﻿566 
  SOUTH 
  AMERICAN 
  INDIANS 
  [B. 
  A. 
  B. 
  Bull. 
  143 
  

  

  person 
  who 
  desired 
  the 
  evil, 
  with 
  the 
  knowledge 
  of 
  his 
  guilt. 
  Spells 
  

   may 
  be 
  nullified 
  by 
  breaking 
  a 
  thread 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  spun 
  in 
  reverse 
  

   (La 
  Barre, 
  ms.). 
  More 
  frequently, 
  a 
  white 
  magician 
  (paqo) 
  is 
  engaged 
  

   to 
  counteract 
  witchcraft 
  by 
  divining 
  the 
  whereabouts 
  of 
  the 
  bundle, 
  

   then 
  burning 
  it, 
  or 
  by 
  pouring 
  salt 
  and 
  the 
  victim's 
  urine 
  on 
  it 
  and 
  

   depositing 
  it 
  in 
  running 
  water. 
  The 
  attitudes 
  toward 
  the 
  liability 
  of 
  

   witches 
  for 
  their 
  evil 
  acts 
  vary. 
  Formerly, 
  many 
  witches 
  were 
  burned 
  

   to 
  death 
  and 
  subsequently 
  eaten 
  (Bandelier, 
  1910, 
  p. 
  127). 
  Many 
  

   Aymara 
  feel 
  today 
  that 
  the 
  evil 
  witch 
  is 
  not 
  to 
  blame, 
  for 
  witchcraft 
  

   is 
  his 
  profession, 
  and 
  hold 
  instead 
  that 
  his 
  clients 
  are 
  guilty. 
  Witches 
  

   do 
  not 
  receive 
  formal 
  trial. 
  When 
  dead, 
  they 
  are 
  buried 
  face 
  down- 
  

   ward 
  and 
  are 
  thought 
  to 
  go 
  to 
  hell. 
  

  

  The 
  white 
  magician 
  (paqo) 
  seeks 
  to 
  promote 
  health 
  and 
  prosperity. 
  

   He 
  cures 
  disease, 
  performs 
  weather 
  and 
  love 
  magic, 
  offers 
  sacrifices 
  

   for 
  the 
  benefit 
  of 
  the 
  crops 
  and 
  flocks, 
  counteracts 
  witchcraft, 
  appre- 
  

   hends 
  thieves, 
  and 
  finds 
  lost 
  property. 
  He 
  divines 
  usually 
  by 
  using 
  

   coca 
  and 
  by 
  interviewing 
  spirits. 
  He 
  cures 
  sickness 
  by 
  counteracting 
  

   witchcraft 
  and 
  by 
  placating 
  the 
  spirits 
  who 
  either 
  sent 
  the 
  disease 
  or 
  

   seized 
  the 
  patient's 
  soul. 
  Spirits 
  are 
  summoned 
  in 
  a 
  stance 
  to 
  discover 
  

   the 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  infirmity, 
  after 
  which 
  proper 
  offerings 
  are 
  made. 
  In 
  

   addition 
  to 
  supernatural 
  cures, 
  the 
  white 
  magician 
  usually 
  has 
  a 
  

   considerable 
  knowledge 
  of 
  herbal 
  remedies. 
  In 
  the 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  

   Department 
  of 
  La 
  Paz, 
  he 
  makes 
  annual 
  sacrifices 
  to 
  prevent 
  epidem- 
  

   ics 
  (La 
  Barre, 
  ms.). 
  

  

  Although 
  the 
  Aymara 
  possess 
  no 
  special 
  weather 
  shamans, 
  the 
  white 
  

   magician 
  performs 
  rites 
  to 
  bring 
  rain 
  (see 
  Public 
  Ceremonials, 
  p. 
  567), 
  

   to 
  prevent 
  hail, 
  and 
  to 
  prevent 
  houses 
  and 
  livestock 
  from 
  being 
  struck 
  

   by 
  lightning. 
  

  

  The 
  apprehension 
  of 
  thieves 
  through 
  spirit 
  aid 
  is 
  perhaps 
  the 
  most 
  

   important 
  function 
  of 
  the 
  white 
  magician. 
  He 
  performs 
  at 
  night, 
  

   when 
  everyone 
  must 
  remain 
  silent, 
  cover 
  his 
  head, 
  and 
  arm 
  himself 
  

   with 
  a 
  knife 
  against 
  such 
  evil 
  spirits 
  as 
  may 
  be 
  invoked. 
  The 
  lights 
  

   are 
  extinguished 
  and 
  the 
  magician, 
  employing 
  ventriloquism, 
  summons 
  

   the 
  spirits, 
  which 
  include 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  local 
  place 
  spirits 
  (acacila) 
  and 
  

   demons, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  souls 
  of 
  the 
  dead, 
  the 
  living, 
  and 
  animals. 
  When 
  

   the 
  spirits 
  arrive, 
  they 
  talk 
  to 
  each 
  other 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  magician, 
  but 
  

   anyone 
  may 
  question 
  them. 
  If 
  they 
  are 
  able 
  to 
  name 
  the 
  thief, 
  the 
  

   magician 
  asks 
  them 
  to 
  bring 
  in 
  his 
  soul, 
  which, 
  after 
  arriving, 
  is 
  beaten 
  

   until 
  it 
  either 
  denies 
  or 
  confesses 
  the 
  theft. 
  

  

  Public 
  ceremonials. 
  — 
  As 
  few 
  public 
  religious 
  ceremonials 
  of 
  the 
  

   Aymara 
  survive, 
  those 
  which 
  today 
  are 
  still 
  largely 
  aboriginal 
  in 
  char- 
  

   acter 
  deserve 
  some 
  mention. 
  Perhaps 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  of 
  these 
  

   are 
  the 
  ceremony 
  performed 
  to 
  bring 
  rain, 
  the 
  festival 
  of 
  the 
  good-luck 
  

   fertility 
  spirit, 
  eq'eq'o, 
  and 
  the 
  Soqela 
  ceremony. 
  

  

  