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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 2 



without his being able to see who it v.-as. Then 

 he became frightened and ran toward his house 

 (as he thought), but instead he ran faster and 

 faster in the opposite direction. Eventually 

 he became terrorized and ran, falling and bump- 

 ing into things, for it was getting increasingly 

 darker, until he arrived at a place he did not 

 recognize. He ran through many nettles which 

 struck him like pack straps, drawing blood all 

 over his body. Finally he found a cave and 

 took refuge in it, where he struggled all night 

 with something that tried to strangle him. He 

 v/as found in the morning by a search party 

 v\'hich had been hunting him all night. He was 

 17 when this occurred. 



On another occasion a woman was found 

 dead in a sand cave v/ithout any tracks except 

 her own footprints. She showed all the signs 

 of .strangulation. Before her death this woman 

 had told her relatives and friends that fre- 

 quently she would think she was on her way 

 home and would find herself in the h:n-i-aiira. 

 She would sit down awhile and make the sign 

 of the cross and pray. With this, things would 

 become clear to her and she could retrace her 

 road. 



A youth returning from his field to his house, 

 felt something pull him strongly toward the 

 barranca as he crossed the bridge. He resisted, 

 and then it seemed to him he was going toward 

 home when suddenly he lost his footing and 

 began to fall in space. As lie fell he had the 

 impression he was entering hi.'? house. He was 

 found next day in the barranca, half dead, and 

 was unable to speak for 8 days. He stammers 

 still as the result of his fright. 



Another story tells of a man who had attended 

 a wedding in Paricutin. After the v/edding 

 the group went through the streets with the 

 music, dancing and drinking. As they crossed 

 the bridge to Paricutin the man said something 

 was pulling at him. He began to gesticulate 

 as if he was fighting something, but his friends, 

 having drunk a greal deal, paid no attention. 

 He began to run but fell from the bridge. His 

 body was found down the barranca (as the 

 water evidently was high) after considerable 

 search. 



This spirit is known at Capacuaro as mirinyin, 

 mirinchin, or miringin. The spirit appeal's 



sometimes as a bidto (indistinct form) which 

 whistles to people and gets them to follow it 

 until they are lost in the woods. One infor- 

 mant, named Juan, said he had been seized in 

 the Cerro del Aire and was able to escape only 

 by recommending himself to the patron saint, 

 San Juan. Otherwise he would have fallen in 

 a cave where the devil could have seized him. 



In Uren in La Canada it is said that the 

 miriv^gua appears where money has been hid- 

 den. If someone gets rich suddenly it is said 

 that "he has encountered the miri^^gua." The 

 mirii^gua is also said to appear in the shape of 

 dog or cat, but these are really disguised witches. 



When houses are repaired or reconditioned, 

 it is customary to hang up flowers, usually 

 fastening the flowers to strings which are 

 looped over doorways and windows. The prac- 

 tice was said to be customary and no beliefs 

 concerning it could be discovered. 



When the rains are late in coming in May, 

 the image of one of the saints is taken to the 

 top of the Sierra San Marcos, south of town. 

 There the image is raised up and down several 

 times and cohctes are fired. Even .sceptics 

 admit it usually rains soon after this; some of 

 the naive attribute the rain to the cohetes, 

 others to the proximity of the rainy season. 



When the mountain of Pilon, east of town, 

 has mist on top, it is going to rain, say many. 

 The early rains come from the direction of 

 Pilon, the later from the direction of San 

 Marcos. 



If people are seated and a dog comes and 

 howls, some misfortune may befall the people. 



The coyote has magical power over animals. 

 If he just gives himself a shake, the chickens 

 will walk over to him and let themselves 

 be eaten. 



A person who finds a dead deer in the moun- 

 tains which he has not killed will have some 

 misfortune befall his family. A son, brother, 

 parent, etc., will certainly die, and there is no 

 way of averting the misfortune. 



If a coyote crosses the road in front of one, 

 it is a sign some misfortune will occur. 



A blue-bellied lizard found occasionally in 

 Cheran is believed to be able to jump on a per- 

 son's back without his knowing it and burrow 

 inside. It leaves a blue lizard mark on the 



