Hello Believers!

Teotihuacan is an enormous archaeological site in the Basin of Mexico, containing some of the largest pyramidal structures built in the pre-Columbian Americas. Apart from the pyramidal structures, Teotihuacan is also known for its large residential complexes, the Avenue of the Dead, and numerous colorful, well-preserved murals.

At its zenith in the first half of the 1st millennium CE, Teotihuacan was the largest city in the pre-Columbian Americas. At this time it may have had more than 200,000 inhabitants, placing it among the largest cities of the world in this period. The civilization and cultural complex associated with the site is also referred to as Teotihuacan or Teotihuacano.

Although it is a subject of debate whether Teotihuacan was the center of a state empire, its influence throughout Mesoamerica is well documented; evidence of Teotihuacano presence, if not outright political and economic control, can be seen at numerous sites in Veracruz and the Maya region. The ethnicity of the inhabitants of Teotihuacan is also a subject of debate. Possible candidates are the Nahua, Otomi or Totonac ethnic groups. Scholars have also suggested that Teotihuacan was a multiethnic state.

The city and the archaeological site were located in what is now the San Juan Teotihuacán municipality in the State of México, Mexico, approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) northeast of Mexico City. The site covers a total surface area of 83km² and was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. It is one of the most visited archaeological sites in Mexico.

The name Teōtīhuacān was given by the Nahuatl-speaking Aztec centuries after the fall of the city. The term has been glossed as “birthplace of the gods”, reflecting Nahua creation myths that were said to occur in Teotihuacan.

Origins and foundation

The early history of Teotihuacan is quite mysterious, and the origin of its founders is debated. For many years, archaeologists believed it was built by the Toltec. This belief was based on colonial period texts, such as the Florentine Codex, which attributed the site to the Toltecs. However, the Nahuatl word “Toltec” generally means “craftsman of the highest level” and may not always refer to the Toltec civilization centered at Tula, Hidalgo. Since Toltec civilization flourished centuries after Teotihuacan, the people could not have been the city’s founders.

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So off to the Pyramids we went 2 carloads full of anticipation not knowing the 200+ steps that awaited us, we arrived in Teotihuacan City of Gods!

cOOL sHIT! This place was awesome! we arrived around noon, and the weather was great totally different then in the city, no smog, clear skies The sun was beaming on my skull since I had traded my New era black on black to a poor sales guy slanging Aztec crafts that would not stop begging me to buy something, it wasn´t  that I didn´t want to buy anything, it’s that I was trying to save that for after the climb, anyways traded him my hat for some Aztec sun necklace just cuz I felt bad for the dude. ´So on to the Pyramid, the sun Pyramid that is, the tallest one.

So as me and the Wife along with Mom, Dad, Cuz, and Bro-in-law started to climb, we hit the first flight of steps running,  not a good idea, it was tough, but we kept it going.  Every few steps there were people who were resting or running past us, pretty crazy the air is real thin up there really high elevation so we stopped for breaks and photo ops, finally reaching the top after a couple of breaks it was really awesome to reach the top and complete the journey which they say is where Men become Gods! Didnt really feel like a god but was sure happy to reach the top. Not only for myself but it was also great to have done it with the family, one of those moments that you´ll always remember year after year.

Once at the very top we climbed to the center where there is a silver spot right smack dab in the middle of the pyramid. So I touched the center and made a wish.

Soaked up the view which was great and talked with some other tourists, Argentinians, Americans and Mexicans. Good times probably the best part of this trip.

Now it was time to come down…

Very slowly also making sure the old folks ( Mom & Pops) didn´t need any help. Ran into a few people who were stuck on that last set of  steps since they were soooo steep. All in all great experience.

After that we headed to a strip of small restaurants close by where we drank again,  ate some more and laughed around a table of family breaking bread. Otra Michelada? Jajajajaja, y un tequilita?

One of the most prevalent things in the Mesoamerican world is the ball court. A game played – almost impossible to score – where the loser actually loses his head. At least, so the modern interpretation goes.

There seems to be an unusual prevalence of the head in the Mayan literature of the Hero Twins. The father of the Hero Twins lost his head which then spit into the hand of a girl, who then became pregnant with the Hero Twins. The pair grew to journey to the Underworld and beat the game to “resurrect” their father – as some sources say: free him to be reincarnated. During the ensuing Ball Game one of the Hero Twins loses his own head, which is used for the game ball for a while until replaced by a gourd.

Perhaps the tale is mixing metaphors. On one hand, giving some basis for belief in reincarnation, and on the other: describing cosmological events.

So, is the tale of the Hero Twins really a cosmological story? The head that spits to impregnate the young goddess sounds much like a “god” figure (i.e. planet – round like a head; see the previous post on the Olmec heads), so where in the cosmology is a “god” killed and spits to impregnate another that gives birth to twins?

Are they compressing a couple of suns into one here or what? And how does this relate to the classic Ball Game?

from http://carbon.cudenver.edu/stc-link/hohokam/ballcourts.htm:
“In prehistoric Mexico, the ball bouncing between the players on opposing teams represented the sun struggling to rise out of the night sky and then falling again at the end of the day, as well as a changing of the seasons.”

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_court:
“Fertility is a theme of the ballgame from the earliest times; for example, Formative period ballplayer figurines – most likely female – often wear maize icons. The theme of solar movement is tied to fertility and the bouncing ball is thought to have represented the sun, and the sacrifice of a ballplayer represented the death of the sun, which would then be reborn. In its inherent duality, the game appears as a struggle between day and night, and/or a battle between life and the underworld. The stone scoring rings are said to signify sunrise and sunset, or equinoxes. Courts were considered portals to the underworld and were built in key locations within the central ceremonial precincts.”

Here, the interpretations about the ball relate it to the movement of the Sun and specifically it’s struggle against the darkness of nighttime.

The Hohokam, early inhabitants in Southern Arizona, as well as the Sinagua, in Northern Arizona, seem to have had ballcourts. The one at Wupatki, near Flagstaff, AZ, appears to be the northernmost example of the ballcourt.

