy the same terrain, which is very much specified and marked in mythic events. From what has been said, one perceives that the contact with the Karuãna, the auxiliary spirits of the pajés and dwellers of the “other world”, are an important aspect of Galibi-Marwono cosmology and characteristic of their shamanism.” ref
“The Karuãna are not all alike and perform different functions; some are more powerful than others, and at the same time that they help, they are also dangerous and need to be controlled. The karuãna kamará, the most resistant warriors, never decend onto the ritual dance ground where the Turé festival is celebrated and do not sit on the benches, but remain watchful, on the top of the ritual pole, for whatever attack or undue intromission of spirits of other shamans, enemies or jealous, ready to send their sorcery. Recent research has shown the importance of the avifauna for the cosmology of this population.” ref
“The birds are intimately related to the shamans, as individuals. Each shaman has a small bird-shaped bench, on which he sits in order to realize any sort of activity that involves contact with the karuãna. The pajé Iok, for example, has a bench in the form of the red macaw, which belonged to his mother, a recognized shaman in Kumarumã. Before dying, she is supposed to have said to her son: “Take and keep this bench. When the Indians dance Turé, bring it with you, and at that time, my karuãna will come to visit you.” ref
“The bird-benches are covered by designs, which show a variation on two basic motifs: the kroari and the dãndelo, which are not simply ornamental techniques, but serve to express a vast array of meanings and representations. The two motifs, one diamond-shaped and the other a zigzag, also express a founding metaphor for the groups of the Uaçá, which is grounded in the dichotomy of openness to the outside or closure. The Turé is considered to be a traditional ritual of the Galibi-Marwono. It was usually celebrated in October/November, time of the dry season and the felling of the gardens. But it is no longer held today.” ref
“For the Indians, the Turé is something very serious and dangerous and must be celebrated according to well-defined rules in order for it to be an occasion of happiness and not one of tragedy. The Galibi-Marworno do not have a practicing shaman in the village. The shaman Uratê is a Palikur; in the past it was his wife, a Galibi and also a shaman, who directed the ritual. The pajé Aniká, resident in Encruzo, a man who was strong in his dealings with the Karuãna, does not practice anymore due to his conversion to the evangelical religion. Another pajé today lives in Oiapoque and does not visit the village anymore.” ref
The Indians tell the story of two Galibi who took it on themselves to hold a Turé, using the bench of a deceased shaman, but since they had not been initiated, especially to having an adequate relationship with the spirits of supernatural entities, these spirits arrived, confused and dissatisfied onto the sacred space, not receiving the offerings expected, which caused the death of one of the organizers of the Turé several days later. This was the explanation given for not holding the ritual. The Galibi-Marworno are perplexed by the boldness and frequency with which the Karipuna hold Turés. From all of this one can conclude that this ritual still has a very strong traditional significance present among the population of Kumarumã. The Galibi even declare that the great hat, or plumage, a headdress used in the Turé, is originally theirs and not the Palikurs’ as is supposed.” ref
“On the other hand, while they do not openly display the Turé, the adult men get together during the nights of the full moon, in the month of October, in an isolated house in the fields, the home of the pajé Uratê, and sing until dawn, drinking caxiri, in order to be happy with the Karuãna and to thank them for the cures they have granted. On these occasions, the spirits of the dead also descend, such as the wife of Uratê, a pajé herself and who comes to sit on his bench, a very beautiful sculpture of a red macaw, carefully kept by his family for years.” ref
“Thus, even without shamans, shamanism is still alive. On the other hand, many adult men practice the potá, or blowing, as a form of cure. While the shamans exercised their activities under the influence of the spirits of the forest and waters, and of other shamans living or dead, the practice of potá is not done through these spirits and does not imply any powers over natural phenomena. The potá cures various types of sicknesses, several of them caused by the nightbird kaiuiurú, which flies backwards with its belly turned up. For this, they use herb baths, blowing, smoke curing, and orations in the old language or patois.” ref
Arawak People
“The Arawak are a group of Indigenous peoples of northern South America and of the Caribbean. Specifically, the term “Arawak” has been applied at various times from the Lokono of South America to the Taíno, who lived in the Greater Antilles and northern Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. All these groups spoke related Arawakan languages/Arawakan-Maipurean languages.” ref
“Arawakan (Arahuacan, Maipuran Arawakan, “mainstream” Arawakan, Arawakan proper), also known as Maipurean (also Maipuran, Maipureano, Maipúre), is a language family that developed among ancient indigenous peoples in South America. Branches migrated to Central America and the Greater Antilles in the Caribbean and the Atlantic, including what is now the Bahamas. Almost all present-day South American countries are known to have been home to speakers of Arawakan languages, the exceptions being Ecuador, Uruguay, and Chile. Maipurean may be related to other language families in a hypothetical Macro-Arawakan stock. Early Spanish explorers and administrators used the terms Arawak and Caribs to distinguish the peoples of the Caribbean.” ref, ref
“As one of the most geographically widespread language families in all of the Americas, Arawakan linguistic influence can be found in many language families of South America. Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the Arawa, Bora-Muinane, Guahibo, Harakmbet-Katukina, Harakmbet, Katukina-Katawixi, Irantxe, Jaqi, Karib, Kawapana, Kayuvava, Kechua, Kwaza, Leko, Macro-Jê, Macro-Mataguayo-Guaykuru, Mapudungun, Mochika, Mura-Matanawi, Nambikwara, Omurano, Pano-Takana, Pano, Takana, Puinave-Nadahup, Taruma, Tupi, Urarina, Witoto-Okaina, Yaruro, Zaparo, Saliba-Hodi, and Tikuna-Yuri language families due to contact. However, these similarities could be due to inheritance, contact, or chance.” ref
“The Arawakan languages may have emerged in the Orinoco River valley in present-day Venezuela. They subsequently spread widely, becoming by far the most extensive language family in South America at the time of European contact, with speakers located in various areas along the Orinoco and Amazonian rivers and their tributaries. The group that self-identified as the Arawak, also known as the Lokono, settled the coastal areas of what is now Guyana, Suriname, Grenada, Bahamas, Jamaica, and parts of the islands of Trinidad and Tobago.” ref
“Michael Heckenberger, an anthropologist at the University of Florida who helped found the Central Amazon Project, and his team found elaborate pottery, ringed villages, raised fields, large mounds, and evidence for regional trade networks that are all indicators of a complex culture. There is also evidence that they modified the soil using various techniques such as adding charcoal to transform it into black earth, which even today is famed for its agricultural productivity. Maize and sweet potatoes were their main crops, though they also grew cassava and yautia. The Arawaks fished using nets made of fibers, bones, hooks, and harpoons. According to Heckenberger, pottery and other cultural traits show these people belonged to the Arawakan language family, a group that included the Tainos, the first Native Americans Columbus encountered.” ref
“It was the largest language group that ever existed in the pre-Columbian Americas. At some point, the Arawakan-speaking Taíno culture emerged in the Caribbean. Two major models have been presented to account for the arrival of Taíno ancestors in the islands; the “Circum-Caribbean” model suggests an origin in the Colombian Andes connected to the Arhuaco people, while the Amazonian model supports an origin in the Amazon basin, where the Arawakan languages developed. The Taíno were among the first American people to encounter Europeans.” ref
“The Taíno were a historic Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Haiti, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and the northern Lesser Antilles. The Lucayan branch of the Taíno were the first New World peoples encountered by Christopher Columbus, in the Bahama Archipelago on October 12, 1492. The Taíno spoke a dialect of the Arawakan language group. They lived in agricultural societies ruled by caciques with fixed settlements and a matrilineal system of kinship and inheritance. Taíno religion centered on the worship of zemis. A zemi or cemi (Taíno: semi [sɛmi]) was a deity or ancestral spirit, and a sculptural object housing the spirit, among the Taíno people of the Caribbean. Cemi’no or Zemi’no is a plural word for the spirits.” ref, ref
“Taíno religion, as recorded by late 15th and 16th century Spaniards, centered on a supreme creator god and a fertility goddess. The creator god is Yúcahu Maórocoti and he governs the growth of the staple food, the cassava. The goddess is Attabeira, who governs water, rivers, and seas. Lesser deities govern natural forces and are also zemis. Boinayel, the Rain Giver, is one such zemi, whose magical tears become rainfall. Spirits of ancestors, also zemis, were highly honored, particularly those of caciques or chiefs. Bones or skulls might be incorporated into sculptural zemis or reliquary urns. Ancestral remains would be housed in shrines and given offerings, such as food. Zemis could be consulted by medicine people for advice and healing. During these consultation ceremonies, images of the zemi could be painted or tattooed on the body of a priest, who was known as a Bohuti or Buhuithu. The reliquary zemis would help their own descendants in particular.” ref
“Eventually the Spaniards were able to take control of the islands due to the hit on the population, the political atmosphere between not only the different Kasikes (Cheifs), but also neighboring tribes like the Kalinago (a neighboring Arawakan tribe), and the depletion of crops due to being infected by pathogens brought by supplies on ships. In indigenous culture, the European social construct of race, did not exist. So if a Taíno woman birthed a child with a man from a different tribe, or a non indigenous man, if that child was raised within the culture and the teachings of the Taíno people they were not considered Mestizos (mixed person), they were still considered a full Taíno to all Taíno people.” ref
“The Antillean Arawak, or Taino, were agriculturists who lived in villages, some with as many as 3,000 inhabitants, and practiced slash-and-burn cultivation of cassava and corn (maize). They recognized social rank and gave great deference to theocratic chiefs. Religious belief centred on a hierarchy of nature spirits and ancestors, paralleling somewhat the hierarchies of chiefs. Despite their complex social organization, the Antillean Arawak were not given to warfare. “The South American Arawak inhabited northern and western areas of the Amazon basin, where they shared the means of livelihood and social organization of other tribes of the tropical forest. They were sedentary farmers who hunted and fished, lived in small autonomous settlements, and had little hierarchical organization. The Arawak were found as far west as the foothills of the Andes. These Campa Arawak, however, remained isolated from influences of the Andean civilizations.” ref
“The Arawak/Taíno were polytheists and their gods were called Zemi. The zemi controlled various functions of the universe, very much like Greek gods did, or like later Haitian Voodoo lwa. However, they do not seem to have had particular personalities like the Greek and Haitian gods/spirits do. There were three primary religious practices:
- Religious worship and obeisance to the zemi themselves
- Dancing in the village court during special festivals of thanksgiving or petition
- Medicine men, or priests, consulting the zemi for advice and healing. This was done in public ceremonies with song and dance” ref
“People had special dress for the ceremonies which included paint and feathers. From their knees on down they would be covered in shells. The shaman (medicine man or priests) presented the carved figures of the zemi. The cacique sat on wooden stool, a place of honor. (There are many surviving stone carvings of the cacique on his stool). There was a ceremonial beating of drums. People induced vomiting with a swallowing stick. This was to purge the body of impurities, both a literal physical purging and a symbolic spiritual purging. This ceremonial purging and other rites were a symbolic changing before zemi. Women served bread (a communion rite), first to zemi, then to the cacique followed by the other people. The sacred bread was a powerful protector (The interesting similarities between this ritual and the Christian practice of eucharist is obvious!).” ref
“Finally came an oral history lesson — the singing of the village epic in honor of the cacique and his ancestors. As the poet recited he was accompanied by a maraca, a piece of hardwood which was beaten with pebbles. There was an afterlife where the good would be rewarded. They would meet up with dead relatives and friends. Since most of the people they would meet in this paradise were women, it is curious to speculate if it was mainly women who were considered good, or if some other reason accounted for this division of the sexes in the afterlife. There are many stone religious artifacts which have been found in Haiti. The zemi take on strange forms like toads, turtles, snakes, alligators and various distorted and hideous human faces.” ref
“The zemi, as well as dead caciques, have certain powers over the natural world and must be dealt with. Thus these various services are ways of acknowledging their power (worship and thanksgiving) and at the same time seeking their aid. Because of these powers there are many Arawak/Tanio stories which account for the origins of some experienced phenomena in myth and or magic. Several myths had to do with caves. The sun and moon, for example, came out of caves. Another story tells that the people lived in caves and only came out at night.” ref
“One guard was supposed to watch carefully over people to be sure they were well divided in the land. However, one day, he was late in returning, and the sun caught him and turned him into a stone pillar. Another Indian became angry at the sun for its various tricks and decided to leave. He convinced all the women to abandon their men and come with him along with their children. But, the children were deserted, and in their hunger they turned into frogs. The women simply disappeared. This left the men without women. But, they did find some sexless creatures roaming around.” ref
Pirahã People
“The Pirahã (pronounced [piɾaˈhɐ̃]) are an indigenous people of the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil. They are the sole surviving subgroup of the Mura people, and are hunter-gatherers. The Pirahã people do not call themselves Pirahã but instead the Híaitíihi or Hiáitihí, roughly translated as “the straight ones.” The Pirahã speak the Pirahã language. They call any other language “crooked head.” Members of the Pirahã can whistle their language, which is how Pirahã men communicate when hunting in the jungle.” ref
