One thousand years ago, 500 years before the Spanish arrived, the Kogi people retreated from the Caribbean coast of Colombia to live in the remote high Sierra Nevada mountains that rise directly from the coast. Their move protected them from the Spanish and from European diseases. Today they live as they did 1,000 years ago, just out of reach of their neighbors, but well aware of our existence and ways of life.
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| Our guide |
The Kogi continue their thoughtful practice of intentional isolation to this day. However, Lauren, Luke and I had the privilege of visiting a Kogi village, though through pre-arrangement the village's adults had temporarily left the area so that we might enter. (About one visit occurs each month.)
Our guide (photo, right) was the one-quarter-Kogi grandson of a Kogi woman, and through him we gained access. In the guide's beat up jeep, we climbed the mountain's rough road, streams, check points and pathways until we rendezvoused with a young Kogi man that escorted us forward (photo below). We never spoke to this stoic Kogi man, as that is not permitted. He and the other Kogi believe that it is best to have as little contact as possible with outside people. Makes sense to me.
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| Our Kogi escort (photo taken without permission :-( |
The Kogi are a highly religious people that base their lifestyle on their belief system that relates all creatures to the mother earth. Their role within this belief system is to help protect and prolong life on Earth. Believe me, they walk the walk. Their spiritual leaders, mamos, are trained from early childhood and until age 18 are isolated from their own people. Wikipedia has a good summary. I recommend it. Nothing "new-agey" about them.
There is nothing about the Kogi that struck us as "poor". They had all they wanted and lived long lives.
Reporting our observations that day: We entered the empty village of a dozen round mud and stick huts with thatched roofs to find fires smoldering in the center of each. The areas were clean and well tended.
The clothing of our escort was simple wool or cotton handmade and clean, and was typical for both men and women. The Kogi choose white for all their clothing, as representative of their search for purity. The young man did wear western sneakers.
We snuck a peak into some of the huts and saw that there we no signs of furniture, tables, beds or hammocks. We assumed that they slept on the ground, and were told that men and women live in separate buildings. A larger hut "nuhue" served as the central temple and place for discussions and group decisions. We inferred that men and women hold equal status in the society, with each gender having specialized roles. [Update: Two months later, during a visit to a different indigenous village, we noted that that community also did not use beds, and tables and chairs were few. That group used hammocks, and we now conclude that the Kogi probably use hammocks, though we have no evidence either way.]
Men of Kogi descent carry a satchel, a "mochila", everywhere they go. Everywhere, all the time. Inside the mochila is their poporo, a gourd that holds a powder of the mineral lime. A stick both blocks the hole in the gourd and helps extract the lime powder when needed. At the end of each day, the Kogi man meditates on the day, moistens some lie with his saliva and "paints" on the side of his poporo his memories of the day. In so doing he creates a physical memory on the poporo which he then carries with him everywhere. To earn his poporo, a boy of about 13 years, must spend three days within a sacred circle near the nuhue without sleep or food. Should he fail, there's no penalty; but no reward either. He must try again later.
After a while, we heard small noises from one hut and the face of a child appeared. One girl, perhaps 12 years old, had remained behind to care for the younger children, who had made the noise we heard. She was silent but friendly.
As we walked from the village, a mother and two young children came in from the forest. The children smiled as they dragged a hoe up the hill. (photo, left)
We reached another settlement, also emptied of people, but this one had a table. Luxury! (photo , right)
Driving up the hill had caused a flat tire for the jeep. (I told you it was a rough road.) The pause gave us time to start considering the conscious choices the Kogi have made to balance their lives with their "little brothers" (us) on the outside world. Elsewhere we've seen people--with many more things--far less happy, satisfied and peaceful than these Kogi. 
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