DICEMBRE 2012: Quando gli uomini predissero la fine del mondo.

E’ possibile che il pianeta in cui viviamo possa essere veramente esposto ad eventi  catastrofici?  Se ne era parlato gia’ in altre occasioni, alcuni anni fa, quando il 2000 doveva coincidere con la distruzione automática di computers, telefoni, ed apparecchi elettronici di ogni genere. Altra gente asseriva che un imminente impatto di un asteroide sul nostro pianeta avrebbe fatto estinguere ogni forma di vita. Tra le svariate profezie che ci sono state presentate, quella (secondo il mio parere) scientificamente piu’ credibile annuncia una futura tempesta solare. Sarebbe il caso di mettersi in allarme, se non fosse per il fatto che onde di elettroni investono la Terra quotidianamente, ed i cicli di tempeste solari si ripetono ciclicamente piu’ o meno ogni decade. Ma la profezia che oggi richiama di piu’ l’attenzione della gente e’ senz’altro la ormai famosissima previsione Maya della fine del mondo, in data 21 Dicembre 2012. Del giorno fatidico ne parlano tutti, ma di come questa fine arrivera’ non sta scritto in nessun libro, tantomeno nelle stele Maya, di cui oggi ne sono rimasti solo pochi frammenti. 

Con questo articolo voglio solo illustrare le caratteristiche del calendario Maya, e di come si e’ arrivati ad annunciare categoricamente la data “21 -12- 2012” come possibile fine della nostra era. L’idea della creazione e distruzione ciclica e’ caratteristica delle religioni tribali nel mondo sia occidentale che orientale. Cosi’ come i Maya e gli Aztechi, altri popoli Mesoamericani meno conosciuti, come i Toltecas, Olmecas, Quiche’, Itza’, Zapotecas ed altri, credevano che l’universo era passato attraverso diverse “Ere” o “tappe”, che che il ciclo che sta per concludersi segnerebbe la fine della “quinta Era”. Quello che perviene alle nostre menti come un processo cosi complesso e soprannaturale, non era altro (per i Maya) che un semplice modo per accedere alla vita di ogni giorno attraverso il passaggio del tempo, nel quale questi cercavano di dare una spiegazione all’ordine del loro cosmo vivente (Esatto, proprio come in occidente e’ nato il calendario gregoriano).

La conoscenza del calendario Maya era riservata solamente all’elite del popolo ed ai sacerdoti. Essi crearono anche cicli di tempo basati sui movimenti dei pianeti ed altri corpi celesti. Il primo di questi cicli era chiamato “T’zolk’in” o calendario sacro. Questo calendario, comprende 260 giorni, ed e’ composto da 13 numeri che si combinano ai 20 giorni. 

Il calendario sacro puo’ essere utilizzato solo simultaneamente al calendario solare, chiamato “Haab’”, composto da 360 giorni divisi in 18 mesi di 20 giorni, piu’ 5 giorni ( vaghi) chiamati “nefasti” (Uayeb), venendo a formare cosi un calendario di 365 giorni, proprio come quello gregoriano. 

I due calendari formano un ciclo, le cui date impegano 52 anni prima di ripetersi di nuovo. Arrivati a questo punto, spiegare i diversi cicli calendrici in un semplice articolo sarebbe davvero una follia, visto che ho speso ben 3 mesi sui libri prima di capire la differenza tra il calendario sacro e quello solare. Sarebbe molto piu’ semplice invece spiagare la suddivisione dei giorni del calendario del “lungo conto”, e definirne gli elementi.  Nella numerologia Maya esistono solamente tre simboli : il punto che corrisponde ad uno, la linea orizzontale che corrisponde al cinque, e la conchiglia che corrisponde allo zero.  I Maya utilizzano la parola “k’in” per indicare il giorno, “winal” per indicare il mese, e “tun” per l’anno. Inoltre utilizzano il “k’atun” ( che sarebbero 20 tun), e il “b’ak’tun” (20 k’atun).  Detto questo, uno dei cicli piu’ importanti del calendario Maya e’ quello dei 13 b’ak’tun, che corrisponde ad un ciclo di 5.125 anni iniziato l’11 Agosto, 3114 AC (secondo il calendario Gregoriano), e che terminera’ il 23 Dicembre 2012, dove il ciclo tornera’ al suo punto d’origine, ed il lungo conto tornera’ ad azzerarsi. 

