Before the world of humans began, there was the world of the gods, made of fields, plains and gardens. Four brothers wandered this celestial realm. They had no family other than each other— they didn’t even know who their parents were. One of the brothers, Deminan, looked different from the others. His skin was covered in painful scabs, and he wondered why he alone had been marked with this affliction.
Antes do início do mundo dos humanos, havia o mundo dos deuses, feito de campos, planícies e jardins. Quatro irmãos vagavam por esse reino celestial. Não tinham família, além de uns aos outros, nem sabiam quem eram os pais deles. Um dos irmãos, Deminan, parecia diferente dos demais. A pele dele era coberta de crostas dolorosas, e ele se perguntava por que só ele era acometido por essa doença.
One day, while the supreme spirit Yaya was out in his gardens, Deminan and his brothers snuck into Yaya’s house. After feasting and exploring, they spotted a giant gourd hanging in the corner. But as they tried to look inside the gourd, they dropped it. The gourd broke apart, releasing a deluge that swept the brothers away, separating them from the celestial lands forever.
Um dia, enquanto o espírito supremo Yaya estava nos jardins dele, Deminan e os irmãos entraram sorrateiramente na casa de Yaya. Depois de festejar e explorar, notaram uma cabaça gigante pendurada no canto. Mas, ao tentar pegá-la, deixaram-na cair. A cabaça estilhaçou-se, liberando um dilúvio que levou os irmãos, separando-os para sempre das terras celestiais.
The waters from the gourd formed a new world. This realm was covered in seas, which didn’t exist in the gods’ world. The waters were full of fish and other creatures, and dotted with islands and caves. This world of seas was also cut off completely from the celestial realm, and the brothers wandered aimlessly, even more lost than they had been before.
As águas da cabaça formaram um novo mundo. Esse reino era coberto de mares, que não existiam no mundo dos deuses. As águas estavam repletas de peixes e de outras criaturas e entremeadas por ilhas e cavernas. Esse mundo dos mares também foi separado totalmente do reino celestial, e os irmãos vagaram sem rumo, ainda mais perdidos do que antes.
One day, three of the brothers stumbled upon a house. In the house lived an elder named Bayamanacao, and he invited them in. When Deminan caught up slightly later, he followed them into the house. Bayamanacao told the brothers he was their grandfather and gave them a gift of special cassava bread. He revealed their family lineage to them: their mother had been the Earth Mother Goddess Itibi Cahubaba and had died when they were born. The brothers were grateful for his hospitality and insight into their past.
Um dia, três dos irmãos se depararam com uma casa. Nela morava um ancião chamado Bayamanacao, que os convidou para entrar. Quando Deminan o alcançou um pouco mais tarde, ele os seguiu até a casa. Bayamanacao disse aos irmãos que ele era avô deles e lhes deu um presente de pão de mandioca especial. Ele revelou a linhagem familiar a eles: a mãe deles era a Deusa Mãe Terra Itibi Cahubaba, que morreu quando eles nasceram. Os irmãos agradeceram pela hospitalidade e pelo conhecimento do passado deles.
But then Bayamanacao turned on Deminan, blowing tobacco spittle from his nose onto Deminan’s back. The spot where the spittle landed immediately began to swell and sting.
Mas Bayamanacao virou-se contra Deminan, cuspindo tabaco a partir do nariz nas costas de Deminan. O local onde a saliva pousou começou imediatamente a inchar e arder.
Soon Deminan was delirious and his back was so swollen his brothers feared he would die. Not knowing what else to do, they cut open the welt. A turtle emerged from the wound and swam away, alternating easily between sea and land as she went.
Logo, Deminan estava delirando, e as costas dele estavam tão inchadas que os irmãos temiam que ele morresse. Sem saber mais o que fazer, eles abriram o vergão. Uma tartaruga emergiu da ferida e nadou para longe, alternando facilmente entre o mar e a terra conforme seguia.
When Deminan recovered from his delirium, he finally understood what the curse of his disease meant: he was a caracaracol, able to communicate with the gods. He was the link between the celestial realm and the earthly realm.
Quando Deminan se recuperou do delírio, entendeu finalmente o significado da maldição de sua doença: ele era um caracaracol, capaz de se comunicar com os deuses. Ele era o elo entre os reinos celestial e mundano.
Deminan was the first in a long lineage of caracaracols. The world of seas he and his brothers had created when they dropped the gourd became the world of humans, where the caracaracols who followed Deminan maintained the delicate balance between people and gods. But their unique power came at a price: Deminan and all the caracaracols who followed him continued to suffer from the illness that had first marked Deminan as special. Represented in Taino carvings and figurines with a swollen back and emaciated arms, the caracaracol is both cursed and blessed to be a conduit between worlds.
Deminan foi o primeiro de uma longa linhagem de caracaracóis. O mundo dos mares que ele e os irmãos criaram quando deixaram cair a cabaça tornou-se o mundo dos humanos, onde os caracaracóis que seguiam Deminan mantinham o equilíbrio delicado entre pessoas e deuses. Mas o poder único deles teve um preço: Deminan e todos os caracaracóis que o seguiram continuaram a sofrer da doença que primeiro marcou Deminan como especial. Representado em esculturas e estatuetas de Taino, com as costas inchadas e os braços esqueléticos, o caracaracol é tanto amaldiçoado quanto abençoado