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THE ANGEL IN THE GOURD: RITUAL, THERAPEUTIC, AND
PROTECTIVE USES OF TOBACCO (NICOTIANA TABACUM)
AMONG THE TZELTAL AND TZOTZIL MAYA OF
CHIAPAS, MEXICO
Kevin P. Groark
In this article, I document contemporary highland Maya use of traditional tobacco (Nicotiana
tabacum) preparations among the highland Maya (Tzeltal-Tzotzil) of Chiapas, Mexico. Among the
Ancient Maya, Nicotiana was considered a sacred plant, closely associated with deities of earth and
sky, and used for both visionary and therapeutic ends. The contemporary Tzeltal and Tzotzil Maya of
Highland Chiapas are bearers of this ethnobotanical inheritance, preserving a rich and varied
tradition of Nicotiana use and folklore. The entire tobacco plant is viewed as a primordial medicine
and a powerful botanical ‘‘helper’’ or ‘‘protector.’’ Depending on the condition to be treated, whole
Nicotiana leaves used are used alone or in combination with other herbs in the preparation of various
medicinal plasters and teas. In its most common form, fresh or ‘‘green’’ leaves are ground with slaked
lime to produce an intoxicating oral snuff that serves as both a protective and therapeutic agent.
Despite its historical and cultural significance, traditional tobacco use is declining in favor of smoked
tobaccos. The article closes with a discussion of the social transformations responsible for this decline,
reviewing research that suggests tobacco powder snuffs may be less dangerous to health than smoked
tobaccos, despite their addictive potential.
Key words: Nicotiana, ethnomedicine, Maya, oral snuff, picietl
En este artı
´culo, documento el uso tradicional de varias preparaciones del tabaco (Nicotiana
tabacum) entre los Mayas contempora
´neos de los Altos de Chiapas (Me
´xico). Entre los Mayaantiguos,
la Nicotiana se consideraba una planta sagrada, vinculada con las deidades de la tierra y del cielo,
adema
´s usada con fines visionarios y terape
´uticos. Los tzeltales y tzotziles de Chiapas son herederos de
esta tradicio
´n etnobota
´nica, y mantienen ası
´una tradicio
´n rica y compleja de pra
´cticas y folclor
relacionada al uso del tabaco. La planta, en su totalidad, es considerada como una ‘‘medicina
primordial’’ y con cualidades bota
´nicas para ‘‘ayudar’’ o ‘‘proteger.’’ Dependiendo de la enfermedad
que se trate, las hojas enteras de tabaco se usan solas o en combinacio
´n con otras hierbas para elaborar
emplastes e infusiones de te
´s medicinales. En su preparacio
´n ma
´s tı
´pica, las hojas frescas o ‘‘verdes’’ se
machacan con cal para producir un rape
´oral intoxicante, que sirve como agente terape
´utico y protector.
A pesar de su importancia histo
´rica y cultural, el uso ‘‘tradicional’’ del tabaco ha disminuido. El
artı
´culo concluye con una articulacio
´n de estas transformaciones, repasando datos que sugieren que los
rape
´s de tabaco molido pueden ser menos peligrosos para la salud que los tabacos ahumados.
‘‘The taking of tobacco in every form permeated Indian life in ancient
Middle America. The attitude of noble, priest, and commoner was imbued
at times with something approaching mysticism, as when tobacco was
personified or even deified or when it was accepted as an ally fighting
beside man to overcome fatigue or pain or to ward off so many of the ills of
human flesh. There is deep beauty there which we, in our materialistic
world…are unable to share or even to perceive’’ (Thompson 1970:122–123).
Kevin P. Groark, University of Southern California, 1540 East Alcazar Street, CHP 133, Los Angeles,
CA 90089-9003, USA (e-mail: kgroark@gmail.com)
Journal of Ethnobiology 30(1): 5–30 Spring/Summer 2010
Introduction
Throughout the Mayan region, tobacco (Nicotiana) has long been regarded as
a supernaturally powerful plant. Both ancient and modern Maya employed
tobacco in various forms: as an intoxicant, a stimulant, a medicine, and a potent
magical agent—a sort of ‘‘botanical helper’’ or protector (de Smet and Hellmuth
1986; Elferink 1983; Janiger and Dobkins de Rios 1973, 1976; Robicsek 1972;
Thompson 1946, 1970). In the Chiapas Highlands of southern Mexico, traditional
tobacco preparations continue to play an important role in the therapeutic,
religious, and ritual life of the Tzeltal and Tzotzil Maya. Whole leaves are boiled,
wilted, mashed, and bruised to prepare medicinal plasters and teas. Fresh leaves
are mixed with slaked limestone and ground into a green mash, yielding a potent
oral snuff that is used as a medicine, a stimulant, a protective agent, as well as an
intoxicant. This same preparation is also used as a sort of all-purpose charm,
conferring protection against snakes, meteorological phenomena, demons, and
witches. Although tobacco in all its forms is inherently valued and respected, the
oral snuff preparation represents the plant in its most powerful and highly
respected form. This mixture, stored and carried in small polished gourds, is the
embodiment of an unbroken tradition of Mayan oral tobacco snuff use spanning
more than a thousand years.
Despite the plant’s manifest cultural importance, to date it has not been the
subject of focused ethnographic study. The research for this article was conducted
over a 17-year period (1992–2009) in an effort to document Highland Maya tobacco
culture before it disappeared, and to reconstruct what I could of the historic roots of
this ethnobotanical tradition. Following an overview of highland Maya tobacco
ethnotaxonomy and nomenclature, I examine the process of oral snuff production,
exploring its use in therapeutic contexts as well as its quasi-magical use as a
‘‘protector’’ or ‘‘helper.’’ Integrating ethnographic interviews conducted in the
Tzotzil-speaking community of San Juan Chamula with the broader ethnographic
and ethnohistoric record for the region, I present an overview of the cosmological
and mythological significance of tobacco within the highland Maya worldview.
Owing to both its chemical potency and quasi-magical power, Tzeltal and Tzotzil
Maya attribute to the plant an ability to overpower a wide range of illnesses and
supernatural threats. Indeed, controlled nicotine ingestion—particularly in the form
of oral snuff—generates a range of positive psychological and physiological effects,
supporting the local belief that tobacco is, in fact, one of the primordial ‘‘powerful
substances’’ in the pharmacopoeia of the highland Maya. The paper closes with a
discussion of recent transformations in local tobacco culture as a consequence of
religious evangelization and the availability of commercial cigarettes, exploring the
potential health impacts of a shift from oral to smoked tobaccos. I present an
overview of recent research suggesting that, despite its addictive potential, oral
tobacco snuff may be less dangerous to health than introduced smoked tobaccos.
