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XQUENDA Spa Huatulco Oaxaca Mexico
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please visit XQUENDA Spa Huatulco Oaxaca Mexico facilities located at
Blvd. Bugambilia S/N, Bahía de Chahué, Bahías de Huatulco. C.P. 70989, Oaxaca, Mexico
Blvd. Bugambilia S/N, Bahía de Chahué, Bahías de Huatulco. C.P. 70989, Oaxaca, Mexico
Temazcals, traditional sweat lodges that date back to the start of Mesoamerican civilization, are springing up at resorts all over Mexico. These temazcals are operated with such sincerity that the corporate genius who decided they’d be a fine moneymaking addition to the usual scrubs and massages would hardly recognize them. At the XQUENDA Huatulco Spa Temazcalero, Fidel Pineda, explains, “we are practicing this in a resort because busy people don’t have the time or the idea to go to the mountains, but I can introduce the experience to them here.” just as I was first introduced to this truly ancient, mystic, but scientifically proven healing experience in Huatulco, Oaxaca on Mexico’s southern pacific coast. Temazcals have transformed over the centuries from tents used by nomadic tribes as they pushed south to permanent adobe structures, adopted as farmers began to settle and build cities. Though its exact origins and timeline are indistinct, it is believed that the tradition began with the Olmecs (1200–1000 BC), Mesoamerica’s first culture. There are also remains and images of temazcals in some of the oldest Mayan ruins, and the Zapotecs of Oaxaca, whose culture predates the Maya by 900 years, still practice the custom to the extent that, in many villages, every house has a temazcal in the backyard. The ritual went underground in the early 16th century, when Spanish conquistadors banished the practice because of its pagan implications. As a result, the tradition was carried on surreptitiously and passed quietly from generation to generation. The basic temazcal ritual practiced now is probably little changed from its ancient origins, although the temazcaleros who conduct the rituals each have their own individual methods. What they universally honor is the Mesoamerican belief in the dualism of the universe, not unlike the Asian belief in yin and yang, opposing forces that nonetheless complement one another and must be kept in balance. The word comes from Nahuatl, the language of the founders of the Aztec empire—temas, meaning . In that sense, , like the Finnish sauna or the Arab hammam. But the temazcal was born of a people who believed that body and soul were inseparable, and purification of one could not be complete without purification of the other. There are rituals connected to the temazcal that date back to a time when the gods and nature were inextricably entwined. The result is mesmerizing. Physically, the temazcal has many health benefits; spiritually, it connects one back to a primal state. In the ideal situation, participants slip into meditation, but much depends on the temazcalero. A shaman is really a person who takes care of things that aren’t tangible, like a psychiatrist, or a priest. There’s a long tradition of healing in Mexico, but it’s not excluded from the world of modern medicine. Healers use plants for medicine, and they know the moment you go back into contact with Mother Earth, you get your vital energy back. Bigger than a Bread Oven the structure of the temazcal has been compared to the round, beehive-igloo-like shaped brick ovens used for baking bread in Europe, and is often decorated with symbols—birds, turtles, snakes.
Bathers enter through an opening small enough to require crawling; standing up inside is generally not an option. Symbolically, the round temazcal represents the womb of the goddess Tonantzin, from which participants emerge purified and reborn. Participants turn to honor each of the four cardinal points (which in turn represent Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water elements), and then are blessed with smoky copal, a resinous incense. There is a fire outside in which volcanic stones have been heated for hours until they are red-hot. Once everyone is inside the temazcal, the stones are brought in and placed in a central pit. The door (more often than not, a blanket) is then closed, plunging the space into darkness. Ritual practices vary from greeting the stones with a loud “A ho,” “Oooooh,” or “Ometeo,” but when it’s time to open the door, almost everyone shouts, “Puerta!” Temperatures can rise to 115F degrees in the course of the two-hour ceremony, with successive deliveries of stones and splashes of steam-generating water. Participants ‘beat’ themselves with fresh-picked bouquets of eucalyptus, arnica, chamomile, citrus, and olive leaves, then emerge to be wrapped in towels and offered herb tea and a cooling mix of mango, apple, and papaya to eat. For a long time participants lay in silence, slowly cooling from the heat and enjoy a dip in the refreshing swimming pool. |
