THE TERENA AND THE CADUVEO OF SOUTHERN MATO GROSSO, BRAZIL- — OBERG 



63 



the group departs, leaving the groom alone. The 

 father then fetches his daughter, who has been 

 secluded, and tells her to sit by her husband. On 

 the following day the bride's father gives a feast 

 and dance. 



Today the dead are buried, unaUgenti, in the 

 old Caduveo cemetery near Pitoco. The body is 

 wrapped in a mat or blanket and buried in a shal- 

 low oval grave. The pereonal belongings of the 

 dead are left on the grave but horses are no longer 

 shot and left near the grave. The close relatives 

 of the dead then cut their hair, change their names, 

 and give a feast. All those who attend are also 

 supposed to cut their hair. If it is not possible 

 to bury the body in the cemetery right after death, 

 the body can be interred temporarily. When time 

 permits, the bones are dug up and taken to the 

 proper burial place. "Five days after burial the 

 ghost rises and lives near the grave. In time the 

 ghost disappears and at last is like the wind." 



The Caduveo at Alves de Barros claim there 

 are two prostitutes in the village. These girls be- 

 long to poor families and it is said support their 

 families in this way. They explain that prosti- 

 tution did not exist in the past. They also say 

 that berdaches existed in the old days. These ber- 

 daches were men who dressed and painted them- 

 selves like women and lived with men. They 

 claim that homosexuality is common even today. 



JIYTHS 



The Caduveo have an origin myth which ex- 

 plains how Indians and other people first ap- 

 peared : 



Onoi-nue is like a god, he is a Caduveo Indian, he pulled 

 all the Indians out of a hole in the ground. Onod-noe lived 

 in the bushes by a stream. He placed traps to catch fish 

 in the pools along the stream. He was very lucky and 

 always caught fish. One day, Ono6-noe went to his fish 

 trap and noticed that someone had stolen his fish. This 

 happened for many days. Ono6-noe then asked the dtahaha 

 (a large heron-like marsli bird) to watch the trap, but 

 itahaha went to sleep. Ono6-noe was angry and as pun- 

 ishment permitted itahaha to eat only lizards. That is 

 why this bird eats lizards today. Next Onoi'-noe ordered 

 the etoU-toU bird to watch the trap. He too fell asleep and 

 as punishment the etoli-toli bird has had to live thereafter 

 on locusts. Finally Ono6-noe ordered the opokond bird 

 to fly over his trap all night. At dawn opok07i6 saw some 

 people taking fish out of the trap. Opokonu then began 

 to cry out and went to Onod-noe to tell him what he had 

 seen. Ono6-noe gave opokon6 a snail to eat. Tliat is 

 why opokond keeps crying and eating snails today. 



Then Onoe-noc got up, put on his sandals and with his 

 two dogs went to tlie trap. The dogs took up the trail 

 of the thieves and followed the tracks to a hole in the 

 ground. Onoe-noe took away the leaves covering the hole 

 and found that it was full of people. He then pulled 

 out all the people. He pulled out the Brazilians, Para- 

 guayans, and all other nations. To the Terena he gave 

 land and told them how to grow crops. He almost forgot 

 the Caduveo and pulled them out last and told tliem to 

 wait while he was giving the other people land. But the 

 Caduveo ran off to hunt. Onod-noe was angry and said, 

 "Now you must always wander about looking for animals 

 to hunt." That is why the Caduveo are still poor hunters. 



Oiioi-noe then evacuated and from his excrement came 

 the Chamacoco, "That is why the Cliamaeoco are such 

 stupid and dirty people." 



Another version has it that Onoe-noe first took 

 all the Indians and a kitten from the hole in the 

 ground. Later there was a great flood which was 

 survived by some of the Indians and the kitten. 

 The kitten then turned into a Brazilian and that 

 is why the Brazilians have green eyes. 



The honidi myth tells of a very large snake 

 which lives on a hill. Whenever it meets hunters 

 it pursues and devours them. First he makes a 

 strong wind which does not permit the hunter 

 to travel, then he comes near and eats the hunter 

 and his horse. Shamans are able to see honidi. 



Nakotdkra looks like a bull and lives in the 

 water. Wlien women come to bathe he has sexual 

 intercourse with them at the bottom of the river 

 or lake. A woman who has had sexual intercourse 

 with nakotdkra must get the help of a shaman or 

 she will die. 



Eniarlko-kone looks like a donkey and lives in 

 the water. He pursues women but is diflferent from 

 nakotdkra in that he looks only for pretty girls. 



Diguyelo is a large bird which looks like the 

 rhea. It lives in the clouds and when it opens 

 its wings the rain falls. When its wings are hurt 

 there is no rain. 



RELIGION 



Although the Caduveo have been under mis- 

 sionary influence for several centuries, it camiot 

 be said that they are today all Christians. Many 

 have not been baptized, nor have ever attended 

 church services. In actual life pagan shamans and 

 Christianized shamans are resorted to for help. 

 The story of two Caduveo medicine men will per- 

 haps illustrate this mixture of pagan and Chris- 

 tian belief and practice. 



