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Otomi rituals and celebrations: crosses, ancestors, and resurrection. Phyllis correa's article describes an elderly resident of a rural community in central Mexico. Despite the loss of the original community and the dispersal of its inhabitants, the traditions, values, and beliefs conform to a general Mesoamerican pattern. The article proposes that popular religion in mexico, while retaining a central core, is transmitted to the extended family members who reside together
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Otomi rituals and celebrations: crosses, ancestors, and resurrection. Phyllis correa's article describes an elderly resident of a rural community in central Mexico. Despite the loss of the original community and the dispersal of its inhabitants, the traditions, values, and beliefs conform to a general Mesoamerican pattern. The article proposes that popular religion in mexico, while retaining a central core, is transmitted to the extended family members who reside together
Otomi rituals and celebrations: crosses, ancestors, and resurrection. Phyllis correa's article describes an elderly resident of a rural community in central Mexico. Despite the loss of the original community and the dispersal of its inhabitants, the traditions, values, and beliefs conform to a general Mesoamerican pattern. The article proposes that popular religion in mexico, while retaining a central core, is transmitted to the extended family members who reside together
Otom Rituals and Celebrations: Crosses, Ancestors, and Resurrection
Author(s): Phyllis M. Correa
Source: The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. 113, No. 450, Holidays, Ritual, Festival, Celebration, and Public Display (Autumn, 2000), pp. 436-450 Published by: American Folklore Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/542041 . Accessed: 25/09/2014 16:26 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. . American Folklore Society is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to The Journal of American Folklore. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions PHYLLIS M. CORREA Otomi Rituals and Celebrations Crosses, Ancestors, and Resurrection In the case presented in this article, an elderly residentfrom a rural community inundated by a large dam built in the late 1960s in central Mexico continues to celebrate a variety of rituals and ceremonies throughout the year. With hisfamily and afew closefriends, he venerates the community'sfounding ancestors and sacred images in his home on the outskirts of San Miguel de Allende. As a result, despite the loss of the original community and the dispersal of its inhabitants, the traditions, values, and beliefs conforming to a general Mesoamerican pattern with a particular Otomi configura- tion-which emphasizes the worship of crosses, Saint Michael the Archangel, Saint James, the four cardinal directions and winds, sacrifice, military conquest, and the ancestors-are transmitted to the extendedfamily members who reside together. The article proposes, therefore, that popular religion in Mexico, while retaining a central core ofprehispanic elements and beliefs thatforms the basisfor its ideology and cosmology, is not necessarily conservative or static. It is continually created and re-created as traditions are transmitted both orally and through participation in rituals and ceremonies, while it simultaneously responds and adjusts to changes caused by external and internalfactors that constantly restructure the relationships and patterns of participation of individuals and groups throughout the region. THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, LIFE IN THE CITY OF SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE and the surrounding area in central Mexico is continuously punctuated by religious celebrations. Partici- pants in these celebrations are mainly peasants and residents of traditional urban neighborhoods (barrios). These celebrations form part of a religious complex that still retains a high degree of indigenous beliefs, attitudes, and values, which, according to Moedano (1972:603), preserves a specific Otomi configuration despite 450 years of contact with Hispanic culture. In fact, he speculates that the syncretism in Otomi religion throughout the region was in general superficial and a means to avoid severe repression by religious authorities, for many of the traditional rituals were and continue to be conducted at night in places not usually frequented by outsiders. Others, such as Femrandez (1941:9-10), have emphasized the Catholic aspects of the traditions and rituals while recognizing the persistence of certain pre-Christian elements. Phyllis M. Correa is Professor of Anthropology at Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro, Mexico Journal of American Folklore 113(450):436-450. Copyright ? 2001, American Folklore Society. This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations The persistence of native ideology, according to Lopez Austin, was not the primary concern of the Spanish conquerors, and he asserts that "as long as the conquered people displayed a veneer of conversion and as long as the coercion was maintained and native thought and customs did not present the dangers of subversion, resistance to oppression, aversion to political reform, or signs of religious scandal, survival of Indian ideology was tolerated" (1988:17). In an earlier article (Correa 1998), I formulate a slightly different explanation of both the persistence of these cultural manifestations and the integration of Christian elements. On an ideological level, there is a central core of concepts and principles that provides the basic framework within which emergent patterns are reconfigured and integrated (Fariss 1984:8). From a political standpoint, indigenous leaders legitimized their new position within the colonial order through the organization of the worship of a cross or saint from which groups derived their identity, displaying an adaptive and politically astute response to conquest (Earle 1990:116-117). On a functional level, this adaptive and appropriative response served to maintain cultural stability and perhaps had a revitalizing effect as well (Carlsen and Prechtel 1991). At the time of the Spanish conquest, a separate ethnic and linguistic group from the Nahuatl (of which the Aztecs were members), the Otomi, with a reputation for military prowess and acculturated into the general Mesoamerican cultural pattern of high civilization, occupied the northern and eastern border zones of the Aztec and Tarascan Empires. As subjects of these empires, the Otomi acted as protectors of the borders against incursions by the nomadic groups