Mesoamerican Cupping Therapy a hidden history.
Mesoamerican cupping therapy is one of the living medicines that survived through colonialism of the ancient Indigenous cultures of the America’s.
Mesoamerican cupping therapy is one of the living medicines that survived through colonialism of the ancient Indigenous cultures of the America’s.
To this day, it is an ancestral practice that is passed down from generation to generation from practices that are done mostly inside of the home.
In the beautiful town of Mazamitla Jalisco, Mexico there is an ancient Mesoamerican clay cupping cup with a beautiful white flame painted on the outside of the cup. It is on display with the words of “Tools for healing by women” - on the outside.
Mesoamerican cupping cup in Mazamitla Jalisco Mexico Museum
What I find absolutely fascinating about this town is it’s unique history when it comes to their relations with the Spanish conquistadors.
This particular town fought a hard battle against the Spanish, within the waters of Lake Chapala. They took refuge and built battle and shelter buildings within the small islands inside of the lake - and would travel at night through canoes to different neighboring towns to collect food and supplies.
It was this strategic collaboration, and wisdom of the elements and area where they resided- that allowed them to beat the Spanish and establish a treaty which to this day saves them from certain taxes to the Mexican government.
When speaking to one of their leaders
- he said that most of the history of the battles with the Spanish remains in tact due to oral histories being maintained through stories between generations.
The Mexican government - like many other’s -still likes to practice the common colonialist practice of one sided history that perceives colonialism as a single battle that was fought and won by colonials- when in actuality it was a large number of spread out battles for various longitudes that affected the many lives of Indigenous folk in the America’s to this day some victorious - some not.
I like to think that the reason why that cupping cup is maintained in such beautiful quality is because they were not as influenced by outside forces when it came to their healing modalities because of the victory of previous battles.
Similar to this history, is the history of my own ancestral community the Chichimeca Guachichil people of Central Mexico.
Descendants of the 50 year Chichimeca Spanish war from 1550-1600 in Tepezala Aguascalientes Mexico. Like the Nahuals of Mazamitla, our history is a little different from other parts of the America’s simply due to the history of the conquest. After the Spanish lost the battle with the Chichimeca - they retreated to the city of Aguascalientes and mostly left the smaller Indigenous communities surrounding the cities to fend for themselves or to use as labor for the mines that are still the main source of raw resource income for the state and other foreign entities today.
Resources like hospitals or clinics are things that exist as of very recently with the nearest clinic constructed in 1975, so people in the far away small pueblos likemy own relied on herbology, cupping and massage, music, and nutrition for healing.
Transportation was also a huge factor why people didn’t access the clinic, mostly relying on someone of the community that had a car or even a horse or mule to transport them. Tepezala recieved funding for their FIRST ambulance in 2022.
Forces such as these are also large factors as to why our ancestral medicines are still in tact to this day with most curanderos practicing cupping and herbology as its 2 main tools for healing.
xx
Mayela
