178 1979 JONATHAN E, Dawe The Application of Ethnobotanical Techniques to the Problem of 5 niques {0 the Problem of Subsistence in the Eevadorian Formative." Ph.D. dissertation, University of llinons Ung verity Microfilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan Porras G.,?. 1975 "Fase Pastaza: El Formatvo en el Orient dela Universidad Catdlica, Quito Rappaport, R. 1968 "Pits forthe Ancestors, New Haven, Conn: Yale University Pres, Reichel.Dolmatof, 6. 1971 Amazonian Cosmos. Chicago: University of Chicago Press 1972 “The Feline Mali in Prehistoric San Agustin Sculpture.” In E. Bei s Sculpture." In E. Benson, eds Dumbarton Oaks Conference on the Olmec, Washington, umbarton rain Oa ton, D.C.: Dumbarton ‘osmology as Ecological Analysis: A View from the Rain Forest" Mo NS.11:307-318. a fe Eouaoriono. Separate de la Revista 1916 Rove, 196T “Form and Mean in Chvin At." In J. Rowe dD. Menzel, dri separa, Ato Sed Reng Palo As, Cals Peak. Pe its oar, 1986 "Coram forthe Archos. Cane lsttion of Washington, tion 609, Washington, D.C, ton, Pubes: Wien 1970" Sache Rune Urbina: Unive In Pres aevlosNe 1966. La eisuhura ene orm rmprone del Ecuny ftura Veta, Casa 1971 dela Cultura Ecustoriana, Guayaquil. “ ced Zevalos M,C. W. Galiat.D Latha, Len, Maton, ad K. Khimpp 1977” “The San Pablo Gorm Kernel ad ts cds Sones Ioéaus Journal of Latin American Lore 8:2 (1982), 179-196 179 Printed in U.S.A. Body and Soul in Quechua Thought CATHERINE J. ALLEN George Washington University In the Quechua-speaking community of Songo, located in the Andes mountains of southern Peru, the first of August is not a-good day for work or travel. The earth is said to be “open,” “‘alive,”” and very sensitive. One should tread lightly on her and refrain from throwing stones. It is said that throughout the month of August great mountains wake up at night and talk together, discussing the affairs of Runa (Quechua people)" These beliefs express a central tenet of Quechua ideology, which holds that all material things partake of life—although in various ‘modes and to different degrees. In this paper I explore the conceptual basis for this “‘animistic"” ideology, focusing on two aspects of Que- chua belief and ritual: attitudes toward death and the dead; and the custom of ritual force-feeding. The two themes are more closely related than one might initially expect; for example, one can feed the dead "Tam grateful tothe Henry and Grace Doherty Charitable Foundation, to the National Science Foundation, and to the George Washington University Committee on Research for the financial support which made my fieldwork possible. 1 also wish to thank ll the individuals who helped me in my work, both inthe Field and the university. Special ranks g0 to the people of Songo and Colquepata, and to Dr. R. Tom Zuidema of the University of ints. Songo is located in the province of Pavcartambo, northeast of the city of Curco, 1 carried out my fieldwork there fora year ia 1975 and 1976, and returned for Follow-up research in the summers of 1978 and 1980, L was accompanied in 1975 by Richard M. Wanner, whose moral support and help in gathering the data used in this paper I rate fully acknowledge. orata, i 180 Catuerine J. ALLEN by force-feeding one’s own body. To understand such practices, we ust explore Quechua ideas about the nature and relationship of body and soul, or more generally speaking, the material and the spiritual, ‘These ideas, which underlie the “animistic” attitude, have ramifica, ns in every aspect of Quechua life, from cosmological beliefs to economics and politics.” Its suitable to begin with the first of August, the indigenous new year, when the world wakes up and, as I was told, the rains should Feturn to “fill her up.” It is the occasion for rituals in which animistic concepts are most clearly expressed. Let us start, therefore, with an Aeust ritual for bringing ch’uflo (dehydrated potatoes) into the store- jouse. Dried Potatoes: The Ritual Storage of Chuo Songo is located on the rugged slopes of a small river valley, about 3,900 meters above sea level. At this altitude the staple of life is the Potato, at least seventy varieties of which are grown. Other Andean tubers as Well as beans and oats are cultivated in the lower fields, and lamas, alpacas, and sheep are raised for wool and meat. Barley is the main cash crop. The community's eighty-four houschoids are widely dispersed. Although each family is extremely protective of its privacy, {an intricate web of kinship and compadrazgo, expressed through recipro. cal labor exchanges, bines it o the rest of the community. In communities that subsist on potatoes, ch'ufo is the mainstay of the diet for several months of the year. Ch'ufto is made during the dry Season (May through August) by alternately freezing and thawing pota. toes.” In the rainy