Chullachaqui, the false friend of the rainforest
By Ralf Ittermann · last reviewed on
The Chullachaqui is a spirit of Quechua tradition in the Peruvian Amazon.
An uneven foot betrays the false friend of the forest. The article notes that an uneven foot betrays this false friend before it can lead travelers deeper into the rainforest.
Chullachaqui is a shapeshifting forest spirit of the Peruvian Amazon, recognisable by an uneven foot. He takes the form of a familiar person or a prey animal to lure people deep into the forest and lead them astray; his true sign is the telltale foot.
He is rooted in the indigenous-mestizo Amazonian culture of Peru, and in Spanish is sometimes called a Duende. His victims disappear or return mentally confused; at the same time, he is regarded by the curanderos of Vegetalismo as a guardian with whom one enters into relationship.
Type: Shapeshifting forest-guardian spirit with trickster traits
Origin: Indigenous-mestizo Amazonian culture of Peru
Texts: Oral tradition, recorded in writing in the 20th and 21st centuries (Luna, Gow)
Period: orally transmitted to the present
Appearance: small in stature, ugly, with an uneven foot, often a child’s body with an old face
Context of the tradition
Period of the Texts
Oral tradition, only recorded in writing in the 20th and 21st centuries, primarily within the shamanological strand of research.
Area of Diffusion
The Peruvian Amazon, especially the regions of Loreto, Ucayali and San Martín.
Sources
Sparse: alongside narrative tradition, it is mainly the shamanological strand that carries the material, foremost among them Luis Eduardo Luna’s studies on Vegetalismo.
Name and variants
Quechua: from chulla, uneven or single, and chaki, foot, thus Uneven-Foot. In Spanish the forest spirit is sometimes called a Duende.
Appearance
Appearance
The Chullachaqui is small in stature and ugly, often a child’s body with an old face, and mostly appears as a shapeshifter. His mark is the uneven or reversed foot: it signals the supernatural within the seemingly familiar.
Effect
The Chullachaqui disorients and misleads his victims, so that they disappear or return mentally confused. He can transform into animals and punishes breaches of taboo such as excessive hunting or killing pregnant animals.
Profile: Chullachaqui
The most important aspects of the Uneven-Foot at a glance.
Indigenous-mestizo Amazonian culture of Peru; in shamanic Vegetalismo, the spirit is regarded by the curanderos as a guardian with whom one enters into relationship.
All who enter the forest, especially the disrespectful; those who mean well, however, he can protect or reward.
Small in stature, ugly, with an uneven foot; often in the form of a familiar person or a prey animal.
Misleading and confusing victims, punishment for breach of taboo such as excessive hunting or killing pregnant animals.
Watch companions’ feet in the forest; in some variants, he is made to laugh or challenged to a wrestling match to check his feet.
Uneven-Foot: name, Duende and teaching tree
The name is Quechua, from chulla, uneven or single, and chaki, foot, thus Uneven-Foot. The spirit is rooted in the indigenous-mestizo Amazonian culture and is sometimes called a Duende in Spanish.
He also plays a distinct role in the shamanic context of Vegetalismo: the Chullachaqui Caspi tree forms foot-like roots and is regarded as a teacher plant in the shamanic diet; the healer is a curandero or vegetalista. The Chullachaqui is thus not only a fearsome figure of the tales but also a being of reference within a living healing tradition.
Between eco-museum and ayahuasca retreat
The Chullachaqui is a fixed feature of Peruvian Amazon identity and cultural tourism, among other things as the namesake of Ayahuasca retreats and an ecomuseum near Iquitos. It is present in narrative blogs, art and retreat contexts.
From a religious-studies perspective, the Chullachaqui is a forest guardian spirit and Lord of the Animals with a trickster character, who instils an ecological ethic through fear and respect; the false foot is the sign of the danger of the wilderness. He is ambivalent: guardian and trickster at once, who punishes the disrespectful and can protect or reward those who are well disposed.
Watching the feet: unmasking and respect
Well attested is the unmasking through watching the feet, for the unequal or twisted feet betray the Chullachaqui; in variants, people make him laugh or challenge him to a wrestling match to check his feet. Alongside this apply the rules of respect: take only what is needed and ask for permission. In Vegetalismo, the teacher plant Chullachaqui Caspi is dieted, and the spirit is regarded by curanderos as a guardian with whom one enters into a relationship.
The unequal foot and its relatives
The closest parallel is the Brazilian Curupira with his twisted feet, his deception and his forest protection; in the Chullachaqui only one foot is unequal, whereas in the Curupira both point backwards. Related are the Slavic Leshy, a forest lord and shapeshifter, and the Caribbean Douen, who imitates familiar voices and lures children into the forest. In the same Peruvian Amazon, the serpent mother Sachamama watches over the forest.
Frequently asked questions about the Chullachaqui
How can one recognise the disguised Chullachaqui?
By his unequal feet, one human, one animal-like or twisted; hence the advice to watch the feet of companions in the forest.
Is the Chullachaqui evil?
Ambivalent: guardian and trickster; he punishes the disrespectful and can protect or reward those who are well disposed.
What does his name mean?
Quechua chulla, unequal, and chaki, foot, thus Unequal-Foot.
Further links
Further reading:
- Curupira – the Brazilian relative with the twisted feet
- Sachamama – the serpent mother of the Peruvian Amazon
- Leshy – the Slavic forest lord and shapeshifter
- Amulet, Mugwort, Smoke Cleansing – traditional protective means
- Protection Compass – protective means at a glance
Literature (selection)
Further standard works in the bibliography.
As an Amazonian forest spirit with the telltale unequal foot, the Chullachaqui teaches a simple caution: whoever meets a familiar face in the forest looks first at the feet, and whoever enters the forest with respect has little to fear from him.
