As the
Araucanians had not a properly called god of evil, Gualichu was not worshipped but feared. He was blamed for every disease or calamity, and all evil happenings were said to be caused by him. Gualichu could enter people's body or objects and then an
exorcism had to be performed to expel him (see also
demon possession). He was a purely spiritual being and there is no depiction of him. He was believed to live underground. By extension, the term applied to an evil
spell or charm, or a
jinx (
"It has Gualichu"). In this sense the word has evolved into
gualicho and still survives in the local
folklore of
Chile,
Argentina, south of
Brazil and
Uruguay, in the form of a noun and a verb (
engualichar, to cast an evil spell on somebody or something). ==See also==