Article written by Stephanie Crocker
Stephanie gives us some insight on traditional Mayan healing techniques practiced at OMIECH, The Mayan Medicine Museum in San Cristóbal de Las Casas.
As I pass through the large gate and onto the CEDEMM (Center for the Development of Mayan Medicine - the Museum of Mayan Medicine) property, I witness a familiar and unmistakable sight. It is not yet nine o’clock - indeed the center will not open for another hour - but a crowd has already gathered out front. I know immediately why they have come, for they do not just casually stroll in like the tourists who come to visit the museum. Instead, they step cautiously inside and ask hopefully if el señor is available; if he is busy, they return reluctantly to the front porch to wait their turn. Today, several women from Chamula, a family from Tenejapa, and a couple from Tuxtla all sit together waiting patiently for a chance to meet and talk with Don Victorio, one of the doctors who performs consultations and cleansings in the chapel at the Museum of Mayan Medicine. Many more will come throughout the day, dutifully bringing with them basil, an egg, and the sincere belief that he will help them to rid themselves or their loved ones of whatever plagues them.
His name is Victorio Vasquez García and he is from Yapteclum, a community in the municipality of Chenalhó. He is a pulsador - pulse reader, a rezador de los cerros - mountaintop prayer healer, and has been practicing medicine for over 40 years in Chiapas. Like many traditional practitioners, he comes from a family of healers; both his mother and his grandfather practiced traditional Mayan medicine. In addition, he says that he has acquired many of his skills through his dreams, which gives him the ability to pass into the invisible world and to confront the diseases and sicknesses of others there in an attempt “to restore harmony and balance to the world”.
For Don Victorio, and other Tzotziles and Tzeltales living in the highland regions of Chiapas, everyday life is intricately connected to nature. They have lived in a region highly diverse in plant and animal species for centuries, and because of this they have developed an extensive knowledge base of curative plants, animals, and minerals. This knowledge provides the basis for part of their traditional healing practice. In addition, the ceremonies and prayers done by the indigenous doctor constitute another important component of their practice.
The prayer healers communicate with other worlds and the four cardinal points on the cross, which represent the four elements. The health of families or even entire communities is prayed for in these ceremonies. Pulse readers diagnose ailments by taking a patient’s pulse. They use this method to identify where the illness comes from in the person’s body or soul, “to try to feel the blood flow connected to the person’s spirit,” and to identify whether they have “a fallen soul, fear, or envy”. Once they know what sickness a person has the healer uses prayers, medicinal plants, candles and ceremonies, depending on the required treatment. Ceremonies and “cleansings” are very important and used frequently. Prayers, candles, eggs, herbs, and sometimes chickens are used to cleanse negative forces from a person’s body or spirit.
Don Victorio has been a member of the Organization of Indigenous Doctors in the State of Chiapas (OMIECH) since its inception in 1985. He has worked for years with other healers to recover and develop traditional indigenous medicine practiced by Tzotzil and Tzeltal Mayas. This civil association has contributed to the consolidation of social projects in various municipalities and now has 825 active members - among them bone healers, herbalists, midwives, prayer healers, and pulse readers - in 38 communities and 11 municipalities in the highlands, northern and jungle regions of Chiapas. In 1997 OMIECH created the Museum of Mayan Medicine (CEDEMM) to educate the public about the traditional medicine of the communities of Chiapas. In its exhibits of some of the many forms of traditional healing that are performed in Chiapas, the museum gives a view of some of the costumes and customs of indigenous medicine. The museum is also the site of the chapel, a sacred and therapeutic space, in which indigenous doctors like Don Victorio cure the ill.
With the support base that OMIECH provides, the indigenous doctors of Chiapas have come to realize the importance of unification and organization as a means to strengthen their traditional practices and to facilitate information sharing between practitioners. The members believe that the struggle for better health and health care is only part of the great struggle facing all campesinos and indigenous people for a higher standard of living. This belief has given the practitioners at OMIECH a strong and positive reputation in the communities. When asked about this good reputation, Don Victorio replied, “We are not young here. I am old. We have been here for a long time, helping the patients. There is always sickness; people will always need to be healed. That is why we are here and the people know this and trust us.” Judging from the number of people who come every day, I don't think you could argue with that.
To visit the museum, see their webpage:
Mayan Medicine Museum
