terranean world is linked with blood, raw food, and canni-
balism, representing a truly antisocial condition in which hu-
mans are prey rather than predators. It represents all that
humans do not want to be. In the celestial domain, the East
is the place of humanity par excellence, the place where the
Xikrin originated. The Xikrin have two myths that conse-
crate them as inhabitants of the earth, in opposition to the
sky where they originated and in opposition to the subterra-
nean inhabitants, whom they succeeded in eliminating
forever.
In Xikrin society an individual becomes a shaman after
he survives an ordeal, in which he climbs a giant spider web
and reaches celestial space with its eternal light, where the
nape of his neck is symbolically perforated by a large harpy
eagle and he thus acquires the capacity to fly. As in other na-
tive societies, the shaman has the power to transit between
the human world and the natural and supernatural worlds.
In life humans accumulate over time attributes from differ-
ent cosmic domains, but the shaman lives, shares, and con-
stantly communicates with these domains. In his role of in-
termediary, he lives in human society, shares the social world
of animals and the supernatural, and has the capacity to ma-
nipulate the different domains. He negotiates with the
owner-controllers of the animal world for plentiful game or
an abundant catch of fish. He has the capacity to “see” in
the widest sense, perceiving what is invisible to humans.
When a community has enough people and thus human
resources, the cycle of rituals is continuous. During rituals
individuals acquire knowledge of aspects of social organiza-
tion and reproduction. Song, choreography, and decora-
tions, which humans acquired in mythical time, are repro-
duced in ritual as manifestations of the present situation of
humanity in the cosmos. The most important rituals are
those focused on male and female naming and male initia-
tion, consisting of five phases, each of which is symbolically
related to one of the particular cosmic domains. These rituals
are sometimes inserted within others, such as the new maize
festival or merêrêmei, “beautiful festival,” which takes place
during the transitional period between the dry and rainy sea-
sons; the festivals incorporating new members of a ceremoni-
al society, such as the armadillo society; the marriage ritual
or mat festival; and the funerary rituals and ritual fishing
using timbó vine poisons. There are also newly introduced
rituals, such as Kworo-kango, or the manioc festival, which
comes from the Juruna people. At certain periods, the ritual
cycle attains its climax and develops over several days with
high intensity and lavish style. Ceremonial life also acts as
a crucial context for the expression of the ways in which the
Xikrin reflect on the relationships developed with the white
world.
Arara (Carib). The history of the formation of the
Arara cosmos states that the primordial cosmos was shattered
after a fight occurred between two people related as ipari
(matrilateral cross-cousins or, more generally, affines). The
land on the terrestrial level now is said to be what was left
over from the primeval cosmological floor that broke up and
fell from the sky after the combat. That floor was also the
edge of the domain where all benign beings used to live. Out-
side that domain, there were only malicious beasts who con-
stantly fought, living a horrifying existence. With the shatter-
ing of the cosmos, the coexistence of all types of living beings
became a necessity. Consequently extraordinary and evil
creatures even now can appear on the terrestrial plane. To
distinguish what is ordinary and beneficial from what is ex-
traordinary and vicious, one must develop expertise through
shamanic experiences.
As an institution Arara shamanism is dispersed, dif-
fused, and generalized among the men. Acting as healers and
agents for mediating with powerful metaphysical beings, all
the men are initiated and practice at least some part of the
shamanic techniques and arts. They are also responsible for
ensuring, with metaphysical beings, the conditions for the
hunts and rites that in turn ensure the circulation of game
meat and beverages among the various subgroups. Game
meat and drink make up an integral part of a system whose
main axis is the native doctrine concerning the circulation
of a vital substance called ekuru. Passing from the blood of
killed animals to the earth and from there to the liquids that
nourish and stimulate the growth of plants, this vital sub-
stance is the main object of desire—not only of human be-
ings, but also of all beings who inhabit the world. Humans
seek to acquire ekuru through the deaths of animals during
the hunt and the transformation of plants into a fermented
drink called piktu—a primordial source for acquiring these
vital substances for humans.
The capacity of the earth to reprocess vital substances,
transforming them into plant nutrients with which humans
produce beverages, also shapes Arara funeral practices. In
general the Arara do not bury their dead but construct a plat-
form for them in the forest inside a small funeral house built
especially for the occasion. Raised above the earth, the de-
ceased gradually dries out, losing the body’s vital substances
that are absorbed by metaphysical beings that lurk around
corpses and feed on the elements that previously gave life to
the deceased. The Arara funeral is thus a kind of an eschato-
logical exchange or reciprocity with the world’s other beings.
On the other hand, the circulation of ekuru takes place
among the living through the exchange of meat for drink in
the rites that follow the return of the hunters. Consequently
rituals are the mode through which the circulation of vital
substance conjoins various subgroups through reciprocity
and mutual dependence. Through their overall symbolism,
the prominent rites associated with the collective hunting
trips are an efficient mechanism through which ethical and
moral values become manifest and serve to constitute a na-
tive idea of their own collectivity. An intricate network of
values and principles of interaction related to good conduct,
kindness, solidarity, and generosity finds its primary medium
of expression in the rituals.
CABOCLO RELIGION. The caboclo population lives in com-
munities from the mouth of the Amazon to its headwatersSOUTH AMERICAN INDIANS: INDIANS OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN AMAZON 8631