New Mexico's Maxwell Museum of Anthropology will open an exhibit on curanderos-traditional Mexican healers-and their methods of spiritual, clairvoyant cure.
The practice of curanderismo has long been a fixture in indigenous communities of Mexico, New Mexico, south Texas, Arizona, and California, according to the Associated Press. Anthropologists say curanderismo is traditionally widespread among Latinos, not only ritualistically speaking, but also because of improper access to healthcare. Now, the practice has grown in popularity as more and more folks look to alternative medicine.
Curanderos use holistic alternatives to treat everything from mal de ojo (evil eye), to susto, (magical fright), to physical pain. Using prayer, platicas, (heart-to-heart talks), acupuncture, limpias, (spiritual cleansing), and medicinal plants, curanderismo employs a synergetic system of healing, helping take away depression, a back ache, or emotional discomfort.
This May, the museum will collaborate with a curanderismo class at the University of New Mexico, which is projected to attract more than 200 students nationwide.
Dr. Eliseo "Cheo" Torres, Vice President of Student Affairs at UNM and lead teacher of the curanderismo workshop, will curate the exhibit. He is an expert on the subject, having written the books "Curandero: A Life in Mexican Folk Healing," and "Healing with Herbs and Rituals: A Mexican Tradition." He also gives lectures and presentations frequently on the historical significance and extensive lore involved in curanderismo.
The exhibit will feature pieces, installations and classes on curandero healing, as well as an opportunity for soul cleansing-the aforementioned limpia. Traditional instruments, incense burners, and rituals will also be on display there.
Images of curanderismo folk saints will join the other pieces to be shown at the museum, including La Santa Muerte and Jesus Malverde.
"There are...new people who want to learn about the field and appreciate its value," Torres said in an interview with the AP. "Curanderismo is so diverse now."
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