Trail of Feathers (39 page)

Once they were a distance from the village, the assassins would cut the skin away from the bone and throw the skull into a river, a gift
iorpani
, the anaconda. The skin was boiled in plain water. Within half an hour it was removed. Any more time than that and the hair began to fall out. The skin had already shrunk by about half. It was allowed to cool and dry. Then it was turned inside out, and any flesh on the inner edges was cut away. After this, the fold of skin was turned the right way again, and the slit in the back was sewn up with string made from vine. The lips were sealed with pins made from chonta palm, or vine.

Small stones (no more than about two inches wide) were heated in a fire and, one at a time, they were rolled around the sack-like envelope of the
tsantsa
. Gradually it would reduce in size. When too small for stones, sand was heated and put inside. The
tsantsa
may have been wrapped in a large leaf to insulate the heat, keeping it in.

The party of assassins would pack up the heads after about an hour of hot-sand treatment, and run off into the jungle towards their village. Each day they would stop for three or four hours to work on the
tsantsas
. It was in their interest to complete the first stages, because of fears that the
musiaks
would attack them.

A machete blade was heated and pressed against the lips to dry them. Then the facial skin was repeatedly rubbed with balsa-wood charcoal. Sometimes a large red seed was placed beneath the eyelids, filling the hole, preventing the
musiak
from seeing. Between four and six days of treatment were needed for the basic
tsantsa
to be completed, at which time it was about the size of a man’s fist. A hole was made at the top of the head, and a string was tied to it, so that the warrior could wear it around his neck at the tsantsa feast.

The feasts were huge occasions. To honour a
tsantsa
correctly, three separate feasts for the entire village would be held. In order that there would be sufficient food and drink for the celebration, crops of
yuka
were planted once the raiding party had returned. The first
tsantsa
feast may not have taken place until a year after the raid. Pigs would be raised, and the host may have even built a special new house for the occasion.

Several hunters would go out into the jungle to kill game. The Shuar would use unripe bananas to keep time. They and the guests would be given an unripe banana from the same stalk. Once it was ripe, they knew it was time to get to the feast. The celebrations would each last for as much as five days, the third feast being the longest. Up to about 150 guests would turn up. Only after the third banquet were the chonta palm pins removed from the
tsantsa
, and replaced with the long, intertwined cotton strings.

I felt fortunate to learn the ancient rituals first-hand from Enrique, the Shuar chief at San Jose village. He must be one of the last to remember the full spectrum of lore, ritual and hunting techniques.

Hadingham (1987) cites a report from 1527 by Miguel de Estete, who accompanied Pizarro on his third voyage. He described head shrinking on an island off the coast of Ecuador, and at first assumed that the heads were from a tribe of dwarfs on the island. This substantiates the probability that head shrinking was once practised throughout the Peruvian coastal area. Nazca pots and textiles are well known for their depictions of trophy heads. A
tsantsa
taken from a tomb at Pisco was supposedly presented to Queen Victoria’s consort Prince Albert in the 19th century.

Missionary activity may have brought rampant change, but one aspect of Shuar life which appears to have altered little is a belief in witchcraft. The belief strengthens the need for a shaman. The Shuar still apparently believe that witchcraft is the source of almost all misfortune, including illness and death. Their society appears to still possess two distinct types of shaman - those who bewitch and those who cure. All shamans are either one or the other.

All Shuar shamans have
tsentak
, spirit helpers, who abide by their instructions. Bewitching shamans can enlist the help of the
wakani
spirit bird, as we have seen. The shaman calls these birds and he blows on them. They fly to the victim’s house and circle, terrifying him. Death from madness can follow. Of course, if a member of society drops dead in accidental circumstances, it may be inferred that he died as a result of a shaman’s magic.

Just as there was an unwavering faith in the soul, the Shuar traditionally believed in jungle spirits. For example
Yacumama
, the mother spirit of the river, was thought to exact revenge on any woman in menstruation who paddled across her.
Yacumama
could send a dolphin to upturn her boat. The spirit was only warded away if the woman wore a clove of garlic around her neck or arm. The river spirit was omnipresent. She could take many forms, including that of a Christian European. Her victims were carried to the bottom of a river, unable to ever escape from this realm: an enormous land populated with strange creatures. A reverse image of our world, it was thought to be upside-down. All the inhabitants had their heads on backwards. The spirit of the river lived in a crystal palace with walls fashioned from mother of pearl. She sat on a turtle throne fashioned from feathers, with one eye closed and the other open, always watching for the crocodile. Beliefs in such spirits of nature appear to continue, even alongside the belief in Christianity.