While living in Northern Arizona, I had the good fortune to come across another apparent ball court in the National Forest there. It was a long depression ringed with stones – not as deep as the ritual ballcourts so perhaps this one was used only for recreation – about seventy-five feet along each side with rounded ends.

What is puzzling is that there are no ritual ballcourts at that greatest of ancient cities, Teotihuacan. But murals there show that several ball games were played there for recreation, even if not for ritual purpose: a two-player game in an open-ended masonry ballcourt and a game with teams using sticks on an open field whose end zones are marked by stone monuments.

So there were various versions of the game over the centuries from something resembling field hockey to something similar to soccer. Modern scholars assume the “hip-ball” version to be the most widespread variety.

It seems to have been more than a simple sport to the Maya and Aztecs. The Maya saw the game as a battle between the lords of the underworld and their earthly adversaries, the Aztecs saw it as a battle between the forces of night led by the moon and the stars. Both are cosmological and mythological in orientation, but what interpretation

So how far was the ballgame spread? And where did it come from? And, more importantly, what did it really mean?

http://www.quaibranly.fr/

Recordando la historia desde los
hoteles de Cholula

 Yanni Voices & Crew visit the  Teotihuacan Temples on their day off while on tour with Yanni.

Teotihuacán means “place where gods were born,” reflecting the Aztec belief that the gods created the universe here.  Constructed around 300 AD, the holy city is characterized by the vast size of its monuments, carefully laid out on geometric and symbolic principles.

For more information about Teotihuacán go to

 www.world-mysteries.com/mpl_7.htm

I stopped for a moment to admire the view as we climbed to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacán. Below, the four-day path my companions and I had taken to reach this place was visible. I could see how far we had come — from the plaza that symbolized hell and unconsciousness, to our present position which represented unmitigated awareness and the dream of heaven on earth. As I retraced our steps with my eyes, a thought flew through my mind, “This is the meaning of life.” Our weeklong odyssey through the pyramid complex was a small-scale representation of life’s journey.

On this journey we are born as pure awareness, completely innocent. When we are old enough to focus our attention, our parents give us a taste of the apple from the tree of knowledge. They teach us well-meaning fictions about ourselves and the world, and we begin the process of forgetting. We forget our true nature. We believe others when they say we are flawed and struggle to make up for our deficiencies. We suffer because we have lost something precious and we don’t know what it is. What we have lost is the experience of our innocence. We have forgotten that we are an expression of Divinity. We judge ourselves and it hurts. When the suffering becomes too unbearable, many of us embark on a quest to wake up, to remember the truth of our Divinity, although we seldom know what we are searching for. We find spiritual teachers, we read books, we search and search for answers to restore our awareness. If we are able to find what we lost when we came through the machinery of childhood domestication, the cycle is complete. We awaken, we remember the truth of our Divinity and look down at the perfection of our lives from a high place. Through this shift in our perception, we ultimately help to awaken our brothers and sisters.

The process of forgetting and remembering is a common theme in stories, myths and legends. Adam and Eve were banished from the garden because of the knowledge they possessed. Knowledge will always cast us from paradise; once we learn to judge what we see according to the prevailing dream of our society, we suffer if we see or experience things that go against our belief system. Of course, we must learn. Learning is part of the process, because only through learning and forgetting our true nature can we ever find that precious place of remembering. Remembering the truth of your innocence and Divine perfection is the most wonderful awareness because it brings so much freedom and joy.

As I looked down at the plazas in Teotihuacán, I could see how our journey had taken us from forgetfulness to recollection. I saw the grassy plaza where my old self died and was buried. I could see where I had jumped into the Unknown, and how the result of that leap of faith had led me here where I could see my life and the world with new eyes. I had finally forgiven myself for my shortcomings and so-called failings. I was able to forgive myself because I remembered the truth of my innocence. In my search for the truth, all the lies that made up the framework of my life shattered. I had never been so free or so happy.

The truth of your Divinity carries within it another truth — that there is only One thing here. You are not just you. You are Everything. You are the Earth. You are the Universe. You are God. And this is the awareness that frees you from every mental or physical prison that exists. You see that you are timeless, and there are no prisons. We are all made up of the same vibrating energy, the same starlight. This One essence is manifesting as every conceivable form there is, perhaps for the sole purpose of sharing its love with itself. And the reason it goes to sleep and forgets what it is in each human, is so that it can wake up inside the human and experience the joy of rediscovering itself. As Love! As Life! As all that is.

Each of us, in our own way, searches for what has been lost. In the legend of King Arthur, Arthur forgets his true nature and his connection with everything as the One. As a result, the land withers and dies. His knights, who represent aspects of himself as The Seeker, go on the ultimate search for the Holy Grail, the answer that will restore him to the truth of his connection with everything. The search for the grail is the quintessential journey and search for truth. The truth revealed is the same for each of us. You are the One. You are the Divine. There is no separation. When you stop suffering, the world gets closer to happiness because you are the world. When King Arthur remembers this truth, he is able to fulfill his destiny as King.

You are the King of your life and the master of your inner world. Find the Holy Grail, the truth you have lost, and recover your ability to be who you are born to be — the One expressing itself as You. Everything you do on your search is a step along the way to remembrance. Books, words that are spoken, journeys, even simple meditation brings you closer to remembering that which you have forgotten. Sometimes you’ll notice you are awake, and sometimes you’ll notice you have fallen asleep once again. Life is the ecstatic journey of going to sleep, waking up, and falling in love over and over again. Enjoy it. What else is there to do?

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done

Commodity On-line, via capitalist tool (I mean that in a good way) Inca Kola News:

When it comes to global manufacturing, Mexico is quickly emerging as the “new” China. According to corporate consultant AlixPartners, Mexico has leapfrogged China to be ranked as the cheapest country in the world for companies looking to manufacture products for the U.S. market. India is now No. 2, followed by China and then Brazil.

In fact, Mexico’s cost advantages and has become so cheap that even Chinese companies are moving there to capitalize on the trade advantages that come from geographic proximity.