Ethnobotanical Description
Nicotiana tabacum L., referred to colloquially as ‘‘tobacco,’’ has been well
described in the botanical literature (Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:242; Good-
6 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
speed 1954:372–75). Based on genetic and distributional data, Nicotiana appears
to have spread to the Central Mexican highlands from its origin in Andean South
America (Goodspeed 1954:8; Wilbert 1987:2). Cultivated and semi-cultivated
forms are common among horticulturalists throughout Southern Mexico, where
the plant is used widely for medicinal and recreational purposes. In Chiapas,
Nicotiana grows wild in disturbed soil in house gardens and along trails
(Figure 1). Wild plants are often left alone when weeding, and seedlings are
sometimes collected and transplanted to house gardens, placing it firmly in the
category of semi-cultivar (Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:242). Belief in the plant’s
ability to repel malevolent entities makes it a desirable ‘‘protective’’ botanical in
house gardens, while ensuring a ready source of leaves for the preparation of
tobacco snuff and medicine (Breedlove and Laughlin 1993).
Tobacco Nomenclature
Tobacco is generically referred to as moy in Tzotzil and may in Tzeltal, the
two principal languages spoken in the region. This name refers to the living
Nicotiana plant, the harvested leaves, as well as the ground tobacco-lime chewing
tobacco preparation referred to in local Spanish as pilico (‘‘tobacco powder’’ or
snuff).
In addition to this generic name, a number of more expressive metaphorical
names (referring principally to prepared tobacco snuff) are also in circulation. In
FIGURE 1. Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum L., growing wild under the eaves of a house in San Cristo
´bal de
Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico. Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 7
both Tzotzil- and Tzeltal-speaking communities, tobacco is referred to as ‘‘elder
brother’’ (bankilal) or ‘‘angel’’ (anjel). Less common names for tobacco in
Zinacanta
´n include ‘‘great old man’’ (muk’ta mol) for chewing tobacco, and
‘‘lord’’ (ojov) when mixed into a curing salve to treat supernaturally-induced
aching and swollen legs (Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:242). Similarly, tobacco is
called ‘‘holy man’’ (ch’ul winik) in Venustiano Carranza (Berlin et al. 1990:99).
Nicotiana Ethnotaxonomy
Two folk varietals of Nicotiana are locally distinguished based on the color of
the flowers, which occur in both pink and white forms. In the Tzotzil community
of Chamula, the pink-flowered variety known as ‘‘male tobacco’’ (vinikil moy) is
considered to be strongest, and is the only one used for medicinal or protective
purposes. The white-flowered ‘‘female tobacco’’ (antzil moy), in contrast, is said
to ‘‘lack strength’’ (mu’yuk yip), and to ‘‘be of no use’’ (mu xtun) or ‘‘to be
ineffective’’ (mu sbalin). Breedlove and Laughlin (1993) described a similar
pattern of use in the nearby Tzotzil township of Zinacanta
´n.
While discussing the difference in potency between the two Nicotiana
varieties, one of my Chamula Tzotzil collaborators, an j’ilol or traditional curer,
explained:
There are two kinds of tobacco: white-flowered (sak snich) and pink-
flowered (tzoj snich). The pink-flowered one comes from Our Father in
Heaven [the Sun-Christ deity]. It’s much better [because] it has color, it
has strength. As for the white flowered one, it’s ‘‘women’s tobacco.’’ It’s
white because the woman [Our Mother in Heaven, the Moon-Mary deity]
handled it long ago… she planted this one, she had her own tobacco back
then. But the flower [of her tobacco] was white, not pink. It has strength,
but really just a little, it seems. [This is because] the woman had less
power. But Our Father, he had much more strength. It’s the same with
tobacco—the female has less strength… Now we only use the pink-
flowered one.
This short narrative frames the genesis of the two varieties—as well as the
variation in their power or strength—in terms of the gendered differences
between the progenitor deities said to have cultivated the first tobacco plants.
Like human beings, they consider the ‘‘pink’’ male tobacco to be stronger and
more effective than its ‘‘white’’ female counterpart.
Preparation and Use of Oral Tobacco Snuff
Among traditionalist Maya in the Chiapas highlands, tobacco use centers on
the ingestion of a coarsely ground mixture of raw tobacco leaves and slaked lime.
While knowledge of tobacco preparation and use is distributed universally
throughout the highlands, the eastern Tzeltal-speaking communities (particular-
ly Tenejapa, Oxchuc, Chanal, and Cancuc) preserve the most vigorous traditions
of tobacco use. In more distant parts of this region, old men still carry tobacco
gourds and use snuff in both secular and ritual contexts. In the western Tzotzil
communities, in contrast, tobacco use has become much more restricted; while it
8 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
remains central to many rituals and therapeutic practices, daily use as a stimulant
is now rare.
Preparation of Tobacco Snuff
In the Tzotzil-speaking community of San Juan Chamula, the production of
tobacco is limited to men, who prepare it for personal and family use; although
women can use tobacco, they do not usually prepare it. This gender-restriction is
not universal; in the Tzeltal communities of Chanal and Oxchuc, widows and
older unmarried women prepare their own tobacco. In all communities,
however, both men and women use the same locally preferred variant, usually
the pink ‘‘male’’ variety. Preparation of the mixture is limited to Monday,
Wednesday, Friday, or Saturday (the days when the saints and other protective
deities are guarding the earth from malign influences). Preparing the mixture on
other days is said to yield a tobacco without strength, or worse yet, one that will
sicken the user.
The preparation process, as documented in San Juan Chamula, can be
divided into five general stages:
1. Leaf Collection—Fresh Nicotiana leaves (yanal moy) are harvested as needed
from the pink-flowered, male tobacco (vinikil moy). They are left to cure in
the shade for a day or two, allowing much of the moisture to dissipate,
thereby concentrating the chemical constituents in the leaves. Processing the
leaves without this ‘‘laying back’’ period reduces the potency (yip) of the
snuff, since much of the plant’s bioactively rich liquids are squeezed out and
discarded during preparation. Approximately 18 medium leaves produce
enough snuff to fill an average tobacco gourd.