One aspect of life that has not changed, is the Shuar love of hunting. No longer does a warrior embark on raids for enemies’ heads, but hunting for game is as popular now as ever. From the time that a male child can walk, he is encouraged to hunt. The boy would traditionally have been permitted to fire arrows or darts into the corpse of a slain victim, to give him practice.

Peccary and monkey are hunted, prized for their flesh and their skins. The armadillo and agouti are only valued for their meat. Most types of bird - with the exception of carrion-carriers - are hunted, especially parrots, toucans, doves and macaws. Harner (1972) asserts that rabbits and deer are never hunted for their meat. Rabbits are supposedly considered too much like rats,- and deer are not hunted for they are regarded as human demons with supernatural powers. The Shuar believed that by eating a deer they may be eating a dead man’s soul, which would then enter them. The Shuar hunters whom I met appeared to have no scruples about killing other rabbits or deer.

A 16-gauge shotgun is the ultimate status symbol for a Shuar man. However, the ubiquitous lack of ammunition ensures that blowpipes are still in constant use. Unfortunately, the younger generation are forgetting the skill of blowpipe use, considering the weapons to be old-fashioned.

These days the blowpipes are used mainly for tree-dwelling animals. The Shuar are regarded as great experts with blowpipes and poisoned darts. Most pipes are about seven feet long (those sold to tourists in Iquitos and elsewhere are shorter so they can fit in overhead lockers of jet aeroplanes). They are split down the middle, grooved and bound back together with fibre strips and a natural resinous glue, with a black beeswax coating.

When aged about four boys are given a hollow reed. They learn to blow small darts at insects, such as butterflies. A few years later they are given a miniature blowpipe. The child shoots hummingbirds, and progresses to larger birds. When he’s about sixteen he kills his first sloth and would traditionally make a
tsantsa
from its head.

Women had their own special way of killing. They would poison their victims with a natural toxin, such as
ampihuasca
, mixing it in the
masato
they served. In addition to the two poisons mentioned, Shuar hunters also use poisons derived from various species of poison arrow frogs, and are experts in blending toxins.
Mumatatchi
ants are sometimes cooked over a low heat until they produce a poisonous juice, which is added to
ampihuasca
.

Most poisonings were traditionally done at
tsantsa
feasts. The big problem was locating the person responsible for the poisoning. The list of suspects was never a short one: everyone had a secret enemy who, given the right moment, he or she might want to slay. The matter fast became complex, framed by a hierarchy of death. If for example one couldn’t kill an adulterer, because he had fled, one could kill his father, brother or cousin. If a relative had been killed by witchcraft, one would go after the perpetrator seen in an
ayahuasca
vision. This person, of course, was more than certainly innocent, as were the witches burned at the stake during the European witch trials. So, with a little time, it’s not hard to see how everyone in such a society would be trying to avenge the death of others!

Achiote: Plant whose oily red seeds are used as facial paints by Shuar and other Upper Amazonian peoples. Agouti: See
Mahasse
.

Agua de florida: Perfumed water, used in shamanic ceremonies and for ritual purification.

Aguardiente: Potent jungle alcohol derived from the sap of the
aguardiente
palm.

Ajinomoto: Brand name of monosodium glutimate powder, popular in Peru.

AK-47: Russian-made Kalashnikov assault rifle.

Algonquin: Native American people of the Ottawa river valley.

Alpaca: Domesticated llama, prized for its wool.

Altiplano: High plateau of southern Peru and northern Boliva.

Amazons: Legendary tribe of warrior women, once thought to reside in the South American jungle. Amigo: Spanish for ‘friend’.

Ampihuasca: Jungle vine used as a poison, for hunting fish etc. Anaconda: Large semi-aquatic species of boa constrictor. Anamuk: Magical bewitching dart sent to destroy by a bewitching shaman.