…

Mexico’s allure as a production site that can serve the U.S. market isn’t limited to China-based suitors. U.S. companies are increasingly realizing that Mexico is a better option than China. Analysts are calling it “nearshoring” or “reverse globalization.” But the reality is this: With wages on the rise in China, ongoing worries about whipsaw energy and commodity prices, and a dollar-yuan relationship that’s destined to get much uglier before it has a chance of improving, manufacturers with an eye on the American market are increasingly realizing that Mexico trumps China in virtually every equation the producers run.

While the trade advantages of working within NAFTA and the much lower transportation costs associated with geographic proximity to the United States consumer market are  what interests the readers of Commodities On-line, there are less cost-driven advantages Mexican has over China as well.

Although the Calderón administration has been trying to undo the Revolution’s accomplishments in establishing labor rights, the rules under with labor and management operate are well-established and — for the most part — relatively stable.  Putting aside ethical considerations like forced labor, workers who are not coerced are more productive than those that are… and less likely to engage in sabotage or unannounced slowdowns or force the manufacturer to turn to state authorities to enforce minimal production standards (not to mention the staffing problems if your shop stewards are executed).

Secondly, and one often overlooked, is that Mexico is not a “developing country” where the whole concept of manufacturing and shift work and payment by check and processes and procedures are something that has to be learned by the work force.  There has been a working class in Mexico forever (there are strong indications that most of Teotihuacan’s residents at its heights were working on assembly lines making obsidian tools for export).  Even for rural indigenous immigrants to manufacturing areas there isn’t much need to “develop” the work habits suitable to these kinds of enterprises, since there is already a peer structure to assimilate these workers.

Where foreign investors run into problems is where they either try to “game the system” — making the assumption that Mexico, being poorer than the United States — doesn’t have a manufacturing and employment culture of its own, or that the rules don’t apply to them — or — when they don’t do their own due diligence and try to compete with a successful Mexican enterprise making the same product and would be better off investing in expanding their market.

The latter is self-evident.  Every day (or nearly every day) one reads on the expat message boards inquiries from a wannabe Mexpat about setting up a dress shop or a hair salon or ESL school or designing websites for Mexicans… as if there are not already a lot of Mexican businesses doing exactly that.  The best these kind of investors can do is offer services to other gringos that aren’t going to compete with existing businesses… of which there are very few, and none of which are going to make you rich.  Like selling English-language paperbacks or publishing English-language books for the English-language minority.

On the former, I’ve seen companies run into problems when they either try to cheat (and cheaters never prosper), or — more commonly — assume that hiring a Mexican-American or a Mexican trained in U.S. schools (and usually with a U.S. MBA) to handle the human side of things.  Not that some of these guys aren’t bright, but they may not be tuned in to the nuances of how things work.  Reading Ned Crouch’s Mexicans and Americans: Cracking the Cultural Code is a good start (as well as Crouch’s webcast from the Library of Congress on this topic).  Putting into practice his admonition that one doesn’t say “they don’t understand,” but “I don’t understand” is harder.

Working within the culture — and hiring management from within the culture — is essential.  Consider Crouch’s discussion of time.  Mexicans will get the job done, and done well and within the parameters of the job, but finding even a Mexican-American who can works within that Mexican concept of time is a challenge.  The problem for the investor is accepting that their way (and their money) is in the hands of people who may not think the same way.  That requires trust.

The Pyramid of the Sun

This great construction is located in the city of Teotihuacán Mexico and it is an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

My mental maps from my first years of travel are much like the maps drawn by ancient mariners. Coastlines carefully plotted but with great empty spaces inland (save for the odd dragon or airport or two). If it was more than 50 miles from a surf spot, I wasn’t interested. The temples of Ubud? No thanks. Not while Padang Padang was breaking. Komodo dragons? Just big lizards really and at least two days travel from Lakey Peak. Celtic Castles? If they were on the coast, perhaps.

I arrived in Mexico in this frame of mind. And all went more or less according to plan. Arriving at night, flying over city lights that stretched horizon to horizon, we slept over at the airport. The next morning we used my carefully researched notes to get us to the right bus station on onto a bus to Puerto Escondido. For six weeks we surfed up and down the coast. In the melting heat and thumping marcismo of Puerto Escondido. In the sleepy surf camps in bandito country in Michoacan. In the dilapidated concrete shell hotels of Pascuales. I didn’t go any further inland than Tecoman. That was a trip to the bank.

We did end up, after all that, stuck for couple of days in Mexico City though. It was just the way the bus and plane schedules worked out. The first evening we were wandering round the safe but still hectic Zona Rosa, half-heartedly trying to do something, when the sky began to rain ash on us.

“Yuck”

“Pretty bad smog, aye”

“Yeah, wow what a polluted city.”

Pete scrapped a big glob of the stuff off a car windscreen. “Glad I don’t live here.”

“Yeah. It’s actually pretty hard to breath. Let’s go back to the hotel.”

The next morning skies had cleared. Big billowing clouds puffed and bulged above the horizon but above us it was fine. And the pollution seemed to have gone.

“Let’s do something.” I think it was Bill’s idea. He went and asked at the reception about day trips and they told us to go to Teotihuacan.

“Las Pyramidas”

My Spanish was still pretty bad but it sounded, I told Pete and Bill, “like there might be Pyramids there, or something.”

And so, with misplaced accents and forlorn verbs searching for objects, I navigated us via the metro to the right bus station and on to the ancient city.

We bickered a bit wandering through the tourist stalls. Pete was driving irritating me. I was bugging him. And we were both driving Bill nuts. I’m not sure we really started paying attention until we made it to the top of the, ‘Pyramid of the Moon.’

“These buildings,” a guide explained to some tourists next to us. “We ancient even to the Aztecs. They didn’t know who built them. Their legends had that the pyramids were the creations of an ancient race. Or Gods, perhaps.”

“That Pyramid of the Sun, which we are looking at, is the World’s largest pyramid outside Egypt.”

It was impressive. Hewn geometry. Jabbing into the sky. It shone lazy yellow in the sun. Behind it, the dark clouds billowed, threatening.

“Looks like thunder,” I wondered allowed.

“Thunder?” a German tourist looked at me like I was an imbecile. “That’s the eruption. You know, the Volcano?”

“Volcano?”

“Yes the one that everyone’s talking about. In the news. The ash cloud that smothered the city yesterday?”