2. De-Veining—The leaves are cleaned and carefully de-veined. The lamina is
stripped out from between the coarse veins and stem, and collected in a
basket or on a cloth (Figure 2A). The veins and stem, too fibrous and moist to
be ground into a palatable chewing tobacco, are generally discarded.
3. Pounding—The lamina is pounded into a moist pulp (Figure 2B). Once
reduced to a course mash, it is ground with a stone to medium coarseness,
similar in texture to ground oregano leaves.
4. Addition of Admixtures—Slaked limestone (tan) is added to the coarse mash
as an alkalizing agent, and processing continues (Figure 2C). Commercially
produced lime (kaligra) is sometimes substituted. If the resulting mixture is
too piquant, its ‘‘heat’’ is reduced by adding more tobacco leaves. Other
ingredients (such as camphor or orange rinds) are sometimes added.
Camphor is said to make the snuff ‘‘hotter’’ (mas k’ixin), as well as producing
a more agreeable flavor (mas lek smuil). Others maintain that lime is the only
acceptable admixture and that adulterated tobacco preparations, while tasty,
will not protect the user from supernatural threats.
5. Storage in Tobacco Gourd—After the tobacco has been pounded to the desired
coarseness, it is packed into a small, highly polished gourd container (tzual
moy, tobacco gourd) for easy storage, transportation, and use (Figure 2D).
During preparation, tobacco and its admixtures are referred to only
obliquely, to avoid weakening the snuff’s potency. In Chamula, tobacco is called
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 9
takivaj (tamale) and the slaked lime is called ich’ (chile pepper) or yich’il (‘‘it’s
chile pepper’’). Once prepared and in its gourd, the snuff is sometimes referred
to as ja’as (zapote) or k’anaste
´(yellow zapote). The mixture cannot be sold;
rather, it must be shared freely. Should the recipient of gifted tobacco express
thanks, the tobacco will be ruined. Rather than curing and protecting the user, the
plant will now inflict diarrhea and bloating. These prohibitions on the exchange
of tobacco suggest that, in the past, ritualized sharing may have been integrated
into everyday social exchanges to a greater extent than at present.
Tobacco Ingestion and Physiological Effects
In everyday use, a small quantity of snuff is poured into the palm, then
tossed into the mouth, where it is held either on the tongue or between the cheek
and the jaw for an extended time (Figure 3). The juice from the tobacco quid is
allowed to run down the throat or is swallowed. In both Tzeltal and Tzotzil
Maya, this form of tobacco ingestion is described not as chewing or sucking, but
as ‘‘eating’’ (-lo’).
Anyone who has used freshly prepared green tobacco can attest to its
potency: swallowing the juice produces a marked burning sensation in the
nasopharyngeal region, often accompanied by a burning constriction (-tzukilan)
in the upper chest, leading to shallow respiration and shortness of breath (suk
o’nton), and sometimes mild fits of hiccupping (jik’ubajel). Soon after, as the
nicotine enters the bloodstream and gains access to the brain, mild vertigo begins,
FIGURE 2. Preparation of tobacco snuff, San Juan Chamula 1998: (A) de-veining fresh Nicotiana leaves,
(B) pounding the lamina, (C) adding slaked limestone to the pounded tobacco, (D) filling the tobacco
gourd (tzual moy) with freshly-prepared tobacco. Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
10 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
lasting 5 to 10 minutes. The Tzotzil refer to this as ‘‘becoming drunk on tobacco’’
(-yak’ub ta moy), or ‘‘to be rendered dumb’’ (-bolibtas). Indeed, freshly prepared
tobacco snuff is sometimes referred to in Tzotzil as a ‘‘stupefier’’ (bolibtasobil;
Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:582). Generalized piloerection is typical soon after
ingestion. Several informants reported that their ‘‘head grows large’’ (-mukib
jol), referring to tingling of the scalp when the hair follicles feel as though they
are standing on end. Following this, a feeling of calm, stimulated focus
predominates.
According to Wilbert (1987:137), oral administration when little or no tobacco
juice is expectorated maximizes enteric absorption of nicotine—the principal
alkaloid in tobacco—through the buccal cavity, the stomach, as well as the small
and large intestine (see also D’Orlando and Fox 2004). Indeed, nicotine absorption
from tobacco quids is two to three times greater than that obtained from smoked
tobaccos (Benowitz et al. 1988). Absorption rates depend on the size of the quid,
fineness of grinding, the length of time the quid is retained, its relative movement
within the mouth, and the presence of alkalizing agents such as lime; but under
optimal conditions, total absorption is possible (Wilbert 1987:137). Since the
nicotine alkaloid is miscible in salivary secretions, rapid diffusion across the
epithelium and vascular barriers provide ready access to the heart and circulatory
system, thereby elevating blood levels of nicotine (Wilbert 1987:137–138).
Traditional tobacco use offers many benefits to people who spend much of
their lives working outside. At controlled doses, nicotine reduces fatigue and
pain, eases hunger, reduces the skin’s surface temperature, and produces marked
central nervous system stimulation, memory-enhancement, elevation of mood,
and an increase in attentional focus (Badio and Daly 1994; Benowitz et al. 1990;
McGehee et al. 1995; McGehee and Role 1996; Newhouse et al. 2004).
The Tobacco Gourd (Tzual Moy)
In past times, most highland Maya men carried in their shoulder bag a small,
highly polished gourd filled with prepared tobacco. Made from one of several
FIGURE 3. Chamula man taking tobacco snuff, 2003. Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 11
forms of Lagenaria siceraria (Mol.) Standl (Cucurbitaceae), these simple undeco-
rated gourds are known as tzual moy (‘tobacco gourd’), or more literally, yavil
moy (‘tobacco’s place/vessel’). While tobacco gourds are rarely carried
nowadays, they remain the universally favored container for tobacco snuff. In
fact, they are the only containers suitable for freshly ground tobacco; porous
vessels (such as those made from ceramic) draw the juice or ‘‘power’’ out of the
tobacco, and fresh snuff quickly rots in non-porous containers such as bottles or
plastic containers, ruining the flavor and potency of the preparation.
