VIHO MAN
Taken from my collection of Amazon-inspired poetry titled 'Amazonas'
The Sun Father,
The Invisible Sun,
With your own eyes
He can’t be seen,
Made the world.
Did he make the world,
Can’t be seen?
Ah, yes.
Thought about setting,
Animating the world,
Only with purpose,
Animated the Beings of Blood.
Did he animate the Beings of Blood,
Only with purpose?
Ah, yes.
And the Beings of Day,
The Daughter of the Sun,
The Daughter of the Fishes,
And Vihò Man,
Animated them all.
Was it he who animated them all,
Vihò Man?
Ah, yes.
That one, the Sun,
Father of the sun,
He ate her vagina,
The Daughter of the Fishes,
He buried his head.
Did she bury his head,
The Daughter of the Fishes?
Ah, yes.
Lay with her,
In the settled Milky Way.
The grey river of milk
Became violent and rushing.
Was it violent and rushing,
The grey river of milk?
Ah, yes.
And in the sun’s house,
With your own eyes
The one that can’t be seen,
And in the house of the moon,
He lay with her there.
Did he lay with her there,
In the house of the moon?
Ah, yes?
The Daughter of the Fishes,
Child of the arucú fishes,
Who live in the rivers,
She put her hand down,
Deep in the waters.
Was she deep in the waters
And put her hand down?
Ah, yes.
Scratched his penis,
Pulled at the foreskin,
Tore at the sides a little,
Put her hand down.
Did she put her hand down,
Tore at the sides a little?
Ah, yes.
Shaking the settled river,
Churning it over,
Sweat falling in,
Making disease in there,
Making putrefaction in the there.
Was she making putrefaction in there,
Making disease in there?
Ah, yes.
The Sun Father,
The invisible Sun,
With your eyes,
Oh, he can’t be seen,
Put out his semen.
Did he put out his semen,
The one that can’t be seen?
Ah, yes.
Produced his own liquid
Into the churning,
The grey river of milk,
The Vihò magic also fell out.
Did the Vihò magic fall out,
The grey river of milk?
Ah, yes.
Fell to the ground,
That Vihò magic,
Into her hands,
Wrapped in virola leaves,
Tucked away inside her.
Did she tuck away inside her
Wrapped virola leaves?
Ah, yes.
She went away,
The Daughter of the Fishes,
To the far wind currents
Above the Milky Way,
To the house of Vihò Man.
Was it Vihò Man’s house
Above the Milky Way?
Ah, yes.
“Son, I have a thing for you
All the way inside me,
The magic of the Sun Father,
All the way inside me”
Is it all the way inside me,
The magic of the Sun father?
Ah, yes.
Vihò man put his hand inside,
Rooted with his fingers,
Grasped and pulled,
Shaking the grey river,
The Vihò magic fell out.
Did the Vihò magic fall out,
Shaking the grey river?
Ah, yes.
They wanted a house,
The people on earth,
The ones who Vihò Man
Animated with magic
From the Daughter of the Fishes.
Was it the Daughter of the Fishes
Who animated with magic?
Ah, yes.
How that happened,
Everyone knows,
The Sun father,
Sent them to the rapids.
Did he send them to the rapids,
The Sun father?
Ah, yes.
Where the rocks were,
Sent the Beings of Blood,
The Beings of Day,
Vihò Man,
To the people in the forest.
To the people in the forest
Goes Vihò Man?
Ah, yes.
Vihò Man,
He brought the virola stalks
And virola leaves
In a loose skin bag,
The Vihò magic in the bag.
Was it Vihò magic in the bag,
In the loose skin bag?
Ah, yes.
Brought sickness
From the Milky Way
In the guts of a tapir,
Brought putrefaction.
Was it putrefaction
In the guts of a tapir?
Ah, yes.
Brought sorcery,
And when the house was built,
Hid it in the nooks,
Hid it in the cracks
Of the housebeams.
Was it the housebeams,
Hiding in the cracks?
Ah, yes.
The Beings of Day
Taught the people,
Showed them housebuilding,
Set the doorbeam,
Stuck in the crossbeams.
Did they stick the crossbeams,
Set the doorbeams?
Ah, yes?
Vihò Man in the trees,
He didn’t do any work,
Didn’t sing songs
Like the Beings of Blood.
Did the Beings of Blood
Sing songs?
Ah, yes.
The Beings of Day,
When the house was built,
Those bright blue creatures,
Set the thatching roof,
And went to the west.
Did the go to the west,
Setting the thatch roof?
Ah, yes.
Vihò man in the trees
Asked the eagles
In the braches above,
Chewing coca
With their white beaks
Were their white beaks
Chewing coca?
Ah, yes.
Asked them to set
Vine traps and nets,
To catch the people
When they came outside.
Did they catch the people
When they came outside?
Ah, yes.
Flew around the house,
Chewing coca,
Dropping spit in the soil,
They put up vine nets,
The eagles in the trees.
Was it eagles in the trees
Who put up vine nets?
Ah, yes.
The Beings of Blood,
Singing their songs,
Those bright red creatures,
Picked up their nets,
From the world above.
Was it the world above,
Picked up their nets?
Ah, yes.
“This is a house,
The first house”
They trapped the eagles
In their own nets.
In their own nets,
Did they trap the eagles?
Ah, yes.
Threw them upward
To the Milky Way,
The violent grey river
And Vihò Man followed,
Leaving his loose skin bag.
Did he leave his skin bag,
Vihò Man following?
Ah, yes.
Now he is there,
Vihò Man with his milk,
With the daughter of the Fishes,
With his spiritual power,
With his jaguar jacket.
Is he with his jaguar jacket,
With his spiritual power?
Ah, yes.
Shamans go to his house
With the bag of Vihò magic,
Holding disease in there,
Holding putrefaction in there.
Does he hold disease in the there,
Putrefaction in there?
Ah, yes.
Vihò Man,
Covered in speckles,
Eyes closed and singing,
Above the Milky Way,
“Vihò, Vihò, Vihò”
“Vihò, Vihò, Vihò,” he is singing,
Above the Milky Way?
Ah, yes.
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