Multicolored Papuans from Papua New Guinea. Papuans from New Guinea
Papua New Guinea, especially its center - one of the protected corners of the Earth, where human civilization almost did not penetrate. People there live in complete dependence on nature, worship their deities and worship the spirits of their ancestors. Quite civilized people who know the official - English - language now live on the coast of the island of New Guinea. Missionaries have worked with them for many years. However, in the center of the country there is something like a reservation - nomadic tribes but that still live in the Stone Age. They know every tree by name, bury the dead on the branches, have no idea what money or passports are.
They are surrounded by a mountainous country overgrown with impenetrable jungle, where, due to high humidity and unimaginable heat, life is unbearable for a European. No one there knows a word of English, and each tribe speaks its own language, of which there are about 900 in New Guinea. The tribes live very isolated from each other, communication between them is almost impossible, so their dialects have little in common, and people are different a friend is simply not understood. A typical settlement where the Papuan tribe lives: modest huts are covered with huge leaves, in the center there is something like a meadow in which the whole tribe gathers, and around for many kilometers there is a jungle. The only weapons of these people are stone axes, spears, bows and arrows. But not with their help, they hope to protect themselves from evil spirits. That is why they have faith in gods and spirits. In the Papuan tribe, the mummy of the "chief" is usually kept. This is a kind of outstanding ancestor - the most courageous, strong and intelligent, who fell in battle with the enemy. After his death, his body was treated with a special compound to avoid decay. The body of the leader is kept by the sorcerer.
He is in every tribe. This character is highly revered among relatives. Its function is mainly to communicate with the spirits of the ancestors, to appease them and ask for advice. People who are weak and unsuitable for the constant battle for survival usually go to sorcerers - in a word, old people. They make their living by witchcraft. WHITE OUTPUTS FROM THAT LIGHT? The first white man to come to this exotic continent was the Russian traveler Miklouho-Maclay. Having landed on the shores of New Guinea in September 1871, he, being an absolutely peaceful man, decided not to take weapons ashore, grabbed only gifts and a notebook, which he never parted with. 
The locals met the stranger rather aggressively: they shot arrows in his direction, screamed terribly, brandished their spears ... But Miklouho-Maclay did not react to these attacks in any way. On the contrary, with the most imperturbable air he sat down on the grass, demonstratively took off his shoes and lay down to take a nap. By an effort of will, the traveler forced himself to fall asleep (or only pretended to). And when he woke up, he saw that the Papuans were peacefully sitting next to him and with all their eyes they were examining the overseas guest. The savages reasoned this way: since the pale-faced is not afraid of death, it means that he is immortal. On that and decided. The traveler lived for several months in a tribe of savages. All this time, the natives worshiped him and revered him as a god. They knew that, if desired, a mysterious guest can command the forces of nature. How is it?
Yes, just once Miklouho-Maclay, who was called only Tamo-rus - "Russian man", or Karaan-tamo - "man from the moon", showed the Papuans this trick: he poured water into a plate of alcohol and set it on fire. Gullible locals believed that a foreigner could set fire to the sea or stop the rain. However, the Papuans are generally gullible. For example, they are firmly convinced that the dead go to their country and return from there white, bringing with them many useful items and food. This belief lives on in all Papuan tribes (despite the fact that they hardly communicate with each other), even in those where they have never seen a white man. FUNERAL RITES Papuans know three causes of death: from old age, from war and from witchcraft - if death occurred for some unknown reason. If a person has died a natural death, he will be honorably buried. All funeral ceremonies are aimed at appeasing the spirits that receive the soul of the deceased. Here is a typical example of such a rite. Close relatives of the deceased go to the stream to perform bisi as a sign of mourning - covering the head and other parts of the body with yellow clay. At this time, men are preparing a funeral pyre in the center of the village. Not far from the fire, a place is being prepared where the deceased will rest before cremation.
Here they put seashells and sacred stones of vus - the abode of some mystical power. Touching these living stones is strictly punishable by the laws of the tribe. On top of the stones there should be a long braided strip decorated with stones, which acts as a bridge between the world of the living and the world of the dead. The deceased is placed on sacred stones, coated with pork fat and clay, and sprinkled with bird feathers. Then they begin to sing over him funeral songs, which tell about the outstanding services of the deceased. And finally, the body is burned at the stake so that the human spirit does not return from the afterlife. FOR THE FALLED IN BATTLE - GLORY! If a person died in battle, his body is roasted at the stake and, with appropriate rituals, is honorably eaten so that his strength and courage will be passed on to other men. Three days after this, the phalanges of the fingers are cut off to the wife of the deceased as a sign of mourning. This custom is associated with another ancient Papuan legend. One man mistreated his wife. She died and came to the next world. But her husband yearned for her, could not live alone. He went to another world for his wife, approached the main spirit and began to beg to return his beloved to the world of the living. The spirit set a condition: the wife will return, but only if he makes a promise to treat her with care and kindness. The man, of course, was delighted and promised everything at once.
