Earth Womb Held Hostage

This week I had the shit luck of having my phone destroyed and needing to buy a new one. The hazard of doing business. A friend of mine suggested I get out of the city for a bit and go out to Arecibo. My mood quickly changed at the prospect of a day out on the west side away from all te city noise. 

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

I threw my bags in the back seat and got in the car. We jetted down the freeway, trying to chase the sun and get the good light. We were headed to Cueva del Indio ( Cave of the Indian). It is a sacred Taino sight. The sight is located on the beach between the ocean and the private fence that many locals say is illegal. The "owner" of the property charges $5 per person but offers to protect your car in the parking lot. There has been much debate as to the legality of this and those with access to maps that would settle the dispute are not sharing them. Both the city of Arecibo and the colonial government of Puerto Rico seem unable to locate the maps in their records.

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

There is a way to to get in without paying but the path is even more dangerous than the private entrance. Jagged rocks created by the tide and strong unpredictable winds make the alternative path sketchy. 

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

It is no wonder that this was a sacred place. One of many of the cave entrances my friend took us through was shaped like a vagina. Many of the passage ways were cut in a similar fashion. The cave was both warm and wet and smelled of metal and  saline. 

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

Bats and bees that made their home in the caves ceiling. Seeds and shells  where scateredon the cave floor. There is a monstrous moaning sound that comes from the tide pushing air through the cave like a giant conch.

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

The cave walls are covered in petroglyphs that seem to depict babies, children and sea creatures. Some people in the recent history of the cave have left their own marks in the cave.

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

This cave is one of many sights in Boriken and the Caribbean that show the civilizationes that existed here made up of people rich with stories, imagination and vision. It is tragic that so much has been lost through the revision of history by colonial powers. 

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

From the Thracians to the Ainu, cultures from all over the world have associated caves with the womb. Caves have been seen as gate ways between the spiritual and the temporal. It is not a shock  that the Taino of Arecibo would treat a cave on the ocan like Cueva del Indio as such a place. It is a shame that I could not call it by the original name and have to use such a problematic title.

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

On the 25th of Spetember the people will be congregating at the sight to demand that it be turned over to the people. For mor information click here.

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

PHOTO:Stevie Elepan

All but one of these photos were taken with flash. Caves are delicate enviroments, please take photos responsibly. 

PHOTO:Jesselyn Velez Torres

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