Who Are the Mbyá Guaraní?
The Mbyá Guaraní are a Tupí-Guaraní speaking indigenous people distributed across Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina in the Atlantic Forest (Mata Atlântica) region. Numbering approximately 25,000-30,000 across all three countries, they are one of the major Guaraní subgroups, distinct from the Kaiowá and Ñandeva. The Mbyá are renowned for maintaining traditional religious practices, including the quest for Yvy Mara'eỹ (the "Land Without Evil"), ceremonial singing and dancing, and resistance to acculturation. Living in small, dispersed communities in the remnants of the Atlantic Forest, they face severe pressure from deforestation and agricultural expansion.
The Beautiful Words
Mbyá religious life centers on ñe'ẽ porã ("beautiful words")—sacred songs and prayers performed in the opy (ceremonial house). These ceremonies connect the community with Ñande Ru (Our Father) and other deities, maintaining cosmic harmony and community well-being. The Mbyá have resisted missionary Christianity more successfully than most Guaraní groups, maintaining traditional cosmology while selectively incorporating outside elements. Central to this cosmology is the concept of Yvy Mara'eỹ—the Land Without Evil—a paradise sought through spiritual preparation and sometimes physical migration. This religious commitment has reinforced cultural distinctiveness and resistance to assimilation.
Atlantic Forest Remnants
Traditional Mbyá life depended on the Atlantic Forest—one of the world's most biodiverse and endangered ecosystems. Slash-and-burn agriculture provided maize, beans, and manioc; hunting and gathering supplemented cultivation. The forest supplied materials for housing, crafts, and medicine. Today, less than 10% of the Atlantic Forest survives; Mbyá communities exist in forest fragments surrounded by agriculture and urban development. Some groups live near Iguazu Falls (Brazil/Argentina border), creating crafts for tourists. Deforestation threatens subsistence, medicine, and the sacred geography essential to Mbyá identity. Land security is precarious; many communities lack formal recognition of their territories.
Contemporary Mbyá
Modern Mbyá communities navigate between traditional practices and survival strategies in degraded environments. Craft production—wooden animal carvings, basketry, jewelry—provides income, particularly near tourist sites. Some communities have gained territorial recognition; others continue fighting for land rights. Cultural transmission remains strong in many communities, with children learning Mbyá language and participating in ceremonies. Education programs adapted to Mbyá culture exist in some areas. Transnational mobility continues—Mbyá move between Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina, following traditional patterns now complicated by national borders. The Mbyá represent indigenous peoples maintaining distinctive spirituality and culture while facing extreme environmental and territorial pressure in one of the world's most deforested regions.
References
- Cadogan, L. (1959). Ayvu Rapyta: Textos Míticos de los Mbyá-Guaraní del Guairá
- Clastres, P. (1995). Chronicle of the Guayaki Indians
- Garlet, I. J. (1997). Mobilidade Mbyá: História e Significação