O banho das índias em noite de lua cheia: a influência da lua na vida das moradoras e moradores da Serra do Espelho da Lua, Nhamundá/Am

Abstract

This study seeks to investigate in what sense the moon influences the lives of the inhabitants of the Mirror of moon mountain range, in the municipality of Nhamunda, Amazonas. In the context of the approach to socio-cultural processes in Amazonia, this research is interwoven in the threads of interdisciplinarity in a dialogue between Anthropology, Sociology, Art and Philosophy, in addition to the voices from the field, the experiences and the observation in loco. The epicenter of the research is the Mirror of moon mountain range, geographically located in the region of the city of Nhamundá in the Amazon, which belongs to the rural area of Nhamundá. It is a mythical mountain surrounded by mysterious lakes that, according to some historians, the Icamiabas Indians performed their procreation rituals on moonlit nights. It is in this space that fishermen and fisherwomen create their relationship with nature, the moon, and its mysteries. The methodology, anchored in a rhizomatic perspective of knowledge, focused on women's narratives, collected in the aforementioned research field, plus secondary sources collated with photographs, poems, and songs, concerning the theme under study. The main results reveal that moonlight myths metamorphose, expressing rich messages that constitute the motricity that directs the meanings of men and women's lives, building meanings and maintaining a close relationship with nature. The research shows that in this relationship of the human with the non-human, women prefer to think that how much the moon impacts their lives makes them stronger and more empowered for the day to day struggle.. They bathe in the clarity of the moon, repeating the ritual of the icamiabas, because they believe that the moon makes them stronger and braver. Finally, the traditional peoples who live in the interior of the forest and on the banks of the rivers in the Amazon are social subjects who live off their beliefs and their myths, in a profound elegy of secrets and mysteries. Myths bring what cannot be learned in the academy. With the myths, they build ways of talking, living and acting, conceiving nature as part of themselves, being part of it, listening to its voice and answering its call.