“According to the linguistic anthropologist and former Christian missionary Daniel Everett,
The Pirahã are supremely gifted in all the ways necessary to ensure their continued survival in the jungle: they know the usefulness and location of all important plants in their area; they understand the behavior of local animals and how to catch and avoid them; and they can walk into the jungle naked, with no tools or weapons, and walk out three days later with baskets of fruit, nuts, and small game.” ref
“As far as the Pirahã have related to researchers, their culture is concerned solely with matters that fall within direct personal experience, and thus there is no history beyond living memory. Pirahã have a simple kinship system that includes baíxi (parent, grandparent, or elder), xahaigí (sibling, male or female), hoagí or hoísai (son), kai (daughter), and piihí (stepchild, favorite child, child with at least one deceased parent, and more). Daniel Everett states that one of the strongest Pirahã values is no coercion; one does not tell other people what to do. There appears to be no social hierarchy; the Pirahã have no formal leaders.” ref
“Their social system is similar to that of many other hunter-gatherer bands in the world, although rare in the Amazon because of a history of horticulture before Western contact (see history of the Amazon). Although the Pirahã use canoes every day for fishing and for crossing the river beside which they live, when their canoes wear out, they use pieces of bark as temporary canoes. Everett brought in a master builder who taught and supervised the Pirahã in making a canoe, so that they could make their own. However, when they needed another canoe, they said that “Pirahã do not make canoes” and told Everett he should buy them a canoe. The Pirahã rely on neighboring communities’ canoe work, and use those canoes for themselves.” ref
“Pirahã build simple huts where they keep a few pots, pans, knives, and machetes. They make only scraping implements (for making arrowheads), loosely woven palm-leaf bags, bows, and arrows. They take naps of 15 minutes to, at the most, two hours throughout the day and night, and rarely sleep through the night. They do not store food in any quantity, but generally eat it when they get it. Pirahã have ignored lessons in preserving meats by salting or smoking. They cultivate manioc plants that grow from spit-out seeds and make only a few days’ worth of manioc flour at a time. They trade Brazil nuts and sex for consumables or tools, e.g. machetes, gunpowder, powdered milk, sugar, whiskey. Chastity is not a cultural value.” ref
“They trade Brazil nuts, wood, and sorva (rubbery sap used in chewing gum) for soda-can pull-tabs, which are used for necklaces. Men wear T-shirts and shorts that they get from traders; women sew their own plain cotton dresses. Their decoration is mostly necklaces, used primarily to ward off spirits. The concept of drawing is alien to them, and when asked to draw a person, animal, tree, or river, the result is simple lines. However, on seeing a novelty such as an airplane, a child may make a model of it, which may be soon discarded.” ref
“According to Everett, the Pirahã have no concept of a supreme spirit or god, and they lost interest in Jesus when they discovered that Everett had never seen him. They require evidence based on personal experience for every claim made. However, they do believe in spirits that can sometimes take on the shape of things in the environment. These spirits can be jaguars, trees, or other visible, tangible things including people. Everett reported one incident where the Pirahã said that “Xigagaí, one of the beings that lives above the clouds, was standing on a beach yelling at us, telling us that he would kill us if we go into the jungle.” Everett and his daughter could see nothing and yet the Pirahã insisted that Xigagaí was still on the beach.” ref
“Anthropological linguist Daniel Everett, who wrote the first Pirahã grammar, claims that there are related pairs of curiosities in their language and culture. After working with the language for 30 years, Everett states that it has no relative clauses or grammatical recursion. Everett points out that there is recursion of ideas: that in a story, there may be subordinate ideas inside other ideas. He also pointed out that different experts have different definitions of recursion. If the language lacks grammatical recursion, then it is proposed as a counterexample to the theory proposed by Chomsky, Hauser, and Fitch (2002) that recursion is a feature that all human languages must have. Pirahã is perhaps second only to Rotokas in New Guinea for the distinction of having the fewest phonemes of any of the world’s languages. Women sometimes pronounce s as h, reducing the inventory further still. Everett states that Pirahã, Rotokas, and Hawaiian each have 11 phonemes.” ref
“Their language is a unique living language (it is related to Mura, which is no longer spoken). John Colapinto explains, “Unrelated to any other extant tongue, and based on just eight consonants and three vowels, Pirahã has one of the simplest sound systems known. Yet it possesses such a complex array of tones, stresses, and syllable lengths that its speakers can dispense with their vowels and consonants altogether and sing, hum, or whistle conversations.” Peter Gordon writes that the language has a very complex verb structure: “To the verb stem are appended up to 15 potential slots for morphological markers that encode aspectual notions such as whether events were witnessed, whether the speaker is certain of its occurrence, whether it is desired, whether it was proximal or distal, and so on. None of the markers encode features such as person, number, tense, or gender.” ref
“Curiously, although not unprecedentedly, the language has no cardinal or ordinal numbers. Some researchers, such as Peter Gordon of Columbia University, claim that the Pirahã are incapable of learning numeracy. His colleague, Daniel L. Everett, on the other hand, argues that the Pirahã are cognitively capable of counting; they simply choose not to do so. They believe that their culture is complete and does not need anything from outside cultures. Everett says, “The crucial thing is that the Pirahã have not borrowed any numbers—and they want to learn to count. They asked me to give them classes in Brazilian numbers, so for eight months I spent an hour every night trying to teach them how to count. And it never got anywhere, except for a few of the children. Some of the children learned to do reasonably well, but as soon as anybody started to perform well, they were sent away from the classes. It was just a fun time to eat popcorn and watch me write things on the board.” ref
“The language does not have words for precise numbers, but rather concepts for a small amount and a larger amount. The language may have no unique words for colors, contradicting Berlin and Kay’s hypothesis on the universality of color-naming. There are no unanalyzable root words for color; the recorded color words are all compounds like mii sai or bii sai, “blood-like,” indicating that colors in the language are adjectival comparisons that are not consistently applied. It is suspected that the language’s entire pronoun set was recently borrowed from one of the Tupí–Guaraní languages, and that before that the language may have had no pronouns whatsoever. Many linguists, however, find this claim questionable due to lack of evidence. However, if there had been pronouns at an earlier stage of Pirahã, this would not affect Everett’s claim of the significance of the system’s simplicity today. There are few Tupi–Guaraní loanwords in areas of the lexicon more susceptible to borrowing (such as nouns referring to cultural items, for instance).” ref
“The Pirahã conceive time as an alternation between two well-defined seasons, marked by the quantity of water each one possesses: piaiisi (dry season) and piaisai (rainy season). These temporal demarcations combine with forms of socio-spatial organization. Organization of social life on the basis of the two seasons is projected onto space, thereby creating a beach space-time versus an upland space-time. The Pirahã organize themselves into small residential nuclei, whose number varies according to the season of the year. An average of 5 groupings is found during the dry season and 10 to 13 during the rainy season. These nuclei are concentrated in two distinct areas of the territory, the upper and lower Maici, thus conforming to larger sets that encompass the different residential patterns.” ref
“The nuclei making up part of a set maintain relationships governed by spatial contiguity and the bonds of consanguinity and affinity. The two wider sets are separated by a considerable distance and are practically independent, with only sporadic relations between their members. As a consequence, social relations, marriages, exchanges, and communal rituals take place in the interior of each set. Within residential nuclei, it tends to be difficult to delineate the domestic group or elementary family as a unit of production and consumption. The couple is the most perceptible unit; by means of this unit, the fragmentation of social life gains cohesion and a form of systemization.” ref
“Kage is the term used for a relationship between two people of opposite sex, not necessarily implying sexual relations and/or children. The couple’s autonomy is made evident in the fishing and gathering expeditions; the couple remains alone for days or weeks, thereby giving the idea that this is sufficient to constitute a social life. On one hand, the couple produces fragmentation, stimulating an autonomous, non-gregarious lifestyle, marked by a provisional mode of living (constant relocation, fragile shelters, few goods). On the other hand, the couple appears as a fundamental unit, operating as an regulator of sexual relations, weaving, however tortuously, the social fabric.” ref
“The set encompassing the residential nuclei of the lower Maici is the more populous. The conformation of these sets and their maintenance over time are due to three factors: ‘territorial inheritance,’ classification of kin as ‘close’ and ‘distant’, and the preference for marrying within a set. Two distinct forms of classification are created through the notions of consanguinity and affinity: distant kin, the mage, and close kin, the ahaige. Based on these classifications, distinct forms of reciprocity are engendered and, as a consequence, differences that reproduce levels of inclusion and exclusion of the residential nuclei or larger sets. Matrimonial arrangements are also responsible for the way in which people are organized in spatial terms. Marriages can occur within the same residential nucleus, between nuclei, or even take place between sets.” ref
“In Pirahã society, it is rare to hear someone call or refer to another person in kinship terminology; kin terms do not serve as an emblem for interpersonal relations. The fact that they are not enunciated does not mean they do not fulfil a classificatory function or that they do not inform the way in which these interpersonal relations take shape. Four basic terms can be found employed in a primary classification of the universe of kin. These terms, prefixed or suffixed to other words, produce the derived modes for classifying a relationship. The three derived modes are defined by the fixation of elements (such as pronoun, verb, and substantives defining sex and age) to the basic term.” ref
“The Pirahã kinship system can be included as an example of an ‘elementary structure,’ taking into account the fact that the term ibaisi corresponds to female bilateral cross cousins and is the way in which Pirahã men in practice refer to the women they marry. In the Pirahã case, the term ibaisi covers the genealogical positions of ‘female cross cousins’ (mother’s brother’s daughter and father’s sister’s daughter), and is in fact the only trace, at a terminological level, indicating virtual affinity in this context.” ref
“A man maintains direct relations with his mother, father’s wife, sister, female parallel cousin, female cross cousin, mother-in-law, sister-in-law, wife, daughter, and wife’s daughter. Taking into account that men are responsible for fishing and swiddens, the principle productive activities in Pirahã society, they have to be the main providers of food. A man’s relations with his mother, sister, and parallel and cross cousins are ahaige in kind, meaning that the man ‘must fish’ for these women. If he is married, this practice also applies to his wife, his daughters, and his wife’s daughters. His mother-in-law and sister-in-law have access to the his catches of fish via his wife. A man would never claim that he fishes for his father-in-law or brother-in-law, though these will have access to his fishing catch via the women.” ref
“Swiddens are related to men, generally brothers who unite to share the work and together ‘eat from that swidden.’ A man has access to the swidden products of another man through a woman, whereby he is able to eat from the swidden of the husbands of his mother, sister, daughter, and wife’s daughter. Hunting is a seldom practiced activity, though it may be undertaken by men and women. Men hunt with rifles (monkeys, tapirs, white-lipped and collared peccaries, agoutis, capybaras, pacas) while women hunt with the help of dogs (pacas, collared peccaries, agoutis). Gathering is a daily activity among the Pirahã, pursued in both the dry season and rainy season, by men and women.” ref
“The cosmos is represented in a stratigraphic way: layers of land placed one on top of the other, producing parallel planes which do not physically communicate, except through the beings that inhabit them. What identifies these layers as members of the same class is their morphological base. Each level presents its own morphology composed of water, earth, trees, and animals, varying only in form, size, and number. Although all the levels are designated migi, ‘earth,’ the difference between them is marked by their contents and the place they occupy in the structuration of the cosmos. The Pirahã admit they do not know the exact number of levels. Despite the uncertainty in relation to the layers of earth composing the cosmos, people reduce this complex structure to a single model, retaining details and impressions for only five levels, which appear to make up the minimum possible form for representing their cosmology.” ref
“The lines correspond to the cosmic levels. Each of these is inhabited by particular beings (see the names on the right). The middle level is inhabited exclusively by ibiisi beings, the others by both abaisi and ibiisi, except for the level immediately below the middle, which also shelters the kaoaiboge and the toipe. Ibiisi is a generic designation for ‘human being:’ the Pirahã, Whites, and other Indians are all ibiisi. What defines an ibiisi is its possession of a body with a specific form. The abaisi have the same general form as the ibiisi (they are anthropomorphic), but this form is imperfectly realized: they are defective or deformed beings. The kaoaiboge and toipe are posthumous transformations of the ibiisi, inhabiting the level immediately beneath the middle.” ref
