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A temazcal is a type of
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 and Central America that were part of the ancient Mesoamerican region 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 rock and cement 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
Article on Temazcal
(in English)
{{Native american styles Aztec society Bathing Indigenous architecture Ritual purification Sauna Mexican culture
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 pre-Hispanic indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica. 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 Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller ...
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 and Central America that were part of the ancient Mesoamerican region 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 rock and cement 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 scientific 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 landscape ...
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.
See also
* SaunaNotes
External links
Article on Temazcal
(in English)
{{Native american styles Aztec society Bathing Indigenous architecture Ritual purification Sauna Mexican culture