Alejandro Tsakimp

In the heavily forested foothills of the Andes Mountains in Ecuador, a Shuar healer named Alejandro Tsakimp leads many lives. He is a peasant who sells cattle and lumber, a troubled member of the Shuar Federation, a son and brother, husband and father, student and worker, and a shaman. Being a Shuar today-and especially a healer-is both a burden and a resource, and Tsakimp must constantly negotiate varying relations of power, such as with the better educated and richer officials of the Shuar Federation, his patients, siblings, and rival shamans. The power to cure is also the power to kill, so shamans like Tsakimp are frequently in danger from accusations of witchcraft. In his own words, Alejandro Tsakimp tells of his lives and relationships, the practice of shamanism, and the many challenges and triumphs he has encountered since childhood. Born during a time when the Shuars were recovering from a devastating intertribal conflict over the trading of shrunken heads, Tsakimp was first exposed to healing practices when he was cured in the womb by a shaman. Later he actively pursued this knowledge in the hopes of curing his father-another shaman-who was ill from witchcraft. His father's death in 1990 created conflict among his heirs, who were the first generation of Shuars to inherit property. Tsakimp's family fiercely competed for the property and eventually accused each other of witchcraft and parricide. Anthropologist Steven Rubenstein, who began working with Tsakimp in 1989, provides essential background information and has skillfully edited Tsakimp's story. This book is notable for its revealing look at the relationship between anthropologist and shaman, for its insightful glimpse into the complicated lives of South American healers today, and for its compelling collection of stories told by Tsakimp. Steven L. Rubenstein is an associate professor of anthropology at Ohio University. He is the author of The Huaorani.

Table of Contents:
List of Illustrations, Maps, and Charts; Series Editors' Introduction; Acknowledgments; A Note on Transcription and Shuar Orthography; A Note on Shuar Names; Maps" Part 1. Introductions 1. Meeting Alejandro; 2. History and Culture; 3. Life History; 4. Working with Alejandro Part 2. His Stories 5. First of All; 6. Son and Brother; 7. Student and Worker; 8. Husband and Father; 9. Shaman; 10. The Shuar Federation; 11. Friend and Enemy; 12. Orphan Part 3. The Return 13. At a Loss; 14. Informant; 15. Friend Series Editors' Afterword; Charts; Cast of Characters; Glossary; Notes; References; Index

About the Author :
Steven L. Rubenstein is an associate professor of anthropology at Ohio University. He is the author of The Huaorani.

Review :
"Rubenstein is a sophisticated, interesting scholar with strong political scruples, and his book is important... the volume is highly relevant to classroom use. This is also a book that will give great enjoyment to the general anthropological audience. It is deeply relevant to ongoing heated disputes among Amazonianists."--JRAI, Sept 2007