Papua New Guinea. Goroka Show

Especially its center is one of the protected corners of the Earth, where human civilization has hardly penetrated. People there live in complete dependence on nature, worship their deities and revere the spirits of their ancestors...

STILL IN THE STONE AGE

On the coast of the island New Guinea are now fully occupied civilized people who know the official - English - language. Missionaries worked with them for many years.

However, in the center of the country there is something like a reservation - nomadic tribes who still live in the Stone Age. They know every tree by name, they bury the dead on the branches, they have no idea what money or passports are... They are surrounded by a mountainous country overgrown with impenetrable jungle, where, due to high humidity and unimaginable heat, life is unbearable for a European. No one there knows a word of English, and each tribe speaks its own language, of which there are about 900 in New Guinea. The tribes live very isolated from each other, communication between them is almost impossible, so their dialects have little in common, and people are each other friend simply do not understand.

Typical locality, where the Papuan tribe lives: modest huts are covered with huge leaves, in the center there is something like a clearing where the whole tribe gathers, and around for many kilometers the jungle. The only weapons of these people are stone axes, spears, bows and arrows. But not with their help, they hope to protect themselves from evil spirits. That's why they have faith in gods and spirits.

In the Papuan tribe, the mummy of the "leader" is usually kept. This is some outstanding ancestor - the most courageous, strong and intelligent, who fell in battle with the enemy. After his death, his body was treated with a special compound to avoid decay. The body of the leader is kept by the sorcerer.

It is in every tribe. This character is highly revered among the relatives. Its function is mainly to communicate with the ancestral spirits, appeasing them and asking for advice. Sorcerers usually go to people who are weak and unfit for a constant battle for survival - in a word, old people. By witchcraft they make their living.

WHITES ARE OUT OF THE WORLD?

The first white man who came to this exotic continent was the Russian traveler Miklukho-Maclay.

Having landed on the coast of New Guinea in September 1871, he, being an absolutely peaceful person, decided not to take weapons ashore, he took only gifts and a notebook, which he never parted with.

The locals met the stranger quite aggressively: they shot arrows in his direction, shouted intimidatingly, brandished their spears... But Miklukho-Maclay did not react to these attacks. On the contrary, with the most imperturbable look, he sat down on the grass, defiantly took off his shoes and lay down to take a nap. By an effort of will, the traveler forced himself to sleep (or only pretended to). And when he woke up, he saw that the Papuans were sitting peacefully next to him and were looking at the foreign guest with all their eyes. The savages reasoned thus: if a pale-faced man is not afraid of death, then he is immortal. That's what they decided on.

For several months the traveler lived in a tribe of savages. All this time, the natives worshiped him and revered him as a god. They knew that if desired, the mysterious guest could command the forces of nature. How is it? Yes, just once Miklukho-Maclay, who was called nothing more than Tamorus - "Russian man", or Karaantamo - "man from the moon", showed the Papuans such a trick: he poured water into a plate with alcohol and set it on fire. gullible locals believed that a foreigner was able to set fire to the sea or stop the rain.

However, the Papuans are generally gullible. For example, they are firmly convinced that the dead go to their country and return white, bringing with them many useful items and food. This belief lives in all Papuan tribes (despite the fact that they hardly communicate with each other), even in those where they have never seen a white man.

FUNERAL RITE

The Papuans know three causes of death: from old age, from war and from witchcraft - if the death occurred for some unknown reason. If a person died a natural death, he will be honorably buried. All funeral ceremonies are aimed at appeasing the spirits that receive the soul of the deceased.

Here is a typical example of such a ritual. Close relatives of the deceased go to the stream to perform bisi as a sign of mourning - smearing yellow clay on the head and other parts of the body. The men at this time are preparing a funeral pyre in the center of the village. Not far from the fire, a place is being prepared where the deceased will rest before cremation. Shells and sacred stones of vus are placed here - the abode of some mystical power. Touching these living stones is strictly punished by the laws of the tribe. On top of the stones should lie a long braided strip, decorated with pebbles, which acts as a bridge between the world of the living and the world of the dead.

The deceased is placed on sacred stones, smeared pork fat and clay, sprinkled with bird feathers. Funeral songs then begin to be sung over him, recounting the outstanding services of the deceased.