“The Pirahã have an elaborate naming system directly linked to their cosmology. A Pirahã child receives its first name even before birth while still in the maternal womb. The received name has a close relation to fetal conception – it is the name of the body (ibiisi). Another source of names comes from the abaisi beings who inhabit the cosmos. While the names linked to conception, origin names, are responsible for the creation of its matter, its support, the ibiisi (body), the names linked to the abaisi beings are related to its ‘soul,’ ‘destiny’ names.” ref
“The dead have an important role in the naming process. While the abaisi compete to provide names to give to the ‘soul’ or the possibility of a posthumous destiny, the dead in general compete for the responsibility to appear in the shamanic ritual, representing the name of the abaisi and passing them, via the shaman, to the ibiisi. The Pirahã belief is that by possessing an abaisi name, the transformation into kaoaiboge and toipe will be assured, each of these thus determining a destiny. Each abaisi name possessed by an individual refers to the possibility of his or her transformation into two beings, called kaoaiboge and toipe. Kaoaiboge is a peaceful being that feeds on fruit and fish, a victim of the cannibalistic toipe. Thus, if an individual has eight abaisi names he or she will certainly have his or her destiny assured through transformation into eight kaoaiboge and eight toipe.” ref
“The relationship with enemies is another source of names. According to the Pirahã, a class of people designated euebihiai used to exist in their society. This category included the warriors/killers whose main objective was the killing of enemies and game, providing the ritual food to be consumed. Enemies produced names, game no, but both were treated in the some form in the rituals performed for their ingestion. The killers carefully observed the enemy before killing him in order to name him. The killer then gave the enemy the abaisi name possessed by a deceased person. We can see that the logic of this type of onomastic practice was based on the physical similarity of bodies: an enemy body and a dead Pirahã body. Equal bodies, equal names. This logic is still employed today for naming strangers. In killing the enemy, the euebihiai acquired his name. He kept it for himself or transmitted it to other Pirahã.” ref
“We can classify as belonging to the ritual plane all those actions that place the ibiisi into relationship with the abaisi and with the kaoaiboge and toipe. There are two types of ritual: shamanism and festivals. Both have the intention of placing the social domain into relation with the supernatural domain, but shamanism is the society’s most important ritual, while festivals, qualified as ‘big’ and ‘small,’ are complementary rituals.” ref
“Shamanism materializes the interactive process between the ibiisi and the abaisi and/or between the ibiisi and the abaisi, kaoaiboge and toipe. It is through the shaman and his performance that the encounter gains dramaticity and durability. The shaman ‘swaps places’ with the abaisi or with the dead by visiting their respective levels while the latter come to the Pirahã level. The shaman’s performance allows the society to increase and recuperate its onomastic legacy. Shamanism is a possible means for supplying society ‘new’ names. Their insertion in the onomastic is achieved by presenting abaisi names to the ibiisi for these to use them later in naming. Thus, the shaman is the base of the ritual, the only being capable of representing the entire cosmology in each session.” ref
“The ‘Big Festival’ and the ‘Little Festival’ have the same reason for existing: placing the cosmos in operation. In Pirahã perception, both rituals are performed with the intention of provoking sounds, making a noise, sufficient for the demiurge Igagai, dwelling on the second celestial level, to hear them, becoming aware of their existence and of the exact place where they are found. The Pirahã’s worry that they may not being located by Igagai can be interpreted as a fear of a repetition of what is contained in a mythic fragment narrating the destruction of the world.” ref
“This destruction was due in the final instance to the fact Igagai was unaware where the Pirahã were. It was only through the crying of women, who were alone and without fire, that Igagai was then able to hear and locate them and start reconstruction of the world. Both rituals are preferably performed during periods of full moon. The full moon is interpreted by the Pirahã as an oven where Igagai toasts his manioc flour. We can surmise that performance of the ritual during full moon works on the assumption that if they can locate Igagai under the full moon, he can also locate the Pirahã.” ref
Pirahã Language
“Pirahã (also spelled Pirahá, Pirahán), or Múra-Pirahã, is the indigenous language of the Pirahã people of Amazonas, Brazil. The Pirahã live along the Maici River, a tributary of the Amazon River. Pirahã is the only surviving dialect of the Mura language.” ref
“Mura is a language of Amazonas, Brazil. Mura is often proposed to be related to Matanawí. Kaufman (1994) also suggests a connection with Huarpe in his Macro-Warpean proposal. Since at least Barboza Rodrigues (1892) [reference?], there have been three ethnic names commonly listed as dialects of Mura, or even as Muran languages. The names are:
- Bohurá, or Buxwaray, the original form of the name ‘Mura’; spoken on the Autaz River
- Pirahã, or Pirahá, Pirahán, the name the remaining dialect goes by
- Yahahí, also spelled Jahahi; spoken on the Branco River” ref
“On the basis of a minuscule amount of data, it would appear that Bohurá (Mura proper) was mutually intelligible with Pirahã; however, for Yahahí there exists only ethnographic information, and it can be assumed they spoke the same language as other Mura. Rodrigues describes the Yahahí as having come from the Branco river, a tributary of the right bank of the upper Marmelos river. The last Yahahí are said to have joined the Pirahã.” ref
“The Mura/Bohurá endonym is Buhuraen, according to Barboza Rodrigues (1892), or Buxivaray ~ Buxwarahay, according to Tastevin (1923). This was pronounced Murá by their neighbors, the Torá and Matanawi. In his vocabulary, Rodrigues lists Bohura for the people and bhurai-ada “Mura language” for the language, from the Mura of the Manicoré River; Tastevin has Bohurai and bohuarai-arase for the same. They also record, nahi buxwara araha “That one is Mura” and yane abahi araha buxwarái “We are all Mura.” ref
“Pirahã is the only surviving dialect of the Mura language; all others having died out in the last few centuries as most groups of the Mura people have shifted to Portuguese. Due to this, Pirahã can be considered its own language now, as no Mura Dialects have survived. Suspected relatives, such as Matanawi, are also extinct. Pirahã is estimated to have between 250 and 380 speakers. It is not in immediate danger of extinction, as its use is vigorous, and the Pirahã community is mostly monolingual. The Pirahã language is most notable as the subject of various controversial claims; for example, that it provides evidence against linguistic relativity. The controversy is compounded by the sheer difficulty of learning the language; the number of linguists with field experience in Pirahã is very small.” ref
“Speakers refer to their language as Apáitisí, and to their own ethnic group as Hiáitihí. The Pirahã language is one of the phonologically simplest languages known, comparable to Rotokas (New Guinea) and the Lakes Plain languages such as Obokuitai. There is a claim that Pirahã has as few as ten phonemes, one fewer than Rotokas, or even as few as nine for women, but this requires analyzing [k] as an underlying /hi/ and having /h/ invariably substituted for /s/ in female speech. Although such a phenomenon is odd cross-linguistically, Ian Maddieson has found in researching Pirahã data that /k/ does indeed exhibit an unusual distribution in the language. The “ten phoneme” claim also does not consider the tones of Pirahã, at least two of which are phonemic (marked by an acute accent and either unmarked or marked by a grave accent in Daniel Everett), bringing the number of phonemes to at least twelve. Sheldon (1988) claims three tones, high (¹), mid (²) and low (³).” ref
“Everett (2005) says that the Pirahã culture has the simplest known kinship system of any human culture. A single word, baíxi (pronounced [màíʔì]), is used for both ‘mother’ and ‘father’ (like English “parent” although Pirahã has no gendered alternative), and they appear not to keep track of relationships any more distant than biological siblings. According to Everett in 1986, Pirahã has words for ‘one’ (hói) and ‘two’ (hoí), distinguished only by tone. In his 2005 analysis, however, Everett said that Pirahã has no words for numerals at all, and that hói and hoí actually mean “small quantity” and “larger quantity”. Frank et al. (2008) describes two experiments on four Pirahã speakers that were designed to test these two hypotheses.” ref
“In one, ten spools of thread were placed on a table one at a time and the Pirahã were asked how many were there. All four speakers answered in accordance with the hypothesis that the language has words for ‘one’ and ‘two’ in this experiment, uniformly using hói for one spool, hoí for two spools, and a mixture of the second word and ‘many’ for more than two spools. The second experiment, however, started with ten spools of thread on the table, and spools were subtracted one at a time. In this experiment, one speaker used hói (the word previously supposed to mean ‘one’) when there were six spools left, and all four speakers used that word consistently when there were as many as three spools left.” ref
“Though Frank and his colleagues do not attempt to explain their subjects’ difference in behavior in these two experiments, they conclude that the two words under investigation “are much more likely to be relative or comparative terms like ‘few’ or ‘fewer’ than absolute terms like ‘one'”. There is no grammatical distinction between singular and plural, even in pronouns. A 2012 documentary aired on the Smithsonian Channel reported that a school had been opened for the Pirahã community where they learn Portuguese and mathematics. As a consequence, observations involving concepts like the notion of quantity (which has a singular treatment in Pirahã language) became impossible, because of the influence of the new knowledge on the results.” ref
“There is also a claim that Pirahã lacks any unique color terminology, being one of the few cultures (mostly in the Amazon basin and New Guinea) that only have specific words for ‘light’ and ‘dark’ if that claim is true. Although the Pirahã glossary in Daniel Everett’s Ph.D. thesis includes a list of color words (p. 354), Everett (2006) now says that the items listed in this glossary are not in fact words but descriptive phrases (such as “(like) blood” for “red”). The basic Pirahã personal pronouns are:
- ti “I, we”
- gi or gíxai [níʔàì] “you”
- hi “(s)he, they, this” ref
“These can be serially combined: ti gíxai or ti hi to mean “we” (inclusive and exclusive), and gíxai hi to mean “you (plural)”, or combined with xogiáagaó ‘all’, as in “we (all) go”. There are several other pronouns reported, such as ‘she’, ‘it’ (animal), ‘it’ (aquatic animal), and ‘it’ (inanimate), but these may actually be nouns, and they cannot be used independently the way the three basic pronouns can. The fact that different linguists come up with different lists of such pronouns suggests that they are not basic to the grammar. In two recent papers, Everett cites Sheldon as agreeing with his (Everett’s) analysis of the pronouns.” ref
“Thomason & Everett (2001) note the pronouns are formally close to those of the Tupian languages Nheengatu and Tenharim, which the Mura had once used as contact languages. Both the Tupian and Pirahã third-person pronouns can be used as demonstratives, as in Pirahã hi xobaaxai ti “I am really smart” (lit. “This one sees well: me”). Given the restricted set of Pirahã phonemes, the Pirahã pronouns ti and gi are what one would expect if the Tupian pronouns were borrowed, and hi differs only in dropping the a.” ref
“Everett stated that Pirahã cannot say “John’s brother’s house” but must say, “John has a brother. This brother has a house.” in two separate sentences. According to Everett the statement that Pirahã is a finite language without embedding and without recursion presents a challenge for proposals by Noam Chomsky and others concerning universal grammar—on the grounds that if these proposals are correct, all languages should show evidence of recursive (and similar) grammatical structures. Chomsky has replied that he considers recursion to be an innate cognitive capacity that is available for use in language but that the capacity may or may not manifest itself in any one particular language.” ref
“However, as Everett points out, the language can have recursion in ideas, with some ideas in a story being less important than others. He also mentions a paper from a recursion conference in 2005 describing recursive behaviors in deer as they forage for food. So to him, recursion can be a brain property that humans have developed more than other animals. He points out that the criticism of his conclusions uses his own doctoral thesis to refute his knowledge and conclusions drawn after a subsequent twenty-nine years of research.” ref
“Everett’s observation that the language does not allow recursion has also been vigorously disputed by other linguists, who call attention to data and arguments from Everett’s own previous publications, which interpreted the “-sai” construction as embedding. Everett has responded that his earlier understanding of the language was incomplete and slanted by theoretical bias. He now says that the morpheme -sai attached to the main verb of a clause merely marks the clause as ‘old information’ and is not a nominalizer at all (or a marker of embedding). More recently, the German linguist Uli Sauerland of the Zentrum für Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft at Humboldt University (Berlin) has performed a phonetic reanalysis of experimental data in which Pirahã speakers were asked to repeat utterances by Everett. Sauerland reports that these speakers make a tonal distinction in their use of “-sai” that “provides evidence for the existence of complex clauses in Pirahã.” ref
Unusual Features of the Language
“Everett, over the course of more than two dozen papers and one book about the language, has ascribed various surprising features to the language, including:
- One of the smallest phoneme inventories of any known language and a correspondingly high degree of allophonic variation, including two very rare sounds, [ɺ͡ɺ̼] and [t͡ʙ̥]. Both are reported to be used as phonemes in only this language, but the latter is similar to the sound of blowing a raspberry, known among practically all cultures but not used as a linguistic phoneme. The Pirahã are by now apparently aware of the latter’s meaning in other cultures and avoid using the phoneme with foreigners.
- An extremely limited clause structure, not allowing for nested recursive sentences like “Mary said that John thought that Henry was fired”.
- No abstract color words other than terms for light and dark (though this is disputed in commentaries by Paul Kay and others on Everett (2005)).
- The entire set of personal pronouns appears to have been borrowed from Nheengatu, a Tupi-based lingua franca. Although there is no documentation of a prior stage of Pirahã, the close resemblance of the Pirahã pronouns to those of Nheengatu makes this hypothesis plausible.