starvation months of December, January, and Febru. ‘ary, Sonquefios eat little else. They see themselves as being dependent on it, not only because it gets them through the lean months, but also “By “animism” | simply man the imputation of animation or vii othe whole atl world, Hue teem fe lack of ebeter one, mantel ie ee on {emphatic intend wo connaion with any oluionry seme tah taken as « more primiine moc of thought, My puree lasted ie an animism oni own terms, au complex and (or wat las) se ape aan cepa stem ‘Crue proper is made fom all varies of potato, usualy the smaller ons; the an lo and ura vies at exec toe. A at sek ee ah Saw, won which he potatos are spread, They Ter a ih an tne a he Each ay ther owners go through tem, sucrng and tung hems ene 4m them barefoot. fe at fea thee wes, peferahly coe ic te ame Shorouhty ree died into har, black wrnled pate manag Aree ee Bopy AND SouL IN QuecHua THouont 181 because it provides them with a kind of currency for barter with lower altitude communities. ‘Ch’uo should be brought into the storehouses during the first three days of August, preferably on the first. The day is spent in quiet activi- ties. If possible, Songo Runa sit in their corrals with piles of chuflo, ‘ready for storage. They may drink a little cane alcohol (trago) or corn liquor, and play quiet music on battery-powered radios. On August 1, 1974, 1 was invited to dinner by the Topa family. After eating, chewing coca, smoking cigarettes, and drinking trago, we moved into the family’s storeroom, We placed coca leaves under two storage bins, which were made of straw mats rolled into cylinders and placed on end. The bins then received libations of trago and chicha. A cloth filled with ch’uho was placed next to the bins. Each person sprinkled chicha (corn liquor) on this ch’uho and on the door of the storeroom. Then, each person poured a libation of trago onto one of several striped woven sacks filled with ch’uo, The men of the family began to work fast, pouring the ch'uao from the sacks into the bins. The women fed them chicha and trago constantly throughout this procedure; it was clearly important that the men be drinking at the same time they poured out the ch’uflo. At the family’s request I played a tape of Carnival music. When the ch’ufio had been Poured into the bins, we moved into the house and, after some more coca chewing and drinking, prepared the burnt offering (despacho) which is offered to Pacha (the Earth)on the first of August. Don Cipriano stored his ch’ufio on August 2. His procedure differed somewhat from the Topas’ ceremony, nicely illustrating the leeway existing in the parameters of ritual. Don Cipriano lacked trago and chicha. In their place he produced a small bottle of vinu (red wine) and a dead bird. He poured vinu on the dead bird. He made a k’intu (small offering of coca), poured vinu on it, and slipped it under the base of his storage bin. Then he proceeded to pour his ch’ufto into the bin, and finally placed the bottle of vinu and the dead bird inside the pile Aehydrated potato is moraya, whichis made only from the biter ruki papas that g10% a altitudes over 4,000 meters. Although rusis are black when raw, processing turns ‘hem white and tender. The first step to mating moraya isto soak tuki papas in cold running water for about thre weeks; then they are treated like regular chun. As moray {5 produced only in very high-altude communities, iti arate commodity and sells for 8 good price in the district capital and Cuzco. A kind of moray is also made from ovas (Oratis tuberose) a sweet uber native to the Andes. Oca moraya is called Faye, and is round upto make tle cakes for funeral feast and the Day ofthe Dead “Personal names have been changed to prtect the privacy of individuals, except for don Erasmo Hualla, who insisted that his eal mime be use.182 CATHERINE J. ALLEN of ch’ufo, “to guard it.”" He called the bird a maligo; it was black and resembled a crow, When I discussed the ch’ufo-storing ceremonies with the Topa family, they explained that “‘ch’ufio ahata munan” (‘‘ch’ufo likes/wants chi. cha"). The ceremony ensures that the ch'ufio won't run out: “without chicha, trago, and vinu the ch’ufio would run out before February. ”” The emphasis of the ceremony is on guarding and conserving the ch'ufio, the family’s life support during the leanest time of year. The ‘measures taken to ensure its conservation are revealing: the ch’uo is offered quantities of chicha, which it ‘“likes."" Moreover, the participants should pour chicha and trago down their own throats as they pour the ch’ufo into the bins. Lacking chicha and trago, don Cipriano offered vinu and provided a mallgo to guard the ch'ufio. The word mallgo Properly refers to a young male bird, but also describes young sexually active adults, especially males. How are