Title: Shaman /
Authors: Documentary Educational Resources (Firm); Okexnon Productions.
Publisher: Documentary Educational Resources,
Year: 1978
Subjects: Magic.; Mazatec Indians Social life and customs.; Spiritual healing and spiritualism.; Mythology.; Hallucinogenic plants.; Shamans.; Anthropology Research; Maya healers.; Hallucinogenic drugs.; Intergroup relations Mexico.; Chiapas Highlands (Mexico); Mexico Civilization; Mexico Rural conditions.; Mexico Social conditions.
Abstract: Brujo is an exploration of shamanism and healing among the indians of Chenalho in Chiapas Mexico as well as the Mazatec Indians of Oaxaca, Mexico. During the sequence filmed in Chiapas we see Miguel a Mayan shaman perform the ritual sacrifice of a black chicken to the Mayan gods. The Mayan indians of this area believe that their lives are dominated by gods and spirits that must be appeased in order to avoid calamity. These beliefs operate within their own unique form of Christianity where the adopted symbols of the Christian church exist side by side with Mayan animal spirits and deities. The filmmaker Georges Payrastre mentions in his voice over that he was cured of a case of gangrene by a Mayan shaman, an event which led him to make this documentary. The film is divided into three sequences. The first, filmed in Chichicastenango (Guatemala), shows Diego, a shaman, cure a woman on whom a spell has been cast. The cure takes place partly in a church and partly in the mountains, where a sacrificed chicken is used to bring back the ailing woman's spirit. The second sequence moves to Oaxaca, where a Mazatec shaman, her husband, and her patient consume hallucinogenic mushrooms. The cure, which takes place in darkness, involves a simple song (the mushroom's "voice") and dance, flowers, and the rubbing of tobacco on both the patient and the shaman's husband. The final sequence takes place in the Chiapas highlands of Mexico, site of the festival Tajimoltik. The filmmakers encounter shaman Miguel, who brings them to his family home in a mountain hamlet beyond Chenalho. There he undertakes to cure filmmaker Claudine Viallon of a migraine, using candles, eggs, and incense. Miguel also discusses conceptions of the soul, death, and transmigration.