Tenderfoot Temazcalero

Maybe you have not had the temazcal experience yet. Perhaps you have been thinking about kicking off your sandals to step inside the circle. Have you heard a co-worker talking about a Mayan steam bath at work and want to know what it's all about?  

Whatever your situation, welcome, tenderfoot temazcalero! Below you will find a few links from first time "caminantes" to give you an idea of what went through their heads when they entered the temazcal for their first or second try!

I hope you enjoy them, and, as always, let me know what you think! There's a comment box at the bottom of the post.

Spiritual Sundays: Temazcal

Meet You at the Bridge does a nice job of describing a temazcal experience in terms that folks can relate to. They wrote, "Temazcal is about opening up to receive an ancient spiritual healing, to bring problems to the surface and offering them up to the universe for release. It is about choosing growth, and leaving your fears in the dust."

Meet You at the Bridge's post editor
has done a really nice
job of illustrating their
"Spiritual Sundays: Temazcal" post.

Take a look at this post to get a common-sense descriptions of feelings of someone who has had the temazcal experience. Enjoy it's photos. They have definitely taken time to explore a quality tourist-friendly temazcal, and have put together a nice post to share it with you!

What Is A Temazcal Ritual? Here's What You Should Know About The Ancient Cleansing Bath 

Kelli Acciardo called her temazcal experience, at Playa Grande Resort & Grand Spa, "hands down one of the best things I've ever done in Mexico. (Or in life.)." Ms. Acciardo confronted a bit of fear, and seemed to have appreciated the result of having stepped outside her own comfort zone.

Ms. Acciardio's experience
sounds like what I would expect
from many first time visitors to Mexico.

The Shaman, Ana, ... "Still drumming, ... tells us to let all of our emotions, bad energy, heaviness, and fears out with the steam, smoke, music, and vapors once the doorway is uncovered." That's what temazcal's about. Learn how Ms. Accardio let her fears go out the door with the steam and how she felt afterward. 

Sweat it Out: Release Fear with a Temazcal Ceremony

Andrea Rice, the author of  Wanderlusts' "Sweat it Out: Release Fear with a Temazcal Ceremony" wrote, "To me, Temazcal is absolutely terrifying." She described her experience entering the temazcal: "... as soon as I became aware that escape was not a viable option, an overwhelming and unexpected amount of fear took hold and I started to panic."

Ceremonial alters typically adorn temazcal circles.
Image Source: Wanderlust

She did not, though, let her fear of being inside the tiny, unbearably hot, completely dark lodge break her. She described herself going back into battle after a single-round defeat: 

"At the start of the third round I asked to come back inside. I laid down in the fetal position and understood why our shaman referred to the hut as the 'Mother’s Womb.' I was safe again, and so I endured the remainder of the two hour ceremony. For the very first time, I understood that I was battling with anxiety—something I had always been 'too tough' to admit."

I think that Ms. Rice's narrative struck me as particularly touching because I remember, as a tenderfoot temazcalero myself, thrusting my face onto the muddy floor of the lodge and silently wishing to hear Hector, one of our most vociferous caminantes yell, "Ome! Yei! Nahui! Chiquisa, Joven!" ... a mixed Nahuatl and Spanish shout, meaning "One! Two! Three! Open the door, youngster!"

I, and a lot of the temazcaleros that keep going back into the earthen-floored lodge, will agree with her closing statement:

"Temazcal is not about punishing ourselves with extreme endurance so we can repent for our sins. It is about opening up to receive ancient spiritual medicine—to move past the point of resistance so we can heal past wounds and hurts; to bring all that stuff we’ve spent our lives suppressing to the surface and offering it up to the universe for release. It is about bravely stepping out of safety and forward into growth, and leaving our fears in the dust."

Looking for a complete, well-done description of someone else's temazcal experience? Definitely check out Ms. Rice's post on Wanderlust.

Hot in Mexico: Sweating it out in a Mayan Temazcal steam bath

CNN's Savita Iyer Ahrestani's wrote about a couple, Aarti Aziz and her husband Moosa, in the temazcal. She wrote that he, 

"... found the shaman's constant chanting -- urging him to direct his woes and pains toward the smoldering rocks to rid his body of hatred and lighten his mental load -- a tad hokey, but the ambiance eventually caught up with him."

Screenshot from the CNN webpage.

They did, though, report some things that they seemed to like about the ceremony. Again, if you're not sure if you're up to the challenge, you might want to read about their experience.

Cozumel Photo Diary 2

Grace Atwood, at The Stripe, wrote about her temazcal experience: "A local shaman guided us throughout the ritual which consisted of four stages of chanting (+ a lot of sweating), meant to help us get rid of negativity." Many new visitors to our temazcales report this sensation of departure from negative thoughts or feelings, often commenting on the strong energy they feel in the steamy heat inside the lodge. 

Cozumel Temazcal featured in The Stripe.
Source: Grace Atwood, The Stripe.

Check out The Stripe to read about how Ms. Atwood felt after coming out of the fourth stage, "completely drenched!" Once again, this post has been beautifully illustrated and is worth the visit, just for the photos.

A Mexican Temazcal: Mud, Sweat & Tears

Amy Weirick, on Chris Around the World, described her temazcal experience quite differently from other posts that I found online. " I would recommend the experience to spirtual [sic] types and culture junkies who crave the unusual – with caution," she wrote.

Ms. Weirick's experience differs quite a bit from that
of the other tenderfoot temazcaleros on this post.

"Crawling on our hands and knees, we entered the inipi. On the way in, we dipped our head to the earth in thanks and prayer. Little did we know that in a few hours, we’d be praying for relief." 

"So was I reborn? Hm. Maybe not reborn, but revitalized … if only by the incredible weirdness of it all.  "

You will especially want to take a look at Ms. Weirick's story if you would like to hear a very different point of view.

Let us hear about your first temazcal experience, below. We would like to hear about your first experience, at InTheTemazcal!