(Immagini prese dai miei appunti) 

( Come funziona il calendario: le due ruote (giorni e mesi) girano nello stesso senso)

Per i Maya questa data (23 Dicembre 2012) indica l’inizio di una nuova era, visto che il ciclo calendrico tornera’ ad azzerarsi, ma cio’ non vuol certo dire che il nostro pianeta possa risentirne “fisicamente”. Cio’ che invece mi ha sorpreso di questa storia, sta alle origini di questo ciclo, in quanto i Maya sostengono che il ciclo dei “13 B’ak’tun” e’ iniziato subito dopo  una catastrofe naturale provocata da una collisione di un meteorite col nostro pianeta, il quale provoco’ uno tzunami che causo’ l’inondazione della Terra. Una storia gia’ conosciuta, se consideriamo che proprio nelle culture occidentali ed asiatiche, nello stesso periodo, testi come la Bibbia, la Puranic, l’Epica di Gilgamesh descrivevano lo stesso evento. Secondo il Popol Vuh, il sacro testo dei Maya Quiche’, il 23 Dicembre 2012 (e non 21), segnera’ l’inizio di una nuova era, che non prevede certo la fine del del genere umano. 

Chi annuncia la fine del mondo non e’ il popolo Maya, ma la gente che crede di ricavarci economicamente qualcosa. Ma questa e’ solo la mia opinione, alla quale voglio aggiungere che il termine “Fine del Mondo” e’ stato confuso con il termine “Fine del Tempo”, ossia la fine del ciclo calendrico. Ora voi, potete anche continuare a preoccuparvi , e temere uno scenario apocalittico, magari con uno scontro della nostra galassia con quella di Andromeda, o magari solo uno sbarco di alieni spietati provenienti da pianeti lontani e sconosciuti. Io (ispirato da un celebre film di Paolo Villaggio) speriamo che me la cavo!

THE DUKE'S CASTLE, CASTELDACCIA

“The fortress of the Duke”. That is what I used to say every time I was walking under the walls of the Castle of the Duke, in Casteldaccia, a little village located near Palermo, in Sicily. Unfortunately the building today is closed to the visitors, but centuries ago the Castle was the proof of the true life of the Court. My eyes reflect always the view of that wonderful garden where the Duke used to relax and forget the problems of everyday’s life.

Once inside the arch, also the main entrance, I leave behind my body, and my emotions seem to hide my rancor to the events that characterized my life. The garden is not too far away from me, and during those few steps everything has a peaceful sensation. I can see the Court life and watching the garden the time seems to stop. A big Avocado tree shows the sensational beauty of the garden, and its imposing mass tells me that the ‘Big Hermit Tree” feels its old age. Balconies are hidden from the growth of the ivy and leaves that cover the paths.

From the broken windows that get inside the Castle I can see the magnificence of the fresco walls (affreschi) that go back to the seventeenth century. The Duke’s garden is surrounded by the three centuries old building, and its architectonic beauty. It is a mystic and quiet place, green and silent.

IL SACRIFICIO DELLA DONNA TZOTZIL

Il custode della chiesa mi sta aspettando sull'uscio della porta centrale della chiesa. I suoi occhi sembrano arrossati, forse per i tanti bicchieri di "pox" (una bevanda alcolica che si ricava dalla canna da zucchero) che ha bevuto mentre mi aspettava, ma mi sorride, e cortesemente, dopo aver pagato il biglietto d'ingresso mi invita a varcare la soglia. E' la prima volta che sto pagando per entrare in un edificio religioso, ma Miguel, il custode, insiste sul fatto che sara' per me un' esperienza unica.

Lascio alle spalle il piccolo villaggio di San Juan Chamula, e rivolgo il mio sguardo a quel luogo macabro, che si tiene in luce per via delle mille candele accese fissate sul pavimento. C'e' caldo li dentro. un calore insopportabile. Cerco di fare i primi passi evitando le candele poggiate a terra, tra il fumo d' incenso e il mormorio di alcune voci che fanno eco dentro la piccola chiesa! Alzo lo sguardo verso l'alto, e solo in questo momento mi accorgo che le statue situate nelle cappelle ai lati della chiesa indossano vestiti reali, con varie stoffe, ornamenti, e capelli veri, mentre ai loro piedi alcune donne maya, in trance, bruciano incenso e recitano litanie incomprensibili.