The wife returned to him. But one day her husband forgot himself and again forced her to work hard. When he caught himself and remembered this promise, it was already too late: his wife broke up before his eyes. Her husband had only a phalanx of her finger. The tribe became angry and drove him out, because he took away their immortality - the opportunity to return from the afterlife, like his wife. However, in reality, the phalanx of the finger for some reason is cut off by the wife as a sign of the last gift to her deceased husband. The father of the deceased performs a nasuk rite - he cuts off the upper part of his ear with a wooden knife and then covers up the bleeding wound with clay. This ceremony is rather long and painful. After the funeral ceremony, the Papuans honor and placate the spirit of the ancestor. For if his soul is not appeased, the ancestor will not leave the village, but will live there and harm. The spirit of the ancestor is fed for some time as if it were alive, and they even try to give him sexual pleasure. For example, a clay figurine of a tribal god is placed on a stone with a hole, symbolizing a woman. The underworld in the Papuans' view is a kind of heavenly tabernacle, where there is a lot of food, especially meat.
Especially its center is one of the reserved corners of the Earth, where human civilization has hardly penetrated. People there live in complete dependence on nature, worship their deities and worship the spirits of their ancestors ...
UNTIL THE STONE AGE
Quite civilized people who know the official - English - language now live on the coast of the island of New Guinea. Missionaries have worked with them for many years.
However, in the center of the country there is something like a reservation - nomadic tribes that still live in the Stone Age. They know every tree by name, bury the dead on the branches, have no idea what money or passports are ... They are surrounded by a mountainous country overgrown with impenetrable jungle, where, due to high humidity and unimaginable heat, life is unbearable for a European. No one there knows a word of English, and each tribe speaks its own language, of which there are about 900 in New Guinea. The tribes live very isolated from each other, communication between them is almost impossible, so their dialects have little in common, and people are different a friend is simply not understood.
A typical settlement where the Papuan tribe lives: modest huts are covered with huge leaves, in the center there is something like a meadow in which the whole tribe gathers, and around for many kilometers there is a jungle. The only weapons of these people are stone axes, spears, bows and arrows. But not with their help, they hope to protect themselves from evil spirits. That is why they have faith in gods and spirits.
In the Papuan tribe, the mummy of the "chief" is usually kept. This is a kind of outstanding ancestor - the most courageous, strong and intelligent, who fell in battle with the enemy. After his death, his body was treated with a special compound to avoid decay. The body of the leader is kept by the sorcerer.
He is in every tribe. This character is highly revered among relatives. Its function is mainly to communicate with the spirits of the ancestors, appease them and ask for advice. People who are weak and unsuitable for the constant battle for survival usually go to sorcerers - in a word, old people. They make their living by witchcraft.
WHITE ARE THE OUTSIDE OF THAT LIGHT?
The first white man to come to this exotic continent was the Russian traveler Miklouho-Maclay.
Having landed on the shores of New Guinea in September 1871, he, being an absolutely peaceful man, decided not to take weapons ashore, grabbed only gifts and a notebook, which he never parted with.
The locals met the stranger rather aggressively: they shot arrows in his direction, screamed terribly, brandished their spears ... But Miklouho-Maclay did not react to these attacks. On the contrary, with the most imperturbable air he sat down on the grass, demonstratively took off his shoes and lay down to take a nap. By an effort of will, the traveler forced himself to fall asleep (or only pretended to). And when he woke up, he saw that the Papuans were peacefully sitting next to him and with all their eyes they were examining the overseas guest. The savages reasoned this way: since the pale-faced man is not afraid of death, it means that he is immortal. On that and decided.
The traveler lived for several months in a tribe of savages. All this time, the natives worshiped him and revered him as a god. They knew that, if desired, a mysterious guest can command the forces of nature. How is it? Yes, just once Miklouho-Maclay, who was called only Tamorus - "Russian man", or Karaantamo - "man from the moon", showed the Papuans this trick: he poured water into a plate of alcohol and set it on fire. Gullible locals believed that a foreigner could set fire to the sea or stop the rain.
However, the Papuans are generally gullible. For example, they are firmly convinced that the dead go to their country and return from there white, bringing with them many useful items and food. This belief lives in all Papuan tribes (despite the fact that they hardly communicate with each other), even in those where they have never seen a white man.
FUNERAL RITES
Papuans know three causes of death: from old age, from war and from witchcraft - if death occurred for some unknown reason. If a person has died a natural death, he will be honorably buried. All funeral ceremonies are aimed at appeasing the spirits that receive the soul of the deceased.
Here is a typical example of such a rite. Close relatives of the deceased go to the stream to perform bisi as a sign of mourning - covering the head and other parts of the body with yellow clay. At this time, men are preparing a funeral pyre in the center of the village. Not far from the fire, a place is being prepared where the deceased will rest before cremation. Here they put seashells and sacred stones of vus - the abode of some mystical power. Touching these living stones is strictly punishable by the laws of the tribe. On top of the stones there should be a long braided strip decorated with stones, which acts as a bridge between the world of the living and the world of the dead.
The deceased is placed on sacred stones, coated with pork fat and clay, and sprinkled with bird feathers. Then they begin to sing over him funeral songs, which tell about the outstanding services of the deceased.
And finally, the body is burned at the stake so that the human spirit does not return from the afterlife.
FOR THE FALLED IN BATTLE - GLORY!
If a person died in battle, his body is fried at the stake and, with appropriate rituals, is honorably eaten so that his strength and courage are passed on to other men.
Three days after this, the phalanges of the fingers are cut off to the wife of the deceased as a sign of mourning. This custom is associated with another ancient Papuan legend.
One man mistreated his wife. She died and came to the next world. But her husband yearned for her, could not live alone. He went to another world for his wife, approached the main spirit and began to beg to return his beloved to the world of the living. The spirit set a condition: the wife will return, but only if he makes a promise to treat her with care and kindness. The man, of course, was delighted and promised everything at once. The wife returned to him. But one day her husband forgot himself and again forced her to work hard. When he caught himself and remembered this promise, it was already too late: his wife broke up before his eyes. Her husband had only a phalanx of her finger. The tribe became angry and drove him out, because he took away their immortality - the opportunity to return from the afterlife, like his wife.
However, in reality, the phalanx of the finger for some reason is cut off by the wife as a sign of the last gift to her deceased husband. The father of the deceased performs the nasuk rite - he cuts off the upper part of his ear with a wooden knife and then covers up the bleeding wound with clay. This ceremony is rather long and painful.
After the funeral ceremony, the Papuans honor and placate the spirit of the ancestor. For if his soul is not appeased, the ancestor will not leave the village, but will live there and harm. The spirit of the ancestor is fed for some time as if it were alive, and they even try to give him sexual pleasure. For example, a clay figurine of a tribal god is placed on a stone with a hole, symbolizing a woman.
The underworld in the Papuans' view is a kind of heavenly tabernacle, where there is a lot of food, especially meat.
DEATH WITH A SMILE ON THE LIPS
In Papua New Guinea, people believe that the head is the seat of a person's spiritual and physical strength. Therefore, when fighting enemies, the Papuans first of all strive to take possession of this part of the body.
Cannibalism for the Papuans is not at all a desire to eat deliciously, but rather a magical rite, in the process of which cannibals receive the mind and strength of the one they eat. Let us apply this custom not only to enemies, but also to friends and even relatives who heroically died in battle.
The process of eating the brain is especially "productive" in this sense. By the way, it is with this rite that doctors associate the disease kuru, which is very common among cannibals. Kuru is also called mad cow disease, which can be contracted by eating unfried animal brains (or, in this case, humans).
This insidious ailment was first recorded in 1950 in New Guinea, in a tribe where the brain of deceased relatives was considered a delicacy. The disease begins with pain in the joints and head, gradually progressing, leads to loss of coordination, trembling in the arms and legs and, oddly enough, fits of unrestrained laughter. The disease develops for many years, sometimes the incubation period is 35 years. But the worst thing is that the victims of the disease die with a frozen smile on their lips.
The last cannibals are known to inhabit Papua New Guinea. They still live here according to the rules adopted 5 thousand years ago: men go naked, and women cut off their fingers. There are only three tribes still engaged in cannibalism, these are Yali, Vanuatu and Karafai. The Karafai (or tree people) are the most cruel tribe. They eat not only the warriors of foreign tribes, who have lost the locals or tourists, but also all their deceased relatives. They got the name “tree people” because of their houses, which are incredibly high (see the last 3 photos). The Vanuatu tribe is peaceful enough not to eat the photographer, they bring several pigs to the leader. Yali are formidable warriors (Yali's photos begin with 9 photos). The phalanges of the fingers of a woman of the Yali tribe are chopped off with a hatchet as a sign of mourning for a deceased or deceased relative.
