Curandero
Encyclopedia
Grammatical gender
Grammatical gender is defined linguistically as a system of classes of nouns which trigger specific types of inflections in associated words, such as adjectives, verbs and others. For a system of noun classes to be a gender system, every noun must belong to one of the classes and there should be...
curandeira) is a traditional folk healer
Folk healer
A folk healer is an unlicensed person who practices the art of healing using traditional practices, herbal remedies and even the power of suggestion. A folk healer may be a highly trained person who pursues his specialties, learning by study, observation and imitation...
or shaman in Latin America, who is dedicated to curing physical or spiritual illnesses. The role of a curandero or curandera can also incorporate the roles of psychiatrist along with that of doctor and healer. Many curanderos use Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
elements, such as holy water
Holy water
Holy water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
and saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
pictures. The use of Roman Catholic prayers and other borrowings and lendings are often found alongside native religious elements.
Description
They are often respected members of the community. Literally translated as "healer" from Spanish. Their powers are considered supernatural, as it is commonly believed that many illnesses are caused by lost malevolent spirits, a lesson from God, or curse.There are different types of curanderos. "Yerberos" are primarily herbalists. "Hueseros and Sobaderos" are bone/muscle therapists who emphasize physical ailments. "Parteras" are midwives.
The Moche
Moche
'The Moche civilization flourished in northern Peru from about 100 AD to 800 AD, during the Regional Development Epoch. While this issue is the subject of some debate, many scholars contend that the Moche were not politically organized as a monolithic empire or state...
people of ancient Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
often depicted curanderos in their art.
In the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
, one of the instruments of the curandero is the chonta, a lance carved from the chonta palm, Bactris gasipaes
Bactris gasipaes
Bactris gasipaes is a species of palm native to the tropical forests of South and Central America.There are numerous common names for this plant in several languages and many countries...
, thought to be imbued with magical powers. The palm grows only in the Amazon basin
Amazon Basin
The Amazon Basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries that drains an area of about , or roughly 40 percent of South America. The basin is located in the countries of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Venezuela...
, and is the object of a brisk commerce. The Jivaro people of the Amazon Rainforest
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon Rainforest , also known in English as Amazonia or the Amazon Jungle, is a moist broadleaf forest that covers most of the Amazon Basin of South America...
use the hardwood of the chonta to carve their spears. The shaman is also known as chonteador, and his most important wand is the "chonta defensa"; if he dies without disciples, the chonta is thrown, wrapped in rubands and weighted with stones, to the bottom of an andine lake; its power will reemerge when a new shaman will take office. The shamans also use wands of huatulco wood., Loxopterygium huasango.
Curanderos in fiction
Curanderos, probably because of the mystery and intrigue that surrounds them, are frequently included in fictional works:- Bless Me, UltimaBless Me, UltimaBless Me, Ultima is a novel by Rudolfo Anaya, published in 1972. It is part of a trilogy along with Heart of Aztlan and Tortuga. It is included in the list of most commonly challenged books in the U.S...
, by the ChicanoChicanoThe terms "Chicano" and "Chicana" are used in reference to U.S. citizens of Mexican descent. However, those terms have a wide range of meanings in various parts of the world. The term began to be widely used during the Chicano Movement, mainly among Mexican Americans, especially in the movement's...
author Rudolfo AnayaRudolfo AnayaRudolfo Anaya is an Mexican-American author. Best known for his 1972 novel Bless Me, Ultima, Anaya is considered one of the founders of the canon of contemporary Chicano literature.- Biography :...
. - The life and writing of Miguel RuizMiguel RuizMiguel Ruiz may refer to:* Miguel Ruíz , Puerto Rican coffee industrialist* Miguel Ángel Ruiz , Mexican author, shaman, and teacher...
was also influenced by curanderismo, since his mother was a curandera. - The original screenplay for the film Viva Zapata!Viva Zapata!Viva Zapata! is a 1952 fictional-biographical film directed by Elia Kazan. The screenplay was written by John Steinbeck, using as a guide Edgcomb Pinchon's book, 'Zapata the Unconquerable', a fact that is not credited in the titles of the film...
involved a curandera predicting the birth and death of MexicanMexican peopleMexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
revolutionaryRevolutionaryA revolutionary is a person who either actively participates in, or advocates revolution. Also, when used as an adjective, the term revolutionary refers to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor.-Definition:...
Emiliano ZapataEmiliano ZapataEmiliano Zapata Salazar was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution, which broke out in 1910, and which was initially directed against the president Porfirio Díaz. He formed and commanded an important revolutionary force, the Liberation Army of the South, during the Mexican Revolution...
