The verb icarar means to sing or whistle an icaro [medicine song] over a person, object or preparation to give it power; water over which an icaro has been sung or whistled and tobacco has been blown, for example is called agua icarada…
Anthropologist Luis Eduardo Luna tells of how [mestizo shaman] Don Williams Vasquez deals with difficult childbirth, singing icaros [medicine songs] of slimy fish, demulcent and mucilaginous trees, the slippery boa, and the ray, which can give birth in any position. He sings these songs over a glass of water, which is given for the woman to drink.
~ Steve Beyer, Singing To The Plants
Waterfall Cascades, Krka National Park, Croatia – photo from bigstockphoto.com
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