The typical tobacco gourd is 100–130 mm in length, with a maximum width
of 75–100 mm. Suitable specimens are sold in regional markets but are quite
expensive; a typical container with no stopper costs about $10 pesos, roughly
20% of a man’s daily wage. New gourds are matte honey-yellow, but gain a
deeply polished red-brown patina through many years of use and storage in
smoky dwellings. Like the tobacco plant, gourds are identified by gender. ‘‘Male
gourds’’ (vinik tzu or stot) tend to be shaped like large chili peppers, and are
distinguished by their long, pointed ‘‘tail’’ (neil). ‘‘Female gourds’’ (antzil tzu or
sme’), in contrast, are rounded or tear-shaped (volvol), and are said to resemble a
breast (Figure 4). The use of tobacco gourds is generally restricted to men (and
female curers), who carry either male or female gourds, depending on personal
preference.
In a number of Tzeltal communities, tobacco gourds were traditionally
paired with a long deer bone spatula or needle (sbakel stzual may, ‘the tobacco
gourd’s bone’) attached by a thin cord of leather, cotton, or henequen fiber
(Figure 5). This bone spatula was used to break up the hard ball of tobacco that
forms inside the gourd as the moist tobacco dries. Gourds with bone spatulas
appear to have been used throughout the Tzeltal area (especially in the
communities of Tenejapa, Cancuc, Oxchuc, and Chanal), but are now quite rare.
To my knowledge, Tenejapa is the only community in which bone tobacco
dippers can still be found, albeit rarely. In most Tzotzil communities, a simple
FIGURE 4. Female’’ (left) and ‘‘Male’’ (right) gourds with prepared tobacco snuff, San Juan Chamula.
Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
12 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
stick (referred to as sjotz’obil moy, ‘‘tobacco crusher’’) is used as needed, then
discarded.
Ancient Maya Tobacco Vessels
This tradition of personal tobacco containers appears to extend back to the
Ancient Maya of the Classic period (A.D. 250–850). Carlson (2007b:11) identified
a class of small ceramic vessels common during the Middle to Late Classic (A.D.
550–850)—often referred to in the literature as ‘‘poison bottles’’ or ‘‘pilgrim’s
flasks’’—that may have served as containers for tobacco. These are typically
flask-shaped: discoidal, with a flat base and lateral handles for suspension. Many
feature codex-style scenes and inscriptions, and some display tobacco leaf or
deity motifs. The presence of enema scenes and specific inscriptions identifying
the flasks as ‘‘the dwelling place for tobacco’’ (yotoot u may) support the claim
that these vessels were used as containers for various forms of tobacco, including
snuff, tobacco juice, or enema liquids derived from tobacco leaf infusions
(Carlson 2007b:12; Houston et al. 2006:114). Indeed, according to Carlson
(2007b:11) these small flasks represent ‘‘the oldest known tobacco snuff bottle
tradition in the world’’ (see Houston et al. 2006:105, 114–116 for an extended
discussion of these flasks).
During the Late Classic period (A.D. 600–850), these bottles were traded
throughout the Maya region, suggesting not only exchange of vessels, but also
their contents (Houston et al. 2006:116). While the contemporary highland Maya
store and transport tobacco snuff exclusively in the small gourd containers
described above, it is interesting to note that an Early Classic ceramic ‘‘poison
bottle’’ executed in the form of a gourd was recovered from Uaxactun (Smith
1955 cited in Houston et al. 2006:114). Similarly, Deal (1998:199) identified
antique ceramic containers shaped like gourds from Chanal, reporting that, while
no longer manufactured or used, these vessels served as temporary containers
for, among other things, ground tobacco. The use of gourd-shaped ceramic flasks
FIGURE 5. Antique tobacco gourd with bone spatula, Tenejapa. Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 13
for tobacco storage in the eastern Tzeltal region suggests a line of continuity
between ancient Maya ceramic tobacco bottles, ceramic gourd vessels, and gourd
containers typical of the contemporary highland Maya described in this article.
Tobacco as Primordial Medicine
In a world dominated by the use of commercial tobacco, we are quickly
losing our connection with both the positive physiological effects and the
powerful mind-altering powers of traditional Nicotiana preparations. Among the
contemporary Tzotzil and Tzeltal Maya, however, awareness of the physio-
transformative power of tobacco remains strong. Indeed, native tobacco is
regarded as a prototypical medicine or ‘‘powerful substance’’ (poxil), offering a
range of therapeutic and protective benefits.
Maffi (1996) argued that the proto-Tzeltal-Tzotzil term for medicine (*pox)—
which she glossed as ‘‘powerful substance’’—referred prototypically to the
medicinal use of tobacco. Today, the word pox refers almost universally to locally
produced cane liquor; yet entries in Colonial dictionaries consistently link pox to
various medicinal substances, most of which were smeared or rubbed on the
body, a form of tobacco administration that remains common in the Chiapas
highlands (Maffi 1996). Contemporary Zinacantec Tzotzil verb forms derived
from the word pox retain this close connection to tobacco; the intransitive verb
-poxin means ‘‘treat self with tobacco, anoint body’’ while the transitive form
-poxta is glossed as ‘‘administer medicine, prepare chewing tobacco by adding
lime’’ (Laughlin 1975:286 cited in Maffi 1996:33). Similarly, the derived term
jpoxtavanej (herbal curer or ‘‘one who cures with powerful substances’’) remains
in circulation throughout the highlands.
In highland Maya ethnomedicine, a key element in therapeutic strength is the
ability to ‘‘attack’’ or ‘‘overpower’’ an illness, a quality usually associated with
bitterness (ch’a) and piquancy (ya), both of which are attributed to tobacco (Brett
1994). It is generally expected that a person who consumes powerful medicines
will feel a range of adverse physical effects and that the patient may well feel
worse as the medicine struggles with the illness (Brett 1994). Tobacco ingestion,
particularly in liquid forms, can readily produce symptoms of mild nicotine
toxicity: racing heartbeat, sweating, nausea, stomachache, and vomiting. When
understood in terms of highland Maya ethnopharmacognosy, these ‘‘toxic’’
effects are not viewed negatively; rather, they serve as manifestations of tobacco’s
inherent therapeutic ‘‘power,’’ -ip, and ‘‘heat,’’ -k’ixin, (Berlin and Berlin
1996:299).