we to understand these rituals? First, we must understand that e considered to be living, sentient beings. In planting them, the ‘occasional bad seed should not be tossed away but planted with the others, lest “it should cry, being all alone” ("‘sapallan wagan- man”), angering God te Father (Dios Tayta), The first potato seeds to be planted are put inte the ground with an offering of cova leaves, ‘They will give birth” (“Wachanganku”), don Cipriano explained as he did this. As potatotes turn into ch’uno, they are said to die. I was {old repeatedly that ch’ufo is waausqa (dead). Songo Runa hope for a strong early frost: itis good if potatoes die quickly, with minimal suffer ing and crying. At his wife’s funeral wake, don Cipriano thrust a piece of ch*ufo at my face and told me, “Do you see this piece of ch’ufio? It’s dead, but it keeps on existing, That’s what I'm like now. I've died, but I keep on existing.”? Ch’uflo, then, is made from potatoes that have died in the dehydration process. These dead potatoes, nevertheless, have a desiring personality. The chicha is “for” them, and they “want” it. As don Cipriano ex. pressed it in his grief-sticken outburst, ch’uftos are a kind of living dead—having died, but continuing to exist. In the ch’ufio-storing ritual we encounter two important themes: the ability of the dead to sustain life (as dead potatoes are the staple of life); and continuous consumption of alcohol as a ritual act, thought to have beneficial effects on the participants. The following sections explore Quechua concepts of death, and the practice of force-feeding, Finally, | consider how the two themes are related, revealing a concep. tual system in which body and soul are essentially interdependent and uunanalyzable, Bopy AND Sout in QucHua THouGHT 183 Categories of the Dead The Dead as Ancestors ‘We know from Spanish chronicles and archaeological evidence that the Ines (and pre-incai societies before them) placed great importance ton preserving the bodes oftheir dead. "The Ines kept the mais of their kings in the Temple of the Sun in Cuzco, arranged in an order which expresed their genealoglcal and hierarchical relationships (ee Gareiaso1961:116). These mummies were dressed in fine textes, were carefully attended (Guaman Poma 1936:287), and even considered to (Wachtel 1977:157). cussed by Zuidema (1977), describes a village in Ancash where mummies of the local nobility were arranged in fashion similar to the royal oF r—r——“‘ets in caves of stone tombs (eee Zuidema 1977:1705 Wachtel 1977.13, there like the royal mummies, they were dressed in fine garments and recived offerings of food and drink. These mummies were considered vital to the well-being of their community, or ayllu; ie fact, et Prades n of mummies wth thet Teal was so strong that twas forbidden {Stemove thems the word hug eu eter fo bata sated place ad to the mummies that were kept there (see Duviols 1971:252). 7 ‘One of the main thrust of the Spanish extzption of “idaatis was to destroy the local mummies and enforce burial of the.dead in Chistian cemeteries. Indians often robbed ther relatives’ bodies from these eemeeies to give them a good Quechua burial in secret caves, ‘here they could be properly worshipped and continue to provide wel: ing fot thet descendants." Sango of cous, shows the effecs ofthis Spanish misionary zl ‘The dead are buried ina small cemetery next tothe church. The Braves are not tended; older yrave are turned undet during an enn work party to make way for new ones. A body therefore has no permanent ing place bu join a communal heap of bones "Sono Rua call their ancestors Machula Aulancis (Our Old Grand rr ,r———= rc tes lke the heap of bones in the cemetery. The Machula Aulanchis are said to provide well-being for Songo, particulary in the form of agricultural abundance. Don Erasmo explained that_“Packamama campaign to destroy mummies had a pro: "Duviols (1971) observes that this Spanish camps pt foundly demoralizing effect on native religion He also ruggests that i caused a shift of emphasis from worship of mimmis to a mere spiritual worship of the dead and 10 2 ‘more intense focus on places, suchas mountains, as sere, life supporting beings.18 CATHERINE J. ALLEN (Mother Earth) makes the potatoes grow, but Machula Aulanchis make them grow big.” ‘The Machula Aulanchis are said to inhabit small ruined towers (chull- ‘Pas on the slopes of Antagaqa, the community's most sacred mountain, Thus, while Sonquefios bury their dead in the cemetery, they continue to conceptually locate their ancestors in the ancient tombs of their sacred hill, As Sonquefios tend to locate the spiritual identity and power of the dead within their desiccated physical remains, it should come as no sur. Prise that bones stil are thought to possess a kind of animation, In Songo and elsewhere