The Waters of the Kamayurás

In Xingu, midwest Brazil, the largest indigenous reserve in the world, the Kamayurás begin to walk towards Ypawu lake for their first bathing before sunrise. Several bathing sessions are going to be repeated daily until sunset. These waters are a link to their ancestors and keeping them pure is a sacred ritual. The lake is their most important source of food, and also the essence of their culture.

The Kamayura´s creation myth tells about a magic bird that, in a dispute with a tribesman, threw up the water that formed the lake and also buried the residents. Since then, it has become an enchanted place, and its water and plants a source of strength for the Kamayurás.

Photos by Ricardo Teles