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Welcome To Llama Dollies
- Posted by: Jerry Straka
Many believe the cradle of civilization began in the Andes mountains of South America. Before the reign of the Incas, before the birth of Christ, and before the construction of the megalithic structures throughout the Andes and elsewhere, the Indigenous tribes were guided by two overwhelming principles that remain to this day. Truth and honesty.
Like other civilizations around the globe have done for millennia, the Indigenous tribes of the Andes forged a lasting relationship with nature, and a dependence on the llama to sustain that relationship. Similar to tribes in Asia and their yaks, tribes in the Sahara and their camels, tribes in the Arctic and their reindeer, and tribes across Europe and their horses, the Indigenous peoples developed a mutually beneficial connection with the llama.
The llama was fundamental to the cultures of Ecuador and the Indigenous. Llamas were valued as pack animals and for their meat, fertilizing manure, their ability to withstand intensely cold climates and high altitude, and most importantly, their wool. Llama wool is the lifeblood of Andean society. It is used for clothing, shelter, cordage, and spiritual artifacts. The wealth of Indigenous communities was measured in the size and health of their llama herds.
The embrace of the llama and the reverence of all life was not about domination of the landscape and its denizens, rather to flourish through conservation of the land and cooperation with its wildlife. Respecting nature is not an Indigenous movement, it is a cultural imperative. That imperative guides their daily actions and spiritual beliefs.
And the enduring tenets of truth and honesty have been adopted by all Andean tribes and are, today, embedded in the Ecuadorian Constitution by the following credo: ama killa, ama lulla, ama shwa. It is a Quichua expression that means, “do not be idle, do not lie, do not steal”. The llama symbolizes that credo.
All non-merchandising Llama Dollies products are handmade originals.