The Jívaro, a people from Ecuador, have an utterly fascinating belief system...
First of all, they believe that this world, is not the true world. In fact, the only way one can see the real world, is through the use of hallucinogenic drugs. Though, they don't conceptualize them as such. The main drug they use is called "Natema" which is derived from Banisteriopsis, though they do use other drugs.
Anyway, the Jívaro will start giving hallucenogens to their children very shortly after birth, because they want them to be connected to the "real world" as early as possible...
Secondly, they believe that every single death was caused by someone else. (This is not an uncommon belief around the world.) Yes, that means if a person was walking in the woods and happened to get mauled to death by a wild animal, or a tree fell on them, or they fell and broke their neck, or they just got sick and died, someone else caused it to happen.
So how does one go about causing what we would consider to be an accidental death? Well, it has to do with the manipulation of the supernatural. If someone dies, it is a direct result of them having been ensorceled; someone committed an act of sorcery that caused a particular person to die. There are no exceptions. (Once again, a good portion of the world believes in this manner of thinking...)
(I will be writing more about them...YAY! For shrunken heads!!! Yes, if you've ever seen a shrunken head, well, the Jívaro are the ones that shrink them, and I'll be explaining how to shrink a head, and why the Jívaro shrink heads to begin with...)
Distorted Gaze Community Member 
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