- Pirahã can be whistled, hummed, or encoded in music. In fact, Keren Everett believes that current research on the language misses much of its meaning by paying little attention to the language’s prosody. Consonants and vowels may be omitted altogether and the meaning conveyed solely through variations in pitch, stress, and rhythm. She says that mothers teach their children the language through constantly singing the same musical patterns.” ref
“Everett claims that the absence of recursion in the language, if real, falsifies the basic assumption of modern Chomskyan linguistics. This claim is contested by many linguists, who claim that recursion has been observed in Pirahã by Daniel Everett himself, while Everett argues that those utterances that superficially seemed recursive to him at first were misinterpretations caused by his earlier lack of familiarity with the language. Furthermore, some linguists, including Chomsky himself, argue that even if Pirahã lacked recursion, that would have no implications for Chomskyan linguistics.” ref
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North America Area (with Deities/paganism and Shamanism/or “medicine people”)
- Eskimo–Aleut or Inuit–Yupik–Unangan languages
- Na-Dené, Athabaskan–Eyak–Tlingit languages
- The Algic: Algonquian–Wiyot–Yurok languages
- Siouan–Catawban languages
- Uto-Aztecan languages
- Salishan languages
- Muskogean languages
Mesoamerica Aera (with Deities/paganism and Shamanism/or “medicine people”)
South America Area (with Deities/paganism and Shamanism/or “medicine people”)
![Screenshot 2023-04-22 162743](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Screenshot-2023-04-22-162743.jpg)
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My favorite “Graham Hancock” Quote?
“In what archaeologists have studied, yes, we can say there is NO Evidence of an advanced civilization.” – (Time 1:27) Joe Rogan Experience #2136 – Graham Hancock & Flint Dibble
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People don’t commonly teach religious history, even that of their own claimed religion. No, rather they teach a limited “pro their religion” history of their religion from a religious perspective favorable to the religion of choice.
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Do you truly think “Religious Belief” is only a matter of some personal choice?
Do you not see how coercive one’s world of choice is limited to the obvious hereditary belief, in most religious choices available to the child of religious parents or caregivers? Religion is more commonly like a family, culture, society, etc. available belief that limits the belief choices of the child and that is when “Religious Belief” is not only a matter of some personal choice and when it becomes hereditary faith, not because of the quality of its alleged facts or proposed truths but because everyone else important to the child believes similarly so they do as well simply mimicking authority beliefs handed to them. Because children are raised in religion rather than being presented all possible choices but rather one limited dogmatic brand of “Religious Belief” where children only have a choice of following the belief as instructed, and then personally claim the faith hereditary belief seen in the confirming to the belief they have held themselves all their lives. This is obvious in statements asked and answered by children claiming a faith they barely understand but they do understand that their family believes “this or that” faith, so they feel obligated to believe it too. While I do agree that “Religious Belief” should only be a matter of some personal choice, it rarely is… End Hereditary Religion!
Opposition to Imposed Hereditary Religion
![dfghjhg](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/dfghjhg.jpg)
Animism: Respecting the Living World by Graham Harvey
“How have human cultures engaged with and thought about animals, plants, rocks, clouds, and other elements in their natural surroundings? Do animals and other natural objects have a spirit or soul? What is their relationship to humans? In this new study, Graham Harvey explores current and past animistic beliefs and practices of Native Americans, Maori, Aboriginal Australians, and eco-pagans. He considers the varieties of animism found in these cultures as well as their shared desire to live respectfully within larger natural communities. Drawing on his extensive casework, Harvey also considers the linguistic, performative, ecological, and activist implications of these different animisms.” ref
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We are like believing machines we vacuum up ideas, like Velcro sticks to almost everything. We accumulate beliefs that we allow to negatively influence our lives, often without realizing it. Our willingness must be to alter skewed beliefs that impend our balance or reason, which allows us to achieve new positive thinking and accurate outcomes.
![8-Copy](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/8-Copy.jpg)
My thoughts on Religion Evolution with external links for more info:
- (Pre-Animism Africa mainly, but also Europe, and Asia at least 300,000 years ago), (Pre-Animism – Oxford Dictionaries)
- (Animism Africa around 100,000 years ago), (Animism – Britannica.com)
- (Totemism Europe around 50,000 years ago), (Totemism – Anthropology)
- (Shamanism Siberia around 30,000 years ago), (Shamanism – Britannica.com)
- (Paganism Turkey around 12,000 years ago), (Paganism – BBC Religion)
- (Progressed Organized Religion “Institutional Religion” Egypt around 5,000 years ago), (Ancient Egyptian Religion – Britannica.com)
- (CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS after 4,000 years ago) (Origin of Major Religions – Sacred Texts)
- (Early Atheistic Doubting at least by 2,600 years ago) (History of Atheism – Wikipedia)
“Religion is an Evolved Product” and Yes, Religion is Like Fear Given Wings…
Atheists talk about gods and religions for the same reason doctors talk about cancer, they are looking for a cure, or a firefighter talks about fires because they burn people and they care to stop them. We atheists too often feel a need to help the victims of mental slavery, held in the bondage that is the false beliefs of gods and the conspiracy theories of reality found in religions.
Understanding Religion Evolution:
- Pre-Animism (at least 300,000 years ago)
- Animism (Africa: 100,000 years ago)
- Totemism (Europe: 50,000 years ago)
- Shamanism (Siberia: 30,000 years ago)
- Paganism (Turkey: 12,000 years ago)
- Progressed organized religion (Egypt: 5,000 years ago), (Egypt, the First Dynasty 5,150 years ago)
- CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS (after 4,000 years ago)
- Early Atheistic Doubting (at least by 2,600 years ago)
“An Archaeological/Anthropological Understanding of Religion Evolution”
It seems ancient peoples had to survived amazing threats in a “dangerous universe (by superstition perceived as good and evil),” and human “immorality or imperfection of the soul” which was thought to affect the still living, leading to ancestor worship. This ancestor worship presumably led to the belief in supernatural beings, and then some of these were turned into the belief in gods. This feeble myth called gods were just a human conceived “made from nothing into something over and over, changing, again and again, taking on more as they evolve, all the while they are thought to be special,” but it is just supernatural animistic spirit-belief perceived as sacred.
Quick Evolution of Religion?
Pre-Animism (at least 300,000 years ago) pre-religion is a beginning that evolves into later Animism. So, Religion as we think of it, to me, all starts in a general way with Animism (Africa: 100,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in supernatural powers/spirits), then this is physically expressed in or with Totemism (Europe: 50,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in mythical relationship with powers/spirits through a totem item), which then enlists a full-time specific person to do this worship and believed interacting Shamanism (Siberia/Russia: 30,000 years ago) (theoretical belief in access and influence with spirits through ritual), and then there is the further employment of myths and gods added to all the above giving you Paganism (Turkey: 12,000 years ago) (often a lot more nature-based than most current top world religions, thus hinting to their close link to more ancient religious thinking it stems from). My hypothesis is expressed with an explanation of the building of a theatrical house (modern religions development). Progressed organized religion (Egypt: 5,000 years ago) with CURRENT “World” RELIGIONS (after 4,000 years ago).
Historically, in large city-state societies (such as Egypt or Iraq) starting around 5,000 years ago culminated to make religion something kind of new, a sociocultural-governmental-religious monarchy, where all or at least many of the people of such large city-state societies seem familiar with and committed to the existence of “religion” as the integrated life identity package of control dynamics with a fixed closed magical doctrine, but this juggernaut integrated religion identity package of Dogmatic-Propaganda certainly did not exist or if developed to an extent it was highly limited in most smaller prehistoric societies as they seem to lack most of the strong control dynamics with a fixed closed magical doctrine (magical beliefs could be at times be added or removed). Many people just want to see developed religious dynamics everywhere even if it is not. Instead, all that is found is largely fragments until the domestication of religion.
Religions, as we think of them today, are a new fad, even if they go back to around 6,000 years in the timeline of human existence, this amounts to almost nothing when seen in the long slow evolution of religion at least around 70,000 years ago with one of the oldest ritual worship. Stone Snake of South Africa: “first human worship” 70,000 years ago. This message of how religion and gods among them are clearly a man-made thing that was developed slowly as it was invented and then implemented peace by peace discrediting them all. Which seems to be a simple point some are just not grasping how devastating to any claims of truth when we can see the lie clearly in the archeological sites.
I wish people fought as hard for the actual values as they fight for the group/clan names political or otherwise they think support values. Every amount spent on war is theft to children in need of food or the homeless kept from shelter.
Here are several of my blog posts on history:
- To Find Truth You Must First Look
- (Magdalenian/Iberomaurusian) Connections to the First Paganists of the early Neolithic Near East Dating from around 17,000 to 12,000 Years Ago
- Natufians: an Ancient People at the Origins of Agriculture and Sedentary Life
- Possible Clan Leader/Special “MALE” Ancestor Totem Poles At Least 13,500 years ago?
- Jewish People with DNA at least 13,200 years old, Judaism, and the Origins of Some of its Ideas
- Baltic Reindeer Hunters: Swiderian, Lyngby, Ahrensburgian, and Krasnosillya cultures 12,020 to 11,020 years ago are evidence of powerful migratory waves during the last 13,000 years and a genetic link to Saami and the Finno-Ugric peoples.
- The Rise of Inequality: patriarchy and state hierarchy inequality
- Fertile Crescent 12,500 – 9,500 Years Ago: fertility and death cult belief system?
- 12,400 – 11,700 Years Ago – Kortik Tepe (Turkey) Pre/early-Agriculture Cultic Ritualism
- Ritualistic Bird Symbolism at Gobekli Tepe and its “Ancestor Cult”
- Male-Homosexual (female-like) / Trans-woman (female) Seated Figurine from Gobekli Tepe
- Could a 12,000-year-old Bull Geoglyph at Göbekli Tepe relate to older Bull and Female Art 25,000 years ago and Later Goddess and the Bull cults like Catal Huyuk?
- Sedentism and the Creation of goddesses around 12,000 years ago as well as male gods after 7,000 years ago.
- Alcohol, where Agriculture and Religion Become one? Such as Gobekli Tepe’s Ritualistic use of Grain as Food and Ritual Drink
- Neolithic Ritual Sites with T-Pillars and other Cultic Pillars
- Paganism: Goddesses around 12,000 years ago then Male Gods after 7,000 years ago
- First Patriarchy: Split of Women’s Status around 12,000 years ago & First Hierarchy: fall of Women’s Status around 5,000 years ago.
- Natufians: an Ancient People at the Origins of Agriculture and Sedentary Life
- J DNA and the Spread of Agricultural Religion (paganism)
- Paganism: an approximately 12,000-year-old belief system
- Paganism 12,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Pre-Capitalism)
- Shaman burial in Israel 12,000 years ago and the Shamanism Phenomena
- Need to Mythicized: gods and goddesses
- 12,000 – 7,000 Years Ago – Paleo-Indian Culture (The Americas)
- 12,000 – 2,000 Years Ago – Indigenous-Scandinavians (Nordic)
- Norse did not wear helmets with horns?
- Pre-Pottery Neolithic Skull Cult around 11,500 to 8,400 Years Ago?
- 10,400 – 10,100 Years Ago, in Turkey the Nevail Cori Religious Settlement
- 9,000-6,500 Years Old Submerged Pre-Pottery/Pottery Neolithic Ritual Settlements off Israel’s Coast
- Catal Huyuk “first religious designed city” around 9,500 to 7,700 years ago (Turkey)
- Cultic Hunting at Catal Huyuk “first religious designed city”
- Special Items and Art as well as Special Elite Burials at Catal Huyuk
- New Rituals and Violence with the appearance of Pottery and People?
- Haplogroup N and its related Uralic Languages and Cultures
- Ainu people, Sámi people, Native Americans, the Ancient North Eurasians, and Paganistic-Shamanism with Totemism
- Ideas, Technology and People from Turkey, Europe, to China and Back again 9,000 to 5,000 years ago?
- First Pottery of Europe and the Related Cultures
- 9,000 years old Neolithic Artifacts Judean Desert and Hills Israel
- 9,000-7,000 years-old Sex and Death Rituals: Cult Sites in Israel, Jordan, and the Sinai
- 9,000-8500 year old Horned Female shaman Bad Dürrenberg Germany
- Neolithic Jewelry and the Spread of Farming in Europe Emerging out of West Turkey
- 8,600-year-old Tortoise Shells in Neolithic graves in central China have Early Writing and Shamanism
- Swing of the Mace: the rise of Elite, Forced Authority, and Inequality begin to Emerge 8,500 years ago?
