The Spirit of Shuar

This is when he first met with the Shuar. He grew a strong bond with them and learned the ways and traditions they have been practicing for hundreds of years. After leaving and traveling the world, settling down and starting a family, John has recently connected with the Shuar again. He hopes to tell their story and bring Americans to visit their culture and learn from their ways. John has recorded many conversations with Shuar Shamans and respected headhunter warriors to get a better sense of their lives, beliefs, and knowledge of the world. John is present almost entirely through the book, besides the recorded conversations between Shaman and Warriors. .
             This book's focus is primarily on the culture and beliefs that the Shuar have held with them for many generations, along with new traditions being formed because of the development in surrounding areas. Since the time John first lived among the Shuar in the late 1960's, their population has grown from around seven-thousand to the current seventy-thousand. There are three main factors that contribute to this huge increase in population size; The ability to get vaccinations has led to Shuar living much longer lives. These vaccinations have also brought a significant decrease in infant mortality rates. The final reason is an incredibly strict ban the South American governments have put on headhunting wars. This means the death rates of Shuar warriors has drastically fallen, leading to more reproduction. Although increased population size would appear to be a positive thing, Shuar do not necessarily see it that way. In the words of Peem: "Except in a few remote places, like here, we can no longer live off the land as hunters and gatherers. It's become too crowded. And since Shuar don't believe in death, but in shapeshifts into other forms, prolonged life isn't always the objective, as it seems to be in the United States. We believe it's how you live each day, not how many days you live, that matters.