And finally, the body is burned at the stake so that the human spirit does not return from the underworld.

TO THE DEAD IN BATTLE - GLORY!

If a man died in battle, his body is roasted at the stake and honorably eaten with rituals appropriate to the occasion, so that his strength and courage pass to other men.

Three days after this, the phalanges of the fingers are cut off to the wife of the deceased as a sign of mourning. This custom is connected with another ancient Papuan legend.

One man mistreated his wife. She died and ended up in the next world. But her husband yearned for her, could not live alone. He went for his wife to another world, approached the main spirit and began to beg to return his beloved to the world of the living. The spirit set a condition: the wife will return, but only if he promises to treat her with care and kindness. The man, of course, was delighted and promised everything at once. The wife returned to him. But one day her husband forgot himself and again forced her to work hard. When he caught himself and remembered this promise, it was already too late: his wife fell apart before his eyes. Her husband only had a phalanx of her finger left. The tribe was angry and expelled him, because he took away their immortality - the opportunity to return from the other world, like his wife.

However, in reality, for some reason, the wife cuts off the phalanx of her finger as a sign of the last gift to her dead husband. The father of the deceased performs the rite of nasuk - he cuts off the upper part of his ear with a wooden knife and then covers the bleeding wound with clay. This ceremony is quite long and painful.

After funeral rite Papuans revere and cajole the spirit of their ancestors. For if his soul is not appeased, the ancestor will not leave the village, but will live there and harm. The spirit of the ancestor is fed for some time, as if alive, and even try to give him sexual pleasure. For example, a clay figurine of a tribal god is placed on a stone with a hole, symbolizing a woman.

The underworld in the view of the Papuans is some paradise where there is a lot of food, especially meat.

DEATH WITH A SMILE ON THE LIPS

In Papua New Guinea, people believe that the head is the seat of the spiritual and physical strength person. Therefore, when fighting with enemies, the Papuans first of all seek to take possession of this part of the body.

Cannibalism for the Papuans is not at all the desire to eat tasty food, but rather magical rite, during which cannibals gain the intelligence and strength of the one they eat. Let us apply this custom not only to enemies, but also to friends, and even relatives who heroically fell in battle.

Especially "productive" in this sense is the process of eating the brain. By the way, it is with this rite that doctors associate the disease kuru, which is very common among cannibals. Kuru is another name for mad cow disease, which can be contracted by eating the uncooked brains of animals (or, in this case, humans).

This insidious disease was first recorded in 1950 in New Guinea, in a tribe where the brain of dead relatives was considered a delicacy. The disease begins with pain in the joints and head, gradually progressing, leads to loss of coordination, trembling in the arms and legs and, oddly enough, bouts of uncontrollable laughter. The disease develops long years sometimes the incubation period is 35 years. But the worst thing is that the victims of the disease die with a frozen smile on their lips.

Papua New Guinea, especially its center - one of the protected corners of the Earth, where human civilization has hardly penetrated. People there live in complete dependence on nature, worship their deities and revere the spirits of their ancestors.

Quite civilized people now live on the coast of the island of New Guinea, who know the official - English - language. Missionaries worked with them for many years.

However, in the center of the country there is something like a reservation - nomadic tribes and who still live in the Stone Age. They know every tree by name, they bury the dead on the branches, they have no idea what money or passports are.

They are surrounded by a mountainous country overgrown with impenetrable jungle, where, due to high humidity and unimaginable heat, life is unbearable for a European.

No one there knows a word of English, and each tribe speaks its own language, of which there are about 900 in New Guinea. The tribes live very isolated from each other, communication between them is almost impossible, so their dialects have little in common, and people are each other friend simply do not understand.

A typical settlement where the Papuan tribe lives: modest huts are covered with huge leaves, in the center there is something like a clearing where the whole tribe gathers, and the jungle is around for many kilometers. The only weapons of these people are stone axes, spears, bows and arrows. But not with their help, they hope to protect themselves from evil spirits. That's why they have faith in gods and spirits.

In the Papuan tribe, the mummy of the "leader" is usually kept. This is some outstanding ancestor - the most courageous, strong and intelligent, who fell in battle with the enemy. After his death, his body was treated with a special compound to avoid decay. The body of the leader is kept by the sorcerer.