- Migrations and Changing Europeans Beginning around 8,000 Years Ago
- My “Steppe-Anatolian-Kurgan hypothesis” 8,000/7,000 years ago
- Around 8,000-year-old Shared Idea of the Mistress of Animals, “Ritual” Motif
- Pre-Columbian Red-Paint (red ochre) Maritime Archaic Culture 8,000-3,000 years ago
- 7,522-6,522 years ago Linear Pottery culture which I think relates to Arcane Capitalism’s origins
- Arcane Capitalism: Primitive socialism, Primitive capital, Private ownership, Means of production, Market capitalism, Class discrimination, and Petite bourgeoisie (smaller capitalists)
- 7,500-4,750 years old Ritualistic Cucuteni-Trypillian culture of Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine
- Roots of a changing early society 7,200-6,700 years ago Jordan and Israel
- Agriculture religion (Paganism) with farming reached Britain between about 7,000 to 6,500 or so years ago and seemingly expressed in things like Western Europe’s Long Barrows
- My Thoughts on Possible Migrations of “R” DNA and Proto-Indo-European?
- “Millet” Spreading from China 7,022 years ago to Europe and related Language may have Spread with it leading to Proto-Indo-European
- Proto-Indo-European (PIE), ancestor of Indo-European languages: DNA, Society, Language, and Mythology
- The Dnieper–Donets culture and Asian varieties of Millet from China to the Black Sea region of Europe by 7,022 years ago
- Kurgan 6,000 years ago/dolmens 7,000 years ago: funeral, ritual, and other?
- 7,020 to 6,020-year-old Proto-Indo-European Homeland of Urheimat or proposed home of their Language and Religion
- Ancient Megaliths: Kurgan, Ziggurat, Pyramid, Menhir, Trilithon, Dolman, Kromlech, and Kromlech of Trilithons
- The Mytheme of Ancient North Eurasian Sacred-Dog belief and similar motifs are found in Indo-European, Native American, and Siberian comparative mythology
- Elite Power Accumulation: Ancient Trade, Tokens, Writing, Wealth, Merchants, and Priest-Kings
- Sacred Mounds, Mountains, Kurgans, and Pyramids may hold deep connections?
- Between 7,000-5,000 Years ago, rise of unequal hierarchy elite, leading to a “birth of the State” or worship of power, strong new sexism, oppression of non-elites, and the fall of Women’s equal status
- Paganism 7,000-5,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Capitalism) (World War 0) Elite & their slaves
- Hell and Underworld mythologies starting maybe as far back as 7,000 to 5,000 years ago with the Proto-Indo-Europeans?
- The First Expression of the Male God around 7,000 years ago?
- White (light complexion skin) Bigotry and Sexism started 7,000 years ago?
- Around 7,000-year-old Shared Idea of the Divine Bird (Tutelary and/or Trickster spirit/deity), “Ritual” Motif
- Nekhbet an Ancient Egyptian Vulture Goddess and Tutelary Deity
- 6,720 to 4,920 years old Ritualistic Hongshan Culture of Inner Mongolia with 5,000-year-old Pyramid Mounds and Temples
- First proto-king in the Balkans, Varna culture around 6,500 years ago?
- 6,500–5,800 years ago in Israel Late Chalcolithic (Copper Age) Period in the Southern Levant Seems to Express Northern Levant Migrations, Cultural and Religious Transfer
- KING OF BEASTS: Master of Animals “Ritual” Motif, around 6,000 years old or older…
- Around 6000-year-old Shared Idea of the Solid Wheel & the Spoked Wheel-Shaped Ritual Motif
- “The Ghassulian Star,” a mysterious 6,000-year-old mural from Jordan; a Proto-Star of Ishtar, Star of Inanna or Star of Venus?
- Religious/Ritual Ideas, including goddesses and gods as well as ritual mounds or pyramids from Northeastern Asia at least 6,000 years old, seemingly filtering to Iran, Iraq, the Mediterranean, Europe, Egypt, and the Americas?
- Maykop (5,720–5,020 years ago) Caucasus region Bronze Age culture-related to Copper Age farmers from the south, influenced by the Ubaid period and Leyla-Tepe culture, as well as influencing the Kura-Araxes culture
- 5-600-year-old Tomb, Mummy, and First Bearded Male Figurine in a Grave
- Kura-Araxes Cultural 5,520 to 4,470 years old DNA traces to the Canaanites, Arabs, and Jews
- Minoan/Cretan (Keftiu) Civilization and Religion around 5,520 to 3,120 years ago
- Evolution Of Science at least by 5,500 years ago
- 5,500 Years old birth of the State, the rise of Hierarchy, and the fall of Women’s status
- “Jiroft culture” 5,100 – 4,200 years ago and the History of Iran
- Stonehenge: Paganistic Burial and Astrological Ritual Complex, England (5,100-3,600 years ago)
- Around 5,000-year-old Shared Idea of the “Tree of Life” Ritual Motif
- Complex rituals for elite, seen from China to Egypt, at least by 5,000 years ago
- Around 5,000 years ago: “Birth of the State” where Religion gets Military Power and Influence
- The Center of the World “Axis Mundi” and/or “Sacred Mountains” Mythology Could Relate to the Altai Mountains, Heart of the Steppe
- Progressed organized religion starts, an approximately 5,000-year-old belief system
- China’s Civilization between 5,000-3,000 years ago, was a time of war and class struggle, violent transition from free clans to a Slave or Elite society
- Origin of Logics is Naturalistic Observation at least by around 5,000 years ago.
- Paganism 5,000 years old: progressed organized religion and the state: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Kings and the Rise of the State)
- Ziggurats (multi-platform temples: 4,900 years old) to Pyramids (multi-platform tombs: 4,700 years old)
- Did a 4,520–4,420-year-old Volcano In Turkey Inspire the Bible God?
- Finland’s Horned Shaman and Pre-Horned-God at least 4,500 years ago?
- 4,000-year-Old Dolmens in Israel: A Connected Dolmen Religious Phenomenon?
- Creation myths: From chaos, Ex nihilo, Earth-diver, Emergence, World egg, and World parent
- Bronze Age “Ritual” connections of the Bell Beaker culture with the Corded Ware/Single Grave culture, which were related to the Yamnaya culture and Proto-Indo-European Languages/Religions
- Low Gods (Earth/ Tutelary deity), High Gods (Sky/Supreme deity), and Moralistic Gods (Deity enforcement/divine order)
- The exchange of people, ideas, and material-culture including, to me, the new god (Sky Father) and goddess (Earth Mother) religion between the Cucuteni-Trypillians and others which is then spread far and wide
- Koryaks: Indigenous People of the Russian Far East and Big Raven myths also found in Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and other Indigenous People of North America
- 42 Principles Of Maat (Egyptian Goddess of the justice) around 4,400 years ago, 2000 Years Before Ten Commandments
- “Happy Easter” Well Happy Eostre/Ishter
- 4,320-3,820 years old “Shimao” (North China) site with Totemistic-Shamanistic Paganism and a Stepped Pyramid
- 4,250 to 3,400 Year old Stonehenge from Russia: Arkaim?
- 4,100-year-old beaker with medicinal & flowering plants in a grave of a woman in Scotland
- Early European Farmer ancestry, Kelif el Boroud people with the Cardial Ware culture, and the Bell Beaker culture Paganists too, spread into North Africa, then to the Canary Islands off West Africa
- Flood Accounts: Gilgamesh epic (4,100 years ago) Noah in Genesis (2,600 years ago)
- Paganism 4,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (First Moralistic gods, then the Origin time of Monotheism)
- When was the beginning: TIMELINE OF CURRENT RELIGIONS, which start around 4,000 years ago.
- Early Religions Thought to Express Proto-Monotheistic Systems around 4,000 years ago
- Kultepe? An archaeological site with a 4,000 years old women’s rights document.
- Single God Religions (Monotheism) = “Man-o-theism” started around 4,000 years ago with the Great Sky Spirit/God Tiān (天)?
- Confucianism’s Tiān (Shangdi god 4,000 years old): Supernaturalism, Pantheism or Theism?
- Yes, Your Male God is Ridiculous
- Mythology, a Lunar Deity is a Goddess or God of the Moon
- Sacred Land, Hills, and Mountains: Sami Mythology (Paganistic Shamanism)
- Horse Worship/Sacrifice: mythical union of Ruling Elite/Kingship and the Horse
- The Amorite/Amurru people’s God Amurru “Lord of the Steppe”, relates to the Origins of the Bible God?
- Bronze Age Exotic Trade Routes Spread Quite Far as well as Spread Religious Ideas with Them
- Sami and the Northern Indigenous Peoples Landscape, Language, and its Connection to Religion
- Prototype of Ancient Analemmatic Sundials around 3,900-3,150 years ago and a Possible Solar Connection to gods?
- Judaism is around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (“Paleo-Hebrew” 3,000 years ago and Torah 2,500 years ago)
- The Weakening of Ancient Trade and the Strengthening of Religions around 3000 years ago?
- Are you aware that there are religions that worship women gods, explain now religion tears women down?
- Animistic, Totemistic, and Paganistic Superstition Origins of bible god and the bible’s Religion.
- Myths and Folklore: “Trickster gods and goddesses”
- Jews, Judaism, and the Origins of Some of its Ideas
- An Old Branch of Religion Still Giving Fruit: Sacred Trees
- Dating the BIBLE: naming names and telling times (written less than 3,000 years ago, provable to 2,200 years ago)
- Did a Volcano Inspire the bible god?
- Dené–Yeniseian language, Old Copper Complex, and Pre-Columbian Mound Builders?
- No “dinosaurs and humans didn’t exist together just because some think they are in the bible itself”
- Sacred Shit and Sacred Animals?
- Everyone Killed in the Bible Flood? “Nephilim” (giants)?
- Hey, Damien dude, I have a question for you regarding “the bible” Exodus.
- Archaeology Disproves the Bible
- Bible Battle, Just More, Bible Babble
- The Jericho Conquest lie?
- Canaanites and Israelites?
- Accurate Account on how did Christianity Began?
- Let’s talk about Christianity.
- So the 10 commandments isn’t anything to go by either right?
- Misinformed christian
- Debunking Jesus?
- Paulism vs Jesus
- Ok, you seem confused so let’s talk about Buddhism.
- Unacknowledged Buddhism: Gods, Savior, Demons, Rebirth, Heavens, Hells, and Terrorism
- His Foolishness The Dalai Lama
- Yin and Yang is sexist with an ORIGIN around 2,300 years ago?
- I Believe Archaeology, not Myths & Why Not, as the Religious Myths Already Violate Reason!
- Archaeological, Scientific, & Philosophic evidence shows the god myth is man-made nonsense.
- Aquatic Ape Theory/Hypothesis? As Always, Just Pseudoscience.
- Ancient Aliens Conspiracy Theorists are Pseudohistorians
- The Pseudohistoric and Pseudoscientific claims about “Bakoni Ruins” of South Africa
- Why do people think Religion is much more than supernaturalism and superstitionism?
- Religion is an Evolved Product
- Was the Value of Ancient Women Different?
- 1000 to 1100 CE, human sacrifice Cahokia Mounds a pre-Columbian Native American site
- Feminist atheists as far back as the 1800s?
- Promoting Religion as Real is Mentally Harmful to a Flourishing Humanity
- Screw All Religions and Their Toxic lies, they are all fraud
- Forget Religions’ Unfounded Myths, I Have Substantiated “Archaeology Facts.”
- Religion Dispersal throughout the World
- I Hate Religion Just as I Hate all Pseudoscience
- Exposing Scientology, Eckankar, Wicca and Other Nonsense?
- Main deity or religious belief systems
- Quit Trying to Invent Your God From the Scraps of Science.
- Archaeological, Scientific, & Philosophic evidence shows the god myth is man-made nonsense.
- Ancient Alien Conspiracy Theorists: Misunderstanding, Rhetoric, Misinformation, Fabrications, and Lies
- Misinformation, Distortion, and Pseudoscience in Talking with a Christian Creationist
- Judging the Lack of Goodness in Gods, Even the Norse God Odin
- Challenging the Belief in God-like Aliens and Gods in General
- A Challenge to Christian use of Torture Devices?
- Yes, Hinduism is a Religion
- Trump is One of the Most Reactionary Forces of Far-right Christian Extremism
- Was the Bull Head a Symbol of God? Yes!
- Primate Death Rituals
- Christian – “God and Christianity are objectively true”
- Australopithecus afarensis Death Ritual?
- You Claim Global Warming is a Hoax?
- Doubter of Science and Defamer of Atheists?
- I think that sounds like the Bible?
- History of the Antifa (“anti-fascist”) Movements
- Indianapolis Anti-Blasphemy Laws #Free Soheil Rally
- Damien, you repeat the golden rule in so many forms then you say religion is dogmatic?
- Science is a Trustable Methodology whereas Faith is not Trustable at all!
- Was I ever a believer, before I was an atheist?
- Atheists rise in reason
- Mistrust of science?
