Ritual and daily life in south Amazonas: the Tenharim of Marmelos River

Abstract

This article describes a ritual that happens annualy among the Tenharim of Marmelos river, an indigenous tribe that lives in the south region of Amazonas state. The intention is to demonstrate how political aspects are straightly related to social organization and to cosmology. Besides it, one can notice that the ritual deals with a temporary conection gathering together the time of myths and ancestors and present time. By using technical objects of our society - such as cars, pans - and distributing cookies e artificial juice to guests, the Tenharim mobilize their world and, through their “predatory language”, update their reflections about the contemporary world.