Mexico - Huichol Route through the sacred sites to Huiricuta (Tatehuari Huajuye)

The Huicholes, heirs of Mesoamerican societies, make up one of the native groups that have survived with great vitality in America thanks to the rough topography of their territories, to its decentralized political organization and to their ability to adapt to the historical surroundings reflected by their active participation in the history of the West of Mexico. Nevertheless, the main strength of their cultural reproduction is the collective resolve to keep their ancestral traditions. An essential part of their cosmogony and identity is the pilgrimage through dozens of natural sacred sites, spread along a corridor of more than 800 kilometers that runs from the coast of the State of Nayarit to Huiricuta. These pilgrimage routes are what remain of the pre-Hispanic trade routes that joined the Pacific coast with the Gulf of Mexico. Among them the route to Huiricuta, to the west, stands out because of the role it has played in the cultural survival of the Huicholes, the frequency with which it is used and the number of users it has. Along the route, deities and the spirits of their ancestors (for example the cacallari) inhabit, certain species of wild fauna (wolves and reindeer) or natural phenomena like the wind or clouds (the tateima) are found. The Huicholes also identify some of these elements as “older brothers” or “teachers” (the tamatsi), who anoint the pilgrims providing them with wisdom and spiritual guidance, or with penalties and punishments.