Losing fat, gaining treatments: the use of biomedicine as a cure for folk illnesses in the Andes

Abstract

BackgroundThis article explores how people in the Andes incorporate beliefs from both biomedical and ethnomedical systems in treating folk illnesses that often involve spiritual beings. The article focuses on the kharisiri—one who is believed to steal fat and blood from unsuspecting humans to make exchanges with the devil. The kharisiri in turn is rewarded with good fortune. Victims of kharisiris, however, fall ill and may die if untreated. Historically, kharisiri victims relied on ethnomedicine for treatment, but it appears biomedical pills are now perceived by some as an effective treatment. By drawing on participants’ attitudes towards biomedicine, and how people in the Andes conceptualize health, this article theorizes as to why biomedical pills are sought to treat kharisiri attacks but not for other folk illnesses.MethodsFieldwork was conducted in Arequipa and Yunguyo among market vendors, who make up a significant portion of Peru’s working population. This type of work increases the risk of different illnesses due to work conditions like exposure to extreme temperatures, long-distance travel, and social dynamics. Biomedical and ethnomedical products are often sold in and around marketplaces, making vendors a compelling group for exploring issues relating to treatment systems. Qualitative data was collected in 2011 with a follow-up visit in 2013. Participant observation, informal conversations, and unstructured interviews with 29 participants informed the study.ResultsParticipants unanimously reported that biomedical pills are not capable of treating folk illnesses such as susto and mal de ojo. Several participants reported that pharmaceutical pills can cure kharisiri victims.ConclusionsIn comparison to other folk illnesses that involve spiritual beings, those who fall ill from a kharisiri attack lose physical elements (fat and blood) rather than their soul (ánimo) or becoming ill due to a misbalance in reciprocal relations—either with humans or non-human beings such as Pachamama. Because the kharisiri is typically a stranger to the victim, the Andean concept of reciprocity appears to be irrelevant in terms of preventing and treating attacks. The association between kharisiris, biomedicine, and exploitation may also play a role in the use of biomedical pills.

Untitled

“…The potential to usurp the force or fl esh of other is also contained in Andean images of the process of transferring body fat, the life force and the corporeal essence of others. The Andean fi gure of the kharisiri or pishtaco-a dreaded nocturnal fi gure with white skin-appropriates the body fat of his hapless victims by ripping them open, sucking the healthy fat out their bodies, and stitching them together again before dawn (Weismantel 2005;Blaisdell and Ødegaard 2014). 21 Similarly, the fi gure of the white Portuguese as vampire and blood-sucker, a so-called chupa-sangue, is also present in many popular perceptions of the ma-Tuga-the name given to colonial Portuguese-in Mozambique (Teixeira 2003; see also Bowen 2001).…”

Lud, t. 99, 2015

“…Innymi słowy, zachowanie niezgodne z sumak kawsay jest dowodem na chorobę, to jest utratę formy runa (człowieka) poprzez utratę jej elementu składowego. Symptomatyczne jest także to, że przypadki ataków pishtaco najczęściej związane są z przemieszczaniem się Indian w miejsca nieznane lub zamieszkałe przez ludność nieindiańską, na przykład w celu sprzedaży produktów rolnych w miastach (Blaisdell, Vindal Ødegaard 2014). Według Q'ero miejsca nieoswojone, czyli takie, z którymi człowiek nie nawiązał żadnych relacji wzajemności, są naładowane obcą tożsamością i mogą być zasiedlane przez nieludzkie byty zagrażające człowiekowi (w tym pishtaco).…”