It\u2019s origin has been related to the\u00a0ciguaya<\/i>\u00a0princess of\u00a0Saman\u00e1\u00a0named\u00a0Onaney,\u00a0lover of the cacique\u00a0Caonabo<\/i>,\u00a0who, overwhelmed by his death, took refuge in a cave with her virgin companions, according to the book\u00a0\u201cLo\u00a0Dominicano\/All Things Dominican\u201d, by the\u00a0Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n On her way to the cave,\u00a0Onaney\u00a0and her companions walk backwards as to not be tracked down.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Exaggerated through centuries, this reading is found on the internet and\u00a0influences\u00a0plastic art, music, literature and Dominican film.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A ghost woman that circles mountains in silence during the night in search of men.\u00a0Men disappear when they come into contact with her.\u00a0Jup\u00edas<\/i>\u00a0<\/i>evoke the beliefs of\u00a0Taino\u00a0mythology. They are ghosts that take over a body to seduce men, who disappear when they come into contact with the ghosts, according to stories told by friar\u00a0Ram\u00f3n\u00a0Pan\u00e9.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe mountains of\u00a0Bahoruco\u00a0became famous five centuries ago as a refuge for Indians and runaway slaves,\u201d according to\u00a0Lo\u00a0Dominicano\/All Things Dominican.\u00a0From these remnants arose the story of the\u00a0Biembienes<\/i>,\u00a0savage beings who lived in hidden clans in the mountains.\u00a0Biembienes<\/i>\u00a0run around naked, using grunt-sounds as their only language.\u00a0\u201cThey move in groups at night\u00a0when they go out to steal crops, and, like the\u00a0ciguapa<\/i>\u00a0<\/i>they leave backward tracks to protect themselves from being discovered and to confuse their pursuers.\u201d<\/p>\n Like many other cultures in the world, Dominicans have their own story about transformation with the\u00a0galipotes<\/i>.\u00a0According to \u201cLo\u00a0Dominicano\u201d, the\u00a0galipotes<\/i>\u00a0are men that transform into\u00a0animals or\u00a0inanimate objects, such as tree trunks or rocks.\u00a0\u201care cruel and violent beings,\u201d\u00a0who are\u00a0immune to weapons. The\u00a0galipote<\/i>\u00a0that transforms into a dog is called a \u201clugar\u00fa,\u201d coming from the\u00a0French\u00a0Word\u00a0loup-garou<\/i>,\u00a0the legendary\u00a0werewolf\u00a0of the universal myth. Those that come into contact with a\u00a0galipote<\/i>\u00a0<\/i>in the mountains protect themselves with\u00a0wood crosses and\u00a0white sanctified weapons with water and salt.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Z\u00e1ngano<\/i>\u00a0have the same characteristics as\u00a0galipote<\/i>,\u00a0and can change form, walk with a large stride, fly like a nocturnal bird, run, climb and disappear at the speed of light.<\/p>\n Aborigine inhabitants\u00a0of rivers, lakes and underwater caves. They are inoffensive and generous with their knowledge of herbal medicines.<\/p>\n In this popular story derived from Europe, witches are evil beings with powers from the devil. In the national tradition, \u201cthey turn into large birds and circle over houses, making frightful cawing noises\u2026 witches remove their skin before flying, leaving it to soak in a jar, and that they set out to fly saying \u2018Neither God nor Saint Mary,\u2019\u201d according to stories compiled in the book\u00a0\u201cLo\u00a0Dominicano\u201d.<\/p>\n Marimantas<\/i>\u00a0are shapeless beings that appear wrapped in white sheets during the night in search of badly behaved children. If a child is trapped, the parents ask for the child to be returned. From then on, the child will behave well.<\/p>\n Cuco\u00a0<\/i>is an undefined character invented to scare children when they do not want toe at or sleep. The threat of\u00a0\u201ccuco\u201d or \u201ccoco\u201d is also typical in Spain and in other Latin American countries.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In Dominican folklore they are called\u00a0nimitas<\/i>\u00a0<\/i>like the fireflies, and it is believed they are the\u00a0souls\u00a0of dead children that come back to watch over their loved ones.<\/p>\n This is a \u201cpackage\u201d prepared by the witchdoctor in a series of magical rituals on Tuesday or Friday and should be placed in a location where the victim will step on it or brush it upon passing it.