Therapeutic Uses of Tobacco
Depending on the condition being treated, tobacco is administered
therapeutically in the following forms: jaxbil (‘rubbed on body’), lo’bil (‘eaten’),
k’ixnabil (‘wilted by fire’), atinbil (‘bathed in’), uch’bil (‘drunk’), tub’tabil
(‘sprayed from mouth/spit out’), and pak’bil or lambil (‘applied as a bandage or
compress’). In many cases, the leaves are pounded along with ash or slaked lime,
added to water or cane liquor, then drunk as a tea. Warm tobacco leaves are also
commonly applied as plasters or compresses, sometimes with admixtures. The
14 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
plant is always administered fresh, and the leaf is the only part of the plant that is
used.
Throughout the highlands, tobacco is the most common remedy for a wide
range of gastrointestinal ailments (Berlin and Berlin 1996:297). To treat
stomachache, ground tobacco is drunk with warm water. Berlin and Berlin
(1996:301) recorded that the principal admixtures used to treat abdominal pain
include garlic cloves (axux;Allium sativum L.), the leaves of Baccharis vaccinioides
Gardn. (mes te’), and the leaves of Lagascea helianthifolia H.B.K. (papan te’). In
Zinacanta
´n, dried chile peppers are added to the decoction to increase its ‘‘heat’’
and therapeutic potential (Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:243).
A number of tobacco-based remedies serve to alleviate painful abdominal
bloating (pumel,t’imel): the juice from chewing tobacco is swallowed, the
powder rubbed on the belly, or mixed with water and drunk. To cure ‘‘wind’’ or
aire (ik’), ground tobacco snuff is ‘‘eaten,’’, drunk as a warm infusion, or rubbed
on the affected body part. In Zinacanta
´n, people drink a tobacco-garlic-urine
mixture to treat constipation and urinary stoppage (makel), and they apply
tobacco leaves to the stomach in the form of a cross to eliminate intestinal worms
(Breedlove and Laughlin 1993:242–243).
To treat supernaturally-induced swelling and/or aching of the foot and leg
(poslom,potzlom), a mixture of tobacco, garlic, and women’s urine is massaged
onto the affected body part following therapeutic bloodletting (Breedlove and
Laughlin 1993:243). More simply, the limb may be rubbed with tobacco, alcohol,
and garlic, and then wrapped in a cloth. Poultices of fire-warmed wilted leaves
are also used. In Oxchuc, people apply warmed poultices of tobacco leaves,
sometimes mixed with leaves from Brugmansia, to broken bones, sprains, and
bruises. They do this in the family steambath, where the warm, moist heat of the
bath combines with the ‘‘heat’’ of the herbal remedy to relax tensed muscles,
facilitating therapeutic massage or other manipulations (Groark 1997, 2005).
In both Oxchuc and Chamula, tobacco leaves are used in the treatment of a
form of aggressive madness known as chuvaj. Following therapeutic bloodletting
from the forehead—intended to expel the ‘‘stupid blood’’ (bol ch’ich’) that
precipitates the condition—raw tobacco leaves are used to wipe the blood away
from the small wounds. In Chamula, a mixture of ground tobacco and garlic
cloves in a base of warm cane liquor serves the same purpose. The juice and odor
of the tobacco repels the evil forces that might invade the patient’s head in the
form of ‘‘aires,’’ thereby preventing the condition from recurring or worsening.
Breedlove and Laughlin (1993:243) reported additional uses for tobacco in
Zinacanta
´n: a mixture of tobacco and warm water is drunk as a purgative to
‘‘vomit up’’ tuberculosis (sak obal); taken with cold water, tobacco serves as an
abortifacient; the worm that is said to cause toothaches and dental caries can be
killed with tobacco juice, and the same juice can be dripped in the eye to cure
yellow spots that sometimes appear in the sclera; dermatological ailments treated
with tobacco (often mixed with garlic) include gangrene (mos), mange (sep’), and
boils (chin).
Commenting on its diverse therapeutic applications, a Tzotzil-speaking man
from Chamula concluded, ‘‘It’s a strong curer, this [tobacco], a strong medicine’’
(ep jpoxtavanej li’e, ep poxil…). The use of the term ‘‘curer’’ (jpoxtavanej, ‘‘one
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 15
who cures with medicines/powerful substances’’) in this context is instructive;
this term is normally used for people who cure with herbal medicines, and
applying it to a plant suggests an inherently curative potential, one that exists
apart from the skills or ‘‘gifts’’ of the person who administers it.
Magico-Protective Uses of Tobacco
Throughout the Chiapas highlands, tobacco is accorded great respect as a
personal protector. While tobacco in all forms is considered to be ‘‘medicine’’
(poxil), once the leaves have been mixed with slaked lime (or other admixtures,
such as garlic) it becomes a ‘‘magical protector’’ (metz’tael), often referred to in
Spanish as secreto or secret. The tobacco snuff preparation is said to ‘‘defend’’
(-poj) the user: curing illness, repelling evil forces, blinding witches and earth
lords, paralyzing snakes, dissipating storms, protecting from lighting strikes,
ransoming captured souls, and conferring an afterlife of rest and repose. Along
with candles, incense, and rum, tobacco also serves as one of the primordial
foods of the deities, offered to them during fiestas and rituals through proxy
ingestion by religious officeholders (Figure 6).
Based on its unique protective potential, Page Pliego (2005:143) described
tobacco as occupying an ‘‘intermediate position between deity and amulet.’’
Similarly, Holland (1963:107) reported that the Tzotzil of San Andres Larrainzar
regard tobacco as a sort of quasi-deity; one that requires no worship or offerings,
but acts as a protector by its mere presence, so long as it is shown respect.
Breedlove and Laughlin (1993:242) also highlighted the protective uses of the
tobacco-lime mixture, which confers the ability to ‘‘stupefy, paralyze, blind, and
drive away adversaries of all kinds.’’ Indeed, such therapeutic and apotropaic
uses are at the forefront of contemporary highland Maya tobacco use and figure
prominently in many stories and anecdotes. Summing up its cultural
significance, Breedlove and Laughlin (1993:242) concluded, ‘‘No other plant…
is accorded the magical power, both for good and evil, as that assigned to
tobacco. Although this power is focused on chewing tobacco, it is also present in
the mere leaf.’’
