Pilima, also known as Pidima, is a

Wayana The Wayana (alternate names: Ajana, Uaiana, Alucuyana, Guaque, Ojana, Oyana, Orcocoyana, Pirixi, Urukuena, Waiano etc.) are a Carib-speaking people located in the southeastern part of the Guiana highlands, a region divided between Brazil, Suri ...

village situated on the

Litani River The Litani River ( ar, نهر الليطاني, Nahr al-Līṭānī), the classical Leontes ( grc-gre, Λέοντες, Léontes, lions), is an important water resource in southern Lebanon. The river rises in the fertile Beqaa Valley, west of B ...

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

History

Pilima was founded by the

shaman Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...

or ''pïyai'' Pilima, son of former head captain Janomalë. Pilima sometimes clashed with the new head captain of

Kawemhakan Kawemhakan, formerly also known as Anapaikë, is a Wayana village in the Sipaliwini District of Suriname. The village lies on the banks of the Lawa River, which forms the border with French Guiana. Name The indigenous name of the village is Ka ...

, Anapaikë, who according to Pilima pandered too much to the wishes of the Baptist missionaries. As a reaction to the missionary activities, Pilima started a prophetic movement that had the characteristics of a

syncretic Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in the theology and mythology of religion, thu ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

cult: Pilima claimed to be in contact Aramawali, a great spirit from the heavens, who would send "heaven boats" from the sky to gather the Wayana who believed in him, and who would bring them to heaven where they would live an eternal life. In ceremonies, Pilima would imitate church rites and attempt to sing church songs. A central aspect of the cult was the jumping in the water from a

springboard A springboard or diving board is used for diving and is a board that is itself a spring, i.e. a linear flex-spring, of the cantilever type. Springboards are commonly fixed by a hinge at one end (so they can be flipped up when not in use), and ...

, in an apparent reference to Christian

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

, which according to Pilima would help the Wayana overcome their fears, which stood in the way of their salvation by Aramawali. The cult died out after a while, and Pilima and the village returned to their earlier lives.

Education

A primary school opened in Pilima in 1997.

Geography

Pilima is the southernmost of all Wayana villages currently inhabited on the Litani River. It lies about upstream from the village of Palimino.

Notes

References

* * {{authority control Indigenous villages in French Guiana Maripasoula Villages in French Guiana