The most important holiday of Yali is the holiday of death. Women and men paint their bodies in the form of a skeleton. On the holiday of death before, perhaps they do it now, they killed the shaman and the leader of the tribe ate his warm brain. This was done in order to satisfy Death and absorb the shaman's knowledge to the leader. Now Yali people are killed less often than usual, mainly if there was a crop failure or for some other "important" reasons.
Hungry cannibalism, preceded by murder, is regarded in psychiatry as a manifestation of the so-called hungry madness.
Also known is everyday cannibalism, not dictated by the need to survive and not provoked by hunger madness. In judicial practice, such cases are not qualified as premeditated murder with particular cruelty.
With the exception of these not-so-common cases, the word "cannibalism" often brings to mind the insane ritual feasts, during which the victorious tribes devour the body parts of their enemies in order to gain their power; or another known useful "application" of this phenomenon: the heirs thus deal with the bodies of their fathers in the godly hope that they will be reborn in the body of those who devoured their flesh.
The most "cannibal" strange of the modern world is Indonesia. In this state there are two famous centers of mass cannibalism - part of the island of New Guinea belonging to Indonesia and the island of Kalimantan (Borneo). The jungle of Kalimantan is inhabited by 7-8 million dayaks, famous skull hunters and cannibals.
The most delicious parts of the body are considered to be the head - tongue, cheeks, skin from the chin, the brain extracted through the nasal cavity or ear opening, meat from the thighs and calves, heart, palms. Women are the initiators of the crowded hikes for Dayak skulls.
The most recent surge in cannibalism in Borneo occurred at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, when the Indonesian government tried to organize the colonization of the interior of the island by civilized immigrants from Java and Madura. Most of the unfortunate peasant settlers and the soldiers accompanying them were slaughtered and eaten. Until recently, cannibalism continued on the island of Sumatra, where the Batak tribes ate criminals sentenced to death and incapacitated old people.
An important role in the almost complete elimination of cannibalism in Sumatra and some other islands was played by the activities of the "father of Indonesian independence" Sukarno and the military dictator Suharto. But even they could not improve the situation in Irian Jaya, Indonesian New Guinea, one iota. The Papuan ethnic groups living there, according to the testimony of missionaries, are possessed by a passion for human meat and are distinguished by unprecedented cruelty.
They especially prefer the human liver with medicinal herbs, penises, noses, tongues, meat from the thighs, feet, breasts. In the eastern part of the island of New Guinea, in the independent state of Papua New Guinea, the facts of cannibalism are much less recorded.
Welcome to one of the most unspoiled corners of the earth. Papua New Guinea. It is a state of impenetrable tropical forests, home to 38 species of bird of paradise. There are no cars or bicycles here, not even workhorses or mules. There are no restaurants, bars, shops, electricity or roads. In these places, a newborn girl can be called a Shovel, and a boy - an ax.
About 2,000 tribes live in these places, including these freaks - the Mud People from the Waghi Valley.
To find this unusual tribe, we will go to the center of the island of New Guinea at an altitude of 1677 meters, where there is a large fertile valley of the Wahgi. Here, by the way, is the fifth largest city of Papua New Guinea with a population of 46,250 people - Mount Hagen. It is also the so-called "frontier of civilization", after all, the territories of the mountain tribes go further.
The members of our Wagha Valley Mud People tribe are very colorful. Their bodies are painted and smeared with clay, and frightening masks are on their heads. Enemies will think for sure 10 times before advancing further. 
Look how frightening! 
Handsome men. 
Papua New Guinea has a language problem - more than 800 different languages are spoken here, and very often members of the same tribe do not understand what neighbors are saying, which are only a few kilometers away. 
The state of Papua New Guinea is located in the western part of the Pacific Ocean, north of Australia and close to the equator. 
The island of New Guinea and most of the other islands in the country have mountainous terrain where the hill tribes live. The height of a significant part of the territory is more than 1000 m above sea level, and some peaks of New Guinea reach 4500 m, that is, the belt of eternal snow. Many of the mountain ranges are volcanic chains. Papua New Guinea has 18 active volcanoes. Most of them are located in the north of the country. Strong, sometimes catastrophic, earthquakes are also associated with volcanic activity. 
Plants are expected to be rich here - more than 20 thousand species of plants grow. Dense tropical rainforests formed by hundreds of tree species rise up the mountain slopes. 