- Open to Talking About the Definition of ‘God’? But first, we address Faith.
- ‘United Monarchy’ full of splendor and power – Saul, David, and Solomon? Most likely not.
- Is there EXODUS ARCHAEOLOGY? The short answer is “no.”
- Lacking Proof of Bigfoots, Unicorns, and Gods is Just a Lack of Research?
- Religion and Politics: Faith Beliefs vs. Rational Thinking
- Hammer of Truth that lying pig RELIGION: challenged by an archaeologist
- “The Hammer of Truth” -ontology question- What do You Mean by That?
- Navigation of a bad argument: Ad Hominem vs. Attack
- Why is it Often Claimed that Gods have a Gender?
- Why are basically all monotheistic religions ones that have a male god?
- Shifting through the Claims in support of Faith
- Dear Mr. AtHope, The 20th Century is an Indictment of Secularism and a Failed Atheist Century
- An Understanding of the Worldwide Statistics and Dynamics of Terrorist Incidents and Suicide Attacks
- Intoxication and Evolution? Addressing and Assessing the “Stoned Ape” or “Drunken Monkey” Theories as Catalysts in Human Evolution
- Sacred Menstrual cloth? Inanna’s knot, Isis knot, and maybe Ma’at’s feather?
- Damien, why don’t the Hebrews accept the bible stories?
- Dealing with a Troll and Arguing Over Word Meaning
- Knowledge without Belief? Justified beliefs or disbeliefs worthy of Knowledge?
- Afrocentrism and African Religions
- Crecganford @crecganford offers history & stories of the people, places, gods, & culture
- Empiricism-Denier?
I am not an academic. I am a revolutionary that teaches in public, in places like social media, and in the streets. I am not a leader by some title given but from my commanding leadership style of simply to start teaching everywhere to everyone, all manner of positive education.
![Capturertrytyuiuoipop](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Capturertrytyuiuoipop.jpg)
![religion-evolution-Copy-7-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-1024x553](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/religion-evolution-Copy-7-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-Copy-1024x553-1.jpg)
![Screenshot 2023-12-27 042509](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Screenshot-2023-12-27-042509.png)
To me, Animism starts in Southern Africa, then to West Europe, and becomes Totemism. Another split goes near the Russia and Siberia border becoming Shamanism, which heads into Central Europe meeting up with Totemism, which also had moved there, mixing the two which then heads to Lake Baikal in Siberia. From there this Shamanism-Totemism heads to Turkey where it becomes Paganism.
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![Hunter gatherer](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Hunter-gatherer.jpg)
Not all “Religions” or “Religious Persuasions” have a god(s) but
All can be said to believe in some imaginary beings or imaginary things like spirits, afterlives, etc.
![Screenshot 2021-11-04 113737](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Screenshot-2021-11-04-113737-1.jpg)
Paganism 12,000-4,000 years old
12,000-7,000 years old: related to (Pre-Capitalism)
7,000-5,000 years old: related to (Capitalism) (World War 0) Elite and their slaves!
5,000 years old: related to (Kings and the Rise of the State)
4,000 years old: related to (First Moralistic gods, then the Origin time of Monotheism)
![Screenshot 2021-01-14 101936](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Screenshot-2021-01-14-101936.jpg)
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Low Gods “Earth” or Tutelary deity and High Gods “Sky” or Supreme deity
“An Earth goddess is a deification of the Earth. Earth goddesses are often associated with the “chthonic” deities of the underworld. Ki and Ninhursag are Mesopotamian earth goddesses. In Greek mythology, the Earth is personified as Gaia, corresponding to Roman Terra, Indic Prithvi/Bhūmi, etc. traced to an “Earth Mother” complementary to the “Sky Father” in Proto-Indo-European religion. Egyptian mythology exceptionally has a sky goddess and an Earth god.” ref
“A mother goddess is a goddess who represents or is a personification of nature, motherhood, fertility, creation, destruction or who embodies the bounty of the Earth. When equated with the Earth or the natural world, such goddesses are sometimes referred to as Mother Earth or as the Earth Mother. In some religious traditions or movements, Heavenly Mother (also referred to as Mother in Heaven or Sky Mother) is the wife or feminine counterpart of the Sky father or God the Father.” ref
“Any masculine sky god is often also king of the gods, taking the position of patriarch within a pantheon. Such king gods are collectively categorized as “sky father” deities, with a polarity between sky and earth often being expressed by pairing a “sky father” god with an “earth mother” goddess (pairings of a sky mother with an earth father are less frequent). A main sky goddess is often the queen of the gods and may be an air/sky goddess in her own right, though she usually has other functions as well with “sky” not being her main. In antiquity, several sky goddesses in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Near East were called Queen of Heaven. Neopagans often apply it with impunity to sky goddesses from other regions who were never associated with the term historically. The sky often has important religious significance. Many religions, both polytheistic and monotheistic, have deities associated with the sky.” ref
“In comparative mythology, sky father is a term for a recurring concept in polytheistic religions of a sky god who is addressed as a “father”, often the father of a pantheon and is often either a reigning or former King of the Gods. The concept of “sky father” may also be taken to include Sun gods with similar characteristics, such as Ra. The concept is complementary to an “earth mother“. “Sky Father” is a direct translation of the Vedic Dyaus Pita, etymologically descended from the same Proto-Indo-European deity name as the Greek Zeûs Pater and Roman Jupiter and Germanic Týr, Tir or Tiwaz, all of which are reflexes of the same Proto-Indo-European deity’s name, *Dyēus Ph₂tḗr. While there are numerous parallels adduced from outside of Indo-European mythology, there are exceptions (e.g. In Egyptian mythology, Nut is the sky mother and Geb is the earth father).” ref
Tutelary deity
“A tutelary (also tutelar) is a deity or spirit who is a guardian, patron, or protector of a particular place, geographic feature, person, lineage, nation, culture, or occupation. The etymology of “tutelary” expresses the concept of safety and thus of guardianship. In late Greek and Roman religion, one type of tutelary deity, the genius, functions as the personal deity or daimon of an individual from birth to death. Another form of personal tutelary spirit is the familiar spirit of European folklore.” ref
“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Korean shamanism, jangseung and sotdae were placed at the edge of villages to frighten off demons. They were also worshiped as deities. Seonangshin is the patron deity of the village in Korean tradition and was believed to embody the Seonangdang. In Philippine animism, Diwata or Lambana are deities or spirits that inhabit sacred places like mountains and mounds and serve as guardians. Such as: Maria Makiling is the deity who guards Mt. Makiling and Maria Cacao and Maria Sinukuan. In Shinto, the spirits, or kami, which give life to human bodies come from nature and return to it after death. Ancestors are therefore themselves tutelaries to be worshiped. And similarly, Native American beliefs such as Tonás, tutelary animal spirit among the Zapotec and Totems, familial or clan spirits among the Ojibwe, can be animals.” ref
“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Austronesian beliefs such as: Atua (gods and spirits of the Polynesian peoples such as the Māori or the Hawaiians), Hanitu (Bunun of Taiwan‘s term for spirit), Hyang (Kawi, Sundanese, Javanese, and Balinese Supreme Being, in ancient Java and Bali mythology and this spiritual entity, can be either divine or ancestral), Kaitiaki (New Zealand Māori term used for the concept of guardianship, for the sky, the sea, and the land), Kawas (mythology) (divided into 6 groups: gods, ancestors, souls of the living, spirits of living things, spirits of lifeless objects, and ghosts), Tiki (Māori mythology, Tiki is the first man created by either Tūmatauenga or Tāne and represents deified ancestors found in most Polynesian cultures). ” ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref, ref
Mesopotamian Tutelary Deities can be seen as ones related to City-States
“Historical city-states included Sumerian cities such as Uruk and Ur; Ancient Egyptian city-states, such as Thebes and Memphis; the Phoenician cities (such as Tyre and Sidon); the five Philistine city-states; the Berber city-states of the Garamantes; the city-states of ancient Greece (the poleis such as Athens, Sparta, Thebes, and Corinth); the Roman Republic (which grew from a city-state into a vast empire); the Italian city-states from the Middle Ages to the early modern period, such as Florence, Siena, Ferrara, Milan (which as they grew in power began to dominate neighboring cities) and Genoa and Venice, which became powerful thalassocracies; the Mayan and other cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica (including cities such as Chichen Itza, Tikal, Copán and Monte Albán); the central Asian cities along the Silk Road; the city-states of the Swahili coast; Ragusa; states of the medieval Russian lands such as Novgorod and Pskov; and many others.” ref
“The Uruk period (ca. 4000 to 3100 BCE; also known as Protoliterate period) of Mesopotamia, named after the Sumerian city of Uruk, this period saw the emergence of urban life in Mesopotamia and the Sumerian civilization. City-States like Uruk and others had a patron tutelary City Deity along with a Priest-King.” ref
“Chinese folk religion, both past, and present, includes myriad tutelary deities. Exceptional individuals, highly cultivated sages, and prominent ancestors can be deified and honored after death. Lord Guan is the patron of military personnel and police, while Mazu is the patron of fishermen and sailors. Such as Tu Di Gong (Earth Deity) is the tutelary deity of a locality, and each individual locality has its own Earth Deity and Cheng Huang Gong (City God) is the guardian deity of an individual city, worshipped by local officials and locals since imperial times.” ref
“A tutelary (also tutelar) in Hinduism, personal tutelary deities are known as ishta-devata, while family tutelary deities are known as Kuladevata. Gramadevata are guardian deities of villages. Devas can also be seen as tutelary. Shiva is the patron of yogis and renunciants. City goddesses include: Mumbadevi (Mumbai), Sachchika (Osian); Kuladevis include: Ambika (Porwad), and Mahalakshmi. In NorthEast India Meitei mythology and religion (Sanamahism) of Manipur, there are various types of tutelary deities, among which Lam Lais are the most predominant ones. Tibetan Buddhism has Yidam as a tutelary deity. Dakini is the patron of those who seek knowledge.” ref
“A tutelary (also tutelar) The Greeks also thought deities guarded specific places: for instance, Athena was the patron goddess of the city of Athens. Socrates spoke of hearing the voice of his personal spirit or daimonion:
You have often heard me speak of an oracle or sign which comes to me … . This sign I have had ever since I was a child. The sign is a voice which comes to me and always forbids me to do something which I am going to do, but never commands me to do anything, and this is what stands in the way of my being a politician.” ref
“Tutelary deities who guard and preserve a place or a person are fundamental to ancient Roman religion. The tutelary deity of a man was his Genius, that of a woman her Juno. In the Imperial era, the Genius of the Emperor was a focus of Imperial cult. An emperor might also adopt a major deity as his personal patron or tutelary, as Augustus did Apollo. Precedents for claiming the personal protection of a deity were established in the Republican era, when for instance the Roman dictator Sulla advertised the goddess Victory as his tutelary by holding public games (ludi) in her honor.” ref
“Each town or city had one or more tutelary deities, whose protection was considered particularly vital in time of war and siege. Rome itself was protected by a goddess whose name was to be kept ritually secret on pain of death (for a supposed case, see Quintus Valerius Soranus). The Capitoline Triad of Juno, Jupiter, and Minerva were also tutelaries of Rome. The Italic towns had their own tutelary deities. Juno often had this function, as at the Latin town of Lanuvium and the Etruscan city of Veii, and was often housed in an especially grand temple on the arx (citadel) or other prominent or central location. The tutelary deity of Praeneste was Fortuna, whose oracle was renowned.” ref
“The Roman ritual of evocatio was premised on the belief that a town could be made vulnerable to military defeat if the power of its tutelary deity were diverted outside the city, perhaps by the offer of superior cult at Rome. The depiction of some goddesses such as the Magna Mater (Great Mother, or Cybele) as “tower-crowned” represents their capacity to preserve the city. A town in the provinces might adopt a deity from within the Roman religious sphere to serve as its guardian, or syncretize its own tutelary with such; for instance, a community within the civitas of the Remi in Gaul adopted Apollo as its tutelary, and at the capital of the Remi (present-day Rheims), the tutelary was Mars Camulus.” ref
Household deity (a kind of or related to a Tutelary deity)
“A household deity is a deity or spirit that protects the home, looking after the entire household or certain key members. It has been a common belief in paganism as well as in folklore across many parts of the world. Household deities fit into two types; firstly, a specific deity – typically a goddess – often referred to as a hearth goddess or domestic goddess who is associated with the home and hearth, such as the ancient Greek Hestia.” ref