. The original played much more heavily on the supernatural than the chosen script. - Eduardo The Healer, is a documentary that follows the life of a Peruvian curandero.
- Forests of the Heart, by Charles de LintCharles de LintCharles de Lint is a Canadian fantasy author and folk musician. He is also the chief book critic for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction....
features a curandera protagonist. - So Far From God, by Chicana author Ana CastilloAna CastilloAna Castillo is a Mexican-American Chicana novelist, poet, short story writer, and essayist.- Life and career :Castillo was born and raised in an inner city barrio of Chicago, Illinois. After completing undergraduate studies, she immediately began teaching college courses...
, features the curandera character Doña Felicia. - E-Fed World, Handeler Jonathan, The team of Link and Marcus Moore create the Culture Curenderos
- (Notes from the trial of) La Curandera, a song by the band Clutch (band)Clutch (band)Clutch is an American rock band from Germantown, Maryland, formed in 1990. The band's first release was an EP entitled Pitchfork, which debuted in October 1990. Their first studio album, Transnational Speedway League, was released three years later in 1993. To date, Clutch has released nine studio...
off their 2004 album, Blast TyrantBlast TyrantBlast Tyrant is the sixth full-length studio album by the American stoner rock band Clutch. It was released in 2004, and contains 15 tracks. The unabridged title of the album is Blast Tyrant's Atlas of the Invisible World Including Illustrations of Strange Beasts And Phantoms.A reissue of the album...
. It features a fictional trial of a curandera for curing a demon. - Hispanic Culture and Health Care, edited by Ricardo A. Martinez
- The Healing Ritual by Ricardo A. Martinez
- Nightmare by Joan Lowery NixonJoan Lowery NixonJoan Lowery Nixon was an American journalist and author, specializing in historical fiction and mysteries for children and young adults.-Biography:...
- The Hummingbird's Daughter by Luis Alberto UrreaLuís Alberto UrreaLuís Alberto Urrea is a Mexican American poet, novelist, and essayist.-Life:Urrea is the son of a Mexican father and an American mother...
tells the story of Teresita Urrea, a curandera at the end of the 1800s. - The CodexThe Codex (novel)The Codex is a 2004 novel by Douglas Preston and takes place in the Southwestern United States and Central America.The main story is about Max Broadbent, who is an eccentric rich man with terminal cancer, who likes to collect valuable art and treasures...
by Douglas PrestonDouglas PrestonDouglas Preston is an American author who has written seventeen popular techno-thriller and horror novels, four alone and the rest with Lincoln Child...
, in which ethnopharmacologist Sally Colorado is referred to by a Honduran local elder as "Curandera"
See also
- KalkuKalkuKalku or Calcu, in Mapuche mythology, is a sorcerer or witch that works with black magic and negative powers or forces. The essentially benevolent shamans are more often referred to as machi, to avoid confusion with the malevolent kalku...
- MachiMachi (Shaman)A machi is a traditional healer and religious leader in the Mapuche culture of Chile and Argentina. Machis play significant roles in Mapuche religion. Women are more commonly machis than men.-Description:...
- Medicine ManMedicine man"Medicine man" or "Medicine woman" are English terms used to describe traditional healers and spiritual leaders among Native American and other indigenous or aboriginal peoples...
- NgangaNgangaNganga is a Bantu term for herbalist or spiritual healer in many African societies and also in many societies of the African diaspora such as those in Haiti, Brazil and Cuba....
- Plastic shamanPlastic shamanPlastic shaman is a pejorative colloquialism applied to individuals who are attempting to pass themselves off as shamans, holy people, or other traditional spiritual leaders, but who have no genuine connection to the traditions or cultures they claim to represent...
- SanteroSanteríaSantería is a syncretic religion of West African and Caribbean origin influenced by Roman Catholic Christianity, also known as Regla de Ocha, La Regla Lucumi, or Lukumi. Its liturgical language, a dialect of Yoruba, is also known as Lucumi....
- ShamanismShamanismShamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
- Witch doctorWitch doctorA witch doctor originally referred to a type of healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. It is currently used to refer to healers in some third world regions, who use traditional healing rather than contemporary medicine...
Further reading
- Riding, Alan. Distant Neighbors: A Portrait of the Mexicans. New York: Vintage, 2000.
- Trotter II, Robert T. and Juan Antonio Chavira. Curanderismo: Mexican American Folk Healing. University of Georgia Press, Second Edition, October 1997.