“Ash shower? Oh. That ash shower.”

The German gave up on me and I went back to staring over the ruins. The ancient city and monuments, as old as legends, sun-gold against the eruption-dark sky north of us. And I decided that seeing I’d come all this way I should probably take notice of the land as well as the sea. Every once and a while, at least.

Howard Hillman of the site Hillmanwonders.com puts together many lists of travel-inspiring destinations. I’m going to take a few and compare them to the experiences that TravelPod bloggers have had there. Shall we begin?

1. Pyramids of Egypt

Rucamuffin got majorly ripped off at the Great Pyramids of Egypt

A man with not a full set of teeth greets us and brings us into his courtyard front yard area. He proceeds to write the “prices” of riding a camel into the dirt. I’ll spare you all the sad painful details of the haggle. Basically after unloading all our US money and Egyptian Pounds, we settle on the official dirt posted price of 500 Egyptian Pounds each. Feeling a little uneasy with the deal, we mount up, ready to take on the pyramids!
Now here is the best part…….We come back to our “hotel” and told the nice guys that work here how it went. When they found out we paid 500 Egyptian Pounds EACH, they laugh and say we could have bought our own camel with just a little bit more money! Great……. – Rucamuffin

2. Great Wall of China

Akbar thought the Great Wall of China was incredible

Great Wall (SPECTACULAR – must see before you die) – Akbar

3. Taj Mahal

Rachellecornel also recommends a visit to the Taj Mahal

We saw the Baby Taj, the red fort and the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal was so amazing. Definitely something everyone should try and see! – Rachellecornel

4. Machu Picchu

Jwmoles at the top of the Huayna peak

People start lining up in the middle of the night at the gate. From the gate, it’s a two-hour hike to the Sun Gate (the first view of Machu Picchu). Many people hike fast (and even run) to the Sun Gate for a view of Machu Picchu at sunrise. We were toward the front of the line and managed to make it to the Sun Gate around sunrise for a beautiful view of Machu Picchu about a mile away and 1,000 feet down. Absolutely breathtaking.

It’s an amazing place. Ruins everywhere. Mountains everywhere. I set out for the hour hike to the top. It was very steep and required the use of fixed cables for support in some of the steeper sections. The view at the top was amazing. I spent thirty minutes on top and headed back down to the city, which by then was populated with all the lazy tourists who ride the buses into Machu Picchu. A city built for 500 was holding about 5,000. Tough. I’ve heard rumors that the government has tentative plans to place further limits on the number of peeps who can hike the trail and enter the city. – Jwmoles

5. Bali

Thebogantrekker enjoying the facilities in Bali

We paddled down the Telaga Waja river for a good couple of hours, on what was, all in all, a pretty tame ride. For what it lacked in adrenaline it made up for twofold in scenery, the river snakes its way down between cliffs and ridges covered in jungle, with the occasional waterfall or farmers rice paddie cut into the side of the hill. We finished the course pretty much unscathed bar a killer sunburn on my legs. – Thebogantrekker

6. Angkor Wat

Harryvs traveled to Angkor Wat on his Gap Year trip

We ended the day climbing up to a top of a temple on a hill with thousands of other people which gave us a panoramic view of thick jungle, the sunset, Siem Reap and Angkor Wat. There were so many people that we thought we’d head down before the sun actually set. – Harryvs

7. Forbidden City

Sywellfrasers inside the Forbidden City

We were not quite expecting what we saw at The Forbidden City as it is such a large place, the buildings are so amazing and very colourful – through one square into another and another and so on. The emperor had a building for every part of his day and life!!! There were 9,999 rooms (not surprisingly we did not visit them all!!) Hard to believe that for over 500 years the chinese people were not allowed anywhere near this city let alone enter it. – Sywellfrasers

8. Bagan Temples & Pagodas

Mannchild... in Bagan, Myanmar

The ancient capital of Myanmar, Bagan, is a great place to chill out. It is surrounded by green mountains, full of dusty roads, and oh yea, is the site of about 4,500 ancient temples, stupas and pagodas in a 45 square kilometer area. It is an absolutely breathtaking experience to see 11th, 12th and 13th century temples that dot the landscape as far as the eye can see. The pics do no justice to the experience of seeing this amazing place. It was one of the coolest places I’ve seen in my life. – Mannchild…

9. Karnak Temple

Sabenafrica in front of the Karnak Temple

The Hypostyle Hall with its hundreds of columns was stunning and well worth seeing, but the rest was just many ruins overrun with thousands of inappropriately dressed (although some single men and women i know would disagree) tourists from Eastern Europe. – Sabenafrica

10. Teotihuacan

Meluebke on top of Teotihuacan's pyramid of the sun

After an amazing lunch, we traveled to the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacán, a nearby district of Mexico City. The Pyramid of the Sun is the 3rd largest pyramid in the world. It is claimed to have been built by the Aztec Indians but, as our amazing tour guide, Armando, explained, this is false because the structure and details of this pyramid do not match with other Aztec structures. Thus many speculate that the Aztecs were trying to claim the pyramid as theirs when, in reality, no one is quite sure what tribe constructed it. – Meluebke

