TBA-20131001-ESR-MO-histpaje

Marião explains the work of the shaman, haditae, curing rituals, the sniffing of rapé or parico, a snuff, called ayumenũ in Aikanã and the communication with spirits by travelling between different worlds. The ayumenũ, made from anjico seeds and the burned bark of a tree, dape:ru in Aikanã, mirindiba in Portuguese, is usually blown into the nose by another shaman via a fine bamboo/grass/bone pipe, made for this purpose (see also Becker-Donner 1955: 283). According to Becker-Donner (1955: 283), ayumenũ is also the name of the “malevolent spirit” of disease. Iwerüa, a non-human being usually referred to as the cause of death and evil was, according to myth, the one who initially showed the powder to the humans. During his/her journeys, the shaman has to travel to a distant place to find out about sickness and cure. All this Marião knows from observing and accompanying her late husband, Cap. Arui Uhune’i, who was the last acting Aikanã shaman who could cure people in the TI Tubarão-Latundê. Cap. Arui Uhune’i himself was initiated by the late shaman Mundé Txiridö “Kenepi”, stepfather of the late Cap. Pedro. While most of the Aikanã shamans are men, according to Marião, Cap. Bum-Bum’s wife, also women can become shamans. This can also be noted from the neighbouring Kanoê, where the strong female shaman, Tinamaty (“cobweb”), performs shamanic rituals. Here, her son Paulo is helping with the Portuguese translation