Caragabí, the tree of Jenené

Caragabi
 Representation collected by Sergio Carmona: “Perception and graphic representation of the Embera world of northeastern Antioquia”, Seduca 1988.

He created men, the sun (Humantahú) and the moon (Gedeco), the stars, brought to the human world of corn and the chontaduro (peach palm) from the highest levels of the universe, and generally established the composition, number and behavior of all the elements of nature. He gave everything its name, established laws and respect for human life, giving order to the world of men. He lacked water, which he would get by cutting down the jenené tree:

The Jenené tree. Myth on the origin of water.

Caragabi was the creator of man and everything that exists except water. Knowing the importance of water to his people, he asked his father to teach him how to get water. His father gave him a wand and when he struck it against two stones, a small stream of water came out of the middle. However, his father warned him not to waste it because it was rare and should be enough for everyone.

Then Caragabi told the Emberás that they would fetch water every day, very early in the morning, that he would be there to distribute it. And so it was. The Emberá went to queue with a container. And it was like that for a long time. Caragabi could not give them more than what came from the two stones.

Things went on like this until one day they saw an Indian appear that no one had ever seen before, bringing water and fish in abundance. The Emberá were surprised. Then they went to where Caragabi was and told him:

“You are our father and our creator. You need to know where you get so much water from. »

Caragabi, faced with the agitation of the people and fearing a rebellion, told them:

“Be patient, I’ll find out.” »

Caragabi followed the Indian on his way to Mount Kuguru – “ Very Morros », where the Sinu River flows. There the Indian opened a door on a rock. Before Caragabi closed, he became a hummingbird and entered. He saw a huge lagoon where there were fish of all colors and sizes. When the Indian took out a fishing rod, Caragabi, who wanted to investigate until the end, became a fish and took the bait.

The Indian took out the fish and beat it until it was still, then took it home to smoke. When the fish felt the heat start to jump, the Indian realized that it was Caragabi playing with him and that he was no longer in shock.

Caragabi transformed into a tiger and asked him:

Ant Conga
Paraponera clavata
Jenzera

“Where do all this water and fish come from? »

The Indian said he didn't know. He repeated the question four times getting the same answer, then he said:

“I will only ask you once: can I have the water and fish I need for my people? »

The Indian again answered no. Then Caragabi asked:

“Why are you talking about water, don’t you realize it’s good to share?” »

The Indians pretended not to understand, Caragabi – losing patience – asked him:

"I'll give you one last chance to answer, can I have the water?" »

Faced with this new refusal, Caragabi took him by the chest and said:

“As you are naughty, you will become jenzerá -hormiga (ant)-“ 

This is why ants can no longer drink water and must carry it in drops on their beaks. The Emberá people were satisfied with the punishment and went with Caragabi to the lagoon. When they arrived, they found nothing, everything had been transformed into a thick jungle. Instead of the lagoon, there was an immense tree that rose towards the sky and obscured everything: the jenené.

Caragabi realized that jenzera had a lot of power and also wanted to play with it, turning the lagoon into a jenené. He gathered all his people together and asked them:

“What can we do to bring this Jenene down?” »

To which people responded:

“We don’t know, we can’t decide”

Caragabi summoned everyone, ordering everyone to bring a stone axe. They began to try to cut down the jenené, but its stem was very hard and the axes bounced back. Caragabi ordered very fine axes to be made, so they managed to open a cut for him, as it was already getting dark, it was decided to suspend the work to resume it the next day. When they returned, the opening was closed:

" It is not possible, " said Caragabi, “ let's start from scratch. » The next day, when they returned, the tree had closed. It was like this for several days.

Caragabi called the best warriors and ordered a guard to be set up overnight. They realized that bocorró (the toad) was telling Jenzerá what Caragabi and his people were doing and they came to heal jenené. Caragabi crushed it furiously with his foot and said:

“From now on, you will have to take care of the water. » This is why the toad lives on the banks of rivers and lagoons and because it has been crushed, it can no longer walk as before, but jump.

Caragabi chose the strongest men to work day and night, guarded by warriors so that jenzera cannot cover the cut. Jenzera  climbed the branches of another tree and placed a stone rod in the heart of the jenené so that it would not fall. Thus he could enter the heart of the jenené who began to bow but did not fall, jenzera had tied it with a vine to other trees.

Caragabi called the family Micos, who were once Emberás. He ordered to zsrua - A cotudo or howler monkey – to go up to the tree and see what was happening. The monkey stretched and came back, then Caragabi condemned:

“You zsrua will always be like this, lazy. »

Then he called Yerré, a black boy, and he went up, but he couldn't reach the top because he was having fun on the road. Caragabi decreed:

“You will always be like this, playful and distracted. »

Then it was the turn of mizsurra –mono machine or little monkey-. But he only climbed a few meters and got scared. Caragabi said:

" You mizsurrá will always be like this, fearful. »

He then called u’nra –marteja, but neither does this one. In short, many animals in the monkey family have failed in this attempt.

It was the squirrel who was able to cut the vine, but the tree did not fall either, because jenzera – in the meantime – had tied it with another vine above. Caragabi then called chidima -red-haired monkey-, which required a test before cutting the vine, consisting of throwing a fruit from the top of the tree and reaching the ground in front of it and repeating it four times. Passing the test, he asked for a large machete. At the top of the tree, chidima shouted that everyone should take shelter at the top of the mountain. When they were under cover, Caragabi gave the order to cut the vine.

When the tree began to fall, the sky cleared and a loud noise was heard. Water began to flow through all parts of the tree. The branches of Jenené fell on the mountain. And the trunk and the root fell. Where the roots were, the sea formed.

The trunk has become the river Keradó-Sinú-. The thickest branches have become rivers Iwagado -Verde- and Kuranzadó -Esmeralda-, the finest of the rivers Manso and Kiparado -Cruz grande-. Jenené had very large, round flowers. They were all loaded with water. When the tree fell, they opened forming immense Evazozoabañia -swamps-, such as the large swamp of Lorica, that of Betancí, and other smaller ones.

The Emberá were stunned. Caragabi said: “This was the fruit of the effort of all Emberás and must remain so forever. I will make sure that happens. The Emberá who do not respect this mandate will be punished! ». Then he chose the best men of his village and transformed them into zhaberara -guardians of lagoons and marshes-. They were responsible for looking after the swamps and rivers and ensuring that they were there for the benefit of all. So water went everywhere and rivers, lagoons and marshes were filled with fish.