\u00a0 To neutralize the\u00a0guangu\u00e1, it must be removed with the left hand while crossing oneself with the right hand, according to stories.<\/p>\n Mal de\u00a0<\/i>ojos<\/i>\u00a0can make\u00a0children\u00a0sick and is normally accompanied by the exclamation \u201cMay God watch over him.\u201d When the child has\u00a0mal de\u00a0<\/i>ojos<\/i>, a witchdoctor should be summoned to pray over him and cure him of the magical disease.<\/p>\n It is believed that pre-Colombian\u00a0axes have the power to repel lightning\u00a0strikes, hence the name\u00a0piedra\u00a0de\u00a0rayo\u201d (lightning Stone).<\/p>\n A belief among poor Dominicans that says when a person begins to quickly progress economically they have the help and protection of a\u00a0bac\u00e1<\/i>,\u00a0a\u00a0denomic\u00a0being that has taken over someone\u2019s spirit, who paid the devil with the life of their loved ones.<\/p>\n This is a spirit that prowls around dreams.\u00a0La\u00a0<\/i>pesadilla<\/i>\u00a0<\/i>has one hand full of holes and the other of riches to give to those that can grab the riches by threading the perforated hand with any object that fits in the holes.<\/p>\n The first May of rain is considered magical among many Dominicans, who bath under the rain or wash their face to rejuvenate and wipe away wrinkles.<\/p>\n In the countryside there are \u201cspecialists\u201d with magical powers\u00a0to water bend in times when rain can damage crops. These\u00a0amarradores<\/i>\u00a0de\u00a0<\/i>agua<\/i>\u00a0walk through the rain and remain dry, according to countryside stories.<\/p>\n This is an ancient method used in the Dominican countryside to forecast the rainfall for the year and to plan crops. The first 12 days of January speak to the next twelve months, when there Will be rain or drought. With variations, the\u00a0caba\u00f1uelas<\/i>\u00a0are also used in Spain and throughout the American continents.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Sources and References Dominican culture is rich in myths, legends and beliefs that have been passed down from generation through written and oral tradition. Legends: The\u00a0Ciguapa One of the most well-known Dominican folklore legends is the\u00a0Ciguapa,\u00a0a magical creature with inverted feet and long hair that appears in caverns and rivers.\u00a0\u00a0 In the countryside version, the\u00a0ciguapa\u00a0is a small and … Continue reading “Myths and Beliefs”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":4533,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1198","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1198"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1198"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9801,"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1198\/revisions\/9801"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/4533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dominicanaonline.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.dominicana-online.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/02\/creencias-ciguapa-rd.jpg\")
<\/a>In the countryside version, the\u00a0ciguapa<\/i>\u00a0is a small and beautiful woman that\u00a0men fall in love with and\u00a0then\u00a0disappear into her nocturnal world.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nJup\u00edas<\/b><\/h3>\n
Los\u00a0<\/b>Biembienes<\/b><\/h3>\n
Galipotes<\/b><\/h3>\n
El\u00a0<\/b>Z\u00e1ngano<\/b><\/h3>\n
Los\u00a0<\/b>indios<\/b>\u00a0de las\u00a0<\/b>aguas<\/b><\/h3>\n
Las\u00a0<\/b>brujas<\/b><\/h3>\n
<\/h3>\n
<\/a>Las\u00a0<\/b>marimantas<\/b><\/h3>\nEl\u00a0<\/b>cuco<\/b><\/h3>\n
BELIEFS<\/b><\/h2>\n
Las<\/b>\u00a0<\/b>n<\/b>imitas<\/b>\u00a0o<\/b>r<\/b>\u00a0<\/b>animitas<\/b><\/h3>\n
El\u00a0<\/b>guangu\u00e1<\/b><\/h3>\n
Mal de\u00a0<\/b>ojos<\/b><\/h3>\n
La\u00a0<\/b>piedra<\/b>\u00a0de\u00a0<\/b>rayo<\/b><\/h3>\n
El\u00a0<\/b>bac\u00e1<\/b><\/h3>\n
La\u00a0<\/b>pesadilla<\/b><\/h3>\n
El\u00a0<\/b>agua<\/b>\u00a0de mayo<\/b><\/h3>\n
Amarradores<\/b>\u00a0de\u00a0<\/b>agua<\/b><\/h3>\n
Las\u00a0<\/b>caba\u00f1uelas<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n<\/i><\/b>Lo\u00a0Dominicano\/All Things Dominican, 2016, Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (GFDD).<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"