There are various ways to speak about indigenous cultures, for example we could speak from the perspective of our so called ‘civilisation’ but how do we know that this perception is not contrary to the truth.
We could speak on the basis of our traditional religious concepts but again these concepts may in reality be the opposite of what we believe. If we speak about the indigenous from the point of view of an anthropologist we arrive at a cold and empty language, a study that only pays attention to external and superficial matters, in the same way an anatomist analyses our inner organs or our bones but they are still a long way from knowing the reality.
We believe that it is better to speak about indigenous cultures on the basis of their own reality, in relation to how they were as much as how they are now because in the course of time from yesterday to today many things have happened that are worthy of examination. The shock of our technical civilisation with the natural civilisation of the indigenous has brought about many changes for them that, rather than being beneficial, have been devastating to their natural culture, to its depths and essence. On the other hand, for us this cultural shock has only provoked isolated changes in the thoughts and way of life for some small groups of people.
We now know from studies that have been carried out that the Indians, prior to having contact with our civilisation lived completely happily in their way of life without that which we suppose to be the ‘greatness of technology’ even though with this technology we find ourselves a long way from an epoch of happiness and true peace.
The Jibaras Indians are an Amazonian tribe that still exist in spite of the advance of colonisation and evangelisation altho ...