Mazatec

The Mazatec are an indigenous people who inhabit an area of the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, close to the border with Puebla and Veracruz. They are related to the Mixtec and the Otomi.

Related Topics:
Oaxaca - Mexico - Puebla - Veracruz - Mixtec - Otomi

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Their name comes from the relative closeness to the town of Mazatlán, Oaxaca, and the early Spanish explorers' naming them accordingly. "Mazatlán" itself is a Nahuatl name, meaning "place of deer".

Related Topics:
Mazatlán, Oaxaca - Nahuatl

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They are a "humble" people, and often refer to themselves as such.

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Mazatecs are most known for their cultivation, and spiritual/traditional use, of the sage salvia divinorum (diviners' sage) and "magic mushrooms".

Related Topics:
Salvia divinorum - Magic mushrooms

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The Mazatecs' religion is a synthesis of both traditional beliefs and Christian beliefs brought by the Spanish conquistadors. This accounts for their naming of such entheogens as salvia divinorum Ska María Pastora, "María" being a reference to the Christian Virgin Mary.

Related Topics:
Entheogens - Salvia divinorum - Ska María Pastora - Virgin Mary

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The Mazatecs still employ traditional shamans for their spiritual needs. See Mazatec shamans

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