generically called Chichimecs to the north and east and also appear to have interacted with them for trade purposes as well. The area between the two Sierra Madre mountain ranges north of the Mesoamerican cultural area was mainly occupied by those nomadic groups and was called the Gran Chichimeca (Great Chichimec Region) by the Spanish. The location where San Miguel el Grande (now San Miguel de Allende) was established held strategic impor- tance for the expansion of Spanish domination into an area not under the control of the prehispanic empires and also played an important economic and commercial role throughout the colonial period as a supply center for the gold and silver mines discovered in Guanajuato and Zacatecas to the north. Otomies from Jilotepec Province, to the north of the Valley of Mexico, were active participants in the conquest of both Queretaro and Guanajuato during the early colonial period as allies of the Spanish and provided the earliest colonizers, who, together with groups of pacified Chichimecs, created a network integrating local communities into a broader social, economic, and political system that also served as the basis for a regional identity. Today, this network is maintained primarily through the reciprocal participation in religious celebrations throughout the area and the existence of a hierarchy of groups and individuals involved in the organization of these celebrations. The Laja River, a tributary of the Lerma-Santiago River system, lies four kilometers to the west of San Miguel de Allende and was the main zone of Otomi occupation, including several traditional barrios of the city itself In recent decades, the use of the Otomi language has virtually disappeared in Guanajuato, and it is virtually impossible to distinguish the Otomi from mestizo peasants and residents of marginal urban neighborhoods who generally do not participate in the religious complex.1 437 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) The rituals and ceremonies described in this article that form part of the Otomi religious complex took place during Holy Week in the family chapel of Don Agapito R., a former resident of the ranch of Tirado, which was inundated by a large dam built in the late 1960s. When forced to leave, Don Agapito, who is now close to 90 years old, purchased a large lot on the outskirts of town near the railroad station where he and his extended family reside. A small chapel was built to house religious objects he recovered from the two chapels of Tirado consisting primarily of a number of crosses; statues of Saints Michael and James, to whom the chapels of the ranch were dedicated; and several retablos of saints. Retablos are religious pictures of saints drawn on tin or scenes describing the miraculous deed of a saint to whom the petitioner turned in a time of need. The second type can be found on the walls of many churches and shrines offered as an expression of gratitude to a specific image. Crosses, with distinct characteristics and of differing types, are central to Otomi religious traditions, which revolve around the cross as a symbol of the four winds and four cardinal directions, as well as the veneration of the ancestors and their relationship to fire, the sun, military conquest, and sacrifice. Saint Michael the Archangel and Saint James, the patron saint of the Spanish reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, are both important figures within the Otomi religious configuration as divine warriors. Of the retablos in Don Agapito's chapel, one depicting San Isidro Labrador, called the demandita (literally, the "little petition"), is the most important. San Isidro, whose feast day is 15 May, was celebrated elaborately in the former community of Tirado and is the principal patron saint of numerous rural communities around San Miguel.2 Appar- ently a large oil painting of this saint was taken by another member of the community and is housed in their family chapel. Don Agapito and his family perform rituals and celebrations on various occasions throughout the year, and in September, during the celebrations to Saint Michael the Archangel, the patron saint of the city, they continue to make the offering for the ancestors in the name of the community of Tirado. According to Don Agapito, as long as he lives, he will maintain these traditions and hopefully his family will continue them. To quote him, "Everything changes, but the traditions go on. If one person is missing, there is another 'to pick up the word.'" This statement reflects the central thesis of this article: that popular religion in Mexico, while retaining a central core of elements and beliefs that forms the basis for its ideology and cosmovision, is not conservative or static but, rather, adapts in response to changing circumstances and is continually being created and re-created as traditions are transmitted both orally and through active participation in rituals and ceremonies to new generations. Further- more, this central core of elements and beliefs is more closely related to a prehispanic configuration, in this case Otomi, and Catholic elements adopted or appropriated have been reworked to conform to that general conceptualization. The central issues to be examined revolve around questions of continuity (what remains stable and why) and change, which in this particular instance was the dissolution of a rural community as the result of a state project (the building of a dam). It is hoped that this example can shed some light on how external pressures can disrupt the community-wide organization of religious celebrations and yet, on an individual and familial level, can be maintained and transmitted. To understand the context of Otomi popular religious traditions in 438 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations the zone within which the specific rituals analyzed are performed, it is first necessary to have a general overview of the ceremonies, symbolic elements, and cosmology as manifested in this area of central Mexico. The Sacred Cross of Calder6n Pass The primary focal point of popular religion among the Otomi who inhabit the communities along the Laja River in the State of Guanajuato, including the city of San Miguel de Allende, is the Sacred Cross of Calderon Pass. This particular cross integrates a number of traditional urban neighborhoods and rural communities both within the township and throughout much of the central highlands, primarily the Bajio region to the south,3 in a network based on the worship of crosses, other religious saints and images, and sacred places. According to the story transmitted from generation to generation, on 14 September 1531, non-Christianized Chichimecs confronted Christianized Otomi and Chichimec