TupiMythology

The Tupi mystical imaginary is full of legends and magical characters. Like many other peoples, the Tupi had their own mythologies about the flood, which shaped the earth and human life. The indigenous people believed in an "ancient spirit" — the old creator of the world, the seas, and all things. There were leaders and founders, such as Maíra, Sumé, and Poxi — who taught social and dietary rules —, as well as ancestors who explained lineages, such as Tupã, Irin-Magé, Tamandaré, and Arikonta.

Image description: The image is a colored illustration of an old-time character, wearing a red cape over a green robe. He holds a cane with a large, detailed bird perched on top. The bird has its wings spread, showing brown and beige feathers. The character is standing, with the cane resting against him.

In addition to supernatural entities linked to nature — such as Tupã — there were those linked to animals, as in the case of the Matintaperera bird, the Guaricuja bird of prey, and the Jaguar itself. The animals had their own explanatory myths and appeared transformed into humans, taking part as characters in the oral stories. Based on these mythologies, the Tupi explained many questions about their understanding of the world and the customs they practiced. Their beliefs were linked to plants and animals which, according to what they believed, had supernatural powers, and from these stemmed a series of hunting and eating rules.

Image description: This is a black-and-white engraving. In the image, we see an anthropomorphic being with a fish's body and an animal's head, possibly a wolf or a dog. It stands upright on two human legs and has human hands. Beside it, there is a human figure dressed in old-fashioned clothing, appearing to be interacting with the being. The background shows a rural landscape with houses and fields.

They also sensed enchanted spirits in animals and in nature. There were those who lived in the forest, such as Curupira, and also those invoked by the shamans to foresee the future, who howled like the wind, commonly called Uiucirá. Along the riverbanks, they believed there lived a kind of entity that appeared in the most beautiful human form, a sort of mermaid(-man), the Ipupiara, who drowned whoever it encountered. Besides that, especially at night, they were terrorized by the Anhangá, an evil spirit that hunted down the weak and cowardly to devour their souls — a figure associated with the devil by Christians. At night, no one left the maloca without a torch to ward off such entities.

Image description: This is a black-and-white engraving. The scene depicts a tropical setting with several human figures and animals. On the left side, there is a large, furry animal, followed by three individuals standing and conversing. In the center, there is a thatched-roof house and other similar buildings. On the right, two men are on a beach, with a ship in the distance. In the lower part, there are more human figures and animals, including a man lying on the ground. The text "DE L'AMERIQUE" is located in the upper right corner of the image.