in the Andes (Hocquenghem 1978; B. Mannheim, Personal communication) Runa sometimes save the bones of their dead Kept in the niche of a storeroom wall, a skull is said to provide khuyay (protection and care) for the room and its contents. “Some people keep their Machulas,"" don Cipriano remarked, “‘and some don't,” Bones ae frequently referred to as almas, the Spanish word for soul. During the annual work party in the graveyard, the almas receive offerings of alcohol, which is actually consumed by the workers, Used in reference to the skull, the word khuyay is revealing: it relates the skull to another class of object, the engaychus, which are also said 0 provide khuyay. Erqaychus are small stones, shaped like livestock and Potatoes or carved into tablets representing the owner's house, Storehouses, and livestock. A family’s engaychus are revealed on the eves of San Juan (June 24) and Carnival, when they are honored with presentations of coca and libations of alcohol; at the same time a burned offering is prepared for the Sacred Places (Tirakuna), Runa call their cnqaychus “the living ones,” kawsagkuna, and consider them reposi- ‘ories of health and fertility for livestock, crops, and family members, which they protect and care for (khuyanku). There, are_numerous examples of Incaic engaychus in the Cuzco Archaeological Museum, the sight of which greatly impressed (and dis. turbed) my Songo friends, who walked through the rooms exclaiming over all the kawsagkuna. At one point, dofia Catalina stopped before 4 large carved stone phallus, observed it with interest, and remarked, ““kawsaq kiki” (‘the kawsaq itself”). There could hardly be a bette example of the inseminating nature of engaychus. Moreover, the en. chanted bulls of Apu Qaiaqway (a sacred mountain), which breed in the herds of the favored, are also called engaychu. The inseminating, maseu- line qualities of the engaychus—the kawsagkuna (living ones) and khuyagkuna (protectors)—are clear. As Ihave mentioned, Incaic mummies were thought to be repositories of well-being for their communities. Like engaychus, they received offerings of chicha and coca. The machula's skull, watching over the Storeroom, continues this traditional role of bones and mummified Bopy AND Sout iv Quechua THovont 185 remains. The Machula Aulanchis, although separated from the tumbled heap of bones in Songo’s cemetery, also continue this role of life- supporting ancestors, with engaychu-like qualities. They are always ‘masculine; they make the potato (a ‘*female” plant) grow big; the wind from their chullpas (towers) is considered fertilizer for the fields. More- over, as “old grandfathers,” they are the literal progenitors of Songo Runa as well The Dead as Demons Mace -Maca Ashi bebe ans Mad ceptually with the Machus (Old Ones), a race of malevolent giants: cae up by its unfamiliar heat. They fled to the springs and chullpas, where are just where ours are”’"—and inflict disease and disaster on humans, the sleeping woman with a deformed child, Machu wawa, while the F186 CaTHERINE J. ALLEN We have seen that the benevolent dead have inseminating powers. Machus, the ancestors’ malevolent aspect, also affect Runa through sexual insemination: in dreams which drain or deform life, and as streams and snakes which enter the orifices. The Machu wayra causes illness in humans but fertilizes the crops. Since Machus affect humans of both sexes, they are conceived of as including members of both sexes. Machula Aulanchis affect only the female earth, therefore needing only amale identity. The ancestors are thus sources both of vitality and its perversion, disease. Although identified with dry bones or desiecate mummies, they may also live in water, considered a seminal substance originating (as rain) in Dios Tayta. We shall return to this point, but first let us turn to some other conceptions of the dead and their relationship to the living. The Alma ‘We have seen that the word alma may refer to dried bones; however, it also refers to a spiritual essence, comparable to the Western concept of soul, and probably showing the influence of this concept. The alma may leave the body to animate (anfmuy) a hummingbird or other small bird, and travel to far-off relatives as an omen of death. A visit from such a hird—identified as an alma by the whirring sound of its wings and the fact that it cannot be seen clearly—causes great distress, Unlike the Christian concept of the soul, however, the alma is not the seat of one's essential individuality and will. During the year before @ person’s death the alma begins to wander away from the body, and in so doing spreads illness. This evil influence, called gayga, works inde- pendently of the doomed person's volition and comes to a peak eight days after he or she dies. In 1978 I became violsntly ill from drinking