Sauna Bath, alcohol, morning glory, and magic mushrooms. No, no… this is not a description of
your usual 420 enthusiasts of modern culture but these substances are what a Mayan shaman would use
for medicinal treatment. Mayan medicine was an extraordinary mixture of religion,
nature, science, and spiritualism. And it was working quite well for them
until the Spanish introduced smallpox to them. Bummer! Today Nutty History gives
you an insight into what medicine and surgery were like in Maya Civilization.
Contrary to misconceptions of the modern world, Mayan medical practice wasn’t just herbalism,
placebo, and hocus pocus. It was, in fact, a complex blend of mind, body, religion,
rituals, and science. The Mayans believed that health was not just some biological condition
affected by ailments but the result of not living according to the laws of nature and society.
In a manner that isn’t very far from how we will define health today. They believed
nature will punish your health if you hurt nature. Natural Karmic Justice, if you will.
Angry supernatural beings would take one’s soul captive and illness would result. The ailment
and the pain were the outcomes caused by these entities torturing the victim’s soul. This is
deep man! This is perhaps why Mayans’ medicine emphasized healing the soul of the patient
rather than healing their physical bodies. Only benevolent spirits can truly heal a sick person.
Just like the Chinese concept of Chi and Hindu and the Buddhist concept of Prana,
Mayans too believed in the idea of a Life Energy which they called ch’ulel.
The concept of life force or living energy inside us is quite common among ancient civilizations.
Vedic Hindus explained it in Yog related texts as Prana or “life source code” which resides in the
body in seven distinct places along the spine called Chakras. According to their healers,
alignment of Chakras was essential for healthy well being. In the 5th century BC,
Chinese borrowed it and expanded the concept of individual Chakras into a network of energy
surrounding us and connecting us all called Chi. Mayans concept of ch’ulel was similar to Chi.
According to Mayan healers, ch’ulel is supposed to be everywhere and in everyone, connecting them
all, binding them to each other. Wait… This sounds exactly like Yoda explaining the Force to Luke!
The most important part of Mayan healing was to redirect the life energy of the patients back in
the right direction to make them feel better. The ancient Mayan text describes illness and diseases
as an imbalance in the path of ch’ulel and prescribes herbal remedies as a course correction.
Herbalism constituted the biggest component of Mayan medicine. The Mayan texts talk about
various herbal remedies employed by healers which could be swallowed, or smoked, or snorted, used as
an ointment, and some were even meant to be given as enemas! During the 16th century, some evidence
indicated the Yucatec colony classified illnesses in two broad categories. Hot and Cold. To balance
and realign ch’ulel, hot ailments were prescribed cold herbal treatments and cold ailments were
prescribed hot treatments by the healers. For example, cold disorders like constipation,
cramps, and paralysis would be treated with hot or spicy food such as ginger or garlic. While hot
disorders like fever, diarrhea, and food poisoning were remedied with cold foods like cheese, milk,
and barley. Herbal remedies were also classified by the color of the originating plant. Red plants
like potatoes, radishes, and red flowers were used for blood-related issues such as rashes,
distress, anemia, and burns. Blue flowers and food were used for neural sedatives
and yellow plants were used to make medicine for diseases concerning the liver and spleen.
The only color Mayan healers avoided was white as in Mayan culture color white was related to death
and morbid omens. Mayan healers used smell and taste to ascertain the medicinal value of fruits,
flowers, and vegetables. Sweet aroma and flavors were considered as signs of richness in medicinal
quality. Such plant products were classified as cold medicines for hot ailments. Bitter,
spicy, and acidic flowers and vegetables were used for hot medicines. The absence of smell
or taste in a plant product was perceived as no potential medicinal value. No bueno.
hospital. Mayan medical treatments included ceremonies, sauna baths,
and the use of psychedelics. As illness was considered a punishment from malevolent spirits,
offerings and sacrifices were made to the gods for forgiveness and to ask for their aid to ward
off malicious entities. The offering may be in the form of food or ornaments, and sacrifice
was done in the form of human bloodletting which was a practice of self-cutting and bleeding on
the altar. This ceremony would be followed by dancing, feasting, and drinking. What?! Yeah,
they were totally ignoring social distancing during times of sickness. It’s no wonder
smallpox was their fall! Sweat baths were also heavily used for ridding oneself of impurities,
especially after getting better from sickness, delivering a child, and performing surgery. The
royals were so fond of sauna baths that they will use them willy-nilly to feel refreshed.
Might need to start using the sauna at the gym more often... Hallucinogens were extremely popular
as well. Substances like peyote, morning glory, tobacco, alcohol, and certain types of mushrooms
were used to numb the pain, cure mental ailments, and of course to contact the spiritual world.
Becoming a healer in Mayan society was no easier task than becoming a doctor today.
Still, at least it didn’t involve spending thousands of dollars on tuition but the process of
becoming a healer or a Shaman was still rigorous and time consuming. To become a Mayan physician,
you were supposed to go through a harsh selection process and receive quite an extensive education
and training. Graduating would grant you the title of a shaman or an ah-men and a license
to heal. Extensive knowledge of medicinal plants was not enough to become an ah-men,
you must have the capability to talk to the plants as well.
What?! It is thought that one must get the permission of the plant to be used
for medicinal purposes. They were also supposed to have an elaborate knowledge of human organs
and their intrinsic workings. They also knew and practiced reading pulses to diagnose ailments.
The fact that the Mayans had a broad vocabulary to describe internal human anatomy and phrases
for intestines, bile, and spleen shows that ah-men had a fairly good idea of what they were doing.
Mayan Shaman and Ah-men were exceptionally skilled at doing surgery and medical operations.
Suturing wounds, resetting fractured bones, and delivering babies was a part of the daily job
for a Mayan physician. They also knew how to do dental fillings with iron pyrite commonly
known as fools’ gold. Gems such as Jade and Turquoise were used for dental prostheses.
The Ah-men were also evidently proficient in complex procedures such as trepanation
and cranioplasty. These bone drilling procedures are used in the modern world to treat trauma and
skull damage. Despite being a very complex procedure, demanding utmost precision in skill,
Trepanation isn’t even new by Mayan standard. The procedure has existed all over the globe
since 8000 BC. Some civilizations used it for treating pain and distress while some used it
for rituals and inviting or expelling spirits. It is hard to say why Mayans performed trepanation
but if it saves you a 100K would you trust a Mayan Healer over NeuroSurgeon?
Think about that and tell us in the comments and thanks for watching Nutty History.