Argonauts of the Western Pacific / An Account of Native Enterprise and Adventure in the Archipelagoes of Melanesian New Guinea

Kayikuna Veva Spell.

Two verbs signifying magical influence are repeated with the prefix bo-—which implies the conception of ‘ritual’ or ‘sacred’ or ‘being tabooed.’1 Then the toliwaga says: “I shall treat my canoe magically in its middle part, I shall treat it in its body. I shall take my butia (flower wreath), of the sweet-scented flowers. I shall put it on the head of my canoe.”

Then a lengthy middle strophe is recited, in which all the parts of a canoe are named with two verbs one after the other. The verbs are: “To wreathe the canoe in a ritual manner,” and “to paint it red in a ritual manner.” The prefix bo-, added to the verbs, has been here translated, “in a ritual manner.”1

The spell ends by a conclusion similar to that of many other canoe formulÆ, “My canoe, thou art like a whirlwind, like a vanishing shadow! Disappear in the distance, become like mist, avaunt!”

These are the three usual rites for the sake of speed at the beginning of the journey. If the canoe remains slow, however, an auxiliary rite is performed; a piece of dried banana leaf is put between the gunwale and one of the inner frame sticks of the canoe, and a spell is recited over it. After that, they beat both ends of the canoe with this banana leaf. If the canoe is still heavy, and lags behind the others, a piece of kuleya (cooked and stale yam) is put on a mat, and the toliwaga medicates it with a spell which transfers the heaviness to the yam. The spell here recited is the same one which we met when the heavy log was being pulled into the village. The log was then beaten with a bunch of grass, accompanied by the recital of the spell, and then this bunch was thrown away.2 In this case the piece of yam which has taken on the heaviness of the canoe is thrown overboard. Sometimes, however, even this is of no avail. The toliwaga then seats himself on the platform next to the steersman, and utters a spell over a piece of coco-nut husk, which is thrown into the water. This rite, called Bisiboda patile is a piece of evil-magic (bulubwalata), intended to keep all the other canoes back. If that does not help, the natives conclude that some taboos pertaining to the canoe might have been broken, and perhaps the toliwaga may feel some misgivings regarding the conduct of his wife or wives.

1 The prefix bo- has three different etymological derivations, each carrying its own shade of meaning. First, it may be the first part of the word bomala, in which case, its meaning will be “ritual” or “sacred.” Secondly, it may be derived from the word bu’a, areca-nut, a substance very often used and mentioned in magic, both because it is a narcotic, and a beautiful, vermilion dye. Thirdly, the prefix may be a derivation from butia, the sweet scented flower made into wreaths, in which case it would usually be bway, but sometimes might become bo-, and would carry the meaning of “festive,” “decorated.” To a native, who does not look upon a spell as an ethnological document, but as an instrument of magical power, the prefix probably conveys all three meanings at once, and the word “ritual” covers best all these three meanings.?

2 See Division II of Chapter V.?

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