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© 2001 Håkan Berg
Visions of the spirit world
Side view, showing hole where drugs were ground
Unknown Amazon
Stone mortar
This mortar was probably used to grind snuff, which gave men visions of the spirit world. Many Amazonians would grind herbal drugs, such as tobacco and coca, into a powder which was then sniffed or blown up a man's nose as snuff. When the drugs began to work he would have a vision and could become transformed into a spirit or animal of the forest.
The carving on this mortar shows a supernatural jaguar spirit grasping the head of a man whom he is possessing. The hole for grinding the drugs is in the back of the jaguar, so to use the mortar a man would hold it with one hand, face down, while he used the other hand to work the pestle. Jaguars have a special relationship with shamans, who are said to turn themselves into jaguars, so the mortar has been made to show what could happen when it was used in the important religious rituals which put men in touch with the spirits.
Other Views: Drawings made by a Barasana man to show his visions of the spirit world while in a trance.