The eshuva is a prayed song that depicts the religious myths of the Huachipaire religion.
It is performed in a variety of contexts for healing as well as parts of many ceremonies, like the drinking of masato, a traditional beverage made of fermented manioc, and the initiation of new Eshuva singers. The Huachipaire are an indigenous ethnic group living in Peru's southern Amazon rainforest, speaking a language that is related to Harákmbut. The communities believed that every being is surrounded by energy and that energy is balanced; when this balance is disturbed, it is necessary to regain it, and it is up to human beings to intervene with eshuva.
The eshuva is a song, not an instrumental, that is performed exclusively in the Harakmbut language. According to oral tradition, the Eshuva songs were transmitted directly from animals to humans, for the purpose of alleviating illness or discomfort or promoting well-being. Eshuva can be used both positively and negatively. In the case of positive use, it is frequently used to find out the cause of diseases or ill health. Whenever it is used negatively, it is used to cause death, though in this case the prayer is done secretly. The eshuva is also used for other ceremonies, such as funerals and entombments. An eshuva practitioner invokes the spirit to enter their bodies and give them certain characteristics, which give them the feeling of being invulnerable. The group's members are therefore responsible for safeguarding the language and protecting its values and worldview. Each song is transmitted orally, with apprentices being taught a specific function according to a disease it is meant to cure. Eshuva songs are at risk of disappearing, however, because the transmission has been interrupted due to a lack of interest among Huachipaire youth, recent internal migrations, and the influence of external cultural elements.
It is known that there are many more sung eshuva prayers that are trying to be documented in order to safeguard them, but the National Institute of Culture of Peru only recorded 10 in 2010. The Peruvian Ministry of Culture established manucas (memories house) in the two Huachipaire villages that still practice eshuva after it was declared part of UNESCO's list of intangible heritage that requires urgent safeguarding measures. These manucas will serve as homes for the practice of eshuva and the other traditions cultivated by these native communities. Today, twelve eshuva performers had been identified, all of whom were Huachipaire subgroup members.
References
(https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/eshuva-harkmbut-sung-prayers-of-perus-huachipaire-people-00531) (https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eshuva)