Cuando los animales eran gente. La primera gran conversión de la historia shawi

Abstract

This article concerns a little explored group in the northern Peruvian Amazon called the Chayahuita or Shawi, and their conception and management of their relationships with the tanan huayan, dangerous non-humans who have retained the original condition they once shared with the Shawi. I explore a series of narratives about the most intimate places of Shawi territory, many of which address profound transformations suffered by their ancestors in mythical times. Considering that one of the most important changes that occurred to the Shawi in the past is their transit from a proto-human state to their current humanity, I suggest that these changes concern not only their history, but also the conception Shawi have of themselves (as piyapi, person) and of their relationships with those threatening non-humans that stayed in their original form and that populate the forest nowadays.