“We Should Never Forget Our Roots”
Aztec Teacher Shares Tradition in San Jose
Story and Photos by Elizabeth Gonzalez

Heading towards an event at the Mexican Heritage Plaza to commemorate the life of Cesar Chavez, I was not feeling well because I still had hints of a migraine from the day before. Once I entered the plaza I saw a friend who told me that I should get a blessing from the maestro, Ocelocoatl. I agreed because who doesn't like to be blessed? He was burning some incense and asked me to hold out my hands together like I was receiving something.

He told me to close my eyes and proceeded to blow the smoke around me while I think he was saying a prayer. All I felt was the hot smoke and the ashes burning me as they fell on my skin. I wanted to open my eyes and see what was falling on me, but I couldn't until he said it was ok. I opened my eyes and there were ashes all over my shirt and arms. He said, “See this, it's all the negative energy you were carrying around with you. Now I want you to swipe it off you with force.” And so I did, a few times until I had the right strength, I thanked him and walked away. I felt better instantly, the pressure in my head was gone and I was able to participate in the whole march feeling well. I hadn't noticed that behind me a little line of people had formed to also receive a blessing from Ocelocoatl.

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He is from Mexico City and comes to the US 2-3 times a year. In Mexico City he has dedicated himself to the investigation, defense, diffusion, and teaching of his ancestral Aztec culture. This is something he has learned from the beginning of his life, since the greater part of the teachings are known from the oral tradition and family traditions. Here in the US he has helped form groups of people who want to learn about their ancestry. They teach Aztec Danza, the philosophy, the Nahuatl language and culture, and the Mexica (pronounced Mechika) mentality. These groups are primarily for young people who are most sensitive to learning about their identities, but also entire families are part of the groups as well as older people. He says that he is received very well here because he finds that people desire and have a hunger to know about the history. But he also says that he finds a lot of uneasiness because people are surprised when they hear another version of the story, the side of those who lost. Victors wrote the history and it is full of falseness. People realize that what they have been taught has been a lie to make us ashamed of our culture and have us think that the culture that they brought us is better.

I asked him what the biggest misconceptions where about Aztec culture and he responded, “Almost everything. The human sacrifices, that we were savages, ignorant, and that they came to civilize us because we had no culture. That we had gods for everything. All of that is false.” Ocelocoatl also adds, our grandfathers said, “We shouldn't forget our roots because roots are what sustain the tree, and where they nourish themselves, and take their essence. The deeper the roots, the stronger the tree and we should know that our roots are very deep.”

“We shouldn't forget where we came from to know where we are going and we shouldn't forget who we are to know what we want.”

In San Jose you can get involved in their groups that meet at the Gardner Community Center on Wednesday evenings and at Emma Prusch Park on Thursday nights. Also you can visit www.myspace.com/calpullitonalehqueh to find out more information.

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