Alcuni santi sembrano mutilati. A qualcuno di loro manca qualche braccio, mentre altri hanno il viso scheggiato. Miguel, il custode, mi spiega che si tratta di una punizione inflitta dalle donne maya ai santi, per non aver dato ascolto alle loro preghiere. Il pavimento e' ricoperto di aghi di pino, e la croce sopra l'altare non mostra un Cristo crocifisso, ma una corona di mais. Una donna Tzotzil (gruppo etnico del Chiapas) richiama la mia attenzione. L'atmosfera e' serena, nonstante sia scosso dall'agitazione. Non c'e' altra gente dentro la chiesa, solo me ed alcune donne Tzotzil. La donna che sto osservando sta riportando alla luce una pratica vecchia da secoli. Mi chiedo dove siano tutti gli uomini, ma mentre la mia mente spazia tra ipotesi remote, la donna inizia il suo rito religioso.

Sistema diverse candele attorno al luogo dove sta seduta, candele di diversi colori. Dopo aver acceso l'incenso la donna inizia a recitare alcuni salmi in lingua Tzotzil. Rimango incredulo al pensare come le credenze maya abbiano resistito, nonostante i conquistatori europei abbiano fatto del loro meglio per eliminarne ogni traccia delle civilta' mesoamericane. Stavo osservando un nuovo culto, dove ideologia maya e cristiana si intrecciavano in un meraviglioso sincretismo. il mio sguardo torna un'altra volta sulla donna, che intanto aveva gia' deposto le sue candele a terra, e si preparava a tirare fuori dalla borsa alcune uova e una gallina. Con la sua mano destra avvicino' verso se stessa una giovane donna Tzotzil, e passando l'uovo attorno alla giovane, secondo alcuni movimenti spontanei, continuava a recitare le sue preghiere. Gli spiriti maligni avrebbero abbandonato il corpo della giovane donna attraverso l'uovo, che poi sarebbe stato schiacciato al suolo per evitarne agli spiriti il loro il ritorno. Stavo assistendo ad un rito maya, e solo adesso cominciavo a capire perche' sulla croce non c'era un Cristo, ma una coronoa di mais. Il mais e' una pianta molto importante per i Maya.

Il Popol Vuh, la "Bibbia Maya", racconta infatti di come i primi uomini fossero stati creati appunto dal mais. Che spettacolo suggestivo. La gente Tzotzil e' riuscita a mantenere finora la proprie credenze, nonostante per diversi secoli le loro terre sono state confiscate, la loro religione derisa, i testi sacri e scritture di ogni genere messi al rogo per opera di qualche vescovo o cardinale scalmanato dell' Occidente che in nome di Dio massacrava povera gente considerata selvaggia (vedi Vescovo Diego De Landa), i loro uomini costretti a lavorare come schiavi nelle fabbriche di henequen dello Yucatan, e chissa' quante altre sofferenze hanno subito negli anni, considerando che la rivolta degli Zapatisti nel Chiapas non ha avuto il fine che i Maya ben speravano. La donna intanto continua il suo rito di purificazione sacrificando la gallina innanzi al santo in segno di gratitudine. Il sacrificio per i Maya e' rimasto un punto fondamentale delle loro pratiche religiose. Miguel continua a spiegarmi che ancora oggi i Maya osservano pratiche religiose abbastanza antiche, come per esempio quella di infliggersi alcuni tagli alle braccia e bruciare il sangue che ne fuoriesce. Riesco a dare ancora qualche sguardo in giro, prima di tornare fuori dalla chiesa, cerco di fissare negli occhi quel ricordo di un mondo sconosciuto, quell'atmosfera magnifica di un' incontro irreale, quegli odori unici. Esco dalla chiesa e vengo abbagliato dalla luce del sole, in questa caldissima gionata messicana, e prima ancora di riacquistare una perfetta visibilita', vengo assalito da una decina di bambini che cercano di vendermi qualcosa, o chiedono soltanto qualche soldo.

 I miei pensieri rimangono fissi a quelle donne Tzotzil, che con le loro pratiche religiose mi avevano trasportato lontano nel tempo, quando la liberta' del rispetto per i loro dei, indulgendo ai desideri delle loro anime, regnava spensierata in questa parte del mondo!

The Mayan glory and ruin

The rise and consequential fall of the Mayan empire is one of the biggest obscure mysteries of the ancient world. Was it a natural catastrophe or just malfunctioning of the reign?  The people of Mayan’s society during the Preclassic, Classic, and Post classic period, built several cities, temples, and pyramids, and those today are the testimony of their magnificence.

