Part II of the story of the Virgin of Guadalupe, part of the Spanish colonial appropriation of the Aztec Earth Mother Tonantzin: The future St. Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin explained to the Bishop of Mexico City how the Virgin appeared to request a temple be built at Tepeyac in her honor.
Rituals and Traditions
WilderUtopia celebrates world culture with a frame of environmental sustainability. Our inspiration sources from ethnically-based indigenous arts, myth and storytelling, as well as dance and music, played out in the rituals, customs, and traditions of the many peoples of the planet.
Virgin of Guadalupe: The Apparitions of An Aztec Goddess
A Mexican Indian Catholic convert experiences visions of an obscure Aztec goddess, Tonantzin, challenging his faith. Thereafter the goddess becomes associated with the Virgin Mary in post-Spanish-conquest church.
Iroquois Thanksgiving Address
This prayer is a gift from the Haudenosaunee People (The Iroquois Nation), words of Thanksgiving with ancient roots dating back to when the Great Law of Peace was brought to the people by the Peace Maker, the Iroquois prophet, statesman, and lawgiver, who counseled an end to warring between the tribes.
Drums and Dance of Día de los Muertos
In pre-Hispanic Nahua culture (Aztec and the many other peoples of Central Mexico), life was seen as a dream, and only in dying could a human truly awaken. Death would set free the soul.
Olvera Street Day of the Dead – Los Angeles with a Mexica Flair
Olvera Street near downtown Los Angeles burst with color, reverence, and dance for the annual Dia de los Muertos celebration and procession.
Self-Healing with Chumash Native Plant Medicine
The late Cecilia Garcia taught Chumash traditional spirit healing with prayers, laughter, dreaming, herbal medicines and aromatherapy, leading to mending the body’s physical processes.
Chumash Sky and Earth Deities and Cosmological Rock Art
Depicted on high mountain cave pictographs, the Chumash saw the stars as powerful, competitive sky beings that affected human life and the balance of the universe.