It is in every tribe. This character is highly revered among the relatives. Its function is mainly to communicate with the ancestral spirits, appeasing them and asking for advice. The sorcerers usually go to people who are weak and unsuitable for a constant battle for survival - in a word, old people. By witchcraft they make their living.

The first white man who came to this exotic continent was the Russian traveler Miklukho-Maclay. Having landed on the coast of New Guinea in September 1871, he, being an absolutely peaceful person, decided not to take weapons ashore, he took only gifts and a notebook, which he never parted with.

The locals met the stranger quite aggressively: they shot arrows in his direction, shouted intimidatingly, brandished their spears...

But Miklukho-Maclay did not react in any way to these attacks. On the contrary, with the most imperturbable look, he sat down on the grass, defiantly took off his shoes and lay down to take a nap.

By an effort of will, the traveler forced himself to sleep (or only pretended to). And when he woke up, he saw that the Papuans were sitting peacefully next to him and were looking at the foreign guest with all their eyes. The savages reasoned thus: if a pale-faced man is not afraid of death, then he is immortal. That's what they decided on.

For several months the traveler lived in a tribe of savages. All this time, the natives worshiped him and revered him as a god. They knew that if desired, the mysterious guest could command the forces of nature. How is it?

Yes, just once Miklukho-Maclay, who was called only Tamo-rus - “Russian man”, or Karaan-tamo - “man from the moon”, showed the Papuans such a trick: he poured water into a plate with alcohol and set it on fire. Trusting locals believed that a foreigner was able to set fire to the sea or stop the rain.

However, the Papuans are generally gullible. For example, they are firmly convinced that the dead go to their country and return white, bringing with them many useful items and food. This belief lives in all Papuan tribes (despite the fact that they hardly communicate with each other), even in those where they have never seen a white man.

FUNERAL RITE

The Papuans know three causes of death: from old age, from war and from witchcraft - if the death occurred for some unknown reason. If a person died a natural death, he will be honorably buried. All funeral ceremonies are aimed at appeasing the spirits that receive the soul of the deceased.

Here is a typical example of such a ritual. Close relatives of the deceased go to the stream to perform bisi as a sign of mourning - smearing yellow clay on the head and other parts of the body. The men at this time are preparing a funeral pyre in the center of the village. Not far from the fire, a place is being prepared where the deceased will rest before cremation.

Shells and sacred stones of vus are placed here - the abode of some mystical power. Touching these living stones is strictly punished by the laws of the tribe. On top of the stones should lie a long braided strip, decorated with pebbles, which acts as a bridge between the world of the living and the world of the dead.

The deceased is placed on sacred stones, smeared with pork fat and clay, sprinkled with bird feathers. Funeral songs then begin to be sung over him, recounting the outstanding services of the deceased.

And finally, the body is burned at the stake so that the human spirit does not return from the underworld.

TO THE DEAD IN BATTLE - GLORY!

If a man died in battle, his body is roasted at the stake and honorably eaten with rituals appropriate to the occasion, so that his strength and courage pass to other men.

Three days after this, the phalanges of the fingers are cut off to the wife of the deceased as a sign of mourning. This custom is connected with another ancient Papuan legend.

One man mistreated his wife. She died and ended up in the next world. But her husband yearned for her, could not live alone. He went for his wife to another world, approached the main spirit and began to beg to return his beloved to the world of the living. The spirit set a condition: the wife will return, but only if he promises to treat her with care and kindness. The man, of course, was delighted and promised everything at once.

The wife returned to him. But one day her husband forgot himself and again forced her to work hard. When he caught himself and remembered this promise, it was already too late: his wife fell apart before his eyes. Her husband only had a phalanx of her finger left. The tribe got angry and expelled him, because he took away their immortality - the opportunity to return from the other world, like his wife.

However, in reality, for some reason, the wife cuts off the phalanx of her finger as a sign of the last gift to her deceased husband. The father of the deceased performs the rite of nasuk - he cuts off the upper part of his ear with a wooden knife and then covers the bleeding wound with clay. This ceremony is quite long and painful.