However, even if the stone monuments today are the only possible way to reconstruct the Mayan history, most of them seem to recall unique subjects such as: celebration of battle victories, human sacrifices, commemorations of important events. The arriving of a Western warlord to the southern cities of Waka symbolizes the beginning of a new Era for the Mayans, an age of absolute splendor, founding new rulers that lasted for several centuries. I am afraid to be wrong, but I believe that one of the primary factors of the Mayan fall is the instability of its society, the internal conflicts, where cities were acting as independent micro-states, fighting each other, and eliminating their own people, just because considered “rivals”.

It is not a unique case in world’s history, if we recall the example of Sparta and Athens, as being rivals in the Ancient Greece, and the consequences could be drastic for the entire civilization.  The arrive of the Spanish conquistadores in the Post Classic period, in fact, sets the end of the Mayan hegemony  in Yucatan,  but what happened in the southern regions of Mexico? The interstate conflict increased so much to lead the civilization to the collapse. People had abandoned the major places, and the splendor of Palenque, Tikal, Yaxchilan, and more other cities remained hidden in their mysteries.  

Each image, each symbol of the sites is a representation of an impressing culture that had its period of glory. However, the unstable situation, caused first and foremost for competition, made the population loosing the control of their empire, and come to a close failure. 

Al Andalus (Andalusia) bajo el dominio Arabe

Cuando se habla de cultura de España es imposible no mencionar lo que el populo árabe nos dejo a través de los varios siglos de la conquista. La percepción de la cultura árabe, su peculiaridades, y su lujosa lengua, son solamente unos particulares de lo que constituye el “harem” socio-cultural de la España de hoy.   Siendo yo antropólogo, siento la necesidad de clarificar mas este tema, bajo un estudio profundo de las culturas y eventos históricos que van a interesar la Península Ibérica en estos años (desde el 711, al 1492), y de los elementos que van a caracterizar la formación de una nueva y compleja sociedad.

Vamos a examinar como los cristianos y musulmanes aprenderán a vivir bajo ciertas condiciones de tolerancia y respecto de las ideas religiosas y el uso de las instituciones públicas, seguido por la venida de una floritura de las escuelas filosóficas, científicas, de arte, etc. Un esplendor que va a desaparecer con el tiempo, en seguida a interminables conflictos, persecuciones, y aboliciones culturales y religiosas, que serán la primera explicación de martirios, torturas, y años de desperdicio de sangre inocente: un caso equitativo será la historia de San Pelagio y Abderramán. Aun que todas estas situaciones van a dar una mala impresión de lo que es la cultura que se afirmo en la Península Ibérica, Al Ándalus llegara a su máximo esplendor, bajo el reino de los califas, comprendiendo un ejemplar sistema de administración, y mejoramientos en el campo económico y social, que van a ofrecer a la vieja región de Hispania la admiración del mundo (antiguo) entero. 

No es un caso que hoy en día, en todos los países del Mediterráneo (Norte de África y Europa del Sur en general) la gente tiene características similares, fruto de un intercambio biológico y cultural. Muchos libros nos hablan de los invasores Moros como gente intolerante, repulsiva, enemigos de los cristianos que imponían sus querer sin piedad para el populo dominado. Estas afirmaciones pueden ser ciertas, si no consideramos que atrás de la religión (que es la razón más grande porque los críticos están en desacuerdo) haya otras explicaciones que nos hacen entender el porqué de ciertos actos. El problemas de los críticos es que sufren mucho en aceptar  la importancia de Al Ándalus como parte de la historia de España. El símbolo de la tolerancia entre las varias religiones (musulmana, cristiana y judía), que a lo mejor en estos tiempos no podría ser aceptada tan fácil por diversas razones, permitió a los varios grupos que convivieron en Al Ándalus la posibilidad de conservar sus culto, hábitos, y leyes. La paciencia del populo conquistado permitió también de vivir años de tranquilidad, y en los años a seguir muchos árabes nacidos en la Península Ibérica pudieron adoptar sin ningún problema maneras y costumbres típicas de los “blancos”.

