Summary
Highlights
The Bijagos Islands, an isolated part of Guinea-Bissau, West Africa, are introduced as sacred lands resembling a vast river delta. The episode introduces Marcelino, an Omi Grande (elder and traditional doctor) on Carache Island, who uses ancestral remedies. Pedro, a reporter for Orango's radio station, searches for stories on Orango Island, a world biosphere reserve. Quintino on Caravela Island is preparing for the Fanado, the highest initiation rite, which profoundly shapes the Bijago people's relationship with nature.
Marcelino, a traditional healer in Empicha, Carache Island, a few years ago received training in the fundamentals of modern Western medicine from foreign doctors. Marcelino learned traditional medicine from his father and dedicates himself to helping children, stating his greatest joy is seeing them cured. Elders like Marcelino pass on crucial knowledge to younger generations to keep traditions alive.
The film emphasizes the significant role of the palm tree in Bijago life, with every part used for housing, wine, oil, strings, and soap. Marcelino explains that plant lore and traditional medicine are closely guarded secrets, not shared with outsiders. He always asks for the tree's forgiveness before cutting a root, asking it to help cure the sick.
Marcelino treats a child on a nearby island after invoking spirits for a smooth journey. Marcelino treats various ailments, including stomach aches, indigestion, cuts, bruises, headaches, and snakebites using traditional methods. The Bijago elders are seen as living memory and guardians of the community's secrets, upholding traditions that ensure social cohesion. Marcelino explains that his people are remote and pure, valuing their land and freedom highly. He compares himself, an old man, to an old tree, both wise and integral to the Bijagos.
Orango, the largest island, is a national park with savannas, forests, and mangrove swamps. Pedro, known for helping his community with his two-wheeled tractor, recounts how his life changed 20 years ago when his brother sent it from Portugal. Pedro selflessly transports goods and people, seeing it as his duty to help others. More recently, Pedro became a volunteer reporter for Radio Okinka Pampa, a community radio station established a few months prior, which focuses on public health and environmental issues. This role allows him to discover new aspects of his country.
Pedro embarks on an assignment with João, a park ranger, to find saltwater hippopotamuses, the emblematic animal that led to the Bijagos being declared a World Biosphere Reserve. João describes the dangerous biodiversity of Orango, including horn vipers, mambas, scorpions, and poisonous stingrays. Saltwater hippos have adapted to seawater over thousands of years, taking refuge in it when freshwater lagoons dry up. João explains how to differentiate between male and female hippos. Hippos are sacred animals in Bijago culture, symbolizing strength and courage.
Pedro travels to Poilão, a sacred, isolated island with no drinking water or food, making its inhabitants dependent on mainland supplies. Poilão is a sacred island for the Bijago, also holding historical significance as a Portuguese sea mark. It is home to one of the largest colonies of green turtles in the Atlantic, where females return to lay eggs. Santino, a guardian of Poilão, emphasizes the importance of protecting the island's natural resources, not just for Guinea-Bissau, but for the entire world.
On Caravela Island, Quintino, a 30-year-old kabado, prepares for the Fanado, a crucial initiation rite that marks his passage into manhood. This challenging ritual involves suffering, endurance, and deprivation over several months in the sacred forest. After completing the Fanado, Quintino will become a Kamabi, a respected man capable of helping his community and protecting his family. Quintino's wife, Saffie, and their children will be left behind during his absence.
The Bijago people maintain a self-sufficient existence, with each family cultivating its own rice field. Quintino faces the challenge of protecting his rice crop from weaver birds, an essential task for their sustenance. The Bijago children learn from a young age how to protect the rice fields, their staple food. The film also explains a legend about the Bijago abandoning seafaring after interpreting a European reprisal as the sea spirits' revenge. Now, they use Kanyagos, traditional fishing tools made from natural materials, a skill taught from childhood.
The waters around the Bijagos are abundant with fish, but also dangerous creatures like stingrays. The unpredictable weather, including storms and hurricanes during the rainy season, presents daily challenges for survival. Quintino's wife, Saffie, actively participates in food gathering, reflecting the division of labor and mutual reliance within their community. She expresses contentment with her life, prioritizing her children's upbringing. Quintino grapples with anxiety as the elders set the date for his three-month Fanado initiation. He wears his father's fetishes, symbolizing the strength and courage needed for this sacred rite, which only initiates know the full secrets of. The film concludes with Quintino's readiness to embark on this transformative journey, marking a major turning point in his life and the lives of the Bijago people on the fringes of the world.