An Insight into the Kuna Culture

by Lyla Ralston,  Nov. 07

A woman’s voice calls out, “compra molas, compra molas”, I climb the companionway stairs, and find an ulu, a dugout canoe, with two women and 2 small children aboard. The women are wearing the traditional dress, red scarves on their heads, beads adorn their forearms and lower legs, a golden earring in their nose, a blouse with molas on the front and back and the wraparound skirt. I tell them I would like to see their molas, and they both, take the top off of a 5 gallon bucket and begin placing molas on our deck. The touristy molas are applique and not as pretty, I don’t think, as the traditional ones. So, they begin to pull out the ones with more geometrical designs on them, along with hotpads, headbands, and beads. I decide on buying one from each of the women, and find out that it is a better bargain to buy two since the designs complement one another. So now, I am buying four molas altogether. And the negotiating is quick since they don’t really bargain, they have a set price and that is it.

As they paddle away, I am fascinated by this encounter and try to imagine how life is for them. I know that the women have the power in this society, since they are the moneymakers, but I know so little about their culture, so I begin to do some research.

In 1513, when the Spanish explorer, Vasco Nunez de Balboa, first crossed the isthmus and saw the Pacific Ocean, Kuna villages dotted the mainland. The Kuna fought the Spaniards fiercely for control of their land. About 150 years ago, the Kuna set out to sea in their ulu’s or cayucos, to escape from the Spaniards and their descendents, the Panamanian criollas. The San Blas islands offered them a safe haven where they could build villages and raise families.

After the establishment of the Republic of Panama in 1903, the government established repressive police posts. By 1915, a Latino Governor, elected by the Panamanian government and residing on the island of Porveneir, dictatorially ruled San Blas. Kunas remained loyal to Columbia after independence, which led to many serious clashes between Panamanian police and Kuna warriors. In 1925, the Kunas rebelled, killing both Panamanian police and Kuna warriors. After the rebellion, the high chief or “cacique” declared total independence under the name of the San Blas “Republic of the Kuna”. When news reached Panama City, the government immediately mounted a military campaign and only a quick intervention by the United States Navy, prevented bloody retaliation. Since then the Kunas live in peace and relations with the Panamanian government are good.

Since 1925, no Kuna is allowed to intermarry with non Kunas. Violation of the prohibition results in expulsion from San Blas. This has led to a kind of genetical insulation and there are many albinos. These albinos, fair skinned, blond, and with sensitive eyes really stand out between their dark brothers. But the albinos, are not shunned, but held in high esteem.

Kuna Yala, which is the name of the whole territory of the San Blas, is governed by three “sahilas” or chiefs who meet in front of great general assemblies to discuss the problems that affect their communities. Each island/village has its own leaders as well. There are two oversized huts , the “congresso” and the chicha. The “congresso” or town hall, is a gathering place for villagers most evenings. A typical “congresso” has wooden benches on each side and four hammocks in the middle. The sahila swings in his hammock, smoking either a pipe or cigarettes, and then chants in a special language no one else understands. The argars, or speakers, sit next to the sahila and intrepret the words for everyone.

The other big hut is the chicha . Chicha is an intoxicating drink brewed from sugarcane and other special ingredients. The chicha festival is held once or twice a year, and requires a month in preparation. Other celebrations are held in the chicha, such as a girls coming of age ceremony.

All the villages we visited, were clean and a sense of pride existed thruout the communities.  The homes that they live in our made out of a palm thatched roof with the walls made out of sugarcane and tied together.  There is not a single nail used.  It is all natural.  Inside the furnishings are sparse, hammocks are hung beside the walls and clothes are hanging from the cross beams. They cook in a separate hut called a sokakka over an open fire. The cooking pots rest on stones.

Primary schools were established by the Panamanian government on the main islands to teach the Kuna to speak and write Spanish. English is taught in some schools and at home, and the ones that do learn English can then talk to the tourists and earn money:  one example  is by becoming guides. It is easy to recognize a primary school, while most Kuna houses are palm thatched wooden huts, schools are built with cement blocks. Their location is always on the windward side of the island so to allow the cool comfortable sea breezes to blow thru their windows. We have seen some children wear uniforms on some of the islands, although not all of them can afford it. The school is split between the primary and secondary classes, with usually the primary attending school in the morning, 8am - 1 pm and secondary classes from 1pm - 6pm.