Luego de la decadencia de la ciudad-estado de Teotihuacán, la cual quizá se debió a invasiones de pueblos hostiles o a gravísimas crisis alimentarias, varias poblaciones se disputaron el poder económico y cultural de Mesoamérica. Los Toltecas y otros grupos de colonizadores, llamados Nonoalcos, se establecieron en una zona situada a aproximadamente 65 kilómetros al norte de Teotihuacán, donde se fundó posteriormente la ciudad de Tollan Xicocotitlán (Tula o ciudad cerca del cerro Xicoco). La región ya estaba habitada por algunos grupos de Otomíes, que aún hoy son un consistente grupo indígena mexicano. Los primeros eruditos españoles, entre los cuales Bernardino de Sahagún, tuvieron conocimiento de la antigua civilización de los Toltecas por medio de los Aztecas, quienes les dijeron que ésta era mítica y que estaba ubicada en un valle paradisíaco, donde había abundancia de cosecha y donde las personas se alimentaban de aves tropicales multicolores. A continuación, un pasaje del libro Historia General de las Cosas de la Nueva España, llamado luego Código Florentino (1577) del fray Bernardino de Sahagún: Dicen que su Dios era Quetzalcóatl (serpiente con plumas de Quetzal), que era riquísimo y que tenía todas las cosas que se pudieran desear en este mundo. Dicen que las mazorcas de maíz eran enormes y abundantes, y que se cultivaban grandes calabazas, patatas y tomates. Además, dicen que había abundancia de algodón, con el que se elaboraban espléndidos tejidos. Los Toltecas adoraban al Dios Quetzalcóatl, la serpiente emplumada, símbolo, por tanto, del inframundo (muerte y pasado) y del cielo (renacimiento, cercanía al Sol, luminosidad, futuro), que representa, de este modo, la continuidad de la vida en la Tierra y en el Cosmos. Según los Aztecas, en la cima de la teocracia tolteca estaba el sumo sacerdote, quien encerraba en sí todo el conocimiento humano y quien tenía poderes sobrenaturales. El personaje histórico más famoso de la civilización tolteca fue Ce Acatl Topiltzin, quien nació probablemente en el 947 d.C., en un pueblo llamado Michatlahco, en el actual estado mexicano de Morelos. Fue el rey más importante de los Toltecas, a partir del 977 d.C. Hay algunas leyendas que afirman que Topiltzin era “diferente”, en el sentido que venía de muy lejos. A menudo se dice que era un náufrago vikingo. Después de haber sido coronado rey, fue tentado por el Dios de la guerra Tezcatlipoca, motivo por el cual fue expulsado de la ciudad. Luego de los últimos estudios arqueológicos en el sitio de Tula, ubicado en el actual estado mexicano de Hidalgo, se llegó a la conclusión de que la sociedad tolteca era dominada por una aristocracia guerrera que efectuó una expansión de tipo militar y cultural hasta Yucatán, alrededor del 1000 d.C. Haciendo una comparación con Suramérica, la expansión cultural tolteca parece asemejarse a la efectuada por el pueblo Wari, que influenció, con su cultura, a muchísimas etnias del Perú meridional y central pre-incaico. Hacia el 1200 de nuestra era, algunas belicosas tribus de Mexicas (que sucesivamente dieron origen a los Aztecas) y Chichimecas invadieron el territorio de los Toltecas, haciendo que esta civilización comenzara a declinar. En efecto, el estudio estratigráfico del sitio arqueológico de Tula confirma una secuencia cronológica que va del 750 d.C. hasta el 1200 d.C. Se piensa que Tula tenía una extensión de 11 kilómetros cuadrados y una población de aproximadamente 30.000 personas. En la actualidad, en Tula, se pueden admirar las enormes estatuas de los Atlantes, de 4,6 metros de altura. Son representaciones de guerreros toltecas. Parece que su construcción estuvo relacionada con el culto del planeta Venus y con la creación de un calendario sagrado de 260 días (el tiempo de la revolución de Venus alrededor del Sol). En cuanto a lo económico, la zona donde surgió la ciudad de Tollan-Xicocotitlan (no confundir con el lugar mitológico llamado Tollan), era rica en obsidiana, piedras semipreciosas como la turquesa, el alabastro y otros minerales con los cuales se elaboraban estatuillas, adoradas como tótem. En el valle había, además, abundancia de cacao, patatas, tomate, calabazas y maíz. Esta ventajosa situación económica permitió a la aristocracia dominante expandirse militarmente por el actual México y tener relaciones comerciales con los Mayas y con otros pueblos de Centroamérica, como por ejemplo Nicoya, en la actual Costa Rica, de donde importaban preciosas cerámicas. En la arquitectura Tolteca se encuentran algunas similitudes con la cultura Maya: la pirámide de Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli en Tula se parece mucho al templo de los guerreros de Chichén Itzá, en Yucatán. Las afinidades entre los dos pueblos se perciben también en la mitología y en el chamanismo esotérico. En lo alto de estas creencias religiosas toltecas estaba Tloque Nahuaque, el Creador Supremo o Absoluto. Estaba después una Divinidad creadora de los cielos y de la Tierra, Ometecuhtli. Luego, se adoraba a varios Dioses, a los cuales se ofrecía sacrificios para obtener mejores cosechas o para ahuyentar a las fuerzas del mal. Uno de los más importantes era, como ya se había mencionado, Quetzalcóatl, la serpiente emplumada. No sólo era el símbolo del inframundo y del cielo al mismo tiempo (el diablo y el Omnipotente en la simbología católica), sino que representaba también la cultura, la filosofía y la fertilidad. Según la leyenda, Quetzalcóatl era el rey de la legendaria Tollan en épocas arcaicas. Otro de los Dioses mitológicos toltecas era el ya mencionado Tezcatlipoca, el Dios de la guerra (Marte en la cultura de los Griegos). Luego estaba Tlaloc, Dios de la lluvia, Centeotl, Dios del maíz, Itzlacoliuhque (a veces identificado como un simple aspecto de Quetzalcóatl), considerado como Dios de la oscuridad y de los eventos violentos como terremotos, inundaciones y tempestades. A partir de las crónicas escritas por los primeros eruditos españoles que llegaron a México en el siglo XVI, se deduce que los Toltecas daban una enorme importancia a la figura del chamán, hombre capaz de comunicarse con los espíritus, con el fin de resolver disputas, curar enfermedades y en últimas, relacionar a las personas con la Divinidad. Hay que señalar que la palabra “chamán” deriva del sánscrito “shramana”, y no de las lenguas americanas. El chamanismo que aún hoy se practica en muchísimos grupos indígenas de Suramérica es un tipo de religión esotérica reservada, por tanto, a pocos. En efecto, sólo el chamán tiene acceso al conocimiento y puede comunicarse con los espíritus, sean ellos benignos o malignos. Además, practica sacrificios para complacer a los Dioses, conserva las tradiciones orales de su pueblo y sirve de guía espiritual. Según las tradiciones chamánicas toltecas, las cuales heredó luego el pueblo de los Mexica o Aztecas, cada individuo al nacer es acompañado por un animal que lo protegerá y lo guiará durante toda su vida. Estos espíritus se llamaban nahuales. Algunos animales, como por ejemplo el pato y algunas enormes plantas como los árboles de bosque, eran considerados sagrados en la cultura Tolteca. El pato es capaz de caminar, nadar, sumergirse y volar. Por consiguiente, es el símbolo de la perfección en el mundo animal. El árbol de bosque representa los tres mundos posibles: el inframundo, con las raíces bien aferradas a la Tierra y a su materialidad, el tronco, que simboliza la superficie terrestre o el mundo del medio, habitado por los humanos y que está entre la materialidad y la espiritualidad, y la copa, símbolo de la cercanía a Dios, al cielo, a la luminosidad y al reino de la espiritualidad. Los chamanes toltecas eran capaces de comunicarse con los espíritus luego de alcanzar un estado de trance (o alteración de la consciencia), que producían tanto con métodos de autohipnosis, como a través de la música, el canto y el baile, pero también ingiriendo sustancias alucinógenas, como por ejemplo el peyote (Lophophora williamsii). Hoy en día, en México, hay algunas comunidades de Neo-Toltecas que siguen la filosofía de vida de sus ancestros y que creen que los antiguos Mesoamericanos eran portadores de una única cultura llamada Toltecayotl. La filosofía de los Neo-Toltecas está basada en la convicción de que es posible tener un estilo de vida que respete a la naturaleza y a los otros seres vivientes, de manera que se pueda lograr la armonía que se perdió en los siglos pasados.

