Maya Temazcal Ritual To Purify Body And Mind

2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15

Nothing like a good physical and spiritual detox to start the new year. This week in the Specials with Kika, our Colombian fashion and beauty expert Kika Rocha has traveled to the Zoetry Paraíso de la Bonita resort, in the Riviera Maya, from where she brings us the Temazcal ceremony to purify body and soul.

The temazcal is a steam bath that was used in Mesoamerica for hygienic purposes and to perform therapeutic and spiritual rituals. The word temazcal comes from the Nahuatl word "temazcalli", whose literal translation would be "sweat house".

"The temazcal represents descending in a conscious, orderly and ritual way to those [spiritual] depths," explains Luis Salazar, an expert teacher in this ritual.

The temazcal itself is a kind of generally round hut that is between two and four meters in diameter and not more than one and a half meters high.

In some cases it has a burner (tlexictli), where the firewood that heats the premises through a wall is placed, and in others, when they are located on land outside the homes, a large bonfire is made where the stones are heated and containers with water and medicinal herbs. According to Salazar, this sacred fire represents the sun god, whose fertilizing and creative energy warms the volcanic stones.

The expert guides you with chants and explanations throughout this special ritual that you can discover in detail in the video at the beginning of this article. Do not miss it!