Everyday, you can see the men taking out in their ulus, early in the morning, and paddle for the mainland to tend their fields, gather firewood, and water if necessary, carried in large barrels. They also fish, and do so by using a hand line. The fishermen usually come by the boats anchored out and offer to sell their catch.

The Kuna women stay at home and perform various chores: sweep the sand floors or the streets, feed the family pig, raise the children, cook, and sew molas. Women, from the day they are born, are considered special. They are lavished with gifts and attention. After all, they will bring money and respect to their families by making molas. Whenever a Kuna woman has some free time, she immediately gets busy sewing a mola.

Walking thru the streets, you also sense a strength of family values.  Since the communities are so small, everyone has to get along.  And the children we saw were playing old fashioned games such as marbles, jumprope, leapfrog, fishing on the docks with only a handline, soccer in the streets.  The children never fought, but played happily together.  All smiles and laughter, and curious about us.  They would come up to us and touch our hands, and if we had a camera, they would want their picture taken and wanted to see the picture afterwards.  It would of been nice to be able to print out the pictures and give it to them.

Women are the center of Kuna life. When a young woman is ready to get married, she selects her husband, who is then kidnapped by both of their relatives and brought to the girls home. When a young man marries, he must live with his wife in the house of his mother in law. Property is passed to children by their mothers. Before the wedding, the Kuna girl has her hair cut short at the Inna ceremony, which continues for five days and nights with a huge feast located in the chicha hut. During this feast, known as Innamutiki, men and women dance in circles around professional singers called Kantules. The Kantules chant sacred verses and play panpipes and gourd rattles.

Outside the San Blas molas are often seen framed and displayed on walls as works of art. But, for the Kuna women, molas are the most important part of their dress. The traditional dress of the Kuna women resemble tropical birds. The molas that their blouses are adorned with tell much about their lives. Molas are panels, and each panel is made of many rectangular pieces of fabric of different colors and textures sewn together. Designs are first made on paper, then it is traced on to the first layer of fabric. Like a sculptor, the Kuna women then cut slits through the layers with scissors to allow different colors to show thru. As she cuts, she has to stitch together the borders of the fabric. In very fine molas, these stitches are hardly visible. The traditional colors are maroon or wine color, black and orange There are some designs that are passed down from generation to generation.  Although there is no exact date when the Kuna women began to make molas, but it is sometime in the early 1900's.  When they were able to get material to make them.  Who came up with the idea? No one knows.

 If the women are having a hard time coming up with new designs, or their hands are not working as well as they should, they go to the shaman or medicine healer, in the village. The shaman tells them what they should do to bring about better creativity or in the example of their hands, he tells them to gather the leaf cutting ants. These ants are in the forest and you can see them in long trails carrying pieces of leaves. The woman then gathers these ants, in various locations, and brings them back to the shaman. The shaman then roasts them over a fire, adding incense or other special ingredients, and makes a paste out of them. This paste is then rubbed onto the woman’s hands in hopes that the ants working qualities will be passed onto them.

We were visited by two of the better known mola makers while anchored in the San Blas. Lisa, who lives on Chichime and Rio Sidra and Venancio who lives on Isla Maquina. Lisa, whom I have mentioned in our October and November logs is a transvestite and Venancio is gay, which the Kuna accept with no problems. Each one came aboard and displayed their molas and with each one a story is told about it’s meaning. These molas are not only made by them, but also their families.

Lisa made for us a custom mola of our boat from the picture on our boat card. It took 2 weeks to be made and it turned out wonderfully. She also made for me a blouse, more modernized than the traditional ones wore by the Kuna women. And for Aaron, Lisa made a new dewrag.

 The Kuna society is indeed an unique one, and I hope that they can hold on to their traditional ways and beliefs and their land. But, in some communities, the younger generation is becoming restless, and wanting more of the modern conveniences. Some of the younger ladies are not succumbing to wearing the traditional dress, opting for t shirts and shorts. And the men, who can leave the community, try and find work on the mainland, or in Panama City. The women, I am told, are not allowed to leave, but must stay on the islands within their communites. Trying to keep their culture intact, is becoming harder and harder for the sahilas to maintain.  Preservation of the Kuna culture is a treasure worth keeping.