YURI LEVERATTO    www.yurileveratto.com

La visita a Teotihuacán realmente fue muy interesante, después de  bajar de las pirámides seguimos visitando la zona arqueológica, visitando la ciudadela en donde era la parte donde vivían los sacerdotes y gobernantes.  Muy cerca de la ciudadela, está el Templo de Quetzalcóatl y también el templo de los sacrificios, el cual tiene cuatro escalinatas, también está el mural de Puma, las zonas habitacionales de Tepantitla, tetitla  entre otros pequeños templos.

 Aquí hay un interesante museo de la zona con piezas cerámicas, cabezas sonrientes entre otros vestigios. A un costado del museo también hay un mercado de artesanías en el cual pudimos comprar algunos recuerdos.

Saliendo de la zona arqueológica, paramos a comer en uno de los restaurantes  que está n encamino y disfrutamos de unas ricas quesadillas, sopes  y  demás antojitos que son deliciosos.

Ya de regreso a la ciudad, tuvimos  todavía la oportunidad de visitar el Ex convento de San Agustín de Acolmanmx.encarta.msn.com/…/Convento_de_San_Agustín_Acolman.html, un convento del  siglo XVI fundado por la orden de los agustinoses.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orden_de_San_Agustín.Este museo esta mencionado como monumento Nacional y es protegido por el Instituto Nacional de Antropología e  historia. Aquí hay murales, pinturas, cerámicas, esculturas totalmente restauradas, arte sacro, figuras de papas, santos  y profetas siendo figuras de gran tamaño pintados en blanco y negro. Se menciona que en este lugar se empezó las tradiciones de las posadases.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Posadas y piñatas en el año 1587 ya que  se realizaban las misas de aguinaldo que iban del 16 al 24 de diciembre.

In sessions of Hemi-Sync at Gateway Voyage, there were two messages which left strong impression on me.  One was a word, “16th ti-o-ti-wa-kan.”  My guide repeated this mysterious word many times.  I thought it surely might be a word with some meanings, so I memorized its sound.

After the program in August, I had searched for this word on the Internet.  I searched in both Japanese and English because I was not sure about its spelling.  I had a hard time to find an answer.  It took three weeks.

I swore, “When I got an unknown message next time, I will surely ask its spelling.”

And, I finally reached the name of the ancient town in Mexico, Teotihuacan.  I had never heard of that city, though.  I didn’t know anything about the civilization and history around there, either.

I absolutely came to believe that “ti-o-ti-wa-kan” meant ”Teotihuacan.”   The reason was very simple.  The pyramid picture on the Internet resembles the one I have seen during Out-of-Body in June.

By the way, Teotihuacan has some of the largest pyramidal structures built in the pre-Columbian Americas.  It was the largest city in that era.  At that time it may have had more than 100,000 inhabitants, placing it among the largest cities of the world in this period.  Though, people in Teotihuacan disappeared before the Spanish arrived.  Even the Aztecs in nearby Tenochtitlan knew little about them because their culture arrived so much later than the disappearance of the Teotihuacan people.

I will write here what I have seen during Out-of-Body in June.

— Out-of Body in June —

My body began to vibrate, and I woke up in the middle of the night.  I knew I was going to be Out-of-Boy by intuition.  Because it was after I had read Monroe’s book, I was a little bit excited. Therefore, I recited in the mind, “I am ready.  Bring me somewhere exciting!”

Then, my body lightened.  A big screen appeared in front of my eyes.  I saw 4 to 5 jaguar cubs on the screen.

The image on the screen started to play while I was staring at it.  The jaguar cubs were playing happily.  Gradually, it got a broader point of view as if the camera zoomed out.  I saw the entire jungle.  The camera continued to zoom out without stopping.  Gradually, the jungle became smaller.  I could see the continent, blue ocean and finally the earth.  It was like a short movie.  I was impressed with its beautiful vivid image.

At the next moment, I saw yellow sand under my feet.  It was actually not sand but a solid rock structure.  I soundlessly started to climb up the structure like flying.

What is this?

Where am I ?

Why is it daytime?

I was flooded with questions.

I knew I was on a pyramid in Middle or South America.  I found the jungle below and another pyramid near by.  The sun shone dazzling when I reached to the top.  I looked down on the other side of the pyramid and it was dark down there.  Fear attacked me suddenly and my astral body returned to my physical body in the bed at the moment.

Siempre ,para las culturas  que se desarrollaron en el territorio de México,  el Sol ,siempre fue un elemento muy  importante en sus creencias. En los Teotihuacanos esto no fue la excepción.

