This ceremony is presided by the goddess Temazcaltoci, goddess of health, the mother who welcomes us to facilitate the union of man and land in a spiritual rebirth. The “temazcalero” directs the ceremony with the support of the "man of fire", who is in charge of the fire, to heat the stones grandmothers and introduce them inside the temazcal. It has four times or "doors" in which it is completely dark (where people sing, pray and speak) that represent the 4 elements, the 4 directions, the 4 stages of life...
In recent times, the practice of Temazcal is spreading dramatically not only in Mesoamerica but also in the West. In fact, it is one of the preferred practices among some fans of the New Age. However, it should be noted that sweat lodges (temazcals) are not all equal. Often, the temazcals are closer to a pleasant spa session disguised as a pre-Columbian knowledge than an intensive holistic work. For this reason, I hereby present a series of photographs of a Mexica temazcal, a warrior temazcal, a “conchero” temazcal that retrieves the basis of past practices to connect us with all the ancient wisdom.
