María Lionza cult

Maria Lionza statue in Caracas

The María Lionza cult is centered around the mythical Venezuelan "Indian Queen" María Lionza. This cult is a healing ritual from the Catholicism , the ethnic religions Venezuela and the African Voodoo has developed (see also: syncretism ) . The main distribution area is Venezuela. Today, however, the cult also occurs in other states - such as Colombia , the Dominican Republic and Brazil .

Maria Lionza

The name of Queen María Lionza is derived from the full name "María de la Onza" ( English : María of the Jaguar ). The legends surrounding María Lionza do not allow any clear clarification of her person. According to one of the legends, María was born in 1502 in the Yaracuy region as the daughter of an Indian chief . According to another legend, she was the daughter of a Spanish conquistador and an Indian woman. In pictures she is represented as a strong and well-proportioned woman who rides naked on a tapir or a bear. She was considered beautiful and miraculous and made all men who approached her "disappear". This symbolizes their power over wild animals . The center of her life was on the Cerro de Sorte mountain, which was declared a national park in 1980 . The cult is still practiced on this mountain today. As the queen of the cult named after her, she has determined the lives of many Afro-American, indigenous Venezuelans and mestizos for 500 years. She has many fathers, her birth father is said to have been an Indian chief, her spiritual fathers were the slaves and Spanish Catholicism . Soon after the landing of the first Spanish rulers who brought Roman Catholicism belief into the country, the indigenous religions mixed with African rites and European Christianity . The cult of María Lionza arose from these religious and cultural mixes. She is the oldest and most powerful queen of the local Indian myths and the central figure in religious thought: She is revered as the earth goddess and the goddess of nature, love, peace and harmony. Superficially, she is equated with the Christian Virgin Mary . Monuments were erected in her honor, Blanca Estrella de Méscoli wrote a symphonic poem , Efraín Amaya composed a piece of music, the salsa singer Rubén Blades and the musician Devendra Banhart composed songs in her honor.

The cult

The cult practiced on the mountain Cerro de Sorte (approx. 300 kilometers from Caracas ) is widespread in Venezuela. All classes of the population meet for a cult event. They celebrate mysterious celebrations in spectacular and mystical acts to seek healing in the event of illnesses or help with special matters. The cult evening is led by spiritual specialists who make contact with various lines of spirits that are subordinate to the three spiritual powers, the “Tres Potencias” of the pantheon . Almost 30 million people live according to their 500-year-old rules, fear their curses, hope for healing words when they are sick - and believe the images of the future that they send their priests through the fire . The María Lionza cult is the largest spiritual movement on the South American continent . The most important day of the María Lionza cult is October 12th every year; On this day all medicine men , cult priests and masters of ceremonies meet to pay homage to their queen. The highlight of the celebrations are the traditional dances over glowing coals.

Pilgrimage

A pilgrimage group is usually accompanied by an older and “holy” medium , this person is the most important member of the group. Together they immerse themselves in their faith, accompanied by rhythmic drums, smoke, cigars , music and singing . They dance, pray and put themselves in a trance . At the climax of the celebration their bodies shake, the person comes into contact with the spirits of the holy place, and the supplicant draws new strength for everyday life.

The pantheon

María Lionza is the highest and most important deity in the pantheon - the "hall of honor" - Venezuela. She is part of the "three powers" (Tres Potencias), to which the Indian chief Cacique Guaicaipuro and the murdered black slave Negro Felipe are counted. This “trinity” is subject to several “chambers” in which other deities are worshiped. These subordinate deities also include the national saint and physician José Gregorio Hernández and the educator Andrés Bello . The divine chambers are intended for the Indians , medical professionals, folklore , teachers , Africans , Catholic saints , politicians and deceased delinquents .

A María Lionza altar with images of the "Tres potencias"

María Lionza Altar

At the center of the ritual event is a María Lionza altar , which was only created at the beginning of the 20th century. The clothes lying on the ground are noticeable; they are edged with light powder or flour. Furthermore, borders and patterns are painted on the floor with candles that will burn during the ceremony. Other altar furnishings include stones from the Yaracuy region, which are piled up in front of the altar. Alcoholic beverages, flowers, scented water , cigarettes and fruit are placed on these stones . The entire chancel is decorated with colorful fabrics and cult images . In the middle picture the “Tres potencias” is shown.

Areas of conflict

The Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has argued against the Roman Catholic Church more and more in the past . The population of Venezuela is nominally more than 90 percent Christians who profess the Catholic faith. But there are also regional differences, while in the west of Venezuela there is a deep religious belief, in some eastern areas there are fewer practicing Catholics. For the Christian churches, especially for the Catholic Church, there is not only the dilemma of merging with the Indian rites, but also the problems of missionary work . But it is also the evangelical Christians who come over from the United States , as well as the Jehovah's Witnesses , the Mormons or the members of the Mun sect who make Catholic proselytizing much more difficult. The María Lionza cult, which is characterized by syncretic , Christian and animist influences, is gaining more and more supporters who penetrate into the levels of government . The former dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez (1914-2001) had the huge statue of the goddess María Lionza erected in Caracas.

literature

Susanne Asal: Venezuela with Isla de Margarita (= DuMont right travel ). DuMont, Ostfildern 2001, ISBN 3-7701-5842-3 , pp. 48, 55 ff., 70, 132, 257.
Teresa Fauser: Syncretism using the example of Venezuela: The cult around María Lionza. VDM, Saarbrücken 2009, ISBN 978-3-639-15550-1 .
Verena Löser (Hrsg.): Lexicon of world religions. Voltmedia, Paderborn 2005, ISBN 3-937229-48-5 ; Weltbild, Augsburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-8289-4979-9 .
Reiner Mahlke: The spirits descend. The María Lionza religion in Venezuela. Reimer, Berlin 1992, ISBN 3-496-00413-4 ( dissertation , University of Marburg , 1990).

Web links

Individual evidence

^ Roger Canals in Stephen Spencer: Visual Research Methods in the Social Sciences: Awakening Visions. Routledge, London a. New York 2010, ISBN 978-1-134014460 . P. 226.

↑ ^a ^b ^c Bernhard Pollmann: Traditional religions in South America. In: Harenberg Lexicon of Religions. Harenberg, Dortmund 2002, ISBN 3-611-01060-X . P. 907.

↑ Las Tres Potencias ( Memento of the original from December 5, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2
^ Portrait of Negro Felipe
↑ Adveniat - Venezuela The Divided Land ( Memento of October 10, 2009 in the Internet Archive )

[1] Roger Canals in Stephen Spencer: Visual Research Methods in the Social Sciences: Awakening Visions. Routledge, London a. New York 2010, ISBN 978-1-134014460 . P. 226.

[Pollmann-2] Bernhard Pollmann: Traditional religions in South America. In: Harenberg Lexicon of Religions. Harenberg, Dortmund 2002, ISBN 3-611-01060-X . P. 907.