Guest Column

COLUMN OF THE AMERICAS
BY ROBERTO RODRIGUEZ & PATRISIA GONZALES
 July 4, 2005

First person column by Patrisia Gonzales
By Patrisia Gonzales
Column of the Americas special monthly feature on indigenous medicine

"Las plantas quieren que tengamos fé." The plants want us to believe in them, maestro Madrigal, an herbal caretaker, said as we made some herbal presentations at a pow wow. Over the years, traditional teachers, elders and family curanderas have shared instructions and knowledge on the medicinal properties of las plantas y la naturaleza, plants and the natural world. The ancient knowledge of ancestral indigenous Americas remains among the peoples of the continent, whether they are indigenous or detribalized mestizos. As Santa Clara Pueblo scholar Greg Cajete writes in Native Science, plants share the same memory and history with the human body. Since our origins, human have had a relationship with plants.

This column, Patzin, debuts a special feature of Column of the Americas. Patzin will examine indigenous traditional medicine of the Americas, with a special emphasis on Mexican indigenous medicine. Carlos Treviño Viesca, a medical historian of Mesoamerican medicine, says that Mexican traditional medicine (MTM) is rooted in pre-Hispanic traditions but it has also responded to changes over the past 500 hundred years and has adapted and incorporated practices as useful applications. For instance, when the conquistadores and priests prohibited certain native plants because of their ceremonial use, our ancestors incorporated European ones, such as rosemary (romero) and rue (ruda.) These plants are now part of the pharmacopeias of the Americas and are used in rituals and remedies (as well as the ones that were banned.) The colonial powers could not destroy these practices because the knowledge was silently preserved within families, clans and secret teachings.

Plants and the natural world have the power to heal not only the body, but the emotions and the spirit. Plants are used internally as remedies and food and internally for baths, ritual blessings and in ceremony. It is not the scope of this column to share specific ritual or ceremonial knowledge that historically has been taught as part of oral tradition or guarded and transmitted selectively out of respect for the teachings. Where practices have been recorded in writing, they may be shared in general terms to guide readers toward better understanding how to take care of their own health and that of their family. Patzin will feature traditional healers and cultural healing practices both in the United States and the continent, as well as report on native gatherings and conferences on traditional medicine. My knowledge of herbs comes from my own elders, native gatherings, and my practice as a yerbera, or herbalist, as well as a promotora tradicional or community health worker in traditional medicine, and as someone who recovered from an autoimmune disorder through the medicine in plants, ceremonies, and prayer. Each column will include a remedy or recipe, for in the indigenous system of healing that I've learned from elders and traditional teachers, our food is medicine.
Remedy using aguas frescas or Mexican fruit juices. Aguas frescas are based on several principals.

1. Food is useful at many stages, even when over ripe. Over ripe fruits, such as strawberries, pineapple and mangoes make excellent juices blended with water. Their ripeness eliminates the need for additional sugar, though a juice or honey can be added to sweeten. This form of juicing does not have the concentrated sugars extracted when using a juicer. 2. "Aguas" administered based on MTM follow the hot/cold system of indigenous healing. Foods are administered based on whether they have a hot, cold or neutral nature. For instances, in the summer, we become overheated and consume juices with a cooling property. 3. The aguas are combined for their medicinal effect on the body. Don Aurelio's recipe: "Hot" pineapple is  blended with "cooling" celery in a 2:1 ratio and several cups of water to create a neutral or fresh juice that works on the kidneys, pancreas and lymphatic system. Drink for three days.

Agua de pepino/ cucumber juice: Take one cucumber and mix with four cups of water in a blender. Drink throughout the day. Gently strengthens the kidneys, pancreas and cools the digestive system. Contains potassium and vitamins A and B. Good for women with hot flashes and beneficial for diabetics.
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