Maliris’ journey and cure in other world: phases
Soul flight (birdspirit worlds)
Downward journey: seeing one’s own death/transformation
to skeleton. Coming to mouth of river (the unconscious). Transformation
to canoe/log; blows tobacco over souls of deceased kin. Separation of
deceased from living. Resolution of separation crisis in separating from
living. Sadness / happiness;
Journey upward: to the before-world by stairs. Encounter
with ancient world spirit of shamanic power (from the primordium).
Tobacco. Shamans’ consciousness sees all the before world. Universal
consciousness;
Looking upward, sees sky of other world: beautiful, new,
shining, young, white. Light consciousness. Shamans “walk in the
knowledge of the creator” (creator consciousness); the creator’s
‘shadow is the sky; the creator is much beyond the sky. A place of no
sickness; healthy, whole, intact;
Shamanic purification: lake of burning resin. Throws off all
social identity, all temporal identity. Encounters with dark side of soul.
Owner of sickness. Encounters both sides of shamanic consciousness: dark
and light. Inherent ambivalence of shamanic soul;
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Cure is the exchange of sickness for remedy; payment for
soul part; both sides of shamanic consciousness come to bear, sicknessowner transforms into sick in order to be healed. Healing by three steps:
extraction, water, tobacco.
Cure is performed before an audience: all of jaguar-shaman
spirits witness cure; end of which authorization is given to transmit
cure to this world;
The return. The evaluation. The restrictions.