But if all Pirahã myths must exemplify immediacy of experience, then the scriptures of many world religions, such as the Bible, the Koran, the Vedas, and so on, could not be translated or discussed among the Pirahãs, because they involve stories for which there is no living eyewitness. This is the main reason that no missionary for nearly three hundred years has had any impact on the Pirahãs’ religion. The stories of the Abrahamic religions lack living eyewitnesses, at least as I practiced religion when I was religious.
I wonder to what extent a continuous line of spirit shows, told as simulacrum, might create an ancient myth that has continually evolved to live in the present. The immediacy of language would necessarily make the evolution of the spirit shows impossible to study.