at my going-away party, ‘an event-that puzzled and alarmed my Quechua friends. When I returned fo Songo in 1980, don Cipriano had determined the cause of the prob- Jem: dofia Catalina died within a year of my departure, and it was her soul that made me sick, Catalina was fond of me, and I asked why she would make me sick. “*You don't understand,” exclaiinied don Cipriano. “‘It wasn’t Catalina, it was her alma.”” This. deindividualized concept of alma coexists with the Christian concept of the soul. Runa say that the dead person’s alma should go to Our Father's side (Taytanchis laruchata) and not bother the living. They clearly feel little conviction about this; the concept of the soul and its fate after death seems to be one area in which Christian and indige- nous Quechua ideas are not compatible, and thus remain incompletely syneretized.” For other accounts of the aesife ste Zuidema and Quispe 1968; J. Nitec de Prado 1970; Allen 1978. Bopy AND Sout iN QuEcHUA THoveHT 187 ‘There are certain almas who, even after eight days, cannot free them- selves from the dead body, and thus remain to molest the living. These are Kukuchis or Condenadus, damned souls condemned to wander ‘among glaciers and ‘‘to go around eating people.’ The worst sin, and surest way f0 become a Kukuchi, is to commit incest (also see D. Gow 1976:74; Casaverde 1970:112; D. Nufez del Prado 1972:138). Kukuchis are described as green, rotten, smelly, and in constant pain from their rotting flesh, Burdened with sin, “they rise from the grave with their whole body. They die in vain.” The cannibalistic Kukuchis bear a resemblance to the malevolent Machus. Both are kinds of living dead, who attack people at night. Their modes of attack differ, however. Machus use a sexual mode, while Kukuchis devour their victims, especially close relatives. We should bear in mind, however, that it is incest, a sexual perversion, that turns ‘one into a rotten green monster with a drive to eat even its own relatives. ‘The cannibalism therefore may be taken as a sexual metaphor, as it elsewhere in South America (see, for example, Lévi-Strauss 1969:296). Bot Machus and Kukuchis thus reveal a connection between the dead and malevolent sexuality. While the Machus are bones desiccated be- neath a punishing sun, the Kukuckis are described as putrid flesh, with never a ueution of bones. In contrast, the Benevolent Machula Aulan- chis are dry bones whose flesh has been properly absorbed by the earth They exert a fertilizing, seminal influence. When the bones, as Machus, try to get their flesh back, they act analogously to the earthbound Kukuchis. To summarize, when a Runa dies, he or she does not cease to exi but exists in a less immediate state than that of the living. From their parallel world the dead may continue to influence the living—as wind, stream, whirting hummingbird, qayga, and dream. There is a sexual relationship between the dead and the living. Machulas, the literal ances- tors, “make the potatoes grow big; they continue to generate life, but, through new channels. As beings displaced from the living world, the dead are resentful, and turn their seminal powers to the generation of disease. through sex in its most violent aspects—rape and cannibalism (a metaphoric expression of incest, Ch'uho as Dead Potatoes How do these insights about the dead apply to our ch’uflo-storing ritual? Ch’ufo is a sort of mummified potato, “killed” and transformed through sun and frost (which is said to be produced by stars). This combination of heat and cold leaves them dead but potentially alive We have seen that desiccated remains, as Machulas, are considered fertilizing ancestors, and honored as such. Potato mummies are similarly honored; to do this, Runa must reach into the parallel world of spiritual things. ~188 CaTueRINe J, ALLEN ‘The media for reaching this world are alcohol, coca, incense, and dead birds. We know that birds may serve as intermediaries between the worlds of life and death. Once I came across a dead hummingbird in a sack of potatoes, and don Cipriano explained that the whirring hum. tmingbird keeps the potatotes warm. Similarly, the mallgo will puard the encapsuled potency ofthe dried potatoes (like the Machula’s skull guard. ing the storeroom), Ch'uho is reconstituted by soaking in water. We can thus understand the dousing of ch’ufio with chicha, trago, and vinu as a kind of spiritual reconstitution. The phrase ‘‘ch'uflo likes chicha’” attributes a desiring Personality to the dried potatoes. The spiritual potency ensured by the alcohol results in a longer-lasting supply of ch’ufto. Without it, “the ch’uhlo would run out before February.” Chicha is thought to be a seminal substance.