Huichol Perceptions of Peyote by Stacy B

The Crossing of the Souls: Huichol Perceptions of Peyote by Stacy B. Schaefer

It was an early March morning in 1988. of the fact tha t I have gone with the H uichols position did open up for someone with my I was at the Tepic airport, waiting for the on their sacred pilgrimage, I must con- qualifications and interests-at, of all pos- plane to take me once again into the Sierra, stantly remind myself that there will al- sible places, the University of Texas-Pan when I ran into some of the Huichols who ways be so much more that I do not know American. As it happens, the campus is had been my companions on a pilgrimage and still have to learn-indeed, that there situated in the lower Rio Grande Valley in from San Andres Cohamiata to the peyote is much I will probably never know or South Texas, the only region north of country in San Luis Potosi. I was surprised understand. Concerning peyote and its Mexico where peyote grows naturally. and pleased to see them because I had meaning to Huichols, this one man's words And, sure enough, in my first year there I brought copies of photographs from the posed a challenge: look for answers to his actually entertained Huichol visitors who journey to give to them. Sharing my pic- question, "Why?" What did he mean when had heard of peyote growing north of .the tures with the peyoteros had been one of he said peyote is the" crossing of the souls"? Rio Bravo (the Mexican name for the river their conditions for allowing me to record These questions inevitably led to others. we know as the Rio Grande) and who were the event with my camera. Along the way There is an abundance of recent literature eager to see it for themselves. They had they even directed my attention to scenes, on peyote use and symbolism among the traveled to Texas in the company of Susana objects, people, and actions they thought Huichols; Furst (1972, 1976), Myerhoff and Mariano Valadez, old friends of mine were important for me to capture on film. (1974, 1978a, 1978b), Valadez (1978, 1986b), who are co-directors of the Huichol Center Now they stood around, photos in hand, Benitez (1968a, 1968b), Mata Torres (1976, for Cultural Survival and the Traditional laughing at their own images and pointing 1980), and Negrin (1975, 1977, 1985) have Arts in Santiago Ixcuintla, Nayarit. Mariano out details. all written on the subject. But I wanted to is Huichol, a renowned yarn painter; Susana Minutes later, another Huichol whom I go further and learn firsthand, not what is a U.S. citizen with an M.A. degree from knew from the community approached our westerners think about the sacred cactus, my own alma mater, UCLA, who has spent little group, took a look at a photo of some but what Huichols themselves know and years working with Huichols, including a pilgrims collecting peyote and became a believe-about the botany of this powerful two-year residence in the Huichol comuni- bit agitated. "You people take photo- little plant; about what kinds of experi- dad of San Andres Cohamiata. By this time graphs," he said to me. "You come with us ences they have; about what meanings they I had already become familiar with some on the pilgrimage and even partake of the place on a psychoactive succulent that, not of the places north of the border where peyote. But you never ask 'why' to the being native to the Huichol country of the peyote grows wild, and it is there that I peyote. You never ask. Well, I'm going to Sierra Madre Occidental, requires them to took my visitors. Although it was not their tell you: peyote is everything, it is the make long and arduous journeys to collect revered Wirikuta. the Huichols were vis- crossing of the souls, it is everything that it in the high desert hundreds of miles to ibly touched by the sight of so many peyote is. Without peyote nothing would exist, the east. plants. Most important for me, they were but you people never ask why." Since that chance meeting in 1988, an- moved to talk about things connected with At first I was somewhat taken aback at other milepost in my professional and per- the sacred cactus I had not known before. his reaction. In retrospect, however, I owe sonallife has steered me in this direction of Rich though this experience was for me, him a debt of thanks. At the very least, his inquiry. In 1989-90, with Ph.D. in hand most of my contact with Huichols has been reproach was a humbling experience for and field work among the Huichols ongo- with families living in and near San Andres. me, and a constructive reminder that, as ing, but now at last beyond the dissertation I have worked there since the 1970s, and ethnographer, I should never be deceived stage, it was time to look for academic em- over the years have had the chance to de- into thinking that I fully understand ployment. The job market for anthropolo- velop close relations with a number of in- Huichol culture. Regardless of how many gists has not been good for several years, dividuals. They, in turn, have become val- years I have now been doing field work, or but as luck would have it, a tenure-track ued consultants for my work as ethnogra-

This article is excerpted from People of the Peyote: Huichol Indian History, Religion. and Survival edited by Stacy B.Schaefer and Peter T. Furst, to be published by University of New Mexico Press in June, 1996. For further information, call UNM Press at 1-800-249-7737.

SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 25 sage. Everyone sat on the rocks crowning the summit, positioning themselves so as to face east. All of the ritual objects were taken out and blessed by the leading shaman with sacred water. Candles and copal incense were lit and while the shaman pointed his plumed wand to the five directions everyone prayed. Votive bowls were taken out and fresh peyote placed inside them. The shaman purified everyone with his feather wand and sacred water and touched the peyote to their cheeks, throat and wrists. The white tufts on the peyote were removed and placed with the offerings. Then the peyoteros peeled the tough skin at the base of the cactus and consumed small amounts of the first peyote of the pilgrimage. That done, everyone hiked down the hill to our encampment.? Back in camp, the sacred fire was kindled and that night the shaman, with the help of his assistants, sang. Throughout the night all the pilgrims circled the area five times. Five is the sacred number for Huichols and Peuoteros leave offerings at Wakuli Kiteni, the "doorway" to Wirikuta. all the members consumed peyote five (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1987.) times during the night. At the first rays of dawn, they painted designs on the faces of pher.My major consultants are men and yet, it is not time. But if you eat this peyote their ritual companions, compaiieros in Span- women who are mara'akdmes, shamans, flower it will help you, it will guide you to ish, with the ground-up yellow root of a and/or have been raised in a traditional find many, many beautiful peyotes." I ate desert shrub known as uxa. They also ex- environment and are thus well versed in the flower and began to look. It was un- changed peyote they had selected espe- Huichol religious beliefs, rituals, and ide- canny but within minutes I found clusters cially, each giving some to all the others ology. All have participated in the pil- of peyote all around me. When I called the and receiving some in turn from everyone grimage, some as many as five times, oth- kawitero over to tell him about this, he else, a custom aIso observed by Furst (1972; ers ten times or more. calmly replied with a smile, "I told you the 1976:128). Then it was time to hunt "the I do not claim that what I have learned truth, I do not tell lies.I know these things, Mother of Peyote," the peyote cluster whose about peyote from these people applies that's why I am a kawitero." form resembles a lifesize deer. When the across the board to the beliefs and practices "deer" was found, some of its constituent Preparation and Consumption of Peyote of all Huichols. Regional and individual plants were skewered onto votive arrows. variations concerning the sacred cactus, its The preparation and consump.tion of Sacred gourd bowls were unwrapped and use, and rituals that revolve around it can peyote is almost always done within a fresh peyote was put inside them. Candles be found from community to community, strictly ceremonial context.' Eating peyote, and copal were lit. The leading shaman a phenomenon to which scholars who have as pointed out by Furst (1972:76, 1976:125- called each family to the site and blessed accompanied Huichols on the pilgrimage 127) is a highly ritualized activity likened everyone with sacred water and peyote. can attest. At best, I would call the follow- to the partaking of sacramental food. The One large peyote in the cluster represented ing essay a progress report-information optimal manner of ingesting peyote is in the heart of the deer. The mara'akame that I hope and intend to build upon over Wirikuta when it is freshly harvested. divided this up into slivers. He sandwiched the years. For I, too, see myself as a pil- Peyote cannot be eaten until all of the ritual the slivers into peyote buttons that had grim, on an endless path seeking knowl- obligations are performed by the pilgrims. been opened and cleaned, and placed one edge over time and through experience. The peyoteros must first stalk and hunt it each inside the mouths of the pilgrims. ••• like deer in Wirikuta. Afterwards, the pil- Upon completing this ritual, and having On the pilgrimage in which I partici- grims collect peyote in the surrounding spent the night consuming peyote at regu- pated, one of the kauiiteroe, who are usually area in their woven baskets, known as lar intervals, the pilgrims had reached the wise old shamans, taught me how to look kiliwei. No peyote is eaten until the sha- state in which they were journeying in- for peyote. He harvested a cluster of nine man indicates that the time is right to do wards, caught up in their own visions, their peyotes from their common root stock, as so. On the pilgrimage in which I partici- own communications with the divine usual taking care to leave the bottom part pated, the blessing and eating of peyote Huichol entities. of the root in the ground. One of these had commenced on top of Kauyumaritzie. This Although Huichols prefer to consume a little pinkish-lavender flower blooming hill in the center of Wirikuta is the home of peyote fresh, the pilgrims also dry peyote on top. He picked the flower, pressed it to Elder Brother Kauyumari, from where the in the desert in order to store it better. This my eyes, put it in my mouth and told me in shamans summon him to participate in the is done by trimming the roots of the plants, a soft but sure voice,"Eat this flower of the ceremonies. It is covered with scrub cactus opening the buttons so that all the ribbed peyote. We are not allowed to eat peyote and on the summit there is some flowering sections are exposed to the sun, and re-

26 SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 r

moving the white tufts in the very center of the cactus. As noted earlier, later they may be strung on a special twined maguey cactus fiber string and carried back to the Si- erra, where they will be used in future ceremonies such as Hikuri Neixa (Peyote Dance.) During this latter ceremony a woman is specially selected to grind the dried peyote on her metate. She adds water to the pul- verized peyote, making it into a white frothy drink for the participants. The leading shaman stirs the drink with the point of a prayer arrow and people are anointed on the head with the foam from the peyote. In some instances, cattle are also anointed on their heads and horns, as are bags of offerings. The celebration of Hikuri Neixa lasts two days and nights. During this time, the pilgrims and their companeros dance five times around the temple compound. Five spots are demarcated with pine trees to indicate the cardinal directions and the sacred center. At each location, the participants drink cupfuls of the liquified peyote When harvested properly, clumps of peyotes grow from the root stock left in the ground. and offer the same to their companions. (Photograph by Peter T.Furst.) Some Huichols say that the potency of the peyote does not diminish when dried. In and all the necessary prayers are made to participants decide ahead of time on the fact, when drinking peyote one may ingest Tatewari, Grandfather Fire, Nauxa first dosage they plan to take, it is Nauxa who more than when eating it fresh, because it blesses the Saulitsika and Urukuakame, the distributes the peyote and who, in doing is easier to consume greater amounts more Keeper of the Temple.He then circles the so, keeps the road open for all the pilgrims quickly in liquid form. I was told by one fire and blesses each pilgrim in turn. In to travel. Huichol about a relative of his who came completion of this ritual, Nauxa circles the This ceremony is replicated later in the across some dried peyote he had been sav- fireagain, walks some distance away, blows Sierra upon the pilgrims' return to the ing for the last two years. He was getting on the bull's horn trumpet that is also used temple and their awaiting families. It is ready to prepare his land for planting and for the deer hunt, and returns to the group. Nauxa who is the vital link between the took the peyote with him.He ground the Bythis time the pilgrims, seated around pilgrims and those members of their fami- cactus, consecrated the soil with the pow- the fire, have selected a certain quantity of lies who stayed behind. He goes ahead of der, added water to the rest, and drank the fresh peyote which they place in front of the pilgrims to the temple and announces mixture so that he would have more en- themselves. Nauxa blesses the peyote with their arrival. Slung across his shoulders he ergy to complete the task of clearing his his muoieri, his plumed wand, and gives carries bags filled with votive gourds and field. Even though the peyote was over each pilgrim the number of peyote they peyote that have been given him by the two years old, it was stronger than he ex- themselves have indicated they plan to con- pilgrims. On this night Saulftsika sits out- pected and he ended up "wandering lost" sume at this time. Everyone eats his or her side and sings the entire night. Nauxa in his field until the effects wore off. peyote and the mara'akarne begins the blesses and distributes the peyote on five To return to the pilgrimage, there are chanting that will continue through the separate occasions to the families inside of two important people who serve as guides entire night. While the mara' akame carries the temple. As one of my consultants ex- for the pilgrims. One is the leading sha- the souls of the pilgrims along the journey plained, "Afterwards, at dawn, the pilgrims man, known as Saulitsika, the other is the of his song,Nauxa makes certain that the begin to arrive at the temple. They give "Keeper of the Peyote," called Nauxa (pron. pilgrims are in the physical and mental blessed water to their women, their moth- nauzrra). Saulitsika presides over all of the states that facilitate their out-of-body travel ers, to all of their family. But the family rituals, and when he sings he travels be- along this path. Five times during the night, members are 'lost,' they are in another yond his immediate surroundings of the when the pilgrims must circle the fire after realm, at least those who ate a lot of peyote. circle of the pilgrims around the fire in a cycle is completed in the rnara'akames Only Nauxa and Saulitsika know what is Wirikuta, by calling upon all of the gods to song,Nauxa places the same amount of happening there and who is traveling with come join them on their journey.His song peyote as originally consumed in front of the peyote. They know this because of the becomes a road that transports both pil- each pilgrim. If an individual started the singing and because of the center of the grims and divine entities. Nauxa has the ceremony eating five peyotes, he or she fire. Nauxa knows what is being sung and major responsibility of making sure that would eat five more peyotes after each cycle what is happening in the temple." the pilgrims are able to travel along this in the shaman's song. Bythe time the night When the temple ceremony has been path. He fills a basket with peyote that his is over, that individual would thus have completed, the pilgrims return to their fellow pilgrims have gathered for the cer- consumed twenty-five peyote plants. What ranchos and repeat the peyote rituals with emony. When the fire is lit and burning this means is that although the individual their family members. This time, the fam-

SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 27 Baskets of peyote are displayed at the ceremonies following a peyote hunt. (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1987.) ily ancestor-god house, xiriki, serves as the the plant alkaloids, undergoes a period of Huichols consider these designs to be a temple, the place where the offerings are "contentment and hypersensitivity fol- form of communication with the gods, and deposited and the peyote distributed. The lowed by calm and muscular sluggishness." individuals actively strive to receive these pilgrims present their close kin, young and The individual "sees flashes of color across visions (Siegel and [arvik 1975:138-139). old, with peyote they have selected espe- the field of vision, the depth and saturation Since peyote-induced phosphene images cially for each, as well as with thinly sliced of the colors (which always precede the are constant, Huichols have integrated these pieces of the "heart of the Mother of Peyote" visions) defying description" (Schultes designs into their cultural world view and originally gathered in Wirikuta. In the past, 1972:15). Within three hours after inges- have endowed them with special meaning the family rancho was structured similarly tion, endlessly repeated geometric patterns and significance. to the temple cargo [ritual office] system. such as mandalas and latticework designs, Phosphenes induced by psychoactive Everyone in the extended family had a spe- as well as more complex imagery of ele- chemicals appear in two stages. The first cial cargo that changed every five years. ments such as flowers, animals, people, involves brightly colored geometric imag- At the present time, only some of the car- and scenery, appear in vibrant colors.These ery in motion, called nierika by Huichols, in gos continue to be assigned to individuals. are typical designs that arise from stimula- reference to sacred designs that serve as The family members who have gone to tion of the central nervous system discharg- portals to other worlds. Many take the Wirikuta and the shaman, or shamans, in ing neurons into structures of the eye (Siegel form of pulsating mandalas. The Huichol the family preside over this ceremony to 1977:139). The designs perceived are phos- shaman interviewed by Eger Valadez celebrate the successful pilgrimage. The phene patterns and are intimately related (1978:41) describes these as follows: "The family members who partake of the peyote to the geometry of the eye, the visual path- peyote nierika are very colorful and pass usually spend the night around the fire way and the temporal cortex (Oster 1970: by often, many of them. They just go pass- insulated from the external world while 83). Phosphene imagery, first analyzed by ing by, passing by, all moving, getting big- embarked on a journey within their own Heinrich Kluver (1926, 1928, 1942, 1966), ger and smaller all of the time. Many ani- personal realms. appears in constant patterns that are char- mals and beautiful snakes also appear and acterized by varied and saturated colors of pass by, without any explanation." I have Peyote Visions intense brightness, giving the impression received various descriptions of snake im- Upon the ingestion of peyote an indi- of having textures and symmetrical con- agery. One woman told me: "1 saw some vidual can expect to experience brilliantly figurations. Given the right conditions, animals that looked like snakes of many colored visions in fluid motion. Before any human can perceive these patterns. colors, some were striped.They filled the these visionary effects manifest themselves, The luminosity and fluidity of such de- room. I turned and saw up above it was the body, as it breaks down and absorbs signs can vary with the dosage taken. filled with snakes. Wherever I turned there