As the world's largest and largest tropical island, New Guinea covers less than 0.5% of the land surface, but maintains a high percentage of global biodiversity. Approximately 4,642 vertebrate species inhabit the island of New Guinea and its adjacent waters, representing about 8% of the world's recognized vertebrate species. 
The fauna of the country is represented by reptiles, insects and especially numerous birds. There are many snakes in the forests and along the coast, including venomous ones. Crocodiles and turtles can be found near the sea shores and in large rivers. 
And the mud people from Papua New Guinea say it's time for us to go home. 
- Section Table of Contents: Peoples of the Earth
- Read: Kuru-kuru or laughing death - cannibal disease
Papuans of New Guinea
The main tools used by the Papuans for many centuries are an ax, a dongan and a knife. The ax is usually made from agate, silicon or tridacna shell. Dongan is a sharp, sharpened bone that is constantly worn on the hand, tucked into a bracelet. Dongan is used for cutting and slicing fruits and other purposes. For the same purposes, as well as for cutting meat, the Papuans use knives made of bamboo. The bamboo knife cuts much better than the dongan, it is also stronger than it.
The weapons used by the Papuans for different purposes are quite diverse. So a hagda is a two-meter throwing spear made of solid heavy wood. Another, lighter spear for the Servaru is made with a bamboo tip, and is decorated with feathers and fur. When hitting a victim, the tip breaks off and remains in the wound. Another juror throwing spear has at the end not one, but several sharp points.
Aral bows made by the Papuans are up to 2 m long. The aral-ge arrow used with a bow is 1 m long and ends with a wooden tip. More dangerous is an arrow with a wide bamboo tip. The Saran arrow is used specifically for hunting fish. The Papuans also have various clubs and shields.
Earlier, the clothes of the Papuans consisted of a belt, for men it was red, and for women it was in a red and black stripe. Bracelets were worn on the arm (sagyu) and on the legs (samba-sagyu). In addition, the body was decorated with objects threaded through the holes, kekei (in the nose) and boules (in the mouth). Of the things used were bags, yambi and gun - small, for tobacco and small items, they were worn around the neck, and a large bag on the shoulder. The women had their own women's bags (nangeli-ge). Belts and bags are made of bast or fibers of different trees, which have no names in Russian (tauvi, mal-sel, yavan-sel). From the fibers of the nug-sel tree, ropes are made, and from the bu-sel tree - anchor ropes. The gutur tree resin is used as a glue.
The food of the Papuans is mainly vegetable, but pork, meat of dogs, chickens, rats, lizards, beetles, mollusks, fish are also consumed. All fruits are usually baked or boiled, including bananas. The fruit of the breadfruit is not held in high esteem, but is eaten.
In general, the set of plant foods is quite diverse: munks - coconuts, mogas - bananas, dep - sugar cane, mogar - beans, kangar - nuts, baum - sago, keu - a drink like kava, and also use fruits such as ayan, bau, degarol, aus, which do not have Russian names.
Folklore, songs, dances are widespread among the Papuans; there are also myths and legends passed down from generation to generation. Almost all Papuans' holidays are called ai, where only men are allowed. The biggest holiday among the Papuans is Sing Sing. Songs (chanting is called moon) and dances among the Papuans are very simple, and the melody of different songs varies very slightly. Musical instruments are made by the Papuans from various scrap materials.
The musical instrument ai-cabral is a hollow bamboo trunk, about 2 meters long, into which they blow, shout and howl. Munch-ai is made from the shell of a coconut: two holes are made in the nut, one is blown into, and the other is plugged. The hal-ai pipe is also made from the root, it is used in the same way as the munch-ai. Orlan-ai is a handle with laces with empty nut shells hanging from them, which, when shaken, make characteristic sounds. The Papuans also have an okam drum.
The Papuans have a well-developed woodcarving, they make very complex ornaments that adorn weapons and other objects.
The traditional beliefs of the Papuans are close to the Australian and Melanesian. The marind anim has a cult close to the Australian one, this is totemism. Dema is a totemic ancestor. Myths mainly tell about the exploits of semi-animals, semi-humans. They have a secret Mayo cult associated with initiations. Among other Papuans, cults are already different, basically it is a belief in various magic, harmful, healing, economic. The term "onym" means witchcraft and poison, and any medicinal drug. He is considered the cause of all disease, misfortune and death. and they are afraid of him. The neighboring tribe is often considered to be the culprit.
The cult of ancestors and skulls is of great importance. The Papuans make corvars - images of ancestors (stylized human figures), in the area of the Astrolabe Bay, where Miklouho-Maclay visited, they are called telums.