IYARINA
Napo-Pastaza, Ecuador
CENTER FOR LEARNING ALLIANCE: Fundación Cotococha | Andes and Amazon Field School | Shayarina Amazonian Resilience
CHILDHOOD
INTRODUCTION
When a baby is born its personal qualities are still unformed. Gradually these will be given as "pajus" or gifts or skills acquired from the plants and animals to whom it becomes related. During the first months of life babies are highly open to being formed by almost any contact. Hence parents take great care to prevent undesirable animal qualities from being transferred accidentally.
Animal Qualities Acquired Through Nursing
Because the boundary of baby's body is not yet clearly formed the parents must carefully limit the actions related to the baby. These videos examine show how nursing women mothers avoid eating numerous species while nursing to avoid passing the behavior and physical qualities of these species to their vulnerable babies.
Eulodia Dagua, "Babies Cry Like the Animals We Eat"
When you have a new born baby what does the mother avoid eating?
When we have a baby, after giving birth we do not eat deer, collared peccary, or white lipped peccary, or pacas, agoutis, or guans. The only thing we eat is the little tinamou. The tinamou and what they call the dove? That is the only thing they give us to eat. We are also prohibited from eating river catfish because they say it will cause the baby's navel to rot. Why will it rot (if you eat that)? They say that if you eat catfish the baby's navel will rot.
Why? Umm hmm (Don't know). That is just what they say when they prohibit it.
That little dove I was talking about? We can only eat that roasted.
And why aren't you supposed to eat peccary?
Well the peccary, you know how it goes "Hmm, hmm, hmmm?" That is how they say that the baby will cry.
And the paca?
The paca doesn't sleep. It does not sleep at night.
And the agouti?
Well the agouti... They say that (the baby will (cry) like it does. You know how the agouti cries "hiaw hiaw"? They say the baby will cry like that.
And they say that if (the mother) eats a monkey the baby will cry like that.
I saw that happen with my brother's child. They ate it half way through (the prohibited time). They did not complete (the time of the fast).
While the baby was lying there the woman was given (monkey meat). “Aw! They just say that. ts just an old belief," they thought. And then it cried, "Churuú, churuú," it cried like that. It is true. Yes. It started crying like an animal.
What else can't you eat?
We are not supposed to eat those things, and besides that nothing like beef or pork.
We can eat chicken but only if someone else kills it. (We can eat) chicken that someone else has killed. They say that the husband cannot kill it or the baby will die.
And why are you not supposed to eat deer?
Well the deer. The baby will become like the deer and cry "mamaaa, mamaaa." The baby will become one who cries, "Yiaaa! Yiaaa!
And with (eating) guan the same thing, (the baby will cry), "wawaá, wawaá! A little voice like that "tsin, tsin."
Its little throat will completely dry up. That is the reason that we don't eat those things.
Mothers sweep children to remove unwanted influence of species
TOPICS
Giving plant or animal qualities to children
Memories of Childhood
Babies Die Like the Animals their Fathers Kill
A newborn baby's close relation to its father is still so undifferentiated from its father's relation to other species that if the father kills an animal the baby will die in the same way.
Thus, in the beginning weeks of the baby's father should abstain from any form of violence such as going to battle or killing an animal. Because the baby is as yet undifferentiated from its father violence done by the father toward the life an animal or enemy could be transferred to the child causing it to die in the same manner as the victim of the father's violence.
Eulodia Dagua tells how her newborn son died with the same bodily movements as those of a dying snake killed by the child's father six days after the birth.