captains in an streambed near Calderon Pass in a bloody battle that lasted 15 days and nights until suddenly it grew dark and a shining cross appeared in the sky. Upon seeing this supernatural sign, the non-Christianized natives stopped fighting and cried out, "El es Dios" [He is God]. The supernatural appearance of the cross meant that they should surrender and accept the Catholic faith, making peace with their native brothers who had fought against them. A cross was carved out of stone and taken to the high part of the pass where a chapel was built. This stone cross is about four feet tall and rests on a small pedestal. It has been covered with a thin layer of tin that is painted a dark burnished brown and covered with diverse figures representing the passion and death of Christ, two human figures who look like native dancers, the sun and moon at each point of the horizontal axis, a bloodied dagger at the base, the sacred heart of Christ, and a pair of severed feet and severed hands with the palms showing. Despite their relationship to Christian beliefs (the hands and feet of Christ had nails driven in them when he was crucified, and his heart was pierced to be sure he was dead), in prehispanic times the feet and hands of sacrificial victims were sent to the principal lords, while the head and heart could only be eaten by the high priests or emperor (Gonzalez Torres 1994:294). On a short crosspiece at the very top of the cross is a mirror encrusted in the stone with the letters "I N R I." The cross itself is topped off with a small metal crown. A very important feature of the cross is the tiny head of Christ carved from wood and inserted in a hollow precisely at the intersection of the two axes, making it look as though the figure of Christ is completely enveloped by the cross. This style of the Christ figure being inserted within the material of the cross, whether it is made of wood or stone, is relatively common in the areas inhabited by the Otomi. The wooden crosses of this type are also covered almost completely with mirrors painted with the figures of the passion of Christ and, in some cases, also showing the hands, feet, and heart of Christ. Calderon Pass is sacred not only because it overlooks a river valley to the north and another to the south, a location that forms a natural opening and is also a sort of natural crossroads, but also because of its location near where the battle of 1531 took place. Many important locations in Otomi sacred geography have been blessed by blood 439 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) being shed in a violent way. Energy emanating from the souls of the dead creates an opening to communicate with supernatural beings and provides the power used by practitioners to perform magic. These locations as well as the tops of mountains, crossroads, caves, and points of the five cardinal directions are all called puertos, which literally translated means "passages" or "openings."4 To better understand the general complex of Otomi religious traditions, which revolve around the worship of the Sacred Cross of Calderon and the rituals described in the family chapel of Don Agapito, I will briefly describe the two celebrations coinciding with the beginning and end of the annual agricultural cycle in which the cross plays an important role: 3 May and the festivities for Saint Michael the Archangel at the end of September. Celebrationsfor the Sacred Cross during the Month of May The Day of the Sacred Cross, on 3 May, begins a cycle of celebrations for crosses in homes, in chapels, on hills, and at roadside shrines throughout the month in rural communities and urban neighborhoods. On the night of 2 May, the cycle is initiated with velaciones (nightlong vigil characteristic of Otomi celebrations with clear connota- tions of being a wake for the dead) in many chapels, including the chapel at Calderon Pass. During these nightlong vigils, members of different communities arrive in groups to honor the cross, carrying their own images, crosses, and offerings such as flowers and candles. Upon their arrival, they are received by the individuals in charge of the celebration, and together they enter the chapel accompanied by the clanging of the chapel bell to be blessed (or more accurately, "cleansed," for the ritual is called limpia) by their spiritual leaders and to make their offerings of candles and flowers. Because people travel from other communities, they come prepared to spend the night, and usually food, coffee, and liquor are offered. During the night, copal (a native incense made from pine resin) is burned, and the people sing hymns calling on the four winds, four cardinal directions, and the acnimas, or souls, of the ancestors to protect and bless them, accompanied by musicians who play mandolin-like instruments made out of armadillo shells (called conchas).5 Because the cult has been relatively isolated and because of the strong magical and shamanic elements involved, outsiders, including other peasants in the township who do not participate in the cult itself, frequently believe the participants are witches and should be avoided. Individuals who practice black magic also consider the Sacred Cross of Calderon Pass as their principal source of supernatural energy, but those who actively participate in the cult rarely claim to do harm to others. In fact, it is considered to be very harmful if such people participate in the rituals and ceremonies because the celebrations, particularly the ones in September, emphasize reconciliation and the forgiveness of offenses rather than vengeance. During the night, an important ritual element called the custodia (guardian) is decorated with flowers and cucharilla, parts broken off the base of the xotol cactus, which are white and shaped like spoons. According to informants, the custodia represents the monstrance used in the Church to display the sacred Host; it always accompanies a cross during its celebration. The custodia, which is about two feet high 440 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations and stands on a base, is made of wood and has eight spikes radiating out from a round mirror with the head of Christ painted on it in the center. At the end of each of seven spikes is a rhomboidal-shaped mirror with a painting on it; the spike that radiates to the top is finished off with a cross. Its round shape and function as guardian makes it possible to infer on one level that the custodia also symbolizes the shields the Otomi warriors used to protect themselves. The spikes radiating out from the round mirror in the center resemble the rays of the sun. The symbolic relationship of the sun, which can be seen in this element and its meaning as protector or shield, reflects