28 SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 were snakes all over." Elements in the natural environment can become incorpo- rated into this psychedelic imagery. Nu- merous Huichols reflect upon their visions of the sun as a brightly glowing sphere that shines like a mirror. One consultant describes what he saw when looking into the fire: "I felt I saw the fire turn into tissue paper. ... The form of the fire disappeared and Isaw only tissue paper in the glowing form of flowers like the ones we make when we are going to sacrifice a calf. There were many colors of this flowerlike tissue paper." Huichol women experience the same kinds of phosphene designs and consider them to be sacred gifts from the gods. They feel it is their duty to record these psychedelic patterns in their weaving and em- broidery designs after they have returned home. Failure to do so may result in seri- ous hardships and illness sent by the gods for not having shared these divine communications with their family and community (Schaefer 1990, 1993; Eger 1978; Eger Valadez 1986b). Some pass from this first phase of phosphene imagery into a second phase where figural representations appear that for the A young peyote pilgrim wears a traditional peyote design made with uxaface paint. most part are culturally determined. (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1987.) Reichel Dolmatoff (1978:47) notes that while the more geometric phosphene patterns are This same candle had roots. There was a bitter, the next ones taste much sweeter already present within the structure of the deer where the peyote was. The deer acted and are easier to chew and swallow. This eye, the figurative images are projections like it was drunk. Then white foam started was also reported by Furst (1972:177), who of preexisting models that are culturally to come from its mouth, the kind of foam quotes Ram6n Medina as telling a pilgrim determined. During the second phase of that comes from grinding peyote. It was to "Chew well, chew well, for it is sweet, it phosphene perception, Huichols say they coming out of its mouth. The foam looked is delicious to the taste." Although Furst have direct communication with various like soap, like when the hikuri is killed. attributed Ramon's instruction to the youth gods. The link from the first to the second That's how it was pouring out. But the as a ritual reversal of words and meaning, phase of psychedelic images is sometimes deer was talking to me. I didn't hear her there may in fact be some validity to this in likened to going through a tunnel, follow- very well until she saw me and we looked cases where gustatory sensations are also ing a path through the darkness, and enter- each other right in the eye." involved. ing through a doorway or passage to reach The figurative images that come from As for tactile experiences, the only one what lies ahead. My consultant who told this second phase of psychedelic phos- that was related to me was that of my me of his vision of the fire goes on to de- phenes are interpreted as actual represen- comadre's son. At the time, he was twelve scribe this experience: "Then in the very tations of the Huichol gods, and play a years old. He and his sisters had eaten the center of the fire I saw in the distance a special part in the visions of shamans. One peyote their parents had brought them from person; afterwards the mara' aka me told maraakame explains it as follows: Wirikuta. He retreated inside his house me it was Tatewari, Grandfather Fire. I If I eat peyote at sunset, then I will feel this and lay down on the pallet, completely saw the entrance to the temple, even though way about midnight. I will begin to see beings covered with a blanket. I went in to talk to we were in Wirikuta, and I entered the that look like people, but they aren't people; him and touched him on the back. He temple. Isaw the vines that hang from the they are gods, messengers of the gods, who are recoiled and I heard him take a deep breath. rafters in the temple roof to mark the four beautiful. They have beautiful clothes on, their His sister told me that he was "lost, travel- directions. From there, in the very center I faces are painted, they wear lots of feathers. ing with the peyote." I later found out he saw Haramara (the goddess of the Pacific Then they begin to speak to me and reveal many was having a vision of snakes all over the Ocean) in motion; then I saw Chapala (a things about themselves, how they came to be, room. They were completely covering him, large lake south of Guadalajara where the and what things I must do. (Valadez 1986a:21) he could feel them slithering back and forth, goddess Rapauwieyerne lives) in motion." In addition to visual effects, the mesca- and curling around his body. My comadre related to me part of the line in peyote can bring on olfactory, tac- Many Huichols with whom I spoke visions she had when we were in Wirikuta: tile, gustatory, and auditory sensations. I talked of auditory sensations. The wind "I saw a large plant where we had left have not recorded any olfactory ones, but and its different sounds are often described. offerings for the Mother of Peyote. Rays of with respect to gustatory experiences I have One woman told me that when she was light like ribbons were coming from this heard from several Huichols that after eat- deep within the peyote a man came to visit plant. On one side there was a lit candle. ing the first peyote, which tastes extremely her. It was the god of the wind Eka Tewari

SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 29 After harvesting peyote in WirikUta, peyoteros slice buttons in order to dnj them for transportation. (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer.)

(Wind Person). He spoke to her and told a Hikuri Neixa ceremony I attended in 1992, down, like a cloud that is being lowered onto the her she had to remember his song. He one of my compadres was completing his earth. Soon l'll be able to hear everything very began to sing for her and repeated the song tenth year with the role of Nauxa.He sang close and clear, but l'll hear things differently until she knew it well. In the morning she and sang with great emotion, all the while than they normally sound. related this to the mara'akame, who told dancing in step to the beat. Other temple Not all Huichols achieve this state of her she must sing the song for the whole members followed him, and the violin and going beyond the geometric designs to see- temple group. Once she sang it out loud guitar player who held cargo in the temple ing figures, scenes, or animated objects. for everyone she knew she had it memo- improvised to accompany him and his Not everyone is able to hear the gods and rized. She says that it is now a part of her songs. A fellow temple member recorded converse with them. Those who strive to forever. the singing on his tape recorder. The next reach these levels will eat many peyote On one occasion I was attending the day my compadre told me that he didn't plants over a long period of time. Even Hikuri Neixa ceremony. It was the wee "make up these songs"; rather, they were then, such deep visions are never assured. hours of the morning and, having stayed songs the peyote had given him. Peyote visions, as explained by one sha- up two days and nights straight, most of The mara'akame interviewed by Vala- man, differ depending on the level of spiri- the members were sleeping in the temple, dez (1989a:21) explains how the music tual awareness an individual has achieved myself included. I awoke to hear the comes to him when he is empeyotado (in- on his or her life's path: woman who shared the cargo of Tatewari toxicated with peyote): ... when rnara'ukames who have reached a with her husband break into a spontane- For about the first hour I don't feel any- very high level look into the fire they will see ous song. She sang on and off for close to thing. Then my voice will start to feel strange Taieuiari-s-Grandjather Fire-as a person, an an hour. Later, I asked my comadre about and I won't understand very well what people old, old man with grey hair and a wrinkled face. this and she said it was the peyote that are speaking. Then I will have a very strong He speaks to the mara' akdmes and they listen to brought her the songs. urge to play music, so I will play my violin. I him .... The mara' akdmes use their mirrors and Receiving these songs is a sign of good unll lisien to music coming out of the air, pure their muuieris (feathered wands) to understand luck and that the gods are pleased. During air. Then I'll befeeling that the air is coming him better. The other people, the ones who