Existe una leyendaes.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinto_Sol , en la cual se menciona que después de cuatro intentos fallidos de los dioses,de crear un sol eterno,los dioses se juntaron en teotihuacan para ahí crearlo de una vez por todas. La condición dice la leyenda que un Dios se sacrificara para convertirse en Sol y otro en la luna. El Dios Tecciztecatl el dios de los caracoles marinos se ofreció sacrificarse en el Dios Sol, los otros dioses ,no querían sacrificarse para ser la luna que sería un Dios menor.

Entonces los Dioses se fijaron en el Dios  Nanahuatzin que era un dios  repulsivo de aspecto, pero valiente y con un corazón de Oro, este Dios acepto. Los demás Dioses construyeron dos templos uno grande y bello que es la pirámide del Sol y uno más pequeño y sencillo  que es la pirámide de la luna.

Mientras el guia nos iba  comentando la leyenda ,recorríamos la calzada de los muertoses.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teotihuacan. Nos siguió  mencionando  que los dos Dioses elegidos tenían que  purificarse realizando un ayuno por trece días y después arrojarse a una hoguera que  prendieron los Dioses Principales.

 Esta estaba encendida en la calzada principal. Cuando llego el día del sacrificio Tecciztécatl  le dio miedo y lo intentó cuatro veces antes de saltar al fuego, mientras que Nanahutzin  lo hizo  a la primera, por lo que a Tecciztécatl no tuvo otra opción de que tenía que hacerlo.

Después de que los dioses se arrojaron,los Dioses principales tiraron al fuego un águila y una liebre. Pasaron catorce días y surgieron dos soles, pero Quetzalcóatl pensó que no era justo tener dos soles ,por lo que, el sol que salio de Tecciztécatl , Quetzalcóatl le arrojó un conejo por lo cual ese Sol perdió tamaño y brillo y la cara del conejo quedo estampada en su cara  principal. El segundo Sol ,de Nanahuatzin, por su valor en el sacrificio,quedo como el Quinto sol y por esto se realizaban sacrificios humanos por que el Nuevo Sol se alimentaba de Fuego. Disfrutamos mucho conocer esta increíble historia.

Eh bien, pour commencer, j’ai fait une bronchite, j’ai eut une ‘monton’ de travaux scolaires et puis j’ai cassée avec mon chum… Mais bon en ce moment tout vas bien, ne vous en faites surtout pas pour moi!

Entre temps j’ai quand même fait quelques petites affaires. Ce qui a occupé la majeure partie de mon temps est mon cours de service communautaire. Je travaille dans un super beau projet avec le Jardin Etnobotanique de Cholula. Ce projet est la mise sur pied d’un festival du fruit : Festival de la Fruta. Cette année c’est un fruit régional qui est mis à l’honneur: le Tejocote. C’est un petit fruit orange, à l’allure d’une mini pomme avec un goût qui n’a rien avoir. L’objectif du festival est de mettre en valeur, de promouvoir les produits locaux au gens de la ville qui ont tendance à oublier ces produits… Et donc par ce fait venir en aide aux producteurs, qui sont trop souvent à la mercie des intermédiaires.

paysage de Calpan

une belle grappe de

tejocote

Tout ça c’est bien beau mais toi Luna, qu’est-ce que tu viens faire dans tout ça? (oui desfois j’aime parler à moi-même)

Je fais une petite compilation de recettes à base de tejocote, des entrevues avec les auteures de ces recettes et bien entendue, un série de photos pour illustrer le tout. Ceci prendra la forme de cartes (format postale) qui seront distribuées lors du festival. Sur ces carte on pourra y retrouver une photo du plat cuisiné, la recette, une photo de l’auteure ainsi qu’une courte phrase de sa part, question de nous inspirer un peu et de renforcir ce sentiment d’identité culturelle si important en relation avec la nourriture!

Ça fait donc un peu plus d’un mois que je déplace à Calpan (une quarantaine de minutes de Cholula) afin de faire entrevues, contactes etc. Je vous le dit c’est pas évident organiser tout ça. La culture est différente et la façon de travailler aussi. Mais bon, ça vaut vraiment la peine. J’ai fait de superbes rencontres, j’ai appris énormément et je me rappelerai de cette expérience tout ma petite vie.

Señora Virginia dans un des ses arbres

Leti, la fille de Virginia

agua de tejocote

Il y a de ça quelques semaine, j’ai visité d’autres pyramides (Teotihuacán), proches de la ville de Mexico. J’ai été choyée, il y en avait même une en mon honneur… Luna.

au loin, la pyramide en l´honneur de la Luna

Nous nous sommes aussi arrêtés au musée de Frida Calo, super intéréssant. J’ai aussi eut la chance de prendre un café au zocalo, entourée de petits et de grands danseant au son d’un groupe de musique latine live. Un moment où tous semblaient véritablement heureux, toucheant à voir.

et on danse au zocalo...

et puis on se claque un petit somme...

et puis on danse encore un bout

Samedi passé, avec ma classe sur l’histoire des aliments, je suis allée visiter un gigantesque marché à la ville de Mexico, la fameuse Central de Abastos, lieux par lequel la majeure partie des produits alimentaires mexicains passent. Super impressionnant, des tonnes et des tonnes de produits, montagnes  de poissons et des fruits de mer à en faire cent mille paellas.

La pirámide del sol  fue construida aproximadamente entre los años 100 y 650 y fue de las construcciones más grandes de la época,solo la de  Cholula es más grande.es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teotihuacan

Fue elaborada de adobe y cubierta de estuco, se menciona que  en su mayor esplendor ,estaba pintada. Su base se compara tamaño con la  de Keop en Egipto,por la dirección que tiene esta pirámide ,el sol se oculta enfrente de ella. La de la Luna tiene una altura de casi 46 metros ,pero su cúspide no terminada, esta al mismo nivel que la del Sol, ya que  esta construida en un terreno más elevada.  Se menciona que la pirámide de la luna ,es más antigua que la del sol,  con mucho cuidado, se puede subir a cada una de las pirámides e incluso hay una gran celebración  el día del equinoccio de  primavera se realiza un ritual  en la parte superior de la  del sol, y esto es para cargar energía y honrar al Dios Solviajesdestinos.com/equinoccio-de-primavera-en-teotihuacan/.