the belief in Mesoamerican cosmology that warriors killed in battle or sacrificed go to assist the Sun God in its daily battle against the celestial gods of the night represented by the stars and moon in order for it to complete its journey across the skies and ensure the survival of the world. Celebrations for Saint Michael the Archangel in September At the end of September, celebrations for Saint Michael provide the context for ceremonies and rituals in which the Sacred Cross is a principal element. The patron saint's feast day falls on 29 September, coinciding with the end of the mythical battle of conquest of the native groups of this area by Christianized Otomi and Chichimecs. The traditional celebrations once again begin with a nightlong vigil in the chapel at Calderon on the night of 14 September, which coincides with the beginning of the legendary battle and is also the vigil for the Catholic feast day called the Exaltation of the Sacred Cross, which falls on 15 September. The following day, members of the community of La Cieneguita take the Sacred Cross on a preestablished pilgrimage to several stops in the city, other ranches, and finally their community, where it stays until it is taken to the city on the main day of the celebrations for Saint Michael to lead a procession of traditional dances known as the "Entrance of the Xfuchiles."6 Before the procession, which takes place late on Saturday afternoon, the cross is brought to a location on the road to the railroad station for an hour or two, while the different dance groups from many parts of Mexico and other groups from the rural communities and urban neighborhoods, with their respective images and offerings called xuchiles, gather for a ceremony called the "Encounter." During this ceremony, copal incense is burned while spiritual leaders cleanse the participants who ask for forgiveness for offenses they have caused each other during the year, commemorating the reconciliation that took place between Christianized and non-Christianized natives more than 450 years ago. After this brief encounter, the dance groups, members of the religious organizations from the rural communities and urban neighborhoods carrying their offerings, the Sacred Cross with its decorated custodia, the statue of Saint Michael, and other sacred images and ritual items, as well as different groups of musicians (bands, the concheros with armadillo shell instruments, pairs of men who play flutes and drums, etc.), proceed to the main church at the center of town in an impressive display of color and sound, just about the time when the sun is setting. The Entrance of the Xfuchiles receives its name from the offerings called xuichiles prepared by different communities to be stood in front of the main church as offerings to their dead leaders who died in the battle of conquest or were founders of the 441 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) communities and barrios and who are believed to be buried in the church atrium. Each community or neighborhood, including Tirado, has a traditional place in front of the main church to stand its offering to honor the souls of its dead leaders and captains. These offerings are made on rectangular frameworks formed by two tree trunks ranging from 12 to 20 feet long and crosspieces of about four to five feet wide. On this frame, a bed of small reeds woven together with cord is formed. A variety of designs using a bright, round, orange-colored flower of two or three inches in diameter, called cempaxuchil (a large variety of marigold), and the shiny white heart of the xotol cactus shaped like a spoon, which they call cucharilla, are then woven on this base. (A xuchil made during the May celebrations, however, uses white and red carnations instead of the orange-colored marigolds that only flower in the late summer and early fall.) Also used are some long purplish-colored wild plants, such as amaranth, and fennel, a green plant used for medicinal purposes, as well as offerings for the dead such as tortillas, bread, and even Coca-Cola. It is believed that the xuchiles represent the stretchers used to carry the dead from the battlefield and the cucharillas represent the skulls of the dead. Marigolds were the flowers offered to dead warriors and leaders; their shape and color also represent the sun. The fact that the cucharillas representing the skulls of the dead are distributed in rows, that the xCuchil is constructed on a framework between two trunks, and the offering is stood in front of the temple makes it possible to infer that it is a symbolic representation of a tzompantli, the rack set up in front of the pyramids by the Aztecs where the skulls of sacrificial victims were placed on a kind of palisade in rows between two or more thick upright poles or trunks. Although the skulls were considered trophies, they were also full of the "supernatural energy of the victim which could be propitiated and act as protectors of the individuals who had captured them and sent them to their death" (Gonzalez Torres 1994:284). Many of those who participate in the procession are not members of a dance group but, rather, hold positions within the cargo systems of their local communities or have a particular devotion to the Sacred Cross.7 They carry small religious images and crosses that are venerated in their communities, copal incense, and short reed staffs decorated with cucharillas cut into flowerettes or longer ones that represent lances with the cucharillas cut like fringe, almost giving the appearance of feathers. It is believed by some participants that the shorter staffs represent the candles carried during a funeral procession, but from images found in codices (native picture drawings), the shorter staffs also look similar to representations of war clubs used in battles. The longer staffs are crossed, placed in front of certain crosses, and tied to the points of their crosspieces, whereas frequently the short reed staffs are leaned against the crosses. Numerous small wooden crosses representing the souls of the dead captains of the conquest and other important ancestors are carried by their descendants. The different dance groups and groups representing communities or neighborhoods also carry cloth banners with images, emblems, slogans such as "Union, Conformity, and Conquest," and the name of the group to identify them. In each group, the captain or head carries the staff of command, also called la pasion (the passion), that has been passed down from colonial times. The passion is a short wooden pole that has a metal cross at the point with a red flag attached to it; ribbons of different colors, usually red, white, and green, are tied to 442 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations the shaft at the base of the cross. Generally, the principal leaders of the communities and traditional neighborhoods are chosen from the same family as the previous leader, and the position is held for life, although other positions in the cargo system are held only for one year. The successor may be designated by the leader during his lifetime but must be ratified by the other leaders of the region. If there is no suitable male descendant, the leaders of all the communities and traditional neighborhoods chose a successor by consensus to hold the position for life. The principal characteristic sought in a leader is humility; the person should not be "ambitious," which really means greedy or self-serving. As a final remark, it is important to point out that the Otomi who participate in the celebrations for Saint Michael are in fact primarily honoring the Sacred Cross of Calderon Pass and their ancestors. Although Saint Michael is one of the most impor- tant saints and is the guardian of Christ, he is still not the central focus of these celebrations in the eyes of the participants themselves. When asked which is most important, the cross or Saint Michael, the woman who was the current guardian of the Sacred Cross immediately responded, "Well, which goes first?" In the eyes of the general population, however, Saint Michael is the primary focus for the celebrations, which last for several weeks. Rites of Death and Resurrection Don Agapito was born in 1911 in the rural community of the Ranch of Tirado, one of the many properties mainly within the immediate surroundings of the city of San Miguel owned by a well-to-do family up until the 1960s. Although Don Agapito claims that his family did not seem to have had a special position with the estate, he was selected as a trusted employee when his father died around 1927. First, he was in charge of overseeing the numerous orchards on the properties, which included some of the best agricultural land in the township with abundant water resources, and later he became the main administrator of Tirado, which had about 65 heads of family and a total population of approximately 300 inhabitants when it was inundated and aban- doned in September 1970. At that time, Don Agapito moved to the parcel of land he had purchased. The original parcel has been subsequently subdivided, and other members of the family have made independent dwellings on each side of Don Agapito, who shares the center portion with his adoptive grandson Ramon and his family, which consists of eight children (although only five still live at home) and one grandchild. This family, which in his words "provides him warmth" and participates with him in religious celebrations, is in reality related to his deceased wife; however, they affectionately and respectfully call him abuelo (grandfather) and do not readily admit that he is not in fact their grandfather. The layout of the house lot reflects the rural origins of its occupants. There are several small separate structures used for living and the chapel. Don Agapito has his own room, while Ramon and his family live in a separate two-room structure with very little furniture and two double beds. Close to a well in the center of the lot, there is a separate room used as a kitchen. The remainder of the large lot has several areas for different activities or uses: a corral for small farm animals; a small garden where Don 443 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) Agapito plants corn, chiles, beans, flowers, and fruits; and a larger covered space that is a kind of workshop. There is a small cement structure to hold water (pila) with a space for washing clothes and dishes that is supplied with water from a well on the property. Water is brought up by bucket and placed in a shoot leading to the pila. Despite the fact that they are within city limits, their house has no running potable water or sewage connection. The chapel bell from Tirado hangs in one large tree, and in another tree there is a plain wooden cross about three feet high, which protects the inhabitants of the residence. One of the principal structures is the chapel itself, a room of about nine feet wide by 15 feet long. Its southern wall forms part of the outer wall on the street. The door of the chapel, which is inside the compound to the left of the main door that opens to the street, faces east with the altar on the west wall. The door to the chapel is locked most of the time, and only Don Agapito has a key. Most people realize that the objects contained therein have not only spiritual value but commercial value as antiques, and Don Agapito mentioned that some items disappeared when he was in the hospital for an injury he suffered to his leg about ten or 15 years ago. In addition to the rituals of Holy Week described below, the family also performs rituals to honor Saint James on 25 July (Don Agapito has a mass said at a church), they bring a cross (called the Santa Cruz del Buen Temporal, meaning, the "Sacred Cross of the Good Rains") from a hill on the road to Tirado several miles away in August for ten days, and they maintain the tradition of preparing the xuchil to be placed in front of the main church during the celebrations to Saint Michael in September in the name of the former community of Tirado. Because they do not have the large oil painting of San Isidro Labrador, they do not hold any celebrations on 15 May, nor do they cooperate with the person who has the painting in any type of celebration. The rituals that Don Agapito refers to as the "laying down of the crosses" (or "putting the crosses to rest") take place in two separate stages or parts.8 On Thursday morning of Holy Week the two larger crosses that usually occupy each side of the altar were laid on the floor in front of the altar: the Cross of Saint Bernard on the right and the other cross on the left. The Cross of Saint Bernard has a figure of Christ hanging on it, and the cross itself is carved to look like a twisted cord and painted gold. According to Don Agapito, this cross was in the chapel dedicated to Saint Michael and represents the founder of that chapel, an individual named Bernard. The other cross also has a figure of Christ hanging on it and was in the chapel dedicated to Saint James. It represents the founder of that chapel, but Don Agapito cannot remember its name. Both crosses, which are made of wood, are about four feet tall and are called the "Founders." According to Don Agapito, the faces of the Christ figures on crosses, not just his crosses, represent individuals who held special positions or played important roles. He claims that "they are like pictures of the person in order to be remembered since there weren't any photographs then." This still occurs today. In 1993, the guardian of the Sacred Cross of Calder6n Pass, who, according to oral tradition, was a direct descendant of one of the Chichimec captains who participated in the mythical battle near Calderon Pass in 1531, died, and his widow had a cross made. The face of the Christ figure is a remarkably good resemblance. 