30 SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 aren't asfar along on their 'path', don't see this old man in the fire. They will only see rattle- snakes, speckled lizards (relatives of the Gila Monster), and mountain lions, who are the special messengers of this god-his representa- tives. Huichol shamans incorporate the visionary and other effects they experience into the ceremonies they are performing, as well as in healing and divining rituals.An older female shaman with whom I have a close friendship, will sit with her family in a circle around the fire. After eating peyote, she wraps herself from head to toe in her blanket and waits until the peyote takes effect. At intervals in the night she sings songs that are meant for specific family members. She has attuned herself to the peyote to such a fine degree that even when not intoxicated, she can hold peyote, or merely be in its presence, and break into song. She tell me she sings what the peyote are saying. The peyote also enables her to dream better so that she can heal people. The mara'akames, being experienced travelers who have sought knowledge from ABOVE:Traditional beaded peyote designs and burnt engravings decorate Ramon Medina's the teachings of peyote, interpret the vi- homemade Huichol-style violin. (Photograph by Peter T. Furst.) sions that other pilgrims have received: BELOW:An embroidered bag, by Guadalupe de la Cruz Rios, depicts mature peyotes, with They have to reveal it to the mara'akame, a "Mother of Peyote" in the upper right corner. (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1986.) because they see important things in their visions. They receive directions from the gods .... So all the people speak of their visions together ". everything appears in a person's visions, and so he talks of it. He reveals everything except for the special messages of the gods that pertain only to his own life and shamanic path. Those special instructions pertain to him and only him, and he won't explain any of this. (Valadez 1989a:21-22) Levels of Meaning Peyote and the peyote pilgrimage are integrating elements that reinforce Huichol cosmology and the beliefs and traditions that revolve around their culturally shared worldview. Peyote serves as an enculturating force, echoing religious tenets in re- curring themes that are transcended to visions, the spoken word through myths and songs, actions in rituals and ceremonies, and beliefs that-permeate all levels of individual and collective Huichol conscious- ness.Having visions of a sacred deer ap- pearing out of a large peyote cluster, as did my comadre, and feeling it look you right in the eye and talk directly to you, is bound tohave a profound effecton any individual. Within the context of Huichol culture, be- lieving in the myths, rituals, even the entire religious system, is no longer a matter of passive acceptance of one's indoctrina- tion but of truly interacting with all they contain, and experiencing them as realities

SHAMAN'S DRUM I SPRING, 1996 31 Huichols participate in a Hikuri Neixa, or Peyote Dance, performed at the San lose temple. (Photograph by Stacy B.Schaefer, 1986.) and as truths about the nature of the world bers talk of their peyote experiences, or event that has been discussed in great de- and humanity at large. when they hear temple members give ac- tail by Furst and Anguiano (1976). Huichols, like participants in any soci- counts of their inner experiences before the Peyote and the pilgrimage to Wirikuta ety, begin learning about their culture at leading mara'akame, Brilliant peyote-in- have a powerful influence on unifying the birth. The fact that they are introduced to duced phosphene designs surround them family as well as the temple community peyote, first while in the mother's womb, in their daily life in woven and embroi- and all of its members. Huichol concep- then through her milk, and finally by actu- dered clothing, belts, and bags-even in tions of family have been explained to me ally ingesting the sacred cactus, has a defi- the yarn and bead art work Huichols make by various consultants as resembling the nite effect on how children see the world, to sell. The fact that they actually see many growth of a vine. One woman said: "Do and how they learn to interpret these phe- of these same phosphene images under the you know a plan t that we have which grows nomena. I have noticed a marked change influence of peyote gives credence to the and makes new buds that turn into in the behavior of children after they have world view that Huichols have constructed branches? This is the way we see the fam- received small doses of peyote via their around the peyote. Combined with this is ily.If you have family, and if you are a mother's milk. They become very calm, the peyote pilgrimage itself. Mothers who plant, then you grow. At one point a branch smiling often, and occasionally grabbing are still nursing or have children two years grows as if it were your hand, and another into the air at what I believe must be imagi- or under, prefer to take them along wher- like your legs.And it gives off more nary objects and colors. Several women ever they go. This includes the journey to branches on this side and that.I think that confirmed my observations, stating that the Wirikuta, where children, like all mem- the gods see us this way when we are a disposition of their children does indeed bers, become pilgrims and actively partici- family. The gods know us because we change if they nurse at a time when they pate in the sacred rituals. Another cer- grow this way." have been consuming peyote. emony, Tatei Neixa, which celebrates the Families share the same iyari, heart- Huichol children, even before they reach first maize and green squashes, is also held memory. From the descriptions I have re- the age where they will eat enough peyote especially for all children five and under. ceived about this, the concept of iyari seems to dramatically change their conscious state The shaman, through his song, metaphori- to refer to a kind of genetic memory that of mind, are well clued-in to what they can cally transforms the children into hum- comes from past and present family mem- anticipate to experience (Eger 1978:41-43). mingbirds, eagles, or other birds and takes bers. This same woman told me, "Although They learn about this when family mem- them on the pilgrimage to Wirikuta, an we were born without a single thought, a

