MAYAN TEMAZCAL CEREMONY AT TAO COMMUNITY
The Temazcal is an ancient Mayan ceremony similar to the sweat lodge ceremonies of the many Native American tribes of the United States. The Mayans used the Temazcal to treat illness, to aide in childbirth and as a means of purification for various religious ceremonies.
The Mayan Temazcal is an integral part a community built upon the values of connection, inspiration, creativity and compassion. The TAO Inspired Living community is committed to the betterment of local ecology, integrating traditional cultures and the global community.
TAO Inspired Living is a residence within the gated golf course and beach community of Bahia Principe is located in the very heart of the Mayan Riviera. This community is designed with healthy lifestyle practices in mind. It is designed to naturally coexist with the surrounding jungle. The TAO Center is the community epicenter offering many holistic body, mind and soul therapies. The center houses a Yoga studio and a store filled with natural products. With a fitness room, swimming pool, lap pool, comfortable couches, lounge chairs, hammocks and sublime light relaxing music intermingling with the natural sounds of the jungle that surrounds this zen complex, the TAO Center is the perfect place to relax, meet with friends or commune with the jungle.
The Temazcal is a round, dome built to align with the four directions. The entrance is low, so that participants must crawl in and out. This act of kneeling is to give reverence to the ceremony and also plays into the notion of being reborn. The Mayan Temazcal represents the womb of the mother earth. The ceremony of purification is also a ceremony a rebirth and therefore an opportunity to be spiritually renewed.
Volcanic rocks are heated to glowing hot and placed in the center of the Temazcal. Studies have shown that, when heated, volcanic rocks emanate a type of infrared radiation that is beneficial to the body.
Saunas have long been used in popular culture as a way to detox the body and to promote relaxation. Almost any spa or gym has a sauna, so what is the specific added benefit of a traditional Mayan Temazcal?
That is an answer that lies within YOU. It is your intention. The idea of the Mayan Temazcal is to fortify your soul, to rebirth yourself from the mother earth, to burn out toxins and toxic thoughts, to let go of grudges, problems or ego, to celebrate your connection with nature and your community, as well as the elements and the four universal directions.
The Temazcalero, your spiritual guide though this ancient Mayan tradition, begins by making an offering of Copal to the Mayan gods and asking for blessings of health for all those present.
He continues by purifying participants with the fragrant Copal incense. Spiritually cleansing them so they may enter the womb of the mother earth and blessing them with strength to withstand all four puertas (puerta means door in English, it is how the time inside the Temazcal is measured.)
Everyone is asked to grab a piece of Copal and make a prayer or wish for peace and harmony between all beings and are encouraged to add any personal desires or wishes for their lives or loved ones.
The Copal, ripe with wishes and prayers, is then tossed into the hot coals of the inciensario and the messages of peace and desire of each person are whisked to the Mayan gods by way of the rich smoke offering.
The Temazcalero calls out to each of the four directions of the universe. He makes a long, vibrating, trumpet-like sound with a conch shell to each.
Finally he asks us all to acknowledge the Earth, the mother that sustains us all. Everyone bows their heads and touches the ground while the slow melancholy sound of the Conch shell resonates in the air.
The Temazcalero prepares the Temazcal. He blesses the space and cleanses it by filling it with the Copal smoke.
A bucket of fresh water with Rosemary and other fragrant herbs is brought to a boil with the glowing hot volcanic rocks. The herbal perfumed steam fills the small space inside the Temazcal.
The inside of the Temazcal is pitch black. Once inside with the door closed, it is impossible to know if your eyes are open or closed for you can see absolutely nothing; only black.
Everyone gathers inside the Temazcal sitting in a circle with their backs to the wall. Hot volcanic rocks are piled in the center of the circle. The door is closed to keep the heat from escaping and the Temazcalero begins chanting in Mayan;
Earth is my body
Water is my blood
Wind is my breath
Fire is my spirit
the song is powerful and grows in intensity as everyone joins in, the voices blend and vibrate off the walls inside the Temazcal. It is a sensation of floating in a timeless ocean of darkness and sound waves.
Chanting helps to pass the time between puertas and distract your attention from the intense heat of the Temazcal.
After a period of time that seems eternal and yet fleeting, together, the participants yell puerta. The door is opened and light and cool air rush into the Temazcal. It is a small respite in the journey to purification. For a few minutes everyone gulps the cool air and rubs their eyes before it is time to add more white hot volcanic rocks to the center of the circle and once again shut the door. The ritual continues in this way for four puertas.
Finally, when the puerta is opened for the last time, the participants emerge on hands and knees from the Temazcal; reborn, sucking in the cool jungle air as if it were the first breath of a new life.
Refreshed with cool beverages and showered in fresh water, there is a peaceful, quiet, calm in their eyes, even while they excitedly chatter about their experience. There is a resplendence of pride amongst these faces. There is a feeling that escapes words that is passed between them, a unity, a shared achievement, a bonding, a personal epiphany, an new strength that will carry them into their new lives; they are reborn.