444 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations A small cross, called Santo Cristo (Christ the Saint), was placed on a small raised board at the head of the two crosses, which were then covered almost completely with flowers, manzanilla (chamomile), used as a tea to cure digestive problems, and another plant called mastranto, also used for medicinal purposes. The latter two are basic elements in many ceremonies centered on Holy Week. Manzanilla, which flowers at this time of year, is distributed to people who visit the altars made for Christ in the local churches on Holy Thursday as well. Also placed on the altar and the bed of flowers, manzanilla, and mastranto, under which the crosses were buried, were tins of new wheat and corn, oranges (which were usually wrapped in tinfoil or decorated with gold paper flags), and votive candles in small glasses. All of these elements are typical components of altars made for any reason at this time of the year.9 Two large stick candles were placed on either side near the heads of the Christ figures, giving the impression of a casket with candles on each side-typical of wakes in Mexico. Only Ramon and his wife were involved in carrying out these activities, while Don Agapito sat on a bench and made suggestions or comments about where things should be placed. An elderly man stopped in to greet Don Agapito but did not stay to help, and later an elderly woman came with a bundle of manzanilla and some vases. Her deceased husband was from Tirado, and she had continued to make offerings to the crosses and participate in some of the rituals. Once the crosses were covered, they remained that way until Saturday night. On Saturday night at midnight, the crosses were uncovered, cleaned off, and placed once again in their usual locations on either side of the altar. Under normal circum- stances the family attended, and while the crosses were being resurrected, fireworks were set off and the bell in the yard was rung. In 1997, however, only Ramon, his wife, and their youngest child, who was sleeping on a bench, accompanied Don Agapito because in the afternoon a pickup truck had backed up and knocked down the outer wall of their residence near the entrance. Fortunately, no one was injured, nor was the chapel itself damaged, but apparently the rest of the family went to bed early. That same day there had been a fairly serious train accident just beyond the train station, and at midnight the street in front of the house was still full of soldiers sent to assist the injured. As on Thursday, very little in the way of ritual took place. Once the crosses were returned to their places on the altar, a rosary was recited, as is customary during a wake and during the nine days following a death. When Don Agapito mentioned the ritual of "putting the crosses to rest," referring to the crosses called the Founders, during Holy Week, I felt that there might be a special significance that would help shed further light on the complex of popular religion in the area. In the churches of San Miguel, a ceremony called the Adoration of the Cross, performed on Good Friday after the Stations of the Cross, in which the cross is taken off the altar and placed on the floor while all the priests recite prayers, seems to provide the prototype for the rituals performed by the community of Tirado in the past and by Don Agapito in the present. Although the ceremony in Don Agapito's chapel lacked elements typical of the velaciones in the region prior to important feast days, which include the burning of copal, the singing of hymns to the four winds and the ancestors, and the limpias, it did deepen my understanding of another aspect of how Catholic traditions have been 445 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) reworked into the Otomi configuration. The crosses used in the rituals performed in Don Agapito's chapel do not symbolize Christ, but, in fact, they are directly related to the ancestors of the inhabitants of Tirado and the founding of the community repre- sented by the building of the chapels. At least in the case of these particular crosses (and many others), Christ has coalesced with the prominent ancestors, reflecting their sacredness as well. These crosses are not mere symbolic representations of the animas or souls of these important individuals, like the small plain wooden crosses, but, rather, were made to resemble the individuals themselves (as mentioned previously). It would seem that the process of intertwining deities and humans has been carried over from the prehispanic past. According to Carrasco (1987:143-144), a great deal of confusion has been generated because many gods of the Mesoamerican pantheon were in fact merely avocations (separate identities) of a more major deity, and each one had separate feast days and distinct ways of being represented. To add to the confusion, the characteristics of important individuals were also integrated into the characteristics that distinguished the deity, making it unclear whether individuals mentioned in myths and legends were mythical characters or real people deified in this way. It is also possible to discern a connection among the most important deities (Carrasco 1987:139-141; Gonzalez Torres 1994:141-161), which were especially important among the Otomi: the Sun God and the Fire God and their relationship to the Old Father, who was the founder or creator. In Otomi religion, the Old Father was fire and therefore related to the sun, the largest fire in the sky. The principal god of the Otomies was Otonteuctli, the Lord of the Pine. This god had another avocation as Lord of the Torch, reflecting his relationship to the God of Fire and to the Old Father (or founder). Thus, Christ would be the Fire God in his avocation as the Sun, a symbolism that is present in Catholic doctrine. As the Fire God, Christ would therefore be connected with or related to the founder or Old Father. Warriors killed in battle or sacrificed and other important spiritual and military leaders were believed to go to the sun to assist it in its battle against the celestial bodies of the night in order to complete its daily journey across the sky. As a result, it is possible to discern the interconnectedness among diverse elements that are still apparent in the traditions of this zone: the sun, deification of warriors and leaders, and veneration of the ancestors. On several