El desarrollo cultural de España llega a altos niveles gracias a la presentía de estos califas, que introducen una nueva lengua, la numerología, un nuevo estilo arquitectónico y sobre todo un nuevo estilo de vida.  Empiezan a aparecer nuevas escuelas, y sobretodo nace el entusiasmo de aprender de parte de los cristianos. La comunidades judías y cristianas entonces, no estaban tan en desacuerdo con los musulmanes, de hecho, están interesados en adoptar muchas practicas y normas de la sociedad en que se encontraban a vivir (Menocal). Árabes y Bereberes participarán con los cristianos de España a nuevas actividades culturales, que serán fundamentales en el progreso de la civilización Arabo-Hispánica. Los campesinos de esta regiones Ibéricas, en el tiempo de los Romanos Y Visigodos no tenían ningún derecho sobre sus tierras, pero con la venida de los Árabes, la política toma una desvuelta decisiva, y la gente común puede beneficiar de estos cambiamientos, así que esclavos venían tratados como miembros de la familia, y tal vez podían también casarse con las hijas de sus maestros. Los árabes entonces crearon un  reino capaz de poder administrarse sin distinciones sociales entre ellos y los conquistados, y gracias a esta capacidad funcionaria todos los ciudadanos conseguían beneficiar libremente de los privilegios que los árabes se prestaban a  ofrecer.

 En tema de religión, mucha gente no toleraba las maneras de los Visigodos, que muchas veces recorrían también a martirios y maltratamientos, y no titubearon cuando les se propuso de convertirse a la nueva religión Islámica, también porque los que eran musulmanes o se convertían, podían beneficiar de ulteriores favores. El número de los Hispánicos que se convierten es extraordinario, y llega tan rápida como la conquista de la península Ibérica desde los árabes. Los cristianos que in vez no adoptaron esta nueva religión, se enamoraron sin dudas, de la nueva cultura: muchos de ellos empiezan a aprender el árabe, las tradiciones, la cocina, las técnicas utilizadas para trabajar la tierra, y plantar árboles, y nuevas técnicas de irrigación que son aplicadas hasta hoy en día. Estos cristianos que abrazaron esta nueva tendencia cultural, cambiaron sus maneras de vivir, muy distinta de la precedente, y fueron llamados “mozárabes”. 

 Los reyes árabes tenían sus harems, y se saboreaban la vida.  En el castillo de Córdoba, Abderramán III se ocupaba de la vida política, de su gente, y también de su vida personal. Como nos cuenta Mark Jordan en su libro “Queen Iberia”,  Abderramán tenía dos harems: uno de mujeres y uno de hombres muy jóvenes. Básicamente el rey participó también  en prácticas sexuales con gente de su mismo sexo, y terminó con enamorarse de un niño de 13 años, llamado Pelagio. Para los cristianos era algo definitivamente escandaloso, mientras en la antología árabe, esto podría ser tranquilamente una historia de amor. Unos mozárabes, van a ser testigos de su martirio y muerte, y van a establecer la causa de la muerte del niño como causa religiosa. En verdad, la razón principal es de natura sexual. Abderramán esta tan enamorado del niño Pelagio, que quería su cuerpo, e intentó unos avances, pero viendo que Pelagio no entendía ceder, ofendido y enfuriado, el califa ordenó su muerte. El niño fue torturado, martiriado y en fin matado.

 Los cristianos afirmaron que atrás de todo esto estaba la voluntad de Abderramán en convertir el niño al Islam. Según mis interpretaciones se trata más de una situación personal entre el rey y el niño, y no tiene mucho a que ver la religión en este caso. Si se quiere examinar este problema de otro punto de vista, ósea religioso, creo que es increíble que tenemos solamente un caso símil, y que el evento no se repita otras veces contra de otros niños cristianos, y además Abderramán según los estudios profundos de algunos históricos, no parece llevar un odio particular contra los cristianos.  Algo que iba creciendo siempre más en este tiempo, in vez, eran los matrimonios entre convertidos al islam y musulmanes. Mucha gente en esta manera se olvido de sus verdaderas origines (cristianas para los religiosos, o árabe), y las razas se juntaron tan profundamente que era casi imposible identificar o reconocer elementos de caracterización étnica entre la gente que andaba creciendo y viviendo en el reino de  Al Ándalus.

