The life of the Achuar community

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The Achuar traditionally didn't live in communities at all but in isolated family groups. This has changed in the last 20 or so years and the main factor has been the influence of the Catholic church. Traditionally they killed each other a lot, which lead to revenge killings and so it went on .... and on and on. Now they don't kill each other, they sometimes go to church (they didn't worship a God before the arrival of the Catholics) but they maintain their own customs which are all linked basically to the forest and pachamama or mother earth.

We went to visit a community which was a very strange experience - especially at first when we were all very nervous and scared of offending. We had been told in advance that we must say hello in achuar when we went in, must sit in the part of the room reserved for guests not the familial part, not look directly into the eyes of people when we spoke to them (very odd for us westerners) and accept a bowl of chicha - and preferably drink some of it. The last doesn't sound such a big thing till you know that chicha is yuka of manioc which has been chewed up and spat out by the wife then mixed with water (that we are supposed to avoid like the plague) and allowed to ferment for two days. In spite of all this Ian and I did both manage a sip - unlike the rest of our colleagues who didn't touch the stuff!

The Achuar live probably the simplest life imaginable. They have a hut open to the elements, a garden or chakra, a machete (children as young as two or three wield these with confidence and ease!!), some clay bowls they make themselves, a couple of big plastic containers, the odd chair, a hammock, a wooden platform for a bed. Everything (with the exception of the the machete and the plastic buckets) are from the forest. The forest and the river supplies them with the raw materials for their boats, houses, furniture, medicines and food.

We then had to introduce ourselves etc and then we could ask questions about anything we wanted. The wife then demonstrated how to make a pot, then we were required to demonstrate a skill in return!!!!!! A kind of interchange of knowledge or gifts. Hmmmmm Grit the German woman was an ex Swiss champion of team aerobics... and of course Ian and I ceroc (why do I imagine peals of laughter?). So in wellington boots, on an uneven mud floor and with no music Ian and I did a demo of ceroc - including of course a couple of drops - people always like those!!! The audience were I think bemused and appreciative!

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