Rattle – Maracá Pataxó

For the Pataxó people, the maraca is a means of communication. When in the villages there are meetings between the chief and the community, the maraca has a great function! In meetings, when a person wants to give an opinion, he gets up and shakes the maraca, so the leader, chief or pajé will understand that that person wants to speak and everyone will be silent to listen.

The maraca is also used in classrooms by teachers to call the attention of students who are disturbing explanations and thus ask for silence and attention.

The maraca is used in rituals, ceremonies and dances. In chants it is used to express joy with the soul and energy in conducting the ritual. The way the leader shakes the maraca defines the rhythm and everyone who follows already knows which will be the direction of the singing and dancing movement according to the way of shaking the maraca.

The maraca is also part of the healing rituals and spiritual works by shamans that help in the spiritual connection and purification of the subtle fields.

There is a chant for the maraca that goes like this:

When I hear the rattlesnake,
it makes me want to sing

When I hear the rattlesnake,
it makes me want to sing

I sing is for Tupã
for Tupã to help me

aweres

The graphics of the maracas are created by my friend Paraci Pataxó.

About the Pataxó:
“The Pataxó live in several villages in the extreme south of the State of Bahia and north of Minas Gerais. There is evidence that the village of Barra Velha has existed for almost two and a half centuries, since 1767 (see History of occupation). In contact with non-Indians since the 16th century and often forced to hide their customs, the Pataxó today make an effort to revive their Patxohã language and “ancient” rituals such as Awê. (via: https://www.pib.socioambiental.org )