Wright, Robin Michel

English

Cadernos Espinosanos (E-Journal)

... COMUNICAÇOES THE HISTORY AND RELIGION OF THE B~~NI\VA PEOPLES OF THE UPPER RIO NE(~RO \ 1ALLEY t * ) S [) J\ f l\ 1 AR }T The subject of this thc . is is the n1illenarian n1oven1cnts and rebelliuns an1on~ a Na tive .r\n1erican tribe of thc N orth,vest .. -\n1~lZL)n rcgion in Brazil and \ · enczuc la. ' l'h~ principal S()llrcc~ Íúr the Jcscription and interprctatiún of thc n10\Cfl1t~nts ar e a long-range historíLal narrative and a ~on1prchcnsive anal~·sis \)f ;1 central rnyth. 1'he thcsis is JcvelopcJ in fivc parts of ,, ·hich th~ sc~ond and third cüntain th~ prinl"'ipal argun1ents . .... Part ·1 \, ·o is a lon,g-r:1ngc history t. f thc Bani,, ·a pct.,plc beninning in thc l~ltc 17th a tributary in thc Upper Ril, Nc>.!ro \ rallcy. ,,~hcre the author (üJ1du~ted ficlJ\, .'-,1 ~ in 1976-7. l'his ~thnography proYidcs an int ruduct iun t\) su(ial. l'~l)t1ún1ic and r ( )\it i\.'..d orgJnization. but n1ajor attt .'ntion is dcvot..:d t(, rcligiou , t,rga1li LatiL)lls and idcl lc,~i"~~ an'ong traditional. catholic ~,nd protcst~1nt l'vane...:lic.ll con1n111nitic~. Par '"f,vo i~ a long-rangc histnry nf thc Bani\v~, pL'l1plt' b(·~inning 111 thc l:11c l -t h tcntury anJ cnJing in thc ~arl"y 20th century. l~hc hi~tt,ry is b;1scd l)n ,1r,'hiY.1l rc-scarch. or~l hi"torics. cthnogclphic and língui~ti"'~ L'\·idçn~e. l)nc c,f it~ pr i1h.~ip.d t.t~ks ( ·· ) - Surnúriü d;1 tcs~ d~ dú\lt(,ratncntl). defendida pclt) ;tut )r na l 1t1 i \ l'1 ~ i i.1d~ de Stanford. is t() co rrcla te an or ~d h istnry ,vi th evc n t~ 1 e port~d in lhe \\ ri tt l"l1 doeu n1cnt s f rotn th c L1lc l Sth 1111 o ush the nlid - 1 l)th ce nlur y . f n t h e l ~ l h e e n t n r y, !) o r l U g u e"> e a n d S p a n i ~ h e o 1 o n i. t s i n t r o d u e e d ~lave ry, r e 1 o e a .. tion pr t )gr~1111\, :1nd L·p1de1n ic di sca~es lo lh e JH:opl L'" of the l{io C1-!f(.1 \ ' a llt:1 . l ·c\ V 13:lnÍ\\'a survivcd thi s pcriod but, a s thcir oral hislory slalcs. lhe sur\i vo rs rcc rcateu th c h~isis nr thl ·ir ~l)CÍêt~ . ln the rnid - l 9th centu, y, govcrnn1cnt cúlon i1tt t1on pro -gran1s a gain irnpo scd oprrc~sivc conditions on the lnd ian pcoples. Ivlilit~u-y offirinls irn p 1 cn1c n t cd prn g ril n1s <>f for 'Cd I abnr, a n<l n1ercha n t s ex p loi l ··d [ nd ia n "> i n rcsourcc cxtraction . As lhe situation dctcrioralcd, indigcnou · n1cssiahs en1ergl:d and organiz~d ritual rcuniuns in \vhich lhcy prcacheu thc ovcrturning of thc soci a l, econo1nic anc.1 p ú li l i e a 1 o r d e r · . Ora 1 h isto ri e: d e ser i b e h o\ v t h e 11 a n i , v a t h n e n g age d i n r e b e 11 i o n ; rathêr than bcing forccd to serve the n1ilitary, l~ani,va chosc indcpcndcntl y to dct~r-n1ine thcir po1iticaL cconon1ic anel rcligious organization. ln th~ lalc l lJth cenlury, lhe rubhcr hoon1 rcachcd thc uppcr lli o 1 cgro and lhe B·1ni,Ya ,verc oncu n1orc forcctl into extractivc labor. Dcbt-bondagc, cxp loit :ttion, :tnd discascs thre atcned 1hcir physic~d and cultura l survi\' :d. Prcdictably. n1c~siahs and n1i1Jcnari~1n n1t)Ycn1cnts cn1crgcd but \vere qui ckly supprc~scd hy n1crcha11ts. rni~sin -n:1.,ric~. and 111ilitary. T\Jis~ionarics added to thc disrupti()ll by can1p~1igninc against tr :1di-lional rclit!.iou " practiqncs :1nd sy111hnls. ·rhc n1essianic ideology in this tin1c unitcd thc bclicfs üf pca\ ant and lndian rcligions. l~oth pcasants and lndi ans, aflcr ali, \\'crc invol .. vct.l in a cnn1n,011 strugglc to sur vive lhe ruhb rr hoon1 and n1cr ·hant t::\ploitation . l)arts ' fhr ce and } -1'ivc are sys lcn 1atic clhnof!raphic presentalions and intcrpr~tations of Bnni\va n1ytholc. uy and co"n1o logy. Parl threc undertakes a con1prc hcnsi\'e intcrprcta -tion of thc centra l n1 ~1th of the cu llur e- her n Kuai . .. rh is n1yth cxp lain s lht: follo\ving: th-c creation and tran ~n1is~ion o[ socio-cu ltural tHJrn1s fro1n first nncL'stors to dc~Cl'ndants: the hcginning of sickn sscs and n1isforltJ11c, and cures by , han1ans: crea live processLs in lif -pa "'S~\g0, particltlarly initiations: and thc reative, gc ncrntive rclationship an1ong sp1rtt, nnin1al an d hun,~111 don1ains in Lhe cos n1os. rrhc interprctation t)f thc lll)·th focus ·es on 11sc , of rcligious lan gua gc tt} e nvcy n1caning. Thc n1yth intcrprct at ion is thcn rela tcd dircctly to t hc n1i1 len :1 rian n1ovc n1cnts; cspccially th~ ca tastrophi c i1nng cry founcl in both, sl1antan's pra c ti~cs and bcli('fs and initiation therne . ..-rhc 111ovcn1cnts are partly cxplainc<.l by l1istori ca l condition" of contact, socio -cconon1ic condit ions of opprcssion n nd cxploita tion, a nd ·u f frri ng fr ,)111 hungcr and cpiJctnic disca scs. ?vtillenarian belic..:fs are claboratcd on thc ba"is ()f pre -cx isting n1ytho]ogics, but nrc adapteJ to lhe t1L'C~ssities of nc,v 'OCial situation ' . Ne,v idcas, originating fron1 christianity, or elaborated by thc Indi~1ns thcn1sclvcs, bc-con1c attachcd to thL· n1ythi..,, cha ngi n~ thcn1 ,vhcn nercssa ry . R.()bin t\fichcl \\ l right tanford Univcrsity, U. S. 1\ . * 

The history and religion of the Baniwa peoples of the upper Rio Negro Valey

https://www.revistas.usp.br/ra/article/download/111050/109392

The history and religion of the Baniwa peoples of the upper Rio Negro Valey

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Cadernos Espinosanos (E-Journal)