ES Joya Ceren 05 2012 Estructura 9 Area 2 Tamazcal 1478

A temazcal is a type of

sweat lodge A sweat lodge is a low profile hut, typically dome-shaped or oblong, and made with natural materials. The structure is the ''lodge'', and the ceremony performed within the structure may be called by some cultures a purification ceremony or simply ...

, which originated with indigenous peoples in

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...

. The term ''temazcal'' comes from the

Nahuatl Nahuatl ( ; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...

language, either from the words (to bathe) and (house), or from the word (house of heat).

Overview

In ancient Mesoamerica it was used as part of a curative ceremony thought to purify the body after exertion such as after a battle or a ceremonial ball game. It was also used for healing the sick, improving health, and for women to give birth. It continues to be used today in Indigenous cultures of

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

that were part of the ancient

Mesoamerican region The Mesoamerican region (often abbreviated MAR) is a trans-national economic region in the Americas that is recognized by the OECD and other economic and developmental organizations, comprising the united economies of the seven countries in Centra ...

for spiritual healing and health enrichment reasons. The temazcal is usually a permanent structure, unlike sweat lodges of other regions. It has various construction styles differing by region: from

volcanic A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...

rock and

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...

, adobe mud bricks, even wood, mud, and cloth can be utilized. It may be a circular dome made to represent the uterus, although rectangular ones have been found at certain

archeological Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeology ...

sites and this shape is also used. To produce steam, water is poured over heated volcanic stones, which will not crack and explode like other rocks in confined high temperature areas. The stones may be heated with fire from an outside port or placed in a pit located in the center or near a wall of the temazcal.

Notes

External links

Article on Temazcal
(in English) * {{Native american styles Aztec society Bathing Indigenous architecture Ritual purification Sauna Culture of Mexico

Overview

See also

Notes

External links