After the funeral ceremony, the Papuans honor and appease the spirit of their ancestor. For if his soul is not appeased, the ancestor will not leave the village, but will live there and harm. The spirit of the ancestor is fed for some time, as if alive, and even try to give him sexual pleasure. For example, a clay figurine of a tribal god is placed on a stone with a hole, symbolizing a woman.

The underworld in the view of the Papuans is some kind of paradise, where there is a lot of food, especially meat.

DEATH WITH A SMILE ON THE LIPS

In Papua New Guinea, people believe that the head is the seat of a person's spiritual and physical strength. Therefore, when fighting with enemies, the Papuans first of all seek to take possession of this part of the body.

Cannibalism for the Papuans is not at all the desire to eat deliciously, but rather a magical rite, during which cannibals receive the mind and strength of the one they eat. Let us apply this custom not only to enemies, but also to friends, and even relatives who heroically fell in battle.

Especially "productive" in this sense is the process of eating the brain. By the way, it is with this rite that doctors associate the disease kuru, which is very common among cannibals. Kuru is another name for mad cow disease, which can be contracted by eating the unroasted brains of animals (or, in this case, humans).

This insidious disease was first recorded in 1950 in New Guinea, in a tribe where the brain of dead relatives was considered a delicacy. The disease begins with pain in the joints and head, gradually progressing, leads to loss of coordination, trembling in the arms and legs and, oddly enough, bouts of uncontrollable laughter.

The disease develops for many years, sometimes the incubation period is 35 years. But the worst thing is that the victims of the disease die with a frozen smile on their lips.

Papua New Guinea. Goroka Show. Papuan is festive. October 8th, 2013

I thought for a long time where to start the story about a trip to such strange place. To be honest, the impressions from the trip to Papua New Guinea turned out to be quite ambiguous ... And it’s hardly worth dumping everything at once :)))

So. I decided to start with the front door of Papuan. Festive. In this post there will be a lot of pictures with a variety of elegant Papuans.
Probably, this is what people imagine when they hear "Papua, Papuans." I won't disappoint.

There are over 700 different tribes in Papua New Guinea. Literally every village is a separate tribe with its own language and its own outfits.
In order to somehow unite the country, reconcile the tribes, and at least reacquaint them for more than 50 years, under the patronage of government organizations, ethnic festivals have been held in the country - a kind of intertribal congresses, at which numerous tribes of the country demonstrate their cultural traditions, dress in their best outfits (decorating the body and face), show ancient rituals, dance, sing and express their identity in every way.
One of the main, oldest, most colorful - Goroka show. Takes place in mid-September.
More than a hundred tribes take part in the festival.

Tourists began to come to these festivals only from the end of the 20th century. So traditionally these festivals are holidays not so much for tourists as for the Papuans themselves. They come from all over the country, prepare in advance, dress up, joyfully dance and sing during the holiday. In general, for the most part, the Papuans love to chat with new people, hang out. And the festival is a good occasion for that.

And although the festival itself began on Saturday, already the day before in the town here and there one could meet dressing up people

On the festival day, dressed up people simply dazzle in the eyes.

The festival is not a demonstration of traditional national costumes. This is a holiday of songs, dances, unity ... Therefore, there are very modernized personalities

All the action takes place according to a simple scenario:
groups take turns passing through the corridor of spectators (local residents not taking part in the show), dancing and singing martial songs. Then they get to a fenced area - a huge field, where only show participants and tourists are allowed (I counted as many as 20 people, probably). Then all this large motley crowd dances, sings, sits, communicates, listens to the speeches of government representatives. And tourists walk and look until they charge in the eyes :)

Each group has two very responsible people. The first - carries a sign with the name of the group. The second is the shoes of the participants in the performance.

The inhabitants of the coastal regions are easily recognizable by their rich shell decorations.

Most people in Papua New Guinea have the bad habit of chewing betelnuts. This nut has a weak narcotic effect. Therefore, the look of the Papuans is slightly intoxicated. It is very easy to recognize nut chewers by their rotten teeth and red mouth.

But these people in moss costumes just tore my idea of ​​national costumes :)

The bag on the girl's head is a noken. Traditional Papuan bag. Sizes range from a small cosmetic bag to a giant shopping bag (where a large backpack fits). The bag is worn on the head. They carry not only things there, but also, for example, children.

