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Spirit of the Shuar: Wisdom from the Last Unconquered People of the Amazon
• Discover the thoughts, history, and customs of the Shuar of the Amazon, as told in their own words.
• Tribe members explain their practices of shapeshifting and headhunting; the interdependence of humans and the environment; the role of ecstatic sex; their belief in war as a path to peace; and their faith in arutam , the life spirit.
The indomitable Shuar of the Amazon--reputed to be the only tribe in the Americas that has never been conquered--have lived as warriors, hunters, cultivators, and healers for generations. Even in today's acquisitive, often wasteful world they defend their rainforests and sustainable ways of life and offer their philosophy of love, joy, and hope.
More than three decades after first befriending members of the Shuar, author and environmentalist John Perkins and his publisher, Ehud Sperling, inspired Shakaim Mariano Chumpi-a young Shuar warrior who has fought in the jungle war between his native Ecuador and Peru-to travel among his people and record their thoughts, history, and customs. The result is Spirit of the Shuar .
Here, in their own words, the Shuar share their practices of shapeshifting, "dreaming the world," and ecstatic sex, including the role older women play in teaching uninitiated men how to please. They explain the interdependence of humans and the environment, their formula for peace and balance, and their faith in arutam, the life-giving spirit of nature that allows each of us to transform ourselves. And they describe how their ancient-and current-practice of shrinking heads fits into their cultural philosophy.
Whether exploring the mystery of shamanic shapeshifting, delving deeper into the powers of healing herbs and psychotropic plants, or finding new ways to live sustainably and sensitively in the face of encroaching development and environmental destruction, the Shuar have emerged as a strong people determined to preserve their identity and beliefs and share their teachings with a world in dire need of their wisdom.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the Ayumpum Foundation to help the Shuar conserve their forests and spread their message.
• Tribe members explain their practices of shapeshifting and headhunting; the interdependence of humans and the environment; the role of ecstatic sex; their belief in war as a path to peace; and their faith in arutam , the life spirit.
The indomitable Shuar of the Amazon--reputed to be the only tribe in the Americas that has never been conquered--have lived as warriors, hunters, cultivators, and healers for generations. Even in today's acquisitive, often wasteful world they defend their rainforests and sustainable ways of life and offer their philosophy of love, joy, and hope.
More than three decades after first befriending members of the Shuar, author and environmentalist John Perkins and his publisher, Ehud Sperling, inspired Shakaim Mariano Chumpi-a young Shuar warrior who has fought in the jungle war between his native Ecuador and Peru-to travel among his people and record their thoughts, history, and customs. The result is Spirit of the Shuar .
Here, in their own words, the Shuar share their practices of shapeshifting, "dreaming the world," and ecstatic sex, including the role older women play in teaching uninitiated men how to please. They explain the interdependence of humans and the environment, their formula for peace and balance, and their faith in arutam, the life-giving spirit of nature that allows each of us to transform ourselves. And they describe how their ancient-and current-practice of shrinking heads fits into their cultural philosophy.
Whether exploring the mystery of shamanic shapeshifting, delving deeper into the powers of healing herbs and psychotropic plants, or finding new ways to live sustainably and sensitively in the face of encroaching development and environmental destruction, the Shuar have emerged as a strong people determined to preserve their identity and beliefs and share their teachings with a world in dire need of their wisdom.
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the Ayumpum Foundation to help the Shuar conserve their forests and spread their message.
- GenresNonfictionSpirituality
208 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2001
5 people are currently reading
221 people want to read
About the author
John Perkins
120 books1,274 followersJohn Perkins is an activist and author. As a former chief economist at Boston strategic-consulting firm Chas. T. Main, Perkins says that he was an "economic hit man" for 10 years, helping U.S. intelligence agencies and multinational corporations cajole and blackmail foreign leaders into serving U.S. foreign policy and awarding lucrative contracts to American business.
However, after several years struggling internally over the role he was playing in crippling foreign economies, he quit his consulting job. In the 1980s Perkins founded and directed a successful independent energy company, which he subsequently sold. Since then he has been heavily involved with non-profit organizations in Ecuador and around the world. He continues this work today, in addition to his writing.
His new book, Confessions of an Economic Hitman, 3rd Edition: China’s EHM Strategy; Ways to Stop the Global Takeover, a follow-up to international best-seller Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, will be released on February 28th, 2023.
However, after several years struggling internally over the role he was playing in crippling foreign economies, he quit his consulting job. In the 1980s Perkins founded and directed a successful independent energy company, which he subsequently sold. Since then he has been heavily involved with non-profit organizations in Ecuador and around the world. He continues this work today, in addition to his writing.
