Narcisa Dagua, "Bitter, Bitter, Ayambi: a magical song against anger."

Bitter Ayambi (recorded and translated from Kichwa by Tod Swanson) is a magical song meant to protect the singer from the anger of her relatives. The song works by linking the identity of the singer to that a large iguanaesque lizard called an ayambi. The ayambi works as a poignant image for an elderly lady because it has loose rolls of scaly skin that jiggle when it walks and it is almost always seen alone. Because of the magical song, when those who are angry see an ayambi their anger will be changed to compassion for the elderly singer