occasions, Don Agapito reiterated the importance of his images and crosses because they were made from the palo sagrado (sacred pole), that is, they are made of a special kind of wood. Therefore, not only do the statues and crosses have important symbolic content as images, the actual material that they are made of (wood) apparently refers directly to the principal deity of the Otonmi, the Lord of the Pine. During celebrations to this deity, a wooden pole is raised and an image of the deity is placed on the top (Sahagun 1969). It should be pointed out, however, that wooden crosses are subordinate to the Sacred Cross of Calderon Pass, which is made of stone. Possibly, the hierarchical distinction relates to the belief among Chichimec groups (which Otomies and Aztecs considered themselves to have been originally) that their ancestors were descended from giant rocks or became rocks when they died.10 Once again, however, there is a relationship among Christ, crosses made of either wood or stone, and the ancestors as important objects of veneration. As previously mentioned, 446 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations the xuichiles in September are offered to the ancestors, not to God, and yet they have somehow become part of God. The interrelatedness of the concepts of death and resurrection also forms an integral part of the Mesoamerican cosmology (Gonzalez Torres 1994:198-217; Matos Moc- tezuma 1975). Life and death were united among these groups of agriculturalists and warriors, including the Otomi. They observed the cyclical birth, growth, death, and rebirth of the plants they depended on, and from their daily observations incorporated this basic idea into their view of the world and the cosmos. The cyclical nature of the natural world was projected onto the supernatural world as well. According to their view of the creation of the universe, the destruction of each previous era (at the time of the Spanish conquest they were in the period of the Fifth Sun) included the death of the deities. As Soustelle states, "The era of the Fifth Sun was dominated by this theme of death and resurrection, of the sacrifice necessary for the lives of the celestial bodies and the Universe. In order to create the sun, it was necessary to spill blood, liberate the vital life forces" (1977:556); the spilling of human blood was necessary for the sun's continued survival as well. According to Gonzalez Torres, the annual sacrifice of deity impersonators at major celebrations was in a sense a re-creation of myths in which gods were assassinated in order to be reborn in the future. These sacrifices "were offered by the community in order to establish and interchange mana, which, depending on the type of sacrifice, had distinct functions.... By means of the periodical sacrifice of the gods the continuity of their existence in their sacred domain was ensured, since every sacrifice meant resurrection" (Gonzalez Torres 1994:217). In the past, the ritual of "putting the crosses to rest" had been performed in each of the chapels of Tirado. Each cross was placed on the floor in its chapel and covered with flowers, manzanilla, and mastranto as if in a coffin, and candles were placed at each side. Tins of new wheat and corn, votive candles, and oranges wrapped in foil were placed on the altar and on the beds of flowers and plants covering the crosses. The rosary and prayers were recited as is done during a wake, and people accompanied the crosses in a nightlong vigil as they would a dead member of their community. It was also the custom to cover the other figures on the altar with a large purple cloth in a sign of mourning, which is not done by Don Agapito and his family. According to Don Agapito, originally the raising up or resurrecting of the crosses took place on Good Friday during the day but about 40 years ago it was changed to Saturday night at midnight by order of the Pope. In order to collect the items needed for the celebration, there were people in charge of the chapels (mayordomos) who went to the people of the village asking for "alms" primarily to buy the candles and flowers needed to make an altar. The community was divided in two parts, with each part paying devotion to one of the crosses. Funds for local celebrations are still collected in rural communities in the same way today. People in neighboring villages who usually attend the celebration also provide "alms" either in money or goods. Most of these networks of cooperation and reciprocal relations are reinforced by kinship ties as well. According to Don Agapito, it is necessary to have the will or desire (voluntad) and for the people to be in agreement (conformidad) in order to properly carry out the celebrations. Union among the people is the key, and groups that cooperate or communities that maintain ties of reciprocal relations are considered 447 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) to be of the same "word." Not only is spiritual union necessary for the celebrations to be successful, but union, in terms of active participation and economic cooperation, is crucial, even though each person and every family give whatever they are able. The distribution of food among the participants and guests, which is an integral part of community celebrations, has always been a matter of cooperation, and frequently the owners of rural estates donate several animals for the community celebrations. Despite the importance of looking into the symbolic and ideological content of the ceremonies, rituals, and beliefs to find certain connections across time, the rituals that continue to be performed by Don Agapito and his family acquire significance because they also demonstrate how these traditions persist despite dramatic changes in specific circumstances or the entire context within which they had always been performed in the past. In this case, the changes include the total destruction of a close-knit commu- nity integrated by ties of kinship and reinforced through a network of reciprocal obligations and mutual assistance to conduct the ceremonies that ensured the survival of the community year after year by propitiating and giving thanks to the deities and ancestors who control the forces that directly affected the people's lives. As Don Agapito stated, he is unable to perform the rituals exactly the way they had been done in the past because he is alone. He complied with his self-imposed obligation of honoring the crosses and statues the best he could on an individual basis considering his lack of resources. He continued to venerate the ancestors of the community through the ritual of "putting the crosses to rest," and even though only his immediate family usually would participate in the preparation of