32 SHAMAN'S DRUM I SPRING, 1996 single memory, it was there for us, it came from my mother and father, they gave this memory to us from before." Even after someone in the family has died, he or she is still physically present in the form of a rock crystal captured by the shaman in a special ceremony to bring the deceased back to the family. The urukdme lives in the family shrine, upon the altar, and is brought out for all the rituals (Furst 1967;Perrin 1996). With these concepts of family in mind, it is no wonder that when some of the family go on the pilgrimage, those who are left behind at the rancho follow their loved ones along the journey in their thoughts and in the rituals they must perform to ensure their safety on this dangerous passage. They, too, observe many of the same restrictions, fast until late afternoon, do not eat salt, and abstain from sex. They make the ritual fire every day and pray for the pilgrims. At night they dream with them, and from these dreams the elders usually predict where they are on the pilgrimage and what has happened to them. Upon the return of the pilgrims, each family member A Huichol family whose child almost died leaves offerings at the sacred water holes called in the rancho is blessed with sacred water Tatei Matinieri, "Where Our Mother Dwells." (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1987.) and given peyote chosen especiallyfor them so that they may also share the visions and lowing the traditions as well as the moral very concerned, and with the best of inten- other experiences. If a family member has code, which, in turn, brings families closer tions made a detour to take them to the not been truthful in naming all ofthe people together in a unified whole. emergency room in the city hospital. The with whom he or she has had sexual rela- The temple members are united on the doctor there insisted that the only way the tions, aside from the spouse, the conse- pilgrimage. When the group sets out on child could recover would be to leave her quences may be devastating when it comes the journey, its members also undergo a in the hospi tal for several days or more; the to eating the peyote. In one rancho where I purification ritual that involves confessing mother could stay with her. All of the attended the ceremony marking the return any sexual transgressions. Afterwards, the Huichols rejected this, and those most ada- of the pilgrims, the eldest daughter and shaman ties knots in a special string, with mant were the child's father and the lead- her husband retreated into their bamboo each knot representing a pilgrim and the ing mara'akame, They insisted that she house after eating the peyote. Severalhours uniting of the souls of all participants. They was part of the pilgrim group, that the later the rest of the family, myself included, are thus both physically and symbolically group was all joined together, and that we were sitting around the fire in the patio tied together for the entire pilgrimage, as could not be separated. Everyone contrib- and could hear her thrashing around, well as afterwards, up to and including the uted to pay for antibiotics, glucose solution moaning, and occasionally screaming. I completion of Hikuri Neixa, months later, to be given orally, and powdered milk. was concerned about her, but her mother when in one of the concluding rituals the Despite the unbearable heat in the day, the told me to leave her be, that the peyote was knots are untied. freezing nights, and lack of purified water, punishing her because she had not con- I witnessed the importance of this con- the little girl made it through the pilgrim- fessed completely. The mother and grand- cept and the degree to which all the mem- age and is now a healthy eleven-year-old. mother had tears in their eyes, and the next bers vehemently acted this out when we Father and shaman attributed this miracu- morning it was a very emotional scene stopped in Zacatecas before reaching lous recovery to the help of the gods and when they talked to the young woman and Wirikuta. We were traveling in the trucks the offerings left for them in their sacred convinced her to tell all before the and van of several mestizo friends and ac- peyote homeland. mara' akame so that they all would be clean quaintances of the temple group. One Perhaps the most poignant example of and purified' This was the first time I had Huichol man had a very sick little daugh- the enculturating forces at work in the con- ever seen someone have a "bad trip" with ter. Before leaving San Andres on the pil- sumption of peyote and the rituals of the peyote. Everyone I talked to, however, grimage, the medical doctor of the clinic, pilgrimage was brought to my attention had a story or two to tell about someone Armando Casillas Romo, had supplied the with a Huichol woman I have known for they knew who had a negative experience. family with a mixture of water and glucose more than eight years. I first met her in the Other reasons for such an adverse reaction to administer orally to the little girl. Ema- mestizo town ofSantiago Ixcuintla,Nayarit, to the sacred plant are that the person has ciated from debilitating diarrhea, she had near the Pacific coast. She had come to not fully completed ritual obligations with also developed a severe cough that racked visit the Huichol Center there, and I began a god, or has not been truthful in his or her her frail body. Since the child's mother to get to know her. dealings with others. Thus, peyote also was in a ritual fast, her breast milk had At first I thought she was a mestizo reinforces the importance of properly fol- dried up. The mestizo. companions were because she wore the typical western dress

SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 33 enculturative purpose, instilling and rein- forcing the importance of cultural beliefs and values, as well as a collectively shared worldview. However, speaking from a more personal point of view, from the inti- mate conversations I have had with Huichols about peyote, and from the experiences that I, myself, have had with these people and their sacred plant, I am led to think that it is much more than this. As one Huichol put it,"Peyote is for learning; those with strong hearts will receive messages from the gods." Peyote enables a person to tap into other dimensions, other ways of seeing, feeling, hearing, and sensing the world. With their carefully structured cosmology that includes a belief system constructed around peyote and nature, the Huichols are provided with a cultural framework in which to place the information received and interpret the things they experience. The door is thereby opened for one to develop and evolve a more profound sense of self as well as family and Dressed in beautiful feathered hats and embroidered outfits, a group of peqoteros return community.Experiences such as these home to San Jose following a peyote pilgrimage. (Photograph by Stacy B. Schaefer, 1987.) make one contemplate life, mortality, the metaphysical world, and the requirements of a mestizo woman and because her Span- responsibility, and it was also the first time involved in following a spiritual path to ish was excellent. But it turned out that her they had ever eaten peyote. I talked to this reach higher levels of awareness. As the family was from San Andres Coharniata, woman after their return from the pilgrim- twentieth century draws to a close, where she had also been born and raised. age. Bothshe and her husband were elated, Huichols are experiencing greater pressures At a very young age, she had been taken to praising the sacredness of the peyote and than ever from the outside world and are the Franciscan boarding school at the mis- the beauty it brought to them in their vi- challenged more than ever to maintain their sion of Santa Clara, about two hours away, sions and experiences. Now, they are ac- own cultural integrity. The peyote experi- whether by her parents' choice or by force tive members in the temple and eagerly ences are an essential way for Huichols to is not clear to me. I have gathered some look forward to the next pilgrimage the reaffirm their cultural identity and yet step accounts from Huichols who were fellow group will make. The woman also took me beyond this cultural threshold to under- students at the mission school. Some of aside and confided something very spe- stand and become part of a greater whole, them had indeed been compelled to go, cial. She told me that for years she and her of an increasingly multicultural world under threat that otherwise the nuns would husband had been trying to have a second where cultures transcend political bound- not help the sick who had come for medi- child. After consulting a maraakame, and aries. cal aid. The arrangement was that in ex- with his guidance leaving special prayers Nevertheless, because of antidrug agi- change for the nuns' medical services, one and offerings in Wirikuta, she has just be- tation and federal and local police action, of the children had to stay behind and at- come pregnant. With a warm, broad smile many Huichols now have great fear of run- tend the school. The woman in question on her face she told me that what the sha- ning into problems with the authorities in completed the sixth grade, married a mans say is true-that what the peyote the states through which they pass on their Huichol who also had attended the school, tells you is true, that you must follow these way to Wirikuta.There have, in fact, been and they had moved down from the Sierra teachings with your heart and the gods detentions of pilgrims for possessing to live near Tepic, the capital of Nayarit. will look after you. peyote, for the use of peyote, even among She rarely went to the Sierra to visit her Huichols, is still not legal under Mexican Conclusion family and did not actively participate in federal law. A great deal of ambiguity any of the religious ceremonies. Having sought answers to why peyote exists in this body of legislation. The Su- The national economic crisis in the 1980s is "the crossing of the souls," and what it is preme Law, which defines general norma- affected everyone, and, no longer able to that Huichols know about the sacred cac- tive principles of the Mexican federal law, afford to live in the city, a few years ago tus, and having collected firsthand descrip- contains nothing that would suggest peyote she and her husband decided to move back tions of inner experiences with peyote, I prohibition. The regulatory laws, codes to San Andres Cohamiata. After some years am only too well aware how much remains and regulations, however, forbid the use of living there, they were given a cargo in the for me to learn about the multiple mean- peyote. Classified as a psychotropic sub- community government, and at this writ- ings that for Huichols revolve around stance, it falls under the most stringently ing have just received a major temple cargo. peyote. From the perspective of an eth- regulated category of narcotics. (Ari In 1992they joined the temple group on the nographer, Iwould say that peyote is mean- Raijsbaum 1995,personal communication). peyote pilgrimage. For both of them it was ingful because it unifies family and com- The other thing Huichols fear is that the first time they had assumed so great a munity members; and that it serves an overharvesting by people other than them-

