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Pirarucu
was an Indian from a tribe named Uaiás, in the southwestern
part of the Amazon. He was a brave, but heartless warrior, unlike
his father and chief of the tribe, called Pindarô, who
was a good man. Pirarucu was selfish and excessively proud of
his power. While his father visited friendly neighbor tribes,
Pirarucu used to take the village people hostage and executed
them for any reason. He also criticized the gods.
Tupã,
the god of the gods, observed Pirarucu for a long time until
he thought it was time to punish Pirarucu. Tupã called
a god called Polo and demanded him to spread his most powerful
lightning in the whole area. He also called Iururaruaçu,
the goddess of torrents, and demanded her to provoke the strongest
pouring rain over Pirarucu, who was fishing along with other
Indians on the margins of the Tocantins River, not so far from
home.
The
fire of Tupã could be seen throughout the forest. When
Pirarucu saw the wild waters of the river, heard the voice of
Tupã and felt his hate, he ignored everything with a laugh.
Then, Tupã sent Xandoré, the demon that hates men,
who threw lightning and thunder that filled and cut the air with
sparks. Pirarucu tried to escape, but while he was running among
the falling branches and trees, a lightning-bolt sent by Xandoré,
struck into the heart of the warrior, who refused to ask for
forgiveness. Then, Pirarucu was taken to the depths of the Tocantins
River still alive and was transformed into a giant and dark red
fish. Pirarucu remained there, and for a long time he was the
terror of the region.
This
is a Brazilian legend from the Amzonian region. |
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