| María Lionza | |
|---|---|
Main deity, goddess of love and nature | |
| Member of theTres Potencias | |
 Monument of María Lionza byAlejandro Colina in Caracas (picture from 2003), decorated with tributes | |
| Other names | La Reina (the Queen),Yara |
| Major cult center | Sorte Mountain,Yaracuy, Venezuela |
| Mount | Tapir |
| Festivals | Pilgrimage on 12 October |
María Lionza is the central figure in one of the most widespreadnew religious movements inVenezuela. The cult of María Lionza began in the 20th century as a blend ofAfrican,indigenous andCatholic beliefs.[1] She is revered as agoddess of nature, love, peace and harmony.[2] She has followers throughout Venezuelan society, from small rural villages toCaracas, wherea monumental statue stands in her honor. TheCerro María Lionza Natural Monument (also known as Sorte mountain) where an important pilgrimage takes place every October, was renamed in her honour.
According to the main legend, María Lionza was born in the 15th–16th century as the daughter of an indigenous chief from the region ofYaracuy.[2][3][4] Her father sent her to live in the Sorte mountain. One day, while she was by the river, an anaconda attacked and devoured her. From within the serpent, María Lionza begged the mountain for help. The mountain agreed, María Lionza thus disintegrated and merged with Sorte mountain.[3][5] Sometimes the anaconda is said to have exploded and caused the torrential rains that are common in the region.[5]
María Lionza is sometimes portrayed as an indigenous woman and sometimes as pale-skinned with green eyes,[1][6] usually surrounded by animals.[2] She is often depicted naked riding atapir.[2]
María Lionza is sometimes calledYara, an indigenous alternative name. According to some versions, Yara would have taken the nameSanta María de la Onza Talavera del Prato de Nívar or simplySanta María de la Onza ("Saint Mary of theOunce") under Catholic influence during the Spanishcolonization of Venezuela. Subsequently, her name would have been shortened to "María Lionza".[7]
The rites of María Lionza take place in theSorte mountain, near the town ofChivacoa inYaracuy state, Venezuela.[4][3] The origins of the cult are uncertain; it is asyncretism of Indigenous, Catholic and African beliefs.[4] Traditions of trance communication (mediums seeking to channel the souls of the dead) may have started around the 19th and 20th centuries in Latin America, popularized by the teachings of the 19th century FrenchmanAllan Kardec.[3][1] According to Venezuelan anthropologistAngelina Pollak [es], the rituals in Sorte started in the early 1920s, and were brought to urban areas a decade later.[4]
Maria Lionza's followers travel to the mountain for a week each October 12th, on the nationalDay of Indigenous Resistance.[4][3] In 2011, estimates indicated that about 10% to 30% of Venezuelans were followers of the cult.[4] At the time, Venezuelan authorities indicated that about 200 000 followers participated in the traditions, including foreigners coming fromthe Americas andEurope.[4] In 2011, Wade Glenn, ananthropologist fromTulane University in theUnited States, estimated that about 60% of the Venezuelan population may have participated in the cult of María Lionza at some point.[4] Glenn argues that the conversational aspect of the rituals may have therapeutic effects.[3]
Members from all Venezuelan social classes participate in the rituals.[1][3] In local reports, the rituals have been considered to be linked with the late president of VenezuelaHugo Chávez, yet there is little to no evidence of this.[1][6] Chávez himself said he did not take part in it, and some followers of María Lionza supported him while others did not.[1][6] Some analysts argue that the decline of the power of the Catholic Church during Chávez's reign, along with thecrisis in Venezuela, may have led many Venezuelans to join the cult to seek help.[1][3][6] Thehyperinflation in Venezuela that began in 2016 has affected the rituals, as many are unable to access the materials necessary to carry out the ceremonies.[5]
The followers call themselvesMarialionceros and refer to María Lionza as the "Queen" (Spanish:La Reina).[4][1] People go to the Sorte mountain seeking strength, healing and to contact the souls of the dead.[8] During the pilgrimage, the principalshamans and priests of María Lionza come together to pay homage.[2] Many followers wear indigenous costumes and perform a traditionalfire walking dance called the "dance of the hot coals" (Spanish:baile de las brasas).[3]
Several spirits are also worshipped during the rituals alongside Catholic saints andVirgin Mary. According to the cult, María Lionza is one of the main "three powers" (Spanish:Tres Potencias), which also includeGuaicaipuro, a legendary indigenous resistance leader of 16th century, and Negro Felipe,[a] a black Afro-American soldier that allegedly participated in theVenezuelan War of Independence.[3] The lower spirits, usually referred to as brothers (Spanish:hermanos) by the pilgrims, are arranged into 'courts', divided by identity:Indigenous, African, Viking, Liberator.[3] The spirits include farmers, modern criminals and famous historical figures, likeSimón Bolívar.[3]
The participants cleanse themselves in the muddy rivers to receive the spirits. The shamans act asmediums between the pilgrims and the spirits, and usually demand that the devotees enter into trance states, which often lead them to speak in tongues or harm themselves.[4] The shamans and the Marialionceros employ blessings, curses, drumming, cigar smoking, tobacco chewing, and liquor during the yearly rituals.[3][12] Various sources have reported sightings of shamans, sometimes wearinghorned helmets, claiming to have contacted the legendaryVikingEric the Red, the first Norse explorer to discoverGreenland.[2][6]
Many members from other religions native to Latin America and Venezuela are present, primarilySanteros (practitioners of a syncretic faith that combines AfricanYoruba beliefs and Catholicism) andPaleros (practitioners of a syncretic Afro-Cuban religion that centers on communication with the dead).[5]
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One of the most iconic portrayals of María Lionza is the 1951 monument in theFrancisco Fajardo Highway inCaracas by Venezuelan sculptorAlejandro Colina.[13] It portrays María Lionza as a muscular naked woman, riding a largetapir which is standing on a snake. Lionza holds a femalepelvis, representing fertility, high above her head.[14]
The statue was made for the1951 Bolivarian Games, to sit outside theCentral University of Venezuela (UCV)'sOlympic Stadium,[14] and the Olympic flame was held in the pelvis at the top of the statue during this event.[15] The statue had been commissioned by the dictatorMarcos Pérez Jiménez, who wanted to make María Lionza a symbol of Venezuela.[15] The statue was moved to the highway in 1953,[16] after the university and Pérez Jiménez became concerned that the accessible campus location would allow María Lionza's devotees to gather and to spread their devotion in Venezuela.[15][17] In 2004 the original statue was moved to a university warehouse and a new casting was put in its place. In October 2022, the statue was extracted without permission from the authorities and traveled from the warehouse to the Sorte mountain some days before the beginning of the yearly pilgrimage.[18]
Rubén Blades andWillie Colón'ssalsa song "María Lionza", from their 1978 albumSiembra, is dedicated to the Venezuelan deity.[3][5]
FormerMiss VenezuelaRuddy Rodríguez was the protagonist ofMaría Lionza, a 2006 Venezuelan TV film.[3]
In 2009, theNew Weird America musicianDevendra Banhart composed "María Lionza", published in his albumWhat Will We Be, as an "evocation to the goddess."[19]
The Venezuelan singerArca paid homage to the goddess in her music videoPrada / Rakata released in 2021.[20]
2023Tom Clancy'sCommand and Control byMarc Cameron features Maria Lionza as a character in the early part of the novel.[citation needed]
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