The most common method of protecting oneself with tobacco involves
rubbing (jaxbil) tobacco powder over the body, covering the abdomen, forelimbs,
and crown of the head. This is particularly common when traveling at night, or
after coming into contact with some dangerous force. The quality most closely
associated with tobacco’s ability to protect the user from supernatural threats is
its strong odor (ik,smuil), a quality shared by garlic. People in Chamula say that
the tobacco-lime mixture ‘‘glows’’ in the presence of danger, producing an
intense green-yellow light that repels evil entities such as witches and demons,
and ‘‘burns’’ (-k’ak’) them should they try to touch the protected person. A curer
explained to me, ‘‘Now that you’re all covered [with tobacco] you have your
light. It’s just like electricity—[the evil ones] don’t want to touch it because it will
give them a shock. [Covered with tobacco] your body is just the same as a live
electrical cable, nothing will come to molest you…’’
The tobacco gourd, like the tobacco plant itself, is closely linked to protective
powers, particularly the ability to safeguard the owner during travels away from
16 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
home. Indeed, tobacco-filled gourds continue to serve as general protective
talismans and are often stored on the home altar. Several people I spoke to
explained that the gourd gains its strength from the constant absorption of
concentrated tobacco juice, which gradually infuses the container with the same
power as the plant.
Like tobacco, the gourd is said to ‘‘glow’’ or emit light when dangerous
forces draw near or when its owner is in need of assistance. In a tale from
Zinacanta
´n reported by Breedlove and Laughlin (1993:242), Tzotzil men working
on a lowland coffee plantation slept with tobacco gourds next to their heads.
When the evil-intentioned plantation owner looked in upon the workers, he saw
flames dancing on the ground next to the gourds, signaling the approaching
danger. Describing the Tzeltal community of Tenejapa, Maffi (1996:42) recounted
a widely-held belief relating to the protective role of the tobacco gourds,
‘‘…should one become lost somewhere along a path away from home, especially
FIGURE 6. Tobacco gourds and cigarettes on altar during fiesta (top); religious officials blessing
tobacco with rosary (bottom), Santo Toma
´s Oxchuc, 1992. Photograph by Kevin P. Groark.
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 17
while drunk—and maybe even pass out and fall in a ditch—the small gourd
would begin to shine brightly, revealing one’s location to rescuers. Older
Tenejapans… still [swear] to having witnessed this phenomenon.’’
For analytic purposes, the protective uses of tobacco can be arranged into
three broad classes: 1) When used to paralyze or neutralize some immediate
threat, tobacco is referred to as syaluobil (‘‘that which lowers something’’); 2)
when used to repel the attack of witches and protect a person’s soul or
possessions from the unwanted attention of malevolent forces, tobacco is known
as makobil (‘‘that which closes off or blocks’’); and 3) when used to protect or
‘‘cure’’ animals or property from supernatural attack, it is called metz’tael (‘‘that
which magically protects’’). Each of these apotropaic uses is discussed below.
Yaluobil: ‘‘That Which Lowers’’
Tobacco’s magical ability to incapacitate or neutralize threatening entities or
forces that are immediately present is referred to as syaluobil (‘‘that which
lowers or neutralizes something’’). Given the close relationship between chewing
tobacco and the deities of earth and sky known as ‘‘angels’’ (anjeletik), tobacco
powder protects from the dangers posed by these supernatural forces and the
diverse creatures and phenomena under their control. Prepared tobacco is widely
appreciated for its defense against meteorological threats; when rubbed on the
body, it protects one from lightning strikes. A man pursued by a sickness-causing
rainbow can neutralize it by scattering tobacco powder on the ground (Breedlove
and Laughlin 1993:243). Similarly, tobacco juice spat toward an approaching
storm will divert the winds, driving away the horned serpent (xulub chon) said to
ride inside these destructive tempests. Indeed, spitting tobacco juice at snakes of
all types—said to be the ‘‘dogs’’ of the anjeletik—can paralyzed them; and
should one be bitten, a paste of chewing tobacco neutralizes the venom.
Makobil: ‘‘That Which Closes or Blocks’’
When used as a prophylactic to prevent supernatural or ordinary illness,
tobacco’s ability to ‘‘block’’ (-mak) the affliction is emphasized. For example,
tobacco is referred to as smakobil chamel (‘‘the thing which closes off or blocks
illness’’) when used to prevent supernaturally inflicted illness, and protective
tobacco rubs or baths are the final stage in many shamanic curing ceremonies.
Ground tobacco and garlic, mixed with cane liquor and rubbed on the head,
forearms, and calves during certain curing ceremonies, protects the curer and
any observers from being ‘‘seized’’ (-tzakvan) by the sickness that is expelled
from the patient’s body. Warm baths of tobacco water (usually sprinkled on the
head) also serve to prevent malign forces from returning to afflict the patient
during the recovery period. In addition, ground tobacco sprinkled in the form of
a cross in the doorway and along the walls of the house seals it from evil
influences, repelling witches and the sicknesses they bring. Tobacco powder
rubbed on the body also prevents excessive dreaming, which is linked to assault
by witches.
Should a person slip and fall near a waterhole, river, or cave (many of which
are inhabited by ‘‘angels’’ or ‘‘earth lords’’ who may snatch the soul of the
person), shock-induced soul loss can be prevented by promptly rubbing tobacco
18 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
on the body. And if, by chance, the soul is taken captive ‘‘there where the earth
has its owner,’’ tobacco powder serves as a ransom. A small quantity of tobacco,
along with other ‘‘replacement offerings’’ (k’exolil), is buried at the precise spot
where the person fell in exchange for the soul. During the soul retrieval, all
members of the curing party rub tobacco and garlic on their bodies in order to
protect their own souls from being seized.
A Chamula curer explained that they use tobacco in soul collecting rituals
because the place where the person fell is ‘‘living earth’’ (kuxul banamil),
controlled by an earth deity (anjel) who acts as its ‘‘owner.’’ Since tobacco is also
called anjel, ‘‘the two angels talk together’’ in order to affect an exchange.
Another man explained that tobacco’s strong odor distracts the earth lord’s
attention from the captive soul, causing him ‘‘to forget [the victim] completely in
both head and heart’’ (ta sch’ay yo’nton,ta sch’aybe sjol), thereby allowing the
curer to retrieve it. In reference to this distractive potential, in Zinacanta
´n tobacco
is sometimes called makob ssat balamil (‘‘closer of the earth’s eyes’’), makob jak’
chamel (‘‘witch stopper’’) or makob utz kolo’ (‘‘evil stopper’’; Breedlove and
Laughlin 1993:582). It is interesting to note that Chamula folklore holds that earth
lords enjoy only smoking tobacco; the rank odor of chewing tobacco repels them.