Pay attention to this handsome man, we will return to this village

All participants of the show are very willing to pose. For - if a white man I decided to take a picture of you, so the costume was a success :)

The Yali are the wildest and most dangerous cannibal tribe of the 21st century, numbering over 20,000. In their opinion, cannibalism is a common thing and there is nothing special about it, eating the enemy is a virtue for them, and not the most cruel way of reprisal. Their leader says that this is the same as a fish eats a fish, the one who is stronger wins. For yali, this is to some extent a ritual, during which the power of the enemy he eats passes to the winner.

The government of New Guinea is trying to fight the inhuman addictions of its wild citizens. Yes, and their adoption of Christianity influenced their psychological perception - the number of cannibal feasts significantly decreased.
The most experienced warriors remember cooking recipes from enemies. With imperturbable calmness, one can even say with pleasure, they say that the buttocks of the enemy are the most delicious part of a person, for them this is a true delicacy!
Even now, the inhabitants of Yali believe that pieces of human flesh enrich them spiritually, eating the victim with the pronunciation of the name of the enemy gives special strength. Therefore, visiting the most creepy place planets, it is better not to pronounce your name to the savages, so as not to provoke them into the ritual of your eating.

AT recent times The Yali tribe believes in the existence of the savior of all mankind - Christ, therefore they do not eat people with white skin. The reason for this is also that White color associated in the inhabitants with the color of death. However, recently there was an incident - in Irian Jaya, as a result of strange events, a Japanese correspondent disappeared. Probably, they do not consider people with yellow and black skin to be servants of an old woman with a scythe.
Since the time of colonization, the life of the tribe has not changed much, as well as the attire of these jet-black citizens of New Guinea. Yali women are almost completely naked, their daytime attire consists only of a skirt with vegetable fibers. Men, in turn, go naked, covering their reproductive organ with a case (halim), which is made from a dried bottle gourd. According to them, the process of making clothes for men requires great skill.

As the pumpkin grows, a weight in the form of a stone is tied to it, which is strengthened with threads of vines to give an interesting shape. At the final stage of cooking, the pumpkin is decorated with feathers and shells. It is worth noting that Halim also serves as a "purse" in which men store roots and tobacco. The inhabitants of the tribe also love decorations made of shells and beads. But the perception of beauty in them is peculiar. For example, they knock out the front two teeth of local beauties in order to make them even more attractive.
The noble, beloved and only occupation of men is hunting. And yet in the villages of the tribe you can find livestock - chickens, pigs and opossums, which are watched by women. It also happens that several clans hold large-scale meals at once, where everyone has his own place and is taken into account. social status every savage in terms of food distribution. Alcoholic drinks they do not take, but they use the bright red flesh of the batel nut - for them it is a local drug, so tourists can often see them with a red mouth and blurred eyes ...

During the period joint meals clans exchange gifts. Although the Yalis cannot be called very hospitable people, they will accept gifts from guests with great pleasure. In a special way, they appreciate bright shirts and shorts. The peculiarity is that they put shorts on their heads, and use a shirt as a skirt. This is due to the fact that they do not contain soap, the result of which will be that unwashed clothes can cause skin diseases over time.
Even though the Yalis have officially stopped feuding with neighboring tribes and eating victims, only the most "frostbitten" adventurers can go to these inhuman parts of the world. According to the stories of this area, savages still sometimes allow themselves to carry out barbaric acts of eating the flesh of enemies. But to justify their actions, they invent different stories about the fact that the victim either drowned or crashed from a cliff.

The government of New Guinea has developed a powerful program for bodybuilding and raising the standard of living of the inhabitants of the island, including this tribe. The plan is for the hill tribes to move into the valley, with officials promising the settlers will be given an ample supply of rice and building materials and free TV in every house.
The citizens of the valley were forced to wear Western clothing in government buildings and schools. The government even took measures such as declaring the territory of the savages a national park where hunting is prohibited. Naturally, the Yalis began to oppose the resettlement, since out of the first 300 people, 18 died and this was in the very first month (from malaria).
Even more disappointing to the surviving settlers was what they saw - they were given barren land, rotten houses. As a result, the government's strategy collapsed with the collapse and the settlers returned back to their beloved mountainous regions, where they still live, rejoicing in the "protection of the spirits of their ancestors."

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