The poem tells the story of a Tupi warrior who is captured by an enemy cannibal tribe – the Timbiras.
As he is about to be killed and offered in sacrifice, he begs for mercy in order to be freed and return to his home,
where his old, sick and blind father waits for him. The Timbiras then allow the Tupi warrior to go.
The warrior reunites with his father. After smelling the sacrificial paint on his son's body and hearing that he was let go, his father demands they head back to the Timbiras' tribe in order for them to continue the sacrifice ceremony.
However, the cacique (chief) of the Timbiras tells the old man
that they no longer want the Tupi warrior to be sacrificed,
since he begged for mercy and thus is a coward.
Angered, the old man curses his son, saying that he is the disgrace of the Tupi tribe.
The son cannot stand his father's hate, and suddenly wages war all alone against the whole Timbira tribe.
The old man listens to his son's war screams and realizes that he is fighting with honor.
In life after death, the Sacred Warrior rose as a protector of the Island, the Guardian of the Tupi.
I Juca Pyrama. The One That Shall Be Killed.
Tapu Koko.
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