Igarubídaté Igoriguéode
Praise chant for a grandson that killed a Jaguar
(Words of the chant by *Igarubídaté – her tune is a Jnurumini Clan tune.)
Igarubídaté says:
I am so happy about what my grandson *Ijnimínayé did just now:
Igarubídaté speaks with the voice of the jaguar:
“Now why didn’t I just eat him at the start, then I wouldn’t be slobbering right now?” (Slobbering is another way to refer to crying/lamenting)
She returns to her own voice:
I am so happy about what my grandsons did to that very fierce, man-eating jaguar.
Igarubídaté speaks to the Jaguar:
O, man-eating Jaguar, rise up from the ground! Make my sisters and me poor orphans all over again if you can. They tell me that long ago you consumed our father, who we can’t remember any more. It was you who caused my sisters and me to suffer such a great poverty.
Igarubídaté comments:
O, why did so many old women like myself become paralyzed with fear because of *the harmful creature? Why do we old ladies have to stand silently by before one of these harmful creatures?
I am very happy about our countryman, the non-Ayoré man “who carries a gun,” that one called Luis, because it was he who went with *Acácomi and brought down the harmful creature that Acácomi killed. He brought Acácomi’s victim down for him, the harmful creature.
I am also happy with that nephew of mine, *Dejabi, because on that very day he just threw that harmful creature down with a thud! Another one of those harmful creatures has been thrown to the ground by someone who loved his friends.
May that “Tender New Squash” *Ijnimínaté, appreciate what her husband, my grandson, Ijnimínayé has done. (Note: One of Ijniminaté’s clan possessions is the tender new squash; that is why Igarubídaté refers to her grandson’s wife with this term – which is very complimentary.)
Igarubídaté speaks to the Jaguar:
You’re probably wishing that I were slobbering right now for that greatly esteemed Ripe Green Hot Pepper! (Note: One of her grandson’s clan-possessions is ‘the green hot pepper,’ so she is using this term as a complement to her grandson when speaking of him to the jaguar.)
Igarubídaté comments:
What my grandson Acácomi did to that harmful creature was a marvelous deed.
Igarubídaté speaks to daylight:
Little Daylight, hurry, come from wherever you are to us so that the vultures can see to quickly devour the harmful creature’s flesh, tearing it apart, pulling out its lungs and dividing them up among themselves.
Igarubídaté comments:
I’m so happy right now about my son, Dejabi, blooming like a flower, and the others. I’m so moved! They have made me so happy. They have thrown down that harmful creature to the ground!
Now, I’ve worked hard, praising my grandsons, the young men, and I will now share how happy I am about the dogs of my grandson *Daturájnai, and those of Luis; because of the speed of these dogs in chasing the jaguar, the young men could kill that harmful creature.
I’m going to stop now.
Key:
cojñoi – white person
corẽ́ – the woman that chants for those who have killed a jaguar
corãi –the man who chants for those who have killed a jaguar
imocarãi – the one who has a weapon
Acácomi – the person in the chant who fired the first shot – thus he is the one who get’s the praise
orasoi –fast runner (pl. orasode)
oraserãi m. –he who runs fast
oraserẽ f. – she who runs fast
coriguei –praise chant for the person who kills a jaguar or another important victim. Many times it is someone who has had family members killed by a jaguar who chants the praises of a jaguar killer. (possessive form: igoriguei)
*The harmful creature – a way to refer to a jaguar
Notice the change of names when a child is born:
Ijnimi – name of child
Ijnimínaté – mother of Ijnimi
Ijnimínayé – father of Ijnimi
Ijnimináquide – grandfather of Ijnimi
Ijnimidacode – grandmother of Ijnimi
*Acácomí – Ijnimínayé’s name before his child Ijnimi was born
Igarubídaté – Campo Loro, Paraguay – 1988
Transcribed and translated to English by: Maxine Morarie
