Pre-Hispanic rituals that Mexico keeps alive

Pre-Hispanic rituals have been used for many years by different cultures: whether for healing, acts of gratitude, preventive, hygienic or religious. People from all over the world visit Mexico to learn about them, to admire them or to find in these ancestral rituals the answer they were looking for. Our country is characterized by its cultural richness, for continuing to practice these ancient traditions that are still alive and kicking, and today we tell you more about them.

Descent of God

What many know as “Bautizo” is one of the oldest initiation ceremonies, it consists of bathing a newborn baby with holy water, to cleanse it of all evil, history tells us that it was the Spaniards during the conquest who called it baptism, however in Mexico it was practiced for many years prior, different ethnic groups in the country like the Huicholes still do it, they wet the children with sacred water to fill them with nature, thanking Stuluwiákame, the goddess who grants children. 

Mushroom Ceremony

A current tradition in states such as Michoacán, San Luis Potosí and Oaxaca, it is a ceremony where a healer or spiritual guide is in charge of cutting and providing an adequate dose of mushrooms to the person who undergoes the ritual, when ingesting them, through hallucinations he/she discovers different states of mind, while the spiritual guide recreates the moment with songs and prayers, so the patient finds a healing of the soul. People from all over the world visit Mexico to find answers in this tradition.

Massages and cleansing

Who hasn’t had a back massage to relieve an upset stomach? These massages are used since time immemorial, some people say that this practice is related to a spiritual adjustment, in different states of the republic these massages are used to relieve the “empacho” commonly suffered by children, however, adults also follow this traditional ritual, as well as the cleansing with eggs or various plants, where an adult believer takes these instruments and rubs the body of the affected person, to clean it of bad vibes or witchcraft that cause back pain, stress, depression, among other symptoms that disappear after this ritual.

Caldear

The home remedies used by grandmothers are still a powerful medicine in Mexico, nowadays people use the concept “Caldear” to refer to the process of cooking medicinal plants such as epazote or tomato, as well as the fat of animals such as chicken or deer, to later apply it on the body in order to relieve pain, reduce muscle inflammation and lower fever. 

Temazcales

A large number of indigenous groups still believe that women should practice this ritual after childbirth in order to purify themselves. It is also used to prevent illnesses and to improve the health of the people who practice it. In a room made of clay or sometimes stick and blankets, a group of people enter and sit around a hole in which hot volcanic stones are placed, drops of medicine are applied to them and water is thrown over them to generate a steam throughout the room, which makes the attendees sweat, purifying through perspiration and connecting them to the great gods of the universe, while this happens, prayers and chants are recited.

With information from Más de México.

Translated by Miguel Sánchez