“The second type of household deities are those that are not one singular deity, but a type, or species of animistic deity, who usually have lesser powers than major deities. This type was common in the religions of antiquity, such as the Lares of ancient Roman religion, the Gashin of Korean shamanism, and Cofgodas of Anglo-Saxon paganism. These survived Christianisation as fairy-like creatures existing in folklore, such as the Anglo-Scottish Brownie and Slavic Domovoy.” ref
“Household deities were usually worshipped not in temples but in the home, where they would be represented by small idols (such as the teraphim of the Bible, often translated as “household gods” in Genesis 31:19 for example), amulets, paintings, or reliefs. They could also be found on domestic objects, such as cosmetic articles in the case of Tawaret. The more prosperous houses might have a small shrine to the household god(s); the lararium served this purpose in the case of the Romans. The gods would be treated as members of the family and invited to join in meals, or be given offerings of food and drink.” ref
“In many religions, both ancient and modern, a god would preside over the home. Certain species, or types, of household deities, existed. An example of this was the Roman Lares. Many European cultures retained house spirits into the modern period. Some examples of these include:
- Brownie (Scotland and England) or Hob (England) / Kobold (Germany) / Goblin / Hobgoblin
- Domovoy (Slavic)
- Nisse (Norwegian or Danish) / Tomte (Swedish) / Tonttu (Finnish)
- Húsvættir (Norse)” ref
“Although the cosmic status of household deities was not as lofty as that of the Twelve Olympians or the Aesir, they were also jealous of their dignity and also had to be appeased with shrines and offerings, however humble. Because of their immediacy they had arguably more influence on the day-to-day affairs of men than the remote gods did. Vestiges of their worship persisted long after Christianity and other major religions extirpated nearly every trace of the major pagan pantheons. Elements of the practice can be seen even today, with Christian accretions, where statues to various saints (such as St. Francis) protect gardens and grottos. Even the gargoyles found on older churches, could be viewed as guardians partitioning a sacred space.” ref
“For centuries, Christianity fought a mop-up war against these lingering minor pagan deities, but they proved tenacious. For example, Martin Luther‘s Tischreden have numerous – quite serious – references to dealing with kobolds. Eventually, rationalism and the Industrial Revolution threatened to erase most of these minor deities, until the advent of romantic nationalism rehabilitated them and embellished them into objects of literary curiosity in the 19th century. Since the 20th century this literature has been mined for characters for role-playing games, video games, and other fantasy personae, not infrequently invested with invented traits and hierarchies somewhat different from their mythological and folkloric roots.” ref
“In contradistinction to both Herbert Spencer and Edward Burnett Tylor, who defended theories of animistic origins of ancestor worship, Émile Durkheim saw its origin in totemism. In reality, this distinction is somewhat academic, since totemism may be regarded as a particularized manifestation of animism, and something of a synthesis of the two positions was attempted by Sigmund Freud. In Freud’s Totem and Taboo, both totem and taboo are outward expressions or manifestations of the same psychological tendency, a concept which is complementary to, or which rather reconciles, the apparent conflict. Freud preferred to emphasize the psychoanalytic implications of the reification of metaphysical forces, but with particular emphasis on its familial nature. This emphasis underscores, rather than weakens, the ancestral component.” ref
“William Edward Hearn, a noted classicist, and jurist, traced the origin of domestic deities from the earliest stages as an expression of animism, a belief system thought to have existed also in the neolithic, and the forerunner of Indo-European religion. In his analysis of the Indo-European household, in Chapter II “The House Spirit”, Section 1, he states:
The belief which guided the conduct of our forefathers was … the spirit rule of dead ancestors.” ref
“In Section 2 he proceeds to elaborate:
It is thus certain that the worship of deceased ancestors is a vera causa, and not a mere hypothesis. …
In the other European nations, the Slavs, the Teutons, and the Kelts, the House Spirit appears with no less distinctness. … [T]he existence of that worship does not admit of doubt. … The House Spirits had a multitude of other names which it is needless here to enumerate, but all of which are more or less expressive of their friendly relations with man. … In [England] … [h]e is the Brownie. … In Scotland this same Brownie is well known. He is usually described as attached to particular families, with whom he has been known to reside for centuries, threshing the corn, cleaning the house, and performing similar household tasks. His favorite gratification was milk and honey.” ref
![Screenshot 2023-03-12 103755 - Copy](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Screenshot-2023-03-12-103755-Copy.png)
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“These ideas are my speculations from the evidence.”
I am still researching the “god‘s origins” all over the world. So you know, it is very complicated but I am smart and willing to look, DEEP, if necessary, which going very deep does seem to be needed here, when trying to actually understand the evolution of gods and goddesses. I am sure of a few things and less sure of others, but even in stuff I am not fully grasping I still am slowly figuring it out, to explain it to others. But as I research more I am understanding things a little better, though I am still working on understanding it all or something close and thus always figuring out more.
Sky Father/Sky God?
“Egyptian: (Nut) Sky Mother and (Geb) Earth Father” (Egypt is different but similar)
Turkic/Mongolic: (Tengri/Tenger Etseg) Sky Father and (Eje/Gazar Eej) Earth Mother *Transeurasian*
Hawaiian: (Wākea) Sky Father and (Papahānaumoku) Earth Mother *Austronesian*
New Zealand/ Māori: (Ranginui) Sky Father and (Papatūānuku) Earth Mother *Austronesian*
Proto-Indo-European: (Dyḗus/Dyḗus ph₂tḗr) Sky Father and (Dʰéǵʰōm/Pleth₂wih₁) Earth Mother
Indo-Aryan: (Dyaus Pita) Sky Father and (Prithvi Mata) Earth Mother *Indo-European*
Italic: (Jupiter) Sky Father and (Juno) Sky Mother *Indo-European*
Etruscan: (Tinia) Sky Father and (Uni) Sky Mother *Tyrsenian/Italy Pre–Indo-European*
Hellenic/Greek: (Zeus) Sky Father and (Hera) Sky Mother who started as an “Earth Goddess” *Indo-European*
Nordic: (Dagr) Sky Father and (Nótt) Sky Mother *Indo-European*
Slavic: (Perun) Sky Father and (Mokosh) Earth Mother *Indo-European*
Illyrian: (Deipaturos) Sky Father and (Messapic Damatura’s “earth-mother” maybe) Earth Mother *Indo-European*
Albanian: (Zojz) Sky Father and (?) *Indo-European*
Baltic: (Perkūnas) Sky Father and (Saulė) Sky Mother *Indo-European*
Germanic: (Týr) Sky Father and (?) *Indo-European*
Colombian-Muisca: (Bochica) Sky Father and (Huythaca) Sky Mother *Chibchan*
Aztec: (Quetzalcoatl) Sky Father and (Xochiquetzal) Sky Mother *Uto-Aztecan*
Incan: (Viracocha) Sky Father and (Mama Runtucaya) Sky Mother *Quechuan*
China: (Tian/Shangdi) Sky Father and (Dì) Earth Mother *Sino-Tibetan*
Sumerian, Assyrian and Babylonian: (An/Anu) Sky Father and (Ki) Earth Mother
Finnish: (Ukko) Sky Father and (Akka) Earth Mother *Finno-Ugric*
Sami: (Horagalles) Sky Father and (Ravdna) Earth Mother *Finno-Ugric*
Puebloan-Zuni: (Ápoyan Ta’chu) Sky Father and (Áwitelin Tsíta) Earth Mother
Puebloan-Hopi: (Tawa) Sky Father and (Kokyangwuti/Spider Woman/Grandmother) Earth Mother *Uto-Aztecan*
Puebloan-Navajo: (Tsohanoai) Sky Father and (Estsanatlehi) Earth Mother *Na-Dene*
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![2-Copy-Copy-1-1024x550-LAPTOP-KIB0FGT7](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/2-Copy-Copy-1-1024x550-LAPTOP-KIB0FGT7.jpg)
Hinduism around 3,700 to 3,500 years old. ref
Judaism around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (The first writing in the bible was “Paleo-Hebrew” dated to around 3,000 years ago Khirbet Qeiyafa is the site of an ancient fortress city overlooking the Elah Valley. And many believe the religious Jewish texts were completed around 2,500) ref, ref
Judaism is around 3,450 or 3,250 years old. (“Paleo-Hebrew” 3,000 years ago and Torah 2,500 years ago)
“Judaism is an Abrahamic, its roots as an organized religion in the Middle East during the Bronze Age. Some scholars argue that modern Judaism evolved from Yahwism, the religion of ancient Israel and Judah, by the late 6th century BCE, and is thus considered to be one of the oldest monotheistic religions.” ref
“Yahwism is the name given by modern scholars to the religion of ancient Israel, essentially polytheistic, with a plethora of gods and goddesses. Heading the pantheon was Yahweh, the national god of the Israelite kingdoms of Israel and Judah, with his consort, the goddess Asherah; below them were second-tier gods and goddesses such as Baal, Shamash, Yarikh, Mot, and Astarte, all of whom had their own priests and prophets and numbered royalty among their devotees, and a third and fourth tier of minor divine beings, including the mal’ak, the messengers of the higher gods, who in later times became the angels of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Yahweh, however, was not the ‘original’ god of Israel “Isra-El”; it is El, the head of the Canaanite pantheon, whose name forms the basis of the name “Israel”, and none of the Old Testament patriarchs, the tribes of Israel, the Judges, or the earliest monarchs, have a Yahwistic theophoric name (i.e., one incorporating the name of Yahweh).” ref
“El is a Northwest Semitic word meaning “god” or “deity“, or referring (as a proper name) to any one of multiple major ancient Near Eastern deities. A rarer form, ‘ila, represents the predicate form in Old Akkadian and in Amorite. The word is derived from the Proto-Semitic *ʔil-, meaning “god”. Specific deities known as ‘El or ‘Il include the supreme god of the ancient Canaanite religion and the supreme god of East Semitic speakers in Mesopotamia’s Early Dynastic Period. ʼĒl is listed at the head of many pantheons. In some Canaanite and Ugaritic sources, ʼĒl played a role as father of the gods, of creation, or both. For example, in the Ugaritic texts, ʾil mlk is understood to mean “ʼĒl the King” but ʾil hd as “the god Hadad“. The Semitic root ʾlh (Arabic ʾilāh, Aramaic ʾAlāh, ʾElāh, Hebrew ʾelōah) may be ʾl with a parasitic h, and ʾl may be an abbreviated form of ʾlh. In Ugaritic the plural form meaning “gods” is ʾilhm, equivalent to Hebrew ʾelōhîm “powers”. In the Hebrew texts this word is interpreted as being semantically singular for “god” by biblical commentators. However the documentary hypothesis for the Old Testament (corresponds to the Jewish Torah) developed originally in the 1870s, identifies these that different authors – the Jahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and the Priestly source – were responsible for editing stories from a polytheistic religion into those of a monotheistic religion. Inconsistencies that arise between monotheism and polytheism in the texts are reflective of this hypothesis.” ref
Jainism around 2,599 – 2,527 years old. ref
Confucianism around 2,600 – 2,551 years old. ref
Buddhism around 2,563/2,480 – 2,483/2,400 years old. ref
Christianity around 2,o00 years old. ref
Shinto around 1,305 years old. ref
Islam around 1407–1385 years old. ref
Sikhism around 548–478 years old. ref
Bahá’í around 200–125 years old. ref
![10351831_556859917755732_4316427804670144270_n](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/10351831_556859917755732_4316427804670144270_n.jpg)
Knowledge to Ponder:
Stars/Astrology:
- Possibly, around 30,000 years ago (in simpler form) to 6,000 years ago, Stars/Astrology are connected to Ancestors, Spirit Animals, and Deities.
- The star also seems to be a possible proto-star for Star of Ishtar, Star of Inanna, or Star of Venus.
- Around 7,000 to 6,000 years ago, Star Constellations/Astrology have connections to the “Kurgan phenomenon” of below-ground “mound” stone/wood burial structures and “Dolmen phenomenon” of above-ground stone burial structures.
- Around 6,500–5,800 years ago, The Northern Levant migrations into Jordon and Israel in the Southern Levant brought new cultural and religious transfer from Turkey and Iran.
- “The Ghassulian Star,” a mysterious 6,000-year-old mural from Jordan may have connections to the European paganstic kurgan/dolmens phenomenon.
“Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Different cultures have employed forms of astrology since at least the 2nd millennium BCE, these practices having originated in calendrical systems used to predict seasonal shifts and to interpret celestial cycles as signs of divine communications. Most, if not all, cultures have attached importance to what they observed in the sky, and some—such as the Hindus, Chinese, and the Maya—developed elaborate systems for predicting terrestrial events from celestial observations. Western astrology, one of the oldest astrological systems still in use, can trace its roots to 19th–17th century BCE Mesopotamia, from where it spread to Ancient Greece, Rome, the Islamicate world and eventually Central and Western Europe. Contemporary Western astrology is often associated with systems of horoscopes that purport to explain aspects of a person’s personality and predict significant events in their lives based on the positions of celestial objects; the majority of professional astrologers rely on such systems.” ref
Around 5,500 years ago, Science evolves, The first evidence of science was 5,500 years ago and was demonstrated by a body of empirical, theoretical, and practical knowledge about the natural world. ref
Around 5,000 years ago, Origin of Logics is a Naturalistic Observation (principles of valid reasoning, inference, & demonstration) ref
Around 4,150 to 4,000 years ago: The earliest surviving versions of the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh, which was originally titled “He who Saw the Deep” (Sha naqba īmuru) or “Surpassing All Other Kings” (Shūtur eli sharrī) were written. ref
Hinduism:
- 3,700 years ago or so, the oldest of the Hindu Vedas (scriptures), the Rig Veda was composed.