* Don Cipriano, lacking chicha, gave the ch’uno ane ‘ther seminal substance—a mallqo, or sexually active young adult in dead (that is, spiritual) form. Apparently the potency of eh’uno is conserved with seminal substances. Why the people who pour out the ch’uflo have to drink continuously hile they do so, why they must be force-fed chicha and trago, remain o be told. To elucidate this point, we turn to other rituals in which force feeding plays a major part. Force-Feeding section I examine three kinds of force-feeding, or overcon: fumption: foreed-eating, forced-drinking, and forced-coca chewing, wher '978, 1981) I have discussed the significance of alco. holic drinks and coca in Songo. In general, alcohol and coca leaves Serve as intermediaries between humans and spiritual beings, such as {he Pachamama, Tirakuna, and Machulas, Drinking alcohol or chewing coca is preceded by offerings to these beings: pouring or spraying the alcohol and blowing across the coca leaves. This offering is described 4s the samiy, or nourishing essence of the substance offered. The Day of the Dead On November 1 the almas of dead Runa return to visit their living Zelatives, “All pretty an¢ green," they hover over a special feast pre- Pared for them. How do :hey consume it? Ideally, one of the commun. jAn cramp of chicha as 2 symbolically seminal substance is provided by Luis Dalle (1931:39), who tells us that in Accha, near Songo, chichais dunk from a cow hon coca vronpar during a maize festival on December 28. When women rece the wanpas they lace it between ther legs ab a symbol of fetlty before performing the Nnerey drinking Boor axo Sout QuecHcA THOvGHT 19 ity catechins is supposed to come as mihug (nt) and eam the food and drink down hs throat without stopping, eating “Tor the soul, while rece Catholic prayers othe dead [Pte the pps of he fret sense than in theo :oring ritual By reiting prayers, ibe mibug contacts the spiritual realm and is able to pass food on to the souls. By force-feeding ae (and fi mu riven i eds the souls. yrced it must be, given the size of the meal), he fec wtp same ceremonial bles a afer wake, Host and Gifford informants provide this explanation: “Those who take a share of these things believe they are eating. on behalf of “Taon feel sate thee stomach of the dead man thy ay, dn es at days si we geting om bshal ie dead man's aac (Gilford and Hogarth 1976:79, emphasis mine). ir union between “This cating on behalf ofthe dead implies a physical communion bet theliving and the ead (a communion aso evidenced in the drei sual relations between Machus and humans). Animal Marking Ceremonies Te eal forte amas (Li Chaya pase i ety animals are decorated with colored tassels and made (0 aiink a hamp! medicine consstingof che, ages gts su bet barley mash, and special hers. The more bots that can be force down the lamas” throats, the better forthe herd’ health and procrea tions the mach llama, of herd sud, should drink atleast three, While themen are decorating and force-eeding the mas, they are constantly served cicha and trago themselves, Once decorated and fed, the animals rece hay, Tho of cia spk wi de of cnn, fool of erty dys shay i nied by mi Couples. Facing east, they pray over thir goblets of chica and then Simultaneously throw the contents ont he hed, “I did not actualy see this force-feeding “for the souls.” There are only Five tained aes in Songo, woof whom have fren mos ofthe tning,Obiwt he thre remaining men could not make i to every house. Although Cipriano expected bie nephew Francisco to come as mihug, Francisco performed the service only for his own table. Cipriano asked if Richard knew Cathlie prayers for the dead, hoping he mish be able to takeover tis ole. The nxt day | vised Civiano ad his wife, to find em sing heme wih sub fond. “hw” hy sa the ul he The text was provided by Autlio Flores, who was born in Paucartambo and now lives in Huantura, south of Cuzco, and ty Saturino Valeviano, from Patabamba, neat ‘Ayaviri. Bott are bilingual, with’ Quechua their primary language. (See Gifford and Hogzarth 1976:xi.)190 Carmenine J. AueN Sheep-marking ceremonies, on San Juan (June 24) and during Carni- val, are similar, except that the sheep are painted red, and forced to chew coca rather than drink hampi. The sheep undergo this treatment in male-female pairs, stretched on a poncho; it is said that they are “getting married.” Firally, as in the lama-marking ritual, the partici. ants perform chhuyay and drive the sheep out of the corral These ceremonies ensure the health and fertility of the animals. 