Para lo que reguarda el aspecto global de lo que estaba sucediendo en Al Ándalus, los cristianos que vivieron bajo el domino árabe nunca renunciaron a tener contactos con el resto de los cristianos en el mundo (de hecho los árabes nunca les impidieron que lo hicieran). Además, tomaron una participación activa en la vida económica del país, mejorando los intercambios de productos entre los árabes, y los cristianos de otras partes de Europa, y otros estaban empleados en otros oficios, y eran considerados un núcleo importante en la estructura civil de las ciudades de Al Ándalus. Del otro lado, los árabes se tomaron el territorio que habían conquistado, transformándolo en un lugar vivible, gracias a la capacidad de saber adaptarse a cualquier lugar adonde ellos se encontraban, utilizando con grandes técnicas las potencialidades agrícolas y culturales que conocían.  La influencia de la España musulmana era muy sentida entre la gente de las fronteras de Norte (Cristianos) y Sur (Bereberes). La cultura Arabo-Hispánica se va a afirmar y continuara a sobrevivir en Europa también muchos años después de la expulsión de los musulmanes en la última ciudad de España, Granada, y en muchas condiciones  contribuyo al desarrollo de la civilización moderna de Europa.

An Unexpected Surprise (Sept 21 2006)

 

            Sicily is a fantastic land, rich with art and archeology. Many people colonized the island during the years, from Greeks to Romans, from Arabs to Normans. Today the island is one of the biggest archeological sites of Europe and discoveries are frequent in each corner of the island. During the 90s, working on my family lands, I found a strange piece of rock. A discovery of a fossil was something unexpected. I never thought that a simple day of work could be so exiting. This experience gave me a very important significance. The fossil’s discovery gave me the devotion to archeology.

            It was a simple Sunday of August, very hot even in the night, so that people were sleeping in the balconies of their houses. The sonorous callback of the birds was announcing that the night was ready to give space to a new day. Looking at the dark street, I was reflecting how beautiful life is in a quiet place like Casteldaccia. 

 Only a few thousand people live in the town and most of them spend their life in the camps, working on the agriculture. Production of oil and lemons are the most famous in the town. I had heard of some peasant who preferred going to the lands than staying home with their wives. How wretched are the people of my town! Like a lot of them, I was ready to spend my Sunday in one of my favorite places. The lands are quiet, and out of the city I can breath fresh air, write and be far away from the noise of the city. I was very excited to go to the lands, so I was the first to be awake that night. My grandfather came with his van, and he didn’t ring the bell of my house as usual, but he stopped to the corner of the street trying to fix something on the van. Hearing the noise of the vehicle, I ran outside. The last stars were about to leave the sky and the light of the sun was coming up with magnificence. My grandpa didn’t move from the van, but I noticed his surprised face when he saw me awake so early. Poor Grandpa! His white hair could approximately describe his seventy years and his adventures, and his blue eyes were giving me a sensation of beauty. He was leaning on a walking stick, and every time he was feeling a pain in his legs, he started to raise his voice blaspheming and cursing against the Germans who shot him during the Second World War. Since that day he never walked like before and he always needed the help of a nurse to take care of the incessant pain. He shouted:   “Come on Giuseppe, it’s time to go”, while Nino, my older brother, was coming out the door at the same time. He had always been a rebellious person. I liked his character because of that, or maybe just because Nino and I were too different. From the way he closed the door, he didn’t seem too excited to go to the lands. I think he was angry because he preferred to go out with his motorcycle instead of working. I can remember that he never wanted me to go out with him. That situation was hurting me so bad. ‘You cannot come with me today” was his famous phrase that he always used to repeat me. It was also the last phrase that he said to me two months ago, before having a car accident and passing away. Maybe his world was different than mine.

            While we were going to the farm, my Grandpa picked a topic just for the sake of having an argument. He was talking about the Germans who invaded Sicily during the Second World War, and he was forced to leave the town and go to the mountains to escape from them. Then he started to talk about the lands that were rich with products. My brother didn’t seem too interested in the conversation, so he was looking through the window at the fantastic landscape of the island. My old Grandpa then started to another discussion. This one attracted me mostly because he was talking about strange discoveries beneath our lands. The most important was a Roman funerary case with the skeleton still intact. The lands are rich with archeological treasures because centuries ago an old Roman city was situated there. The people of the lands prefer not to talk and hide the discoveries because they are afraid to lose their lands. Everybody knows a lost city is beneath our lands, but like good Sicilians, they prefer to keep their mouths closed to avoid possible confiscations from the State. The lands are the only thing they have, and loosing them would mean loosing their job. That’s why I admire my people. I was not surprised to hear about the discoveries, but the fact that was making me feel bad was that some people sold treasures that they found on their lands, treasures that didn’t belong to them. When we arrived at our destination, my Grandpa asked to my brother and I to collect walnuts and if we were able to fill a case of walnuts before lunch, he would give us mille lire each, approximately 50 US cents, that during the 90s were a lot for a kid. I was too young to listen to him; instead I started to look around me at some pieces of rocks. There were a lot of snails because it was a rainy day and it was fun watching those little animals crawling. While I was looking at the snails, something curious pushed my eyes to look at the ground. It was looking like a snail, but it wasn’t. It was a fossil, a fantastic exemplar of Ammonites, probably millions of years old. 

