Suriname folk-lore

141.

Adąŋgra bɛn sab' wąn bǫn tapu. Ma 'a tapu bɛn dɛ mek' so: A 'i mek' wąn kɔti, dą' i tyari 'a suma go na mɩndri watra. Dąn a i tek' wąn lala krabasi, dąn i go na mɩndri watra nąŋga na suma. Dąn i kɔt' na krabasi sei̯bi kɔti, a i kɔt' 'a mąn sei̯bi kɔti. Dąn a i taki na krabasi, ‘Wɛ, yu si, mi no kɔt' yu mɔro furu lei̯k' mi kɔt' 'a mąn, so mi trowɛ yu na ɔndro watra. Wɛ, yu si, suma sɑ kɩs' yu na ɔndro watra fō du yu wąn sani, dat' kąn du na suma tu.’ Dąn i tro na krabas' na ɔndro watra. So na suma di a kɔti, no wąn suma kąn kɩsi hɛm du hɔgri, bikasi na suma mus' kɩs' na krabasi na ɔndro watra fō du hɛm wąn sani, dąn 'fɔsi a kąn du na mąn wąn sani. Ɛf' suma sɛni hɛm wąn wisi, a no kąn kɩsi hɛm, bikasi Adąŋgra a meki wąn sweri nąŋga krabasi di a trowɛ.

141. Wɩnti Adangra's Magic.²

Adangra knew a good tapu.³ But the tapu was made this way: He made kɔti,⁴ then he took the man to the middle of the river. Then he took a green calabash, and then he went to the middle of the river with the man. Then he cut the calabash seven cuts, and he cut the man seven cuts. Then he said to the calabash, ‘Well, you see, I did not cut you any more than I cut the man, so I throw you away under the water. Well, you see, the person who gets you under the water to harm you, that one can harm the man, too.’ Then he threw the calabash in the water. So no one can get the man whom he had cut to do him evil, because to harm him, the person must get the calabash from under the water, then only could he harm the man. If someone were to send him wisi⁵ it could not get him, because Adangra had made a compact⁶ with the calabash when he threw it away.

2 Told by 1.

3 A spiritual preventive.

4 A preparation rubbed into cuts which are used either as magic inoculants, as in cases of prevention of snake bite, etc., or in instances of sealing a compact, as explained here.

5 Black magic.

6 Lit., ‘made an oath’.