1 was told that on June 24 “the hills turn on the sheep” (‘Urqokuna uwixata hap'ichinku”), Similarly, it is important to perform the ch'uho- storing and lama festival in early August, when the Pachamama is receptive and “open. Hallpachikuy: Forced Coca Chewing On the first of August, on the eve of San Juan, and during Carnival, cach family prepares a despacho, thus “feeding” the earth and sacred places. Coca and alcohol form an important part of the offering, and are also consumed by the participants (including children, who normally do not drink alcohol or chew coca). In this way, the Runa commune with the spiritual powers they feed. After the offering bundle is assem. bled, those present perform hallpachikuy (literally, ‘to make one chew soca’) in which they force coca into each others’ mouths. This takes place in @ free-for-all atmosphere, contrasting markedly with the usual formality that accompanies the sharing of coca (see Allen 1981). Significance of Force-Feeding In al these examples of force-feeding, spiritual nourishment is passed on to the object of the ritual: the forced-drinking at the ch’uto-storing is for the ch'uflo, which is “alive” om the first of August and in contact with the men who pour it into the bins. The men who force hampi on the Hamas drink continuously for their animals, passing to them the nour, ishment of the alcohol. Similarly, participants in forced-coca chewing lose the individuality so carefully expressed in normal coca chewing eti- uette and merge into a collective body. ‘We can go a step further, and look at the overconsumption which is an important part of virtually all Quechua rituals. On San Juan, Runa chase their sheep out of the corral, while dancing and playing wildly on the hillsides. The animals ideally should be dressed in human clothing, while the people themselves take on the role of the sheep. While the drink, coca, and music drive them into a closer community with their animals, Runa—as human beings—are able to supplicate the powers that be for the sake of the herd. Through this inebriated human media. tion, the “hills turn on the sheep.” The married couples who throw Bop AND Sout iv QuECHUA THOUGHT 11 chicha with caniwa onto the herd pass on their own fertility to the sheep, which have been recently paired and “married.” The llamas’ tassels, made out of a ceremonial bundle by men chewing coca, themselves become repositories of potency, as they are made by humans while communing with the sacred powers, and then passed on to the animals. ‘Thus, force-feeding leads to a merging of identity with another class of beings—Hlamas, ch’uflo, souls of the dead. The intoxication of the drinker or stupefaction of the eater is a prerequisite for the merged identification. At Songo’s public religious festivities, intoxication serves, a similar purpose. There is an empiasis on overconsumption; the food and drink are never supposed to run out. This intoxication opens chan- nels of communication with spiritual beings: the wilder the party, the better the offering, and the better communication is with the spiritual realm. (For a more detailed discussion, see Allen 1978:251.) ‘Communication with the dead, force-feeding in animal-marking cere- monies, hallpachikuy, and ceremonies which celebrate the unity and continuity of the Ayllu fall into a general pattern, Runa communicate with spiritual beings through mediating substances: cooked food, alco- hol, coca. These substances are offered: (1) by blowing, pouring, or sprinkling the samiy: @) by burnit, as in the case of despacho; and G) by force-feeding. In force-feediag the person saturates his body to such an extent that he passes the nourishment on to someone or some- mA final anole uses this pont. In 19751 was accompanied in my fieldwork by Richard Wagner, and in 1978 I returned to Songo alone. The night I arrived, don Cipriano’s new wife cooked me a fine, tremendous supper, which I was able to finish with great difficulty When I tried to say that T could not eat so much, the teen-age daughter cheerfully instructed me, ‘“Ricardoq wigsanman wigsaykimanta chu- anki” (“Put it from your stomach into Richard's”) Conclusion What can we learn from this communion of stomachs at a distance? What does it mean to say that one may pass food to a dead or absent person? First, let us review some of the ideas about the dead that we have encountered in the previous pages. Guises of the Dead state than the The dead continue to exist, but in a less immediate state t living. Sometimes this is expressed by describing them as disembodied. More interesting to us, however, is the emphasis placed on the bodies192 CaTHERINE J. ALLEN Of the dead, which, as mummies, dry bones, of rotting flesh, continue to affect human welfare. Here the connection between the body and what I will call (for lack of a better word) its animation continues after death. Thus the Machulas’ skulls may be kept to guard and protect storerooms, and the Machus” bones in the chullpas cause disease in humans and health for crops. We have seen in this a continuity of tradi- tion with the Incaic mammy, which was a vital link between the ayily and its locality, and a repository of human well-being. These