The ammonite was one of the first living animals in the face of the Earth, and it was in my hands. My Grandpa, alarmed from the fact that I was yelling to get his attention, ran to me and he saw the Ammonite in my hand. He didn’t talk. Actually he was looking at me like I did something wrong, or maybe he just was mad because I was not doing my job. I was very excited and my eyes were reflecting that wonderful masterpiece. My brother was not so excited to see a piece of rock, but he was curious, so he was trying to take the Ammonite out of my hands. I was touching the fossil so carefully and my hands were shaking from my happiness. My dream to find something important in that land finally was true. I was not going to follow, of course, other people’s idea to sell their pieces of history, but I had like a sensation to understand that fossil, the meaning that it had. Fossils are pieces of art that people should respect. A fossil is the history of our Earth, the place were we are living.

            I didn’t want to continue my work that day because the sky was getting cloudy, so my Grandpa advised us to get into the van. While it was raining, we were leaving the lands. For the rest of the World, that Sunday was a normal day, but for me it was one of the most important days of my existence. The fossil was only the first piece of my collection that today I hold in my house in Sicily. The devotion to a new subject today is the reason for my studies.

Introducing the Yanomami Tribe of South America

The Yanomami (or Yanomamo)  form one of the largest remote indigenous tribe of Southern America’s Amazon forest, in the southern hemisphere, and they have been living undisturbed from any other society for several centuries, until the mid-1950s, when they had the first contacts with outsiders. During this time of isolation from the rest of the world, the Yanomamo have been able to be in charge of their fate (Chagnon, 1997). They had basically, the ability of adapt themselves into their environment according to their cultural standards. Anthropologists usually refer to this with the term “cultural adaptation”. The most important factors in the cultural survival of the Yanomamo deal with land and adaptation to it.

 Ecological approaches and perspectives will appear as the main points of this paper, that will discuss in a deeper analysis the physical environment in which the Yanomamo live, together with some aspects of technology, their skills used in the hunting and gathering techniques, and, of course, “warfare”.  It will be necessary also to look at the relationship between culture and ecology and how consequences of various actions taken from the villagers affected the environment that surrounded them. These aspects will describe with a relative cleanness the simple culture of the Yanomamo people, and the revelation of patterns of their cultural adaptation.  However, interference of missionaries, anthropologists and miners has brought among them new diseases and conflicts that can be defined as catastrophic for the survival of this indigenous groups.

The Yanomamo are well known for being one of the few tribes in the world whose existence was unknown until some recent decades. They live in the borders between Venezuela and Brazil, and their population is just about 20.000 people, distributed in different villages and separated by miles of uninhabited land. When the anthropologist Napoleon Chagnon visited this region for the very first time, the Yanomamo were living in some small villages, called shabonos, and they were speaking only their own language. According to Napoleon Chagnon, they fall into the category of “Tropical Forest Indians”, called foot people, and this refers to the villagers’ distribution over the landscape. The Yanomamo behavior includes a collection of characteristics that are connected among their groups that, throughout singular perspectives, control the complexity of relationship between the aspects of cultural, ecological, and biological activities. They rely for food and shelter on what they can gather on the rain forest.  They practice hunting and gathering, and the most common game animals are wild pigs, monkeys, tapirs, armadillos, birds and rodents. Caterpillars are considered a very desirable food, just like the grubs that live in the seeds of palm fruits (60). The do not rely much on fish, but they can take advantage of its abundance in certain periods of the season. Gathering is also common, and palm fruits, bananas, and honey are the most desired. Apart from their hunting and gathering activities, Yanomamo people are also considered in a certain way horticulturalists, because the majority of their food production comes from the domesticated plants of their gardens. They have a pretty sophisticated knowledge of crops. Among their domestic food, plantains are the most important. They also grow tobacco, to which every single Yanomamo is obsessed. They are aware also of the practices of “slash and burn cultivation”, the method of agriculture used in which vegetation is burned, land is cropped for a few years (2-3), and then the forest retakes its place. Hunters usually, during their time spent away from the village, discover the new potential areas that will be exploited for gardening, and eventually the region that will be used to built the new “shabono”.  Depending on these facts, and the necessity for Yanomamo people to move away their villages from an area to another, interactions with other indigenous groups are inevitable, as well as unpredictable. According to this specific information, the distribution of the population over the region is characterized by micro movements, as well as macro movements (Chagnon, 73).

