Netebaon joi: the Shipibo-Konibo cosmic semiotics

Peyón P.M.F. · America sin Nombre (2025) · DOI: 10.14198/amesn.27536

Resumen

This article presents a semiotic reflection of the Shipibo-Konibo indigenous nation of the Peruvian Amazon. From the perspective of the Amerindian sages, all living beings (both in the sensible and suprasensible world) participate in language; although each species does so in a different way, there is even the possibility of establishing dialogues between the various forms of life. This article will propose that the figure of the spiritual masters (called ibo in the Shipibo language), occupies a fundamental role in this cosmic dialogue and, for this very reason, can be understood as semiotic mediators. Although these Amerindian reflections are not usually stated explicitly, they can be traced in certain everyday statements, as well as in the narrative conceptions and practices of the visionary doctors of this Amazonian people. These statements and practices allow us to reflect on an indigenous cosmic semiotics, which, in turn, conveys Amerindian ontological notions that diverge from the modern naturalist paradigm. However, it is possible to find certain links with some propositions of contemporary science, and in particular biology, that allow us to begin to trace a different way of understanding human language and the communicative nature of the cosmos.

Instituciones: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú