aradise.
That is the word I use to describe the reserve on the Río Gálvez where the
Matsés Indians live. The virgin rainforest, abundant wildlife, friendly
natives, and absence of mosquitoes make for a wonderful experience. After
traveling in the Amazon for years, I discovered a magical place that few
outsiders ever see.
The
Río Gálvez is much different than the Río Amazonas and its water is referred to
by the locals as agua negra (black water) because of its dark
appearance as viewed from the surface. The dark color comes from tannins leached
from tree bark; tannins tend to purify the water by killing bacteria and
mosquito larvae. Indeed, I never saw a single mosquito during my entire visit
and locals told me that malaria is not a problem there. Natives drink the water
from the Río Gálvez without purifying it with no apparent adverse health
effects. The mighty Río Amazonas in contrast contains a lot of sediment from the
Andes Mountains, giving it a
lighter color, and creates a much less healthy environment. Along the meandering Río Gálvez magnificent ceiba trees (Ceiba pentandra,
one of the largest trees in
the Amazon) provide shade and together with other tree species forms the
characteristic three-level canopy of virgin rainforest (see photo at left).
The
Matsés Indians (who are also commonly called
Mayorunas in Brazil) are often
affectionately referred to as the "cat people" due to the characteristic
"whiskers" that women place in their noses. Presently, there are
about 2200 Matsés living in the Yavarí Valley of Peru and Brazil, with the
majority residing in Peru. The Matsés speak a language of the Panoan
linguistic family that is closely aligned with the dialects that the
Matis and
Korubo Indians speak. Indeed, I discovered that the Matsés share many
aspects of their culture with the Matis Indians, including medicinal plant use.
To my surprise I met some Matsés who know how to prepare neste or
dauë (a medicinal bath for children) and bëcchëte (an eyewash for
improving visual acuity) similar to the Matis Indians of Brazil.
Matsés
Indian facial ornamentation is very different from the Matis in that their
facial tattoos consist of accentuated lines that surround the mouth and extend
along the cheeks to the base of the ears. Women wear ornaments made from
the ribs of palm leaves in their noses to represent the whiskers of cats. In
addition, sticks made from the shoot of caña brava are sometimes placed in a
perforation of the skin below the lower lip of women. Formerly, men had
perforations in their upper lips in which they placed spines from the
ungurahui palm (Oenocarpus bataua). Commonly, a bright red dye (achiote),
obtained from the seeds of the annatto tree (Bixa orellana) is applied
to the face and body.
The Matsés also use
achiote to decorate circular
headbands made from palm leaves. The geometric patterns painted on the
headbands represent the symbolic clans of Matsés society (e.g. the
jaguar, worm, or peccary). Normally, only men wear headbands. Formerly,
men used palm leaf belts. They used them across the hips and sometimes
across the chest or stomach. The hip belt was used to hold up the penis
which at one time was typical of all indigenous tribes in the Amazon.
Currently, very few Matsés men support themselves in this manner.
The
pelejo (two-toed sloth, Choloepus cf. hoffmann, illustrated below) is a common pet in Matsés homes. It is also frequently hunted and
eaten. The pelejo plays an important role in the ceremony of the
singers (comoc). Comoc is a ceremony in which singers are
covered from head to toe with capes. The caped singers are said to be
spirits and they provide game for the women, especially pelejo. A
variation of this ceremony involves punishing men who have abused their wives.
Interestingly, the ceremony of comoc shares many characteristics with
mariwin which is practiced by the
Matis
Indians of Brazil.
Another ritual practiced by the Matsés involves
the application of a frog emetic. To the Matsés, this frog emetic is not
poison, rather it is a medicine. Indigenous medicines often function by
cleansing the system
through
vomiting. The exudate ("sweat") is scraped off the skin of a poisonous
tree frog (Phyllomedusa
bicolor, illustrated below). The frog is not injured and is
released afterwards. Points are burned on the arms or chest and the frog
poison is applied, resulting in a rapid heartbeat, extreme lethargy, and
vomiting. After resting, the recipient of the frog poison is ready to go
hunting. Indeed, the Matsés often refer to this remedy as "hunting magic"
and believe it enhances the user's hunting ability.
While
many other Amazonian tribes use blowguns to hunt, the Matsés are specialists in the
use of bows and arrows. Formerly, they were used for war, but presently
are only used for hunting game. Arrows measure about two meters in length
and very complex workmanship is involved in their manufacture. The arrow
shaft is constructed from a cane that they cultivate in their gardens.
After drying, the cane shafts are decorated with cotton string and a special
golden
colored grass. The fletching commonly consists of paujil
(curassow, Mitu tuberosa) feathers, but eagle, condor, vulture, and macaw
feathers are also used. The feather is split in two, trimmed and attached
to the shaft with a resin and beeswax mixture. Then the feather is sewn to
the shaft with fine thread obtained from the trunk of plantain trees. In
order to insure that the trajectory of the arrow is straight, the
Matsés attach the feathers with a slight spiral, a feature that is lacking in
the arrow construction of most other Amazonian tribes. Arrow points are
made from a wild bamboo and attached to the main arrow shaft with another short
shaft of wood. Therefore, the arrow actually consists of three pieces:
the main cane shaft, the bamboo arrow point, and the connecting wooden shaft.
A mixture of resin and beeswax is used to attach the three pieces which are also
tied with cotton thread and decorated with red achiote dye. To keep
the arrows sharp, a paca (Agouti paca) tooth sharpener mounted on a peach
palm (Bactris gasipaes) shaft is always carried by the hunter while in
the rainforest. Matsés arrows are incredible works of art and
craftsmanship.
Currently, it is impossible to meet the
Matsés using commercial tourist guides who due to their past indiscretions are
prohibited from entering the reserve. Only the Matsés Indians may act as
guides, thus preventing the exploitation of the Matsés communities by outsiders.
If you would like to receive more information and materials (books, maps, and
articles) on the Matsés, please contact me at
djpantone@amazon-indians.org.
For more information and to see more photos of my journey to the Río Gálvez, please visit
http://www.amazon-indians.org/matses. An excellent reference is the book, Matsesën Nampid Chuibanaid, La Vida
Tradicional de los Matsés (The Traditional Life of the Matsés) in Matsés,
Spanish and English, published in July, 2004 by the CAAAP (Centro Amazónico de
Antropología y Aplicación Práctica,
www.caaap.org.pe).
For information on the ecology of the Yavarí Valley, please read Rapid
Biological Inventories: 11, Peru:Yavarí, published by the Field Museum (www.fieldmuseum.org)
in November, 2003.
Extraordinary
videos of the
Matis Indians (who are closely related to the Matsés) are available. If you would like to learn how you can meet the
Matis Indians and find out how you can help them
preserve their culture, please contact
djpantone@amazon-indians.org. Additionally, if you are interested in
authentic Matsés handicrafts, please contact
handicrafts@amazon-indians.org.
The author, Dr. Dan James Pantone, is the editor
of Amazon-Indians and
the founder of the Movement in the Amazon for Tribal
Subsistence and Economic Sustainability (MATSES),
a nonprofit association that is helping indigenous people
so that they themselves can preserve their culture
and lands in a sustainable and independent manner.
|