Another ecological approach can be made by taking in consideration Yanomamo rituals and beliefs. Like the majority of the indigenous groups of South America’s Amaziona, their religion is based on the principles of animism. They believe that the forest does not only permit to find plants and food, but that a spiritual existence is present in it.  The spirits are present in the entire flora and fauna, and they mostly have animal’s names. These spirits are called “hekura”. The shamans of the villages take appropriate hallucinogen drugs to get in contact with the spirits (ebene), and they usually paint themselves to have a good appearance, because hekura requires beauty (Chagnon, 117).  The ebene is taken by blowing it through a tube into the nose of a person. It also indicates the passage of the energy from a body to another. When the ebene takes effect, shamans start to intonate chants, and talk to the spirits, that give him a particular power, that in certain cases is used to harm their enemies. The hekura have their residence in the hills, the trees, and sometimes the live also under the rocks of the forest. Some of them carry weapons, others are considered cannibalistic. The shamans believe also that some of them are suspended at the edge of the universe, and they come to earth when they are called by the rituals, entering from the feet of the human body, and getting out from the mouth. Different hekuras appear in different periods, depending on the season.

On the basis of the seasons the Yanomamo people construct their life. Their region is characterized mainly of a wet and a dry season (Chagnon, 7), that sometimes can result critical to these people. Heavy precipitations can have a serious consequence on even the biggest streams, and the Yanomamo in those cases prefer to avoid larger rivers, selecting inland sites and gardens. On the other side, during the dry season, they conduct trade, feasts (in which they usually establish their alliances), and political relations with other villages. This is the time also when Yanomamo mostly practice warfare, an observable fact that characterizes every single aspect of their group organization, settlement models and everyday’s life cycle. Chagnon describes warfare as not only a “ritualistic war”, but a true and unique phenomenon that gives the Yanomamo the attribute of “waiteri” (fierce people). What caught my attention is the explanation that some “unokai” (killers) gave to Chagnon when he asked why they practice warfare so intensively. One of the men from the Bisaasi-teri village answered that “they go to war to revenge the killing of a man from their tribe”. It is so interesting how the same reasons are given from another indigenous group that we studies in class: the “Dani” tribe of New Guinea. A death in one Yanomamo village can be attributed to the “hekura” sent by a shaman from another village, and in this case the two groups will eventually raid each other. Depending on this position, it is understandable assume that the desire of revenge, for Yanomamo, is a natural way of expressing themselves in which they believe that warfare has a military function. Among the various ideas formulated by anthropologists, Chagnon came up with the idea that warfare has to do with socio-biological matter. According to anthropologist, in fact, those who are involved in warfare and are successful warriors have a greater reproductive success, than the ones who do not fight. In this case also, human sexual behavior takes position, in which individuals come into competition between males to have access to females. In warfare, Yanomamo behavior is often considered aggressive, but at the same time it is also thought to be useful, because it regulates in a certain manner their population growth.

Several changes today are taking place into the Yanomamo area, since their first contacts with outsiders.  Disease and armed conflict reduced the number of the Indians to a few thousands. First contacts brought an epidemic of influenza, which destroyed entire villages, and a recent gold rush has brought miners into their lands. Since 1987 over a thousand miners have invaded their territory in search of gold, and Brazilian Government has not been able to stop it (Chagnon, 227). A landing field was constructed from the missionaries in the 70s in that area, and today is still utilized by the miners. The noise of the aerial traffic scares away the game animals that the Yanomamo people hunt. In addition, mercury is used in mining, and this is polluting the watercourses, poisoning also the fish. Other changes taking place between the Yanomamo are the consequences of the Salesian missionaries trying to convert these people. They also took some children away from their families, forced them to wear clothes and sent them to schools (Hicks, 209). It is a very grave situation that may have serious cost regarding the existence of the Indians. Nevertheless, the negative pressure of missionaries and miners goes past physical conditions of the Yanomamo, because their society is next to vanish. The “Time” magazine in a recent article criticized the authors of this embarrassing extinction of a society, by asking a question: What have we done to them?  Investigators, miners, missionaries, and government officials all have contributed to this state of damage. Those are the real waiteri by which Yanomamo should stay away from.