The weekend before last, three very important events coincided. Our first term at CEPE ended, Halloween happened, and Mexico celebrated el Dia de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead.  Antsy to get out and join the festivities, Holly and I took our final exams one day early and headed over to the DF (Mexico City) to visit Kisiev and his family.  What followed was an eventful weekend; we came back full of stories, mescal (like tequila on a bad hair day, burning rubber at a stop light in a `63 Mustang) and pozole (a delicious chicken and maize soup endemic to the state of Guerrero, where we spent the Day of the Dead).  But I digress.

Holly and I were hoping for a restful bus ride after a tiring few days of (mostly) cramming for exams, but we were sorely disappointed.  About halfway through the 8-hour trip, once the Disney movies on the overhead TVs had been muted and we were slipping into nap mode, something hit the right side of the bus, and we came to a shuddering, noisy, and very abrupt halt in the middle of the highway.  Our driver, looking a little shaken, hopped out into the dark night, leaving us puzzled and little alarmed in a bus filled with equally alarmed Mexicans, and some now-screaming babies to boot.  Poking our heads out of the door, and finally jumping down onto the cold concrete, we discovered that our bus had completely totaled a silver Chevy coupe.  It`s passenger side door was completely crumpled, and the two wheels on that side were completely folded under the car, causing the scarred frame to tilt towards us garishly.  It`s bumper was laying a solid 50 feet behind us, and there was a small piece of flaming something in the grass on the side of the road even further back.  And, most noticeably, there was no one in the car.  After a confusing and cold few minutes on the shoulder of the highway, watching our bus driver and various other men in uniforms surveying the scene and tutting, we overheard that the driver had grabbed the car`s stereo and literally run for the hills right after the accident.  What presence of mind!  We waited a few minutes for another (very full) bus from the same company to pass, and I ended up sitting in the aisle behind the driver for the rest of the way to DF.  And, in a recurring theme, I was once again rudely awoken just when I was going to sleep, this time by a mother holding a baby and a can of soda, spilling the latter on my leg.  At least she didn`t drop the baby!

We finally made it to DF around 2:30, and stumbled out into the freezing, open terminal with bleary eyes and an immediate need to sleep (I also had a sudden urge to find and drink a licuado, but the food stands were all closed).  We met up with Kisiev and his sister, and we drove across a very deserted-looking Mexico city to the apartment where he, his sister Itzel, and mother Silvia live.  After a snack of chocolate rice cakes, we crashed hard (for the second time that night).

The next day brought a savage, and wonderful, adventure.  After scarfing some finger-licking, sugar-coated pan de los Muertos (kind of like angel food cake but more bready and delicious), we hopped in Kisiev`s car and drove two hours, past barrios creeping up hills, roadside vendors (by which I mean folks with carts standing in the middle of the four-lane highway), power plants, and factories, to Teotihuacan.  Teotihuacan is the site of an ancient city, so old that the Aztecs discovered it already abandoned when they moved into the Mexico valley and founded Tenochtitlan on the site that is now Mexico City.  Teotihuacan is still very much a mystery to archeologists, and new digs are uncovering deeper, buried remnants of even older cities below the surface.

Above the surface, it`s impressive and humbling…rough, angular stone structures are scattered everywhere, massive walls and long plazas abound, and the world`s two largest scalable pyramids (that is, the biggest ones you can get on top of) dominate the landscape.  Sweet!  Petulant weather and a heavy mist gave the whole place a mysterious, brooding, and slightly dangerous feeling.

That mist soon turned into a downpour, and we sprinted for cover under a steel-roof structure protected a recently-excavated house.  After wondering around in the house for twenty minutes, with barely a let-up, we decided to press on to the Temple of the Sun, hoping to get a chance to climb to the top before the entire place closed at 5.  As we moshed through sodden grass plazas, we started seeing flashes on the horizon, and before we knew it we were in the middle of a vicious, slightly worrisome lighting storm.  After many piggy-back rides (for Holly, not me) over river-like drainage runs and deep puddles, we were staring up at the huge pyramid from the base.  Streams of water shoot down from protruding stones along the sides, and the steps looked steep, numerous, and slippery!  By the time we got to the top we were utterly soaked, cold, and triumphant.  Me and Kisiev let loose our best barbaric yawps in the direction of the other pyramid, and I felt more alive, with water streaming down my face and neck and lighting bolts erupting around us on three sides, than I have in a long while.  We could actually see the bolts hitting within the remains of the ancient city, and the interval between flash and boom was getting steadily shorter.  We scrambled down and squished back to the car as fast as we could in the pelting rain, and I have never been so happy that cars come with heaters.

The highways were totally flooded, and what started as slow, sloshy progress through the three-inch high water soon turned into a total, dead-stop traffic jam.  We spent hours sitting, lights and engine off, playing every road trip game we could remember, even resorting to truth or dare out of sheer boredom (Kisiev ended up climbing out of the sunroof of his car in the pouring rain, and running around to the driver`s door to get back in on a dare.  I drank a full 1.5 liter bottle of water, and ended up getting out and taking a leak in front of a fully occupied passenger bus, although only the drinking was part of the dare).

We made it back to the center of Mexico city four soggy hours later, where we picked up Kisiev`s very enthusiastic mom at her workplace (she`d brought a bag of cookies and soda to perk us up).  She took us to a middle-east themed taco join called DonEraki, where we ate grilled steak with onions, peppers, and sheets of melted cheese on puffy, thick pita-tortilla things.  Excellent green and red salsa, and a liter of Horchata each.  Warm, stuffed, and satisfied, although still wet!

We spent the evening at Kisiev`s getting clean and dry, trading favorite youtube clips, and dancing to Celia Cruz.   I admit that the first vid I  put up was Michael Jackson`s Thriller, which was still bouncing around in my head after our salsa class performed it in front of our whole school, in full zombie getup, the day before halloween (see below).  Sometimes a little public embarrassment can be good for the self-confidence.

Stay tuned for adventures from Tixla, the second leg of our weekend trip and the town where Kisiev was born, in the second installment. A quick preview: first encounters with Mescal, dancing demons, little vampiros, marching bands, a street fight, and an encounter with a man known only as “I`m from Texas baby!” Johnny.