Metz’tael: Magical Protection
Tobacco is also used as a general protective talisman (metz’tael,sekreto),
shielding the user from the sickening effects of strong emotions in others. In
Chamula, parents protect their babies from ‘‘hot eye’’ (k’elsat)—a sickness
caused by the benign envy of an admiring person—by tying tobacco, garlic, and
chile peppers around the infant’s belly before it is carried about in public. A
pregnant woman can also protect her unborn fetus from attack by the ‘‘heat’’ of
other infants (an illness known as ti’el, ‘‘a biting’’), by wrapping this same
tobacco-garlic-pepper talisman around her own belly.
In addition to protecting people, tobacco is used to magically guards objects,
animals, and crops against damage or molestation (a procedure known as
metz’tael ta moy, ‘‘protection with tobacco’’). People rub a mixture of tobacco, cane
liquor, and garlic on the bellies and flanks of horses before ritual racing in the town
center of Chamula. Common belief holds that invidious people send pathogenic
wind or ‘‘aire’’ (ik’) into the horses’ bellies, causing them to fatigue quickly or
stumble. The tobacco rub confers greater ‘‘heat’’ and speed upon the animals, while
protecting them from these malign influences. The same mixture rubbed on sheep’s
bellies similarly eliminates intrusive ‘‘aires.’’ In Zinacanta
´n, Breedlove and
Laughlin (1993:243) reported that tobacco powder and garlic are sometimes
sprinkled around cornfields to protect crops from marauding raccoons.
Tobacco is also used to combat a class of stinking supernatural animals
known as potzlom. These animals, which are said to take the form of a small fox-
like animal, are variously said to be witch transformations or their malevolent
representatives. Should one of these creatures approach a house at night, the
owner must undress and rub his body with tobacco, a process thought to render
him invisible, before confronting the animal. If the man succeeds in killing it, he
throws ground tobacco, garlic, and cane liquor on the corpse to prevent it from
reanimating (in this context, tobacco is considered a syaluobil). Vigilantes
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 19
traditionally protected themselves with tobacco rubs when killing witches, lest
the maleficent soul of the evildoer pass into the body of one of his assailants at
the moment of death.
Similar protective applications are used on objects. In the past, shotguns for
killing both witches and potzlom were ‘‘magically empowered’’ or ‘‘cured’’
(metz’tabil) by rubbing the barrel with ‘‘hot’’ substances such as tobacco, garlic,
and male pubic hair before the attack. During religious ceremonies, ground
tobacco is rubbed on cooking pots to protect them from witches or demons; if not
‘‘cured’’ in this way, the pots may fracture during cooking, spilling their valuable
contents into the fire. Tobacco is also applied to tamale pots to ensure that the
food turns out well; if not, it is said that half of the tamales will come out well-
cooked, while the other half remains raw.
While tobacco offers great protective potential here on ‘‘the face of the earth,’’
it is of even greater importance as a sign or indicator (senyail) of virtue in the
Tzotzil underworld. Frequent use of tobacco snuff is believed to leave an
invisible and indelible green stain in the center of the palm, blessing the user with
an afterlife of ease and repose. A Chamula man explains:
If you know how to eat tobacco, it can be of use to your soul as well.
There will already be a sign on your palm (oy xa senyail ta ak’ob), your
hand will be green, really green [right in the center where you place the
tobacco]. This is because when you were alive, you ate tobacco. So, if you
die or if something happens to you, the tobacco [mark] is there on your
palm. You will sit resting in the shade of a tree [in the underworld] while
the other people work in their fields. If you didn’t eat tobacco, you would
be given some kind of bad thing [as punishment]… So, it’s really much
better if you know how to eat tobacco, then there is no torment [after
death]—you’ve got the sign there on your palm…
Depending on the informant and context, there is some variation in the
application of these terms. For instance, when using tobacco to paralyze a threatening
animal, I have heard it referred to as both syaluobil and metz’tael.Similarly,tobacco
used to prevent nightmares can be either a syaluobil (if its therapeutic effect is
focused on ‘‘lowering’’ or eliminating an existing condition), or makobil (if it is
employed primarily as a prophylactic measure to ‘‘block’’ dream affliction).
Cosmological Associations of Tobacco and Gourd
In order to understand tobacco’s significance as a quasi-supernatural
therapeutic and protective agent, we must examine more closely its place within
local cosmology and mythology, both past and present. Although Ancient Maya
cosmological beliefs surrounding tobacco remain obscure, ethnographic and
ethnohistoric investigations shed some light on pre-Columbian tobacco ideology
and practice. Similarly, recent interpretive advances in the fields of Ancient Maya
iconography and epigraphy have deepened our understanding of contemporary
Mayan tobacco use and associated beliefs. In this section I review these data in
order to contextualize highland Maya tobacco culture within broader temporal
and regional patterns.
20 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
Tobacco as ‘‘Old God L’’ and ‘‘Elder Brother’’
John Carlson argues that the Classic Maya ‘‘Old God L’’ (most famously
depicted as an old man smoking a large cigar in the Temple of the Cross in
Palenque) is ‘‘the personification of tobacco itself, in all of its forms’’ (Carlson
2007b:11; see also Carlson 2007a; Miller and Taube 1993:112, 147, 169). Based on
extensive epigraphic and iconographic research, he suggests that God L was
referred to as both May (‘‘tobacco’’) and probably Ch’ul May (‘‘Holy Tobacco’’ or
‘‘Holy Medicine’’). Interestingly, tobacco is referred to in Zinacantec Tzotzil as
‘‘great old man’’ (muk’ta mol), perhaps reflecting a survival of this close
connection between Old God L and tobacco. This deity is the ‘‘First Shaman’’ or
‘‘First Priest,’’ and was the principal deity associated with medicine and curing.
Along with Chac Chel (‘‘Old Goddess O’’), the patroness of midwives and
healers, he forms half of the ‘‘Primal Ancestral Pair,’’ perhaps linked to the cults
of the Sun and Moon. Old God L is often depicted facing God K (‘‘Smoking
Lightning Axe’’), a deity related to the Mayan Storm God complex.