the xuchil for the September celebra- tions, they did it in the name of the community of Tirado. Except for this symbolic offering made each September, Tirado no longer exists, for former residents no longer live in close proximity, and more important, they do not maintain ties of cooperation and mutual obligation as in the past to perform what used to be community ceremo- nies and rituals. Conclusion The ceremonies and rituals that took place in Don Agapito's chapel were virtually closed, not because others were systematically excluded but because the community that formed the context for them has disappeared. Don Agapito "adopted" the sacred images and crosses and has continued to perform the rituals that the community as a whole performed in the past, only now as an isolated unit of family and close friends. Because the entire network of organization and support that was a fundamental element for the realization of the celebrations in the community no longer exists, the rituals and ceremonies have also become simple, and there has been no attempt to re-create the most elaborate celebration for San Isidro in May. Furthermore, the sacred items, which were formerly community property, now "belong" to Don Agapito and will probably be inherited by his adopted family. As Don Agapito pointed out, things are always changing, but there is always someone to continue celebrating the rituals and ceremonies. Despite the very different context, family instead of community and urban instead of rural, these ceremonies and rituals continue to fulfill culturally meaningful religious, social, and economic objectives. 448 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Correa, Otomi Rituals and Celebrations The coresidence of several generations in the same household facilitates access by the extended family to the meaning of these traditions and how to maintain them from Don Agapito. It seems likely that the persistence and efflorescence of these traditions and beliefs that have been the basis of a local and regional identity for centuries despite the continually accelerating pace of the processes of globalization could also be a form of resistance to cultural homogenization through increased contact and assimilation. This is reflected by the fact that even the younger members of the family who would normally be most affected by external influences and ideas claimed that they would continue the traditions of their ancestors. Overall, although changes occur for a variety of reasons and relationships between individuals and groups are restructured, they have not in fact affected the basic ideology that the cult rests on or the degree of religiosity of the participants. Notes 11 am using mestizo to indicate cultural rather than actual racial or biological distinctions, for Indian, Caucasian, and African physical characteristics are mixed throughout the population. As one informant who did not participate in the religious complex of the Santa Cruz stated, "We are all Indians, but some are more than others." She was referring to the retention of cultural beliefs and practices rather than physical or linguistic traits. 2Saint Isidore (San Isidro Labrador) was a Spanish serf who never failed to attend Mass each morning before going to work in his fields. The other serfs criticized him for being lazy and complained to the lord, who investigated and found that his fields were being cultivated by two angels. From that day on, he put San Isidro in charge of all of his lands. San Isidro was known for his generosity to the poor and his religiosity. His saint's day is held in the middle of May at the very beginning of the annual agricultural cycle. 3The Bajio is a large geographical region formed by former lakebeds and interconnected by the Lerma River, which originates in the high mountains near Toluca and flows westward toward the Pacific Ocean. The Laja River is a tributary of the Lerma and runs from the north to the south just a few kilometers from the city of San Miguel de Allende. The Bajio is one of the principal agricultural zones of the country, and at the time of the Spanish conquest, the Lerma River formed the boundary between the Tarascan Empire to the south and the nomadic Chichimec groups to the north. 4Puerto generally refers to an opening-a mountain pass or harbor-but it also has a symbolic meaning as a location where it is possible to have special communication with supernatural beings. It is, in effect, the central location, or a kind of crossroads, that is symbolically represented in the cross: the place where the perpendicular and horizontal axes meet. The central location is also where communication takes place between the other levels of Otomi cosmovision: the heavens and the underworld. 5The traditional dance groups characteristic of the Otomi are known as concheros because they use this instrument, although technically their dances are called Dances of the Conquest. The dance groups are organized around a military hierarchy, and the "true" groups have leaders or captains who have direct genealogical links with the leaders from the past. New groups are established as offshoots of particular groups but do not always have the legitimacy recognized by the older ones. For a longer discussion and description of the concheros and their dances, consult Mansfield 1953, Orvafianos Bustos and Bircenas Casas 1992, and Stone 1975. 6The main celebration of the patron saint always falls on the weekend after 29 September, and it rarely falls on Friday or Saturday. The Entrance of the Xuchiles takes place on Saturday afternoon and early evening. 7Cargo systems in other parts of Mexico have been amply described. These are the religious organiza- tions, and individuals occupy positions with specific functions throughout the year. In the zone of San Miguel, the local organizations are known as comunidades. 449 This content downloaded from 132.248.9.8 on Thu, 25 Sep 2014 16:26:05 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Journal of American Folklore 113 (2000) 8The description of the ritual for this article is based on observations made in spring 1997, as well as numerous interviews with Don Agapito. 9The two main days that altars are made during Holy Week are the Friday before Palm Sunday for the Virgin of Sorrows (in private homes and fountains located in the streets) and Holy Thursday for Christ (in all of the churches of the city). l0Abel Pina Perusquia (1996) describes the yearly pilgrimage of the Otomi from the region of Higueras in the state of Queretaro to the highest mountain in the region, which straddles the Guanajuato-Queretaro state border, to visit their Chichimec ancestors, who are giant rocks on the top. 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