La Cultura Cura — Culture Heals: Danza Mexihca Nahuatl as Kinetic Prayer

• In Event: Decolonizing Water Pedagogies: Centering Indigenous Knowledges in Educational Approaches to Climate Catastrophe

Abstract

Danza Mexihca Nahuatl is an ancient form of dance and prayer that has sustained our communities for generations. Although the origins of these danzas reside in Mexico, Danza Mexihca Nahuatl has traversed borders and is now found throughout Turtle Island (Luna, 2011; De la Torre and Zuñiga 2012). The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how Danza Mexihca Nahuatl can be carried forward as kinetic prayer that allows dancers to examine their cultural roots to reclaim identity and self-awareness, towards healthy decision making and increased community consciousness.

Our ancestors have danced many of the same dances that are practiced today. This creates a direct link to them and to the land upon which we dance, in our case, Central Texas Yana wana lands. These lands have welcomed Danza Mexihca Nahuatl as much as the water of Yana wana have remembered and recognize its’ medicine. Recognizing and honoring the lands where we conduct our sacred dance, is a continuation of the migrations and exchanges that continue to this day. As someone who carries multiple spaces where community comes together to practice this kinetic prayer, I have bared witness to the impact of such a practice on our members. In addition, our members themselves relay their testimonios of the medicine that the kinetic prayer of Danza Mexihca Nahuatl brings about with its ancient movements that replicate the cosmos.

Through Danza, physical health is promoted because of high levels of cardio. Endorphins are released removing pain and creating a sense of positive feeling, impacting mental health in a positive way. Spirit is also highly impacted by understanding that these dances are centuries old. In addition, learning the protocols, drumming, songs and components of ceremony beyond the movement of dance, helps form a sense of responsibility to community and self. This has been especially evident as we see how our youth have become stewards in the protection of the elements. In this presentation, I will discuss how intergenerational knowledge transference is central to the continuation of the traditions within Danza Mexihca Nahuatl and in this way, Danzantes learn their place on Earth and how everything is alive and interconnected. I will also discuss how this practice of movement as kinetic prayer is deeply pedagogical. I will show how in our communities, Danza is an educational tool that has the ability to connect youth to the land, and to Yana Wana. I discuss Danza as part of Indigenous pedagogical movements that teach interdependence; showing how our bodies are translations of the universe. I discuss the ways in which I have been sharing these teachings with Indigenous youth in multiple summer encounters.

Authors

• Evelio Flores

• Marleen Villanueva, University of Toronto