ideas are extended to ch’uflo, potatoes stored in a mummified state, which becomes edible again when it is reconstituted in water. We have seen that the Kukuchis, who are unable to lose their flesh and attain this desirable desiccated state, are a plague, consuming people rather than nourishing them, Machus and Machulas are associated with Dios Tayta, who insemi- hates Mother Earth through the sun and rain, Bastien (1978:145-146) Observes that solids are symbolically male and liquids symbolically female. Consistent with this, the formless flesh of the deceased should Feturn to Pachamama, the female earth, while the solid bones_—-washed and/or bleached in the sun—remain and continue, as Machulas or Machus, to interact with the living, Communication with the Dead Just as a connection persists between the body and its animation after death, living people may zommunicate with the dead through the medium of the body. In some cases this physical communication takes the form of sexual relations, which are hostile, and kill or damage human vetine In contrast, a more positive communication may take place through force-feeding. The body is used as a passage through which the nutritive éssences of food, aloha and coca are transferred rom one bel to another. This mode of communication is not limited to relations with the dead, as itis also thcught to take place between humans and their animals, and between the ayllu (or community of humans) and its sacred Places. In the ch'ufo-storing ritual it takes place between humans and a (dead) vegetable product. Thus, there is an intimate physical connection among all aspects of existence. The Quechua-Aymara community of Kaata (Bastien 1978) illustrates this well. Kaata is located on the side of a mountain, which the inhabitants describe as a human body, the peak being the head, the central slopes the belly and heart, and so forth. Human illness may be treated by ministering to the mountain, with offerings, because people and mountain are part of the same body; together, they comprise the ayllu Boor avo Sov wy QuecHUA TrowoHt 13 Sina, a Sno, Rua Bld ils for nas ands in Ags hen the eats dys pen and espe, Daring Cara nd San Juan, also propitious time for communication with che ea and sacred places, situa are held or sheep. Moreover, the bation on the herd is performed by mati soupes as ihough their sexual po- ducsivity and that ofthe animals were connected ‘Shared Animation Finally, it is revealing in this context to see how other apparently inanimate objects may be treated. _ It is not uncommon for manufactured objects to. receive libations st alcohol. For example, when Songo Runa drink at their ceremonial tabl e during communal festivals, they make libations to the four corners ‘ the table. Newly made objects, especially if they are important to the howehold—a stove, for exampleeceive Hbations, The door of & new house receives libations from the participants at a house raising. Newly woven clothes, or cloth still on.the loom, may also ae iio Articles to be sold may receive libations before bargaining begins, wi D made of earth a prayer that “our talking may go well.”” The house itself, vi 2 “mother hen who keeps us warm under her is though to be alive ‘wiany item manufactured by a man or woman is characterized by a transformation from raw material into finished product All raw material comes from the living earth, or from animal or vegetable ‘matter, which is also living. In their finished form, eae take on a selfhood. They have an animu (from Spanish dnimio) passe to them by their creator, which must be treated with respect. 7 We may conclce thatthe rates word Is sofise, or animate, with a creative influence passed from object to object. All_ material things, including human bodies, are connected inthis manner and may communicate with each other. The material body isa kind of cond (amidea expresed very lealy in pre-Columbian Andean iconography) Body and soul in Quechua though ae ullimately interdependent and unanalyzabl, forthe creative inlvence exis only through # materi medium, Thus we read (e.g., Arriaga 1968) that the colonial Quechua ‘experienced intense psychological trauma when their ancestors’ mum- ‘mies were destroyed by missionary Spaniards, or.they. themselves were eatened with death by burning. nis important fo emphasize thal his creative inne is nkeremy neutral, although it may be turned to constructive or destructive ends, Rana are vitally concerned with channeling tina manner that i positive and beneficial to themselves. This is the basis of the pervasive Andean a194 CATHERINE J. Atte ethos of reciprocity (see Alberti and Mayer 1974). To partake of the life force one must share it with other people, with places, with object and with the humble ch’uno. 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