THE PEYOTE PILGRIMS

by Crescencio Perez Robles

From time immemorial the Huichol have made annual pilgrimages to ‘La Sierra Quemada', the birth place of the sun, which is in the area they call ‘Wiricuta'. The peyote growing in the desert at the foot of this mountain is very sacred and is called ‘Hikuri'. The spirit of Hikuri is a teacher and a guide for the pilgrims who eat it.

The pilgrimage takes 35 days on foot each way. The journey is marked by caves, springs, lakes and other natural phenomena. Each of these places has special powers. They are the sacred places that their ancestors travelled through when the world was formed. Here the fasting pilgrims perform rituals to purify themselves in preparation for what is to come when they reach Wiricuta.

After partaking of the sacred cactus in the desert, they collect more to take back to their territory where it plays a central role in the community ceremonies.

Wirikuta is near Real de Catorce, an old Spanish mining town in the desert of San Luis Potosi .