34 SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 selves will one day exhaust the peyotesup- d urinj; the purification rituals of the peyote pilgrimage B. Crocker Art Gallery, Sacramento. ply. This concern is real and well founded. is made clear in Myerhoff's account of the 1966 pilgrimage she and Furst attended (Myerhoff 1974:135·136). -. 1977. £1 Arte Contemporaneo de IDS Huicholes. Uni- Ari Raijsbaum, an INI official working in One of the young women participants was very reluc- versity of Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico. the Procuria de Justicia (Justice Department t,1I11to name her sexua! partners and was sharply be- of Indian Affairs), told me in the fall of rated for it by her companions.According to Myerhoff: -. 1985. Acercamiento historico y subjectivo al huichol. Ramoll explained that h,'r acfioll had jeopardized the University of Guadalajara, Guadalajara, Mexico. 1995that clandestine harvesting in Wirikuta rniirc jill/riley, thai Imd 511<' lI11tat lasl relented, the trip could by non-Huichols has escalated to the point 110/italic hl'l'l1 undertaken tlta! yenr, for "all must be of olle Oster, Gerald. 1970. Phosphenes. Scientific American of jeopardizing the quantity, supply; and heart, there must be complete' lmily among us." 222:83-87. well-being of the peyote population as a References Perrin, Michel. 1996. The Llrukame, A Crystallization of whole, especially old-growth peyote. the Soul: Death and Memory. In People of the Peyote, ed. Raijsbaum reports that the plants are ripped B<'nitez,Fernando. 1968.1. /:1110 Tierra Magica del Peyote. by Stacy B. Schaefer and Peter T. Furst, pp. 403-42S. from the ground, root and all, leaving no Ediciones ERA, Mexico, D.F. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. possibility for the peyote to regenerate. As Schultes, Richard Evans. 1972. An Overview of Hallu- -. 19h5b. Los Indios .1,' Mhko, \'01. 2. Ediciones ERA, cinogens in the Western Hemisphere. In Flesh o( th•. a result, where there once used to be areas ,"Iexico, D.F. filled with larger clusters of peyote, only a Gods: The Ritual Use of Haltucinogen«, ed. by Peter T Furst, pp. 3-54. Praeger Publications, New York. (Re- scattering of small immature plants now Dnlmatoff, Reichel. 1978. Bel/olld the Milky Way: Hallu- (illlilory Imagery oj the Tuknno Indians, University of vised edition 1990, Waveland Press, Prospect Heights, Ill.) remain, if any at all. California Press, Los Angeles,CA. But protecting peyote and its ritual use Schaefer, Stacy B. 1990. Becoming a Wt'flver: The WOlllall's has implications beyond allowing some in- Eger, Susan (Valadez). 1978. Huichol Women's Art. In Art o/Ih" !-Il/ie/lOlllldians, cd. by Kathleen Berrin, pp. 35- Path in Huichol Culture. Ph.D. dissertation in Anthro- digenous cultures to practice their religious 5~. Fine Arts Museums of Son Francisco/ Harry N. pology, University of California at Los Angeles. Under traditions. The quest for peyote among the f\br,1ll1S, New York. contract to University of Utah Press. Huichols is also a quest for the self. In that Furst, Peter T. 1967. Huichol Conceptions of the Soul. -. 1993. Huichol Indian Costumes:A Transforming Tradition. Latin American Art 5(1):70·73 . sense, the peyote hunt is part and parcel of . F"lk",rc Americas 27:39-106. a universal quest for society and the sacred -.1996. The Cosmos Contained: The Temple Where -. 1972. To Find Our Life: Peyote among the Huichol that transcends cultural boundaries and Sun and Moon Meet. In People of the Peljole, ed. by Stacy J nd i,1I1Sof Mexico. In Flesh or itu: Gods: The Ritua! lIse of unites humankind in its ultima te search for Hallilcinllgells, ed. by PeterT. Furst. pp. 184·236. Praeger B. Schaefer and Peter T. Furst, pp. 332·373. University its own humanity. No doubt, not all Publishers, New York. of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. Huichols are conscious of these meanings Siegel, Ronald. 1977. Hallucinations. Scientific AlIIl'l'i- beyond their own society. But some are. It -. 1'!7fi. Hallllcinosl'lls rind Cuiture. Chandler and Sh.up,S,1n Francisco. call 4:132·140. is worth quoting what a Huichol shaman Siegel, Ronald and Murray [arvik. 1975. Drug-induced said to me during the closing peyote cer- rur5t,PL'terT.,and Marina Anguiano. 1976. 'To Fly As Birds': Mvrh and Ritual As Agents of Enculturation Hallucinations in Animals and Man. In Hailucinntions: emony before the coming of the rains. He Behavior, Experience and Theory, ed. by Ronald SiChel f\nwllb the Huichol Indians of Mexico. In Enculturation and Louis West,pp. 81·161. John Wiley and Sons, New was telling me that the neighboring mesti- ill Iusin America: All AII/lullog.\!, ed. by Johannes Wilbert, York. zos think that Huichols are lazy, that they Pt'. ~5-11l1. UCLA Latin American Center Publications, Los Angeles. don't work hard because they have so many Valadez, Susana (Eger). 1986a. Dreams and Visions ceremonies. He went on to say:"Yes, it's Kluve-r. Heinrich. 192".Mescal Visions and Eidetic From the Gods: An Interview with Ulu Ternay, Huichol Shaman. Shamnn's Drum 6:18-23. true that we have many ceremonies to ask Vi""". American [ourr»; or 1"ycliology37:502-515. our gods for luck, health, that the maize -. 19"8. Mescal: The "Divine Plant" and its PsyciIOlvgieal -. 1986b. Mirrors of the Gods: The Huichol Shaman's grows well, that there are many deer and Ejl;·(/s. Kegan, Paul, Trench, Trubner, London. Path of Completion. Shaman's VrulIl 6:29-39. cattle, that our families are healthy. What -. 19-12. Mechanisms of Hallucinations. In Studie» in -. 1989. Problem Solving in a Threatened Culture. In these people don't understand is that we Mirrors of the Gods, Proceedings of a SymposiulII Oil tlic I'as,,,,"';ty, ed. by Q. McNernar and M. A. Merrill. do not have these ceremonies just for our- t'.\cCrcl\v-Hill, New York Huicho! Indians, ed .. by Susan Bernstein. San Diego selves alone. We have them to ask the gods Museum of Man Papers No. 25, pp. 17·32. to care for all the people, everywhere, so -. 1'-)66. Mescal tllld A1(dIl1lli::'lIIs 0/ t inllucinations, Uni- versity of Chicago Press, Chicago. Acknowledgments: I am grateful for the research sup- that the world will keep going, so that life port of a Fulbright Fellowship, Organization of Ameri- (in the world) will continue to exist." Lumholtz, Carl G. 1902. Unknown Mexico, 2 vols. can States Fellowship, Programs on Mexico Grant from Scribner's and Sons, New York. the University of California at Los Angeles, Faculty Research Grants from the University of Texas-Pan Notes American, and from Mr. and Mrs. Vernon and Lysbeth t\Llld Torres, Ramon. 1970. L(1~Pcvotcro«. GuadaJajara. Anderson. I also wish to thank Edward Anderson of 1. Outside of ritual, peyote is consumed only to re- the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona,(or store energy, stay awake, ward off hunger, and allevi- -. 19/10. La Vida de lo« Huichnl,», vol, 1. Guadalajara. his instructive comments; Johannes Wilbert, who wil! ate intestinal disorders. always be my teacher and advisor as he was during my ~1"erhllif,'l3arbara G.\'J7-1. I'e.'loft' H'II1I: The Sacred years at UCLA; and Ari Raijsbaum for keeping me up 2. Although not occurring on this particular pilhrim- },';'I'II"(/"( th" Huichol tndian», Cornell University Press, to date on Mexican peyote legislation and its effect on age, in some instances a peyotero may spend the entire Ith"c", N.Y. Huichols and their way of life. night on the summit of Kauyumari's hill in the hope of receiving a special message from the deities. -. 1978a. Return to Wirikuta: Ritual Reversal and Svmbolic Continuitv on the Pevote Hunt of the Huichol Stacy B, Schaefer is associate professor of 3. Lumholtz (1902:156) describes the effect of peyote lI;di,)(15. In The WOI:,dUl'sid,' Do,I'n: Studies in Symbolic anthropology at the University of Texas-Pan on one Huichol man, who, based on his behavior, was 11I""I'"i,I/', ed. by Barbara Babcock. Cornell University American, Edinburg, Texas. said to have violated the rule of sexual abstinence dur- Press, Ithaca, N.Y. ing the deer hunting rituals: T11e afl{lck lasts only a few I1lil11/tcs, and subsides (15 -. 197~b. Peyote and the .'vlystic Vision. In Al'l of the sudde,,'y as it came on, though a perSOIl IIInt/ become l'en/ /I II,ei",1 indinn«, ed. by Kathleen Berrin. The Fine Arts violellt, lear Off his clothes, and rim againsl IIIe ollIers with ,\lus,'urns of San Francisco/Harry N. Abrams. New threatening gestures and wild, loud talkillg. ln tha! ea"" he is York. seized and lied hand and foot until he regotns his sellses. The importance of confessing sexual transgressions Nq;rin, Juan. 1975. The HII;chol Creation of the World. E.

SHAMAN'S DRUM / SPRING, 1996 35