Religious Beliefs
At the time of the conquest, the Tairona had different traditional cultural practices than modern native American populations. Ethnographic sources highlight freedom to divorce and acceptance of homosexuality, that differed significantly from their Catholic conquerors. The Tairona religion, and to some extent modern Kogui religion, separate much of the domestic life between genders. The descriptions of Tairona homosexuality are probably an attempt by the Catholic establishment to abolish the Tairona male meeting house, which was the site of intense and permanent religious activity. These are probably similar to those of the Kogui, modern descendants of some of the Tairona chiefdoms. Many of the adult men are involved in rituals sometimes lasting days and consisting mostly of deliberation, coca chewing and meditation.
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