THE PERUVIAN AMAZON

Waters of several types flow together into the Amazon River. There is black water from the Guyana highlands, rain that falls on the Matto Grosso, and turbid whitewater melted from glaciers in the Andes. The Peruvian Amazon receives water from rain, hail and snow that fall in the Andean highlands. This region lies on the eastern slope of the Andes, at relatively high altitudes. Moist wind from the Amazonian plain rises suddenly when it hits the Andes mountains and fog forms. For this reason the humidity is high and rainfall is heavy. Much of the land is covered by so-called "cloud forest" that is unusable by humans. Various mammals and birds whose numbers are declining due to hunting live in the jungles of southeastern Peru. These include the giant otter and the jaguar, both of which are in danger of extinction. There are nature reserves in the Manu and Tambopata districts of Peru where the local ecology has been preserved in nearly its primeval condition.

Sekino visited some Indians who live in the Peruvian Amazon region. There he reported that he observed a life-cycle ritual called "Uma Rutuchi" which involves cutting the hair of a 2 year-old child. Mothers in this region breast-feed their children until they are two years old, and that is also the point at which they first cut their children's hair.

"It was decided that I had to cut the child's hair with scissors first, and I used my own pair of scissors because the villagers did not have a pair. I wrapped the hair that I cut off in a piece of Peruvian money and put it on a plate that had been prepared for this purpose. The child's father, mother, grandfather, grandmother, and other relatives followed after me. They also wrapped up pieces of the child's hair in money, and several of them also placed some coins on top of the packets of hair. Since some of them did not have money, they verbally promised that they were going to bring a sheep in the future.

We also wrapped votive offerings and the hair together. When we burned theses offerings, I was told that we gave them to the Pacha Mama, or guardian spirit. After cutting the child's hair, the child's family and I are said to have a relationship of courtesy or "fictive" kinship. I became the child's fictive "parent" or "Padrino." His parents and I call each other "Compadre" or 'Commadre.' "

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