My summary aims shed light on the question: How do the Qollahuayan people of Nifiokorin, Kaata, and Apacheta’s view of hydrollic mountain systems relate to their view of body fluid cycles?
The Qollahuayan people span over nine allyus in the Andes mountains. Allyus are triangle land masses which contain small communities. The article focuses on three communities Nifiokorin, Kaata, and Apacheta to describe the Qollahuayan view. The Qollahuayan people view their body system as a cycle of body fluids linked with the topographical layout of a mountain. The body fluids which they recognize are fat, bile, milk, semen, and by-products: feces, urine and sweat. The fluids are processed in the Sonco(heart) and must be released in order to keep the cycle of health going. They view these body fluids as important to each level of the body: bottom, middle and top. They also view the mountain as having three layers: bottom middle and top, the top containing a head, eyes and a mouth, the middle containing a stomach and heart, and the bottom containing legs and toenails. They make offerings to the mountain in order to maintain a healthy physiology for themselves. These offerings include serving coca, blood and fat in 13 scallop shells to different earth shrines. Herbalists classify blood based on a system of hold, cold, wet, dry. This is similar to environmental characteristics that can be found on the mountain. Plants and diseases are also given a temperature and/or moisture classification and are matched up accordingly. Plants are also classified by how they affect the flow of fluids. The Qollahuayans view their herbal medicine as an exchange of ingredients between the earth and the body. Everything that the body does is connected to what happens in the environment and what happens in the environment affects their physiology.
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