Anopheles: Species of malarial mosquito.

Arutam soul: Most important of the three Shuar souls, it is acquired in childhood and protects a warrior from death. Assagai: Short spear favoured by the Zulu tribe. Assassin cult: Secret order of murderers once operating in the Middle

East, under the effect of hashish.

Atacama Desert: South American desert, ranging from Peru to Chile on the Pacific seaboard. Atropine: Powerful hallucinogenic alkaloid present in
datura
and other Solanaceous species. Avatar: Incarnation of a Hindu deity; a holy man. Ayahuasquero: A shaman skilled in the use of
ayahuasca
. Ayamara: Native American people of the Peruvian Andes, and their language.

Aztec: Nahuatl-speaking people of Mexico, and their empire. Azulejos: Blue glazed tiles introduced to Peru by the Portuguese.

Banda: Round hut, common in East Africa.

Banisteriopsis caapi:
Vine containing harmaline used in preparing
ayahuasca
.

Banisteriopsis inebrians:
Species of liana used for making
ayahuasca-
, similar to
Banisteriopsis caapi
. Barriada: Shanty-town,- as found on the outskirts of Lima and other large cities.

Besom: Broom made of twigs, supposedly ridden by witches.

Bobinsana: Admixture sometimes added to
ayahuasca
.

Bora: Native Indian tribe residing close to Iquitos.

Boutu: Local name for the pink Amazonian river dolphin.

Brugmansia: Latin name for
datura
.

Brujo: Spanish for ‘witch’.

Caapi: Alternative name for
ayahuasca
.

Caiman: Amazonian species of alligator.

Campesino: Spanish for ‘country person’.

Capybara: Largest known rodent, it measures up to four feet and lives in the Amazon region. Cassava: Edible starchy tuber native to the Americas,- used to make flour, porridge, alcohol etc. Also called
yuka
and
manioc
. Cecropia: Leafy jungle plant which induces drowsiness when eaten by sloths.

Céntimo: One hundredth of a Peruvian
Sol
.

Ceviche: Dish of raw fish marinated in lemon juice; popular on the Peruvian coast.

Chacapa: Ritualistic rattle used by Amazonian shamans.

Chacruna: Admixture often added to
ayahuasca
, regarded as important in providing colourful visions
[Psychotria viridis)
.

Chagas’ disease: Infection carried by the Assassin beetle, causing heart palpitations and death. Chancay: Pre-Incan civilisation of coastal Peru, famed for its pottery. Charqui: Beef stew, popular in the Peruvian Andes. Chicha: Maize-based liquor, popular in Andean communities. Chigger mite: Six-legged fly which burrows beneath the skin to lay its eggs.

Chonta: Jungle palm, the heart of whose inner stem is regarded as a delicacy.

Chuchuhuasi: Intoxicating jungle liquor made from the
chuchuhuasi
tree.

Chullpa: Ancient funeral tower.

Chumpi: Ornamental woven wool belt, worn by people on Taquile Island, Lake Titicaca. Cipó d’âgua: Vine containing fresh water. Coca de maté: Tea made with coca leaves. Cochineal: Red dye made from dried cochineal beetles. Colibri: Spanish for ‘hummingbird’; one of the major images at Nazca.

Colectivo: Shared Peruvian taxi.

Corona: Spanish for ‘crown’; sometimes referring to Native Indian feathered crowns. Crir: Ancient Aztec glider.

Curandero: Healer,- one who practises
ayahuasca
.

Curare: Resinous extract of the
Strychnos toxifera
vine, used by Amazonian tribes as a tranquilliser for hunting.
Cuscomys ashaninka:
Recently-discovered Andean mammal the size of a domestic cat. Cuy: Spanish for ‘guinea pig’; a popular dish in Andean communities.
Datura: Brugmansia arborea
, member of the potato family, whose leaves are a powerful hallucinogenic, used in the Amazon and by European medieval witches. Deet: Synthetic insect repellent.

Dendrobates azur eus:
Indigo-coloured species of poisonous frog, used by native peoples for hunting. Ekeko: Ancient Ayamara deity whose image is considered to bring good luck.

El Dorado: Mythical land thought to be made of gold.