His new book, Confessions of an Economic Hitman, 3rd Edition: China’s EHM Strategy; Ways to Stop the Global Takeover, a follow-up to international best-seller Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, will be released on February 28th, 2023.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 16, 2020
I read this book on the heel of an ayahuasca retreat I’ve recently gone on in Ecuador, and interestingly one of the Shamans I had there (at the Gaia Sagrada retreat center near Cuenca) is one from the Shuar people and he has the same name with one of the Shamans mentioned in the book: Nase, which means “Wind from the forest” in the Shuar language.
The book is a fascinating read and probably one of the last few accounts of an indigenous people of the Ecuadorian Amazonian jungle currently undergoing deforestation and destruction which threatens the very existence of this people. It is also a very nuanced story of an ancient culture with drastically different views on almost all important aspects of life: economics, sex, life, death, and spirituality. Learning about such differences, however, brings us renewed understanding of how we are in fact the same with a shared destiny. A lot of the seemingly divergent values merely reflect how our human understanding evolved via different paths under different geographical and historical circumstances, but they invariably arch toward the same wisdoms about life: happiness, sustainability, health, and, being one with nature. Everything else is only a means not an end.
My only regret is that the epic poetry preserved in the Shuar language through an oral tradition not unlike that of the Iliad and Oddessy is only preserved in a kind of skeletal form. The linguistic beauty of the Shuar stories is largely lost as the (now written) storytelling does not have any original, written text to base off of, a difficulty acknowledged by the author in compiling this book (to whom I am immensely grateful). I suppose we are lucky enough to have access to these stories at all, considering what our modern society is doing to the very existence of the Shuar, while all the uwishins or the Shuar elders (in a way not unlike the Dalai Lama, who is also referenced in the book) wish is to offer the Shuar wisdoms about plants, animals, humans and the spirits to heal the world.
The book is a fascinating read and probably one of the last few accounts of an indigenous people of the Ecuadorian Amazonian jungle currently undergoing deforestation and destruction which threatens the very existence of this people. It is also a very nuanced story of an ancient culture with drastically different views on almost all important aspects of life: economics, sex, life, death, and spirituality. Learning about such differences, however, brings us renewed understanding of how we are in fact the same with a shared destiny. A lot of the seemingly divergent values merely reflect how our human understanding evolved via different paths under different geographical and historical circumstances, but they invariably arch toward the same wisdoms about life: happiness, sustainability, health, and, being one with nature. Everything else is only a means not an end.
My only regret is that the epic poetry preserved in the Shuar language through an oral tradition not unlike that of the Iliad and Oddessy is only preserved in a kind of skeletal form. The linguistic beauty of the Shuar stories is largely lost as the (now written) storytelling does not have any original, written text to base off of, a difficulty acknowledged by the author in compiling this book (to whom I am immensely grateful). I suppose we are lucky enough to have access to these stories at all, considering what our modern society is doing to the very existence of the Shuar, while all the uwishins or the Shuar elders (in a way not unlike the Dalai Lama, who is also referenced in the book) wish is to offer the Shuar wisdoms about plants, animals, humans and the spirits to heal the world.
May 31, 2019
"Since the beginning of time, men have been the keepers of death. Just as only women can give life, it's been the unique privilege of men to take it. But what of the modern industrial culture of killing and war? Take a sip of Coca Cola, press a button, and one million people are incinerated. Where is the connection to the power of death?" -Tukupi, a elderly Shuar warrior on his thoughts about the destruction of the forests, and its connection to western society's disrespect, and disconnect from death and destruction of humans and other living things.
I was given this book many years ago, never read it, and in the interest of getting rid of weight before my next move, I had to give this book a try before donating it. It's not my typical read, but I have much respect for its writers and the countless hours they must have spent gathering these stories shared from the Shuar that would have otherwise been lost over time. I'm so glad I gave this book a try. It was an excellent and interesting read full of wisdom from the Shuar, potent warnings about climate change and the need to respect our planet's spirit and resources.
I was given this book many years ago, never read it, and in the interest of getting rid of weight before my next move, I had to give this book a try before donating it. It's not my typical read, but I have much respect for its writers and the countless hours they must have spent gathering these stories shared from the Shuar that would have otherwise been lost over time. I'm so glad I gave this book a try. It was an excellent and interesting read full of wisdom from the Shuar, potent warnings about climate change and the need to respect our planet's spirit and resources.
July 1, 2018
Well written narrative of the sacred ancestral knowledge of the Shuar. What disappointed, was no mention in the liner notes of giving back a portion of the profits to the Shuar. Considering the knowledge came from them and the ethno-stress facing the Shuar comes from Westerners, this would have been $ ethical. Other than that, the message was beautiful, the love that went into the writing transmitted.
October 1, 2007
This book introduced me to the Shaur, indigenous healing and spirituality in the Amazon. If you have never heard of the Shuar or shamanism, then you need to read this book. It will challenge your beliefs about western medicine, spirituality, the importance of preserving indigenous cultures and the fulfillment of dreams.
April 25, 2016
Spoiler: Shuar love forest, shrink the heads of their enemies, and take Ayahuasca for everything. 166 pages.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews