For 13 years I've been in a deep study with the Mexican Sweatlodge tradition known as Temazcal. I have been passed the teachings of holding Temazcal ceremonies and received the blessing to open the ceremony of the Moondance in Switzerland, by Grandmother Ana Carmona Itzpapalotl of Metzliyoliliztli Moondance Circle in Costa Rica. This ritual includes a four-day fasting offering, eight purification Sweatlodges, four full nights of circle dancing, and working with the sacred obsidian pipe. Purification, spiritual connection, teachings, inner work, sisterhood and joy take place in the Moondance ritual. 

Temazcal, in Nahuatl language, goes back to pre-Hispanic times in central Mexico and means “house of bath”. It refers originally to a structure made of mud brick, used for therapy and healing. As the tradition of the Moondance derives from Mexico and takes place in nature, the circle and Sweatlodges are built up and down after the ritual. In this way the traditional Temazcal made out of clay has been adapted to the Inipi, a structure made out of branches, connected to the indigenous cultures of North America.

My elders have taught me, that when entering the Temazcal one is crawling into the belly of Mother Earth, (Nahuatl: Tonantzin). This is a space to purify on a body, mind and spiritual level and be in introspection and reflection of our individual and collective walk on this earth.