::01

The Ye´kuana conceive of the universe as being comprised of two parallel planes : caju (the sky) and nono (the earth). In nono, the lower plane of the universe, the supernatural was long ago neutral (or at least its manifestations were unknown to the inhabitants of the earth). Then the Sun father let three magical eggs fall down. The first two opened and from them came Wanadi, a mythical culture hero, and his brother. The third did not break open, but was smashed and deformed. Wanadi then threw it into the forest. With this second fall, the egg opened and Cajushawa, full of resentment and hatred, appeared on earth and turned into the negative manifestation of the supernatural. Since then the people of Cajushawa (the demons or odosha) have proliferated over the earth, dominating the invisible reign of the earth. In contrast, Wanadi, the benevolent expression of the supernatural, after having lived on the earth for a time during which he struggled against Cajushawa, left the earth in the hands of people, the Ye´kuana, and it is up to them to fight against the demons.

::02

The makeup of the earth has at its center an internal circle of water called dama (the sea), which is surrounded by another circle, nono (the earth properly speaking), which has arteries of water, tuna (the rivers which come from the sea). Surrounding the earth there is another circle from which reclined bolts emerge which are the pillars that hold up the sky. This space is called caju wowaö´ña, or literally « the paws of the sky ». Besides holding up the sky, caju wowadö´ña is the limit of the reign of Cajushawa. The villages to the east it is said belong to caju wowadö dawono (the lower part of caju wowadö). To the east there are innumerable waterfalls very difficult to reach that begin on the earth, run underland in caju wowadö´ña and reappear in the sky in the form of calm water. When Cajushawa pursued Wanadi, he was not able to cross over these waterfalls and had to stay on earth.

::03

Caju (the sky), the upper plane of the universe, is divided into eight layers, which are the reigns of the jöwai. The villages of Wanadi and the Sun are located in an inaccessible place of caju, concentrated in a single place beyond the world in which the visible beings (the Ye´kuana) and the invisible beings (the demons of Cajushawa) unceasingly compete, and the balance between the positive and negative forces is very unstable. Living in this place, Wanadi is completely distant from the problems of the earth.

The geography of the universe and the geography of the roundhouse are marked by a great similarity. But, more than that, the roundhouse can be understood as a replica of the cosmos: its parts correspond to each of the significant divisions of the sky and earth. The annaca (or internal circle) corresponds to dama (the sea in the center of the world). The next circle which makes up the earth (nono) corresponds, in the roundhouse to the äsa (the compartments/ sleeping quarters). On the edges of this second circle are the pillars which hold up the roof. The larger beams are called sirichäne, which literally means « support for the stars ». In the Ye’kuana concept of the universe this space corresponds to caju wowadö´nã, or « the paws of the sky ». The cone-shaped ceiling of the roundhouse, in turn, is shaped like the representation of the upper plane of the universe, with the tip being the dwelling-place of Wanadi and his father. In the roundhouse, there is a window in the ceiling that opens to the east, in the direction of Wanadi.

Besides the demons, odosha, there is another form through which the supernatural manifests itself in a negative way. According to the Ye´kuana, the life systems (animal and plant, for example) have invisible equivalents or « owners » in the invisible world. When the Ye´kuana affect the visible manifestations of these beings – in hunting an animal or cutting down a tree, for example – they bring about an imbalance in the invisible world. The invisible forces then react, causing misfortune, sickness or death to the aggressors. To deal with this problem, the Ye’kuana perform rituals prior to using certain products of nature, like forest fruits, game animals, resins (for example, the caraña which is used in body painting) etc. These products are « blown over »[that is, with tobacco smoke and orations] in order to drive away the supernatural force that is found stuck in them.