- 3,500 years ago or so, the Vedic Age began in India after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilization.
Judaism:
- around 3,000 years ago, the first writing in the bible was “Paleo-Hebrew”
- around 2,500 years ago, many believe the religious Jewish texts were completed
Myths: The bible inspired religion is not just one religion or one myth but a grouping of several religions and myths
- Around 3,450 or 3,250 years ago, according to legend, is the traditionally accepted period in which the Israelite lawgiver, Moses, provided the Ten Commandments.
- Around 2,500 to 2,400 years ago, a collection of ancient religious writings by the Israelites based primarily upon the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh, or Old Testament is the first part of Christianity’s bible.
- Around 2,400 years ago, the most accepted hypothesis is that the canon was formed in stages, first the Pentateuch (Torah).
- Around 2,140 to 2,116 years ago, the Prophets was written during the Hasmonean dynasty, and finally the remaining books.
- Christians traditionally divide the Old Testament into four sections:
- The first five books or Pentateuch (Torah).
- The proposed history books telling the history of the Israelites from their conquest of Canaan to their defeat and exile in Babylon.
- The poetic and proposed “Wisdom books” dealing, in various forms, with questions of good and evil in the world.
- The books of the biblical prophets, warning of the consequences of turning away from God:
- Henotheism:
- Exodus 20:23 “You shall not make other gods besides Me (not saying there are no other gods just not to worship them); gods of silver or gods of gold, you shall not make for yourselves.”
- Polytheism:
- Judges 10:6 “Then the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, served the Baals and the Ashtaroth, the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the sons of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; thus they forsook the LORD and did not serve Him.”
- 1 Corinthians 8:5 “For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords.”
- Monotheism:
- Isaiah 43:10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the LORD, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.
Around 2,570 to 2,270 Years Ago, there is a confirmation of atheistic doubting as well as atheistic thinking, mainly by Greek philosophers. However, doubting gods is likely as old as the invention of gods and should destroy the thinking that belief in god(s) is the “default belief”. The Greek word is apistos (a “not” and pistos “faithful,”), thus not faithful or faithless because one is unpersuaded and unconvinced by a god(s) claim. Short Definition: unbelieving, unbeliever, or unbelief.
![apturefdgfhghj](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/apturefdgfhghj.jpg)
Expressions of Atheistic Thinking:
- Around 2,600 years ago, Ajita Kesakambali, ancient Indian philosopher, who is the first known proponent of Indian materialism. ref
- Around 2,535 to 2,475 years ago, Heraclitus, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher, a native of the Greek city Ephesus, Ionia, on the coast of Anatolia, also known as Asia Minor or modern Turkey. ref
- Around 2,500 to 2,400 years ago, according to The Story of Civilization book series certain African pygmy tribes have no identifiable gods, spirits, or religious beliefs or rituals, and even what burials accrue are without ceremony. ref
- Around 2,490 to 2,430 years ago, Empedocles, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of Agrigentum, a Greek city in Sicily. ref
- Around 2,460 to 2,370 years ago, Democritus, Greek pre-Socratic philosopher considered to be the “father of modern science” possibly had some disbelief amounting to atheism. ref
- Around 2,399 years ago or so, Socrates, a famous Greek philosopher was tried for sinfulness by teaching doubt of state gods. ref
- Around 2,341 to 2,270 years ago, Epicurus, a Greek philosopher known for composing atheistic critics and famously stated, “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh evil? Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him god?” ref
This last expression by Epicurus, seems to be an expression of Axiological Atheism. To understand and utilize value or actually possess “Value Conscious/Consciousness” to both give a strong moral “axiological” argument (the problem of evil) as well as use it to fortify humanism and positive ethical persuasion of human helping and care responsibilities. Because value-blindness gives rise to sociopathic/psychopathic evil.
![1e-Anu-Antus-procession-in-Uruk](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/1e-Anu-Antus-procession-in-Uruk.jpg)
“Theists, there has to be a god, as something can not come from nothing.”
Well, thus something (unknown) happened and then there was something. This does not tell us what the something that may have been involved with something coming from nothing. A supposed first cause, thus something (unknown) happened and then there was something is not an open invitation to claim it as known, neither is it justified to call or label such an unknown as anything, especially an unsubstantiated magical thinking belief born of mythology and religious storytelling.
![0 (63)](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/0-63.jpg)
![50626195_2231791236887767_8408273929398910976_n](https://damienmarieathope.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/50626195_2231791236887767_8408273929398910976_n.jpg)
While hallucinogens are associated with shamanism, it is alcohol that is associated with paganism.
The Atheist-Humanist-Leftist Revolutionaries Shows in the prehistory series:
Show two: Pre-animism 300,000 years old and animism 100,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
Show tree: Totemism 50,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
Show four: Shamanism 30,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
Show five: Paganism 12,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”
Show six: Emergence of hierarchy, sexism, slavery, and the new male god dominance: Paganism 7,000-5,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Capitalism) (World War 0) Elite and their slaves!
Prehistory: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” the division of labor, power, rights, and recourses: VIDEO
Pre-animism 300,000 years old and animism 100,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”: VIDEO
Totemism 50,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”: VIDEO
Shamanism 30,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism”: VIDEO
Paganism 12,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Pre-Capitalism): VIDEO
Paganism 7,000-5,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Capitalism) (World War 0) Elite and their slaves: VIEDO
Paganism 5,000 years old: progressed organized religion and the state: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (Kings and the Rise of the State): VIEDO
Paganism 4,000 years old: related to “Anarchism and Socialism” (First Moralistic gods, then the Origin time of Monotheism): VIEDO
I do not hate simply because I challenge and expose myths or lies any more than others being thought of as loving simply because of the protection and hiding from challenge their favored myths or lies.
The truth is best championed in the sunlight of challenge.
An archaeologist once said to me “Damien religion and culture are very different”
My response, So are you saying that was always that way, such as would you say Native Americans’ cultures are separate from their religions? And do you think it always was the way you believe?
I had said that religion was a cultural product. That is still how I see it and there are other archaeologists that think close to me as well. Gods too are the myths of cultures that did not understand science or the world around them, seeing magic/supernatural everywhere.
I personally think there is a goddess and not enough evidence to support a male god at Çatalhöyük but if there was both a male and female god and goddess then I know the kind of gods they were like Proto-Indo-European mythology.
This series idea was addressed in, Anarchist Teaching as Free Public Education or Free Education in the Public: VIDEO
Our 12 video series: Organized Oppression: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of power (9,000-4,000 years ago), is adapted from: The Complete and Concise History of the Sumerians and Early Bronze Age Mesopotamia (7000-2000 BC): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szFjxmY7jQA by “History with Cy“
Show #1: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Samarra, Halaf, Ubaid)
Show #2: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power
Show #3: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Uruk and the First Cities)
Show #4: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (First Kings)
Show #5: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Early Dynastic Period)
Show #6: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power
Show #7: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Sargon and Akkadian Rule)
Show #9: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Gudea of Lagash and Utu-hegal)
Show #12: Mesopotamian State Force and the Politics of Power (Aftermath and Legacy of Sumer)
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The “Atheist-Humanist-Leftist Revolutionaries”
Cory Johnston ☭ Ⓐ Atheist Leftist @Skepticallefty & I (Damien Marie AtHope) @AthopeMarie (my YouTube & related blog) are working jointly in atheist, antitheist, antireligionist, antifascist, anarchist, socialist, and humanist endeavors in our videos together, generally, every other Saturday.
Why Does Power Bring Responsibility?
Think, how often is it the powerless that start wars, oppress others, or commit genocide? So, I guess the question is to us all, to ask, how can power not carry responsibility in a humanity concept? I know I see the deep ethical responsibility that if there is power their must be a humanistic responsibility of ethical and empathic stewardship of that power. Will I be brave enough to be kind? Will I possess enough courage to be compassionate? Will my valor reach its height of empathy? I as everyone, earns our justified respect by our actions, that are good, ethical, just, protecting, and kind. Do I have enough self-respect to put my love for humanity’s flushing, over being brought down by some of its bad actors? May we all be the ones doing good actions in the world, to help human flourishing.
I create the world I want to live in, striving for flourishing. Which is not a place but a positive potential involvement and promotion; a life of humanist goal precision. To master oneself, also means mastering positive prosocial behaviors needed for human flourishing. I may have lost a god myth as an atheist, but I am happy to tell you, my friend, it is exactly because of that, leaving the mental terrorizer, god belief, that I truly regained my connected ethical as well as kind humanity.
Cory and I will talk about prehistory and theism, addressing the relevance to atheism, anarchism, and socialism.
At the same time as the rise of the male god, 7,000 years ago, there was also the very time there was the rise of violence, war, and clans to kingdoms, then empires, then states. It is all connected back to 7,000 years ago, and it moved across the world.
Cory Johnston: https://damienmarieathope.com/2021/04/cory-johnston-mind-of-a-skeptical-leftist/?v=32aec8db952d
The Mind of a Skeptical Leftist (YouTube)
Cory Johnston: Mind of a Skeptical Leftist @Skepticallefty
The Mind of a Skeptical Leftist By Cory Johnston: “Promoting critical thinking, social justice, and left-wing politics by covering current events and talking to a variety of people. Cory Johnston has been thoughtfully talking to people and attempting to promote critical thinking, social justice, and left-wing politics.” http://anchor.fm/skepticalleft
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Cory Johnston ☭ Ⓐ @Skepticallefty Evidence-based atheist leftist (he/him) Producer, host, and co-host of 4 podcasts @skeptarchy @skpoliticspod and @AthopeMarie
Damien Marie AtHope (“At Hope”) Axiological Atheist, Anti-theist, Anti-religionist, Secular Humanist. Rationalist, Writer, Artist, Poet, Philosopher, Advocate, Activist, Psychology, and Armchair Archaeology/Anthropology/Historian.
Damien is interested in: Freedom, Liberty, Justice, Equality, Ethics, Humanism, Science, Atheism, Antiteism, Antireligionism, Ignosticism, Left-Libertarianism, Anarchism, Socialism, Mutualism, Axiology, Metaphysics, LGBTQI, Philosophy, Advocacy, Activism, Mental Health, Psychology, Archaeology, Social Work, Sexual Rights, Marriage Rights, Woman’s Rights, Gender Rights, Child Rights, Secular Rights, Race Equality, Ageism/Disability Equality, Etc. And a far-leftist, “Anarcho-Humanist.”
I am not a good fit in the atheist movement that is mostly pro-capitalist, I am anti-capitalist. Mostly pro-skeptic, I am a rationalist not valuing skepticism. Mostly pro-agnostic, I am anti-agnostic. Mostly limited to anti-Abrahamic religions, I am an anti-religionist.
To me, the “male god” seems to have either emerged or become prominent around 7,000 years ago, whereas the now favored monotheism “male god” is more like 4,000 years ago or so. To me, the “female goddess” seems to have either emerged or become prominent around 11,000-10,000 years ago or so, losing the majority of its once prominence around 2,000 years ago due largely to the now favored monotheism “male god” that grow in prominence after 4,000 years ago or so.
My Thought on the Evolution of Gods?
Animal protector deities from old totems/spirit animal beliefs come first to me, 13,000/12,000 years ago, then women as deities 11,000/10,000 years ago, then male gods around 7,000/8,000 years ago. Moralistic gods around 5,000/4,000 years ago, and monotheistic gods around 4,000/3,000 years ago.
To me, animal gods were likely first related to totemism animals around 13,000 to 12,000 years ago or older. Female as goddesses was next to me, 11,000 to 10,000 years ago or so with the emergence of agriculture. Then male gods come about 8,000 to 7,000 years ago with clan wars. Many monotheism-themed religions started in henotheism, emerging out of polytheism/paganism.
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Damien Marie AtHope (Said as “At” “Hope”)/(Autodidact Polymath but not good at math):
Axiological Atheist, Anti-theist, Anti-religionist, Secular Humanist, Rationalist, Writer, Artist, Jeweler, Poet, “autodidact” Philosopher, schooled in Psychology, and “autodidact” Armchair Archaeology/Anthropology/Pre-Historian (Knowledgeable in the range of: 1 million to 5,000/4,000 years ago). I am an anarchist socialist politically. Reasons for or Types of Atheism
My Website, My Blog, & Short-writing or Quotes, My YouTube, Twitter: @AthopeMarie, and My Email: damien.marie.athope@gmail.com