Week 12: Modern Mayan Communities

Chamula and Zinacantán (3/25/08)

            We visited the towns of Chamula and Zinacantán to see how the modern-day Mayans live. Chamula’s inhabitants mostly speak the Tzotzil dialect of the Mayan language, and they practice a mixture of Catholicism and the pre-Hispanic religions. At first, we came across a graveyard with a chapel and later visited a church. Cameras were forbidden in both places (especially inside the church), so I hid my camera to prevent it from getting smashed. Inside the church, there were depictions of various apostles and virgins, candles, and pine fir covered the floor. Worshippers played instruments such as accordions and others chanting their prayers. The green cross representing the sacred Maya tree was present in both locations and were decorated with pine fir. There is a very strong religious presence here. In order to gain a high position, a member has to dedicate time and resources to the community. Everyone here practices the Mayan-Catholic faith, and apparently one who does not follow suit must leave town. Aside from religion, Chamula is well known for agricultural products, especially wool. You could tell someone was from Chamula judging by the black wool they wore. Women had skirts and men had vests or ponchos made of such material. After wandering around a bit, we headed towards Zinacantán

            We drove and walked amongst the hills to the town of Zinacantán, which according to our guide means “Place of the Bats” in Nahuatl. Zinacantán was another agricultural town like Chamula, but specialized in flowers grown in greenhouses and textiles. We visited another church and looked at the various depictions of apostles and Christ. Our guide mentioned that the Mexicans used the Virgin of Guadelupe, a darker rather than a white-skinned holy figure, to unite Mexicans (of Spanish descent) under the cross in their fight for independence from Spain. While Zinacantán had a religious presence, the atmosphere seemed more evident in Chamula. After visiting the church, we entered the house of a Mayan family which weaved brilliantly-colored fabrics of red, blue, pink and other colors. It must take many hours or days to complete such beautiful cloth. There was also a mother and daughter making tortillas out of cornmeal and cooking them over a fire. That also takes a long time to do, and good luck keeping your fingers from burning. Fillings included salsa, cheese, beans, and grounded seeds from squash or pumpkin (don’t recall). Those were the best tortillas I ever ate. To top it off, some of the students were bold enough to taste a type of Mayan liquor called posh. I didn’t try any since I was on medication, but it sounded like an acquired taste like tequila. Afterwards, we spent some time buying fabrics before heading back to San Cristóbal.

http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Chiapas/San%20Cristobal%20de%20las%20Casas/Chamula/

http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj35/jonroth/Mexico/Chiapas/San%20Cristobal%20de%20las%20Casas/Zinacantan/