This association between tobacco and deities of storm and sky can still be
found in fragments of contemporary highland Maya cosmology. In many
communities tobacco snuff is referred to as ‘‘Older Brother’’ (bankilal). This
name indexes local cosmological beliefs in which Tobacco is explicitly identified
as the elder brother of Thunderbolt (chauk,anjel). It is said that Older Brother
Tobacco scolded Younger Brother Thunderbolt for striking people, and that
tobacco now serves to protect people from meteorological disturbances such as
destructive ‘‘thieving winds’’ (j’elek’ ik’), lightning (chauk), and sickness-giving
rainbows (vaknabal). A Tzotzil man from Chamula explained the relationship:
Thunderbolt is younger brother of tobacco. Tobacco has power over
storms because he is the older brother of lightning and thunder. If the
wind and thunderbolts come, tobacco dissipates them. The two talk
together—Thunderbolt up above and Tobacco here [in the gourd]. They
talk with each other and the storm calms. Since tobacco is the older
brother, he has more power. He diminishes the power of his younger
brother, thunder and lightning. That’s why [tobacco] is called ‘‘elder
brother’’…
Based on similar ethnographic data, Carlson (2007b:11) speculated that the
aforementioned Old God L (‘‘Holy Tobacco’’) and God K (‘‘Smoking Lightning
Axe’’) are related to one another as elder and junior brother, paralleling precisely
the contemporary Tobacco-Thunderbolt/Elder Brother-Younger Brother associ-
ation.
Tobacco as ‘‘Angel’’
In Chamula Tzotzil the favored name for prepared tobacco snuff is anjel
(‘‘angel’’). This term references the same network of associations as the ‘‘older
brother’’ appellation, emphasizing the connection between tobacco and a class of
celestial and earthly deities. Among both Tzeltal and Tzotzil speakers, anjel
refers principally to thunder and lightning, as well as tobacco. The name also
refers to the various ‘‘earth lords’’ (yajval vitz) that inhabit local landforms (such
as waterholes, mountains, and caves), all of whom are closely associated with the
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 21
production of both nourishing rains and destructive winds (Mendelson 1967;
Thompson 1970:267–270). Owing to its relation as ‘‘elder brother’’ to Thunder-
bolt, tobacco exercises control over these ‘‘angels’’ and the elemental forces with
which they are associated. This senior-junior (bankilal-itz’inal) relationship
explains tobacco’s ability to defend against dangers posed by these potentially
malevolent forces of earth and sky.
Ko
¨hler’s (1995) ethnohistoric work on the relationship between the rain gods,
earth lords, and ‘‘angels’’ illuminates some of the cosmological underpinnings of
highland Maya tobacco belief. During the Colonial Period, tobacco appears to have
become associated with San Miguel Arca
´ngel, the most powerful of the Christian
angels. In the Yucatan, the name canjel is used in reference to San Miguel, as well as
various elements and phenomena associated with the rain gods, such as thunder,
lightning, and storms (Redfield and Villa Rojas 1934:116 cited in Ko
¨hler 1995:123).
Ko
¨hler (1995) argued that canjel derives from a contracted form of San Miguel’s title
‘‘Arca
´ngel’’ (archangel) perhaps also explaining why he was regarded by the Yucatec
Maya as the most ‘‘senior’’ (or bankilal) of the local chaacs,orraingods.Herewe
find yet another likely historical connection explaining the origin of both the
‘‘senior/elder brother’’ name, as well as the close association between tobacco and
‘‘angelic’’ protective power. Drawing on the work of Lehmann (1949), Ko
¨hler
(1995:125) pointed out that the story of San Miguel Arca
´ngel played an important
pedagogical role in the evangelization efforts of early missionaries, whoemphasized
that many of the beings worshipped by the Maya as gods (such as ‘‘earth deities’’)
were actually fallen angels defeated by San Miguel and banished from Heaven. This
evangelical account of a battle in the sky between warring angelic armies connected
the Christian ‘‘angels’’ to the thunderous rain gods of the ancient Maya, and the
iconographic representations of San Miguel brandishing a flaming sword readily
associated him with the forces of lightning and thunder. This association persists in
contemporary highland Maya beliefs linking tobacco to protection from meteoro-
logical disturbances such as lightning strikes, hailstorms, and destructive winds.
Syncretic Christian-Mayan Tobacco Lore
As this discussion suggests, tobacco has been deeply integrated into the
syncretic Christian cosmology of traditional Mayan Catholics. As a ‘‘traditionalist’’
from Chamula explains, the protective power of tobacco was recognized during
the First Creation by Our Father in Heaven (jotitk ta vinajel) the Sun-Christ deity,
the primary protector of humanity and the first person to plant and use tobacco:
A long time ago, Our Father walked like a real person—like us, he
walked the earth. And tobacco, well he carried it with him as he walked
about. That’s why tobacco remains on earth and continues to serve the
people. You know why? Because Our Father carried it with him, he had
his tobacco a long time ago. He chewed tobacco and used it whenever he
went walking about….That’s the way they say it was long ago with Our
Father. He always carried his ‘‘helper’’ (skoltaob-ba), he had a helper to
augment his own power…
Tobacco served as a powerful ally even during the First Creation, protecting
the Sun deity himself during his travels on the face of the earth. Owing to its
22 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
protective potency, in Chamula Tzotzil the protective tobacco mixture is
sometimes referred to as ‘‘helper’’ or ‘‘assistant,’’ a powerful botanical ally that
augments the bearer’s strength or ‘‘power’’:
Tobacco is called koltaob-bail (‘‘helper’’ or ‘‘assistant’’) because it has
power (’ip), it has strength (pwersa). When we prepare chewing tobacco
and put it in the gourd, Our Father blesses it. It has power and strength
because Our Father used it long ago. Just as you might carry it with you,
so he carried it about with him. If you go out walking now, you take it
with you, because it has power. Nothing will happen to you as you walk
down the trail, even at night. If there’s a demon (pukuj), he won’t
approach, because [the tobacco] you are carrying with you has much
stronger power. The demon doesn’t have power like that. If all you’ve
got with you is a cigarette you’ll die really quickly because a mere
cigarette can’t defend (-poj) you. But if you have tobacco it will drive
away the demon, because tobacco has its power. So if you have it with
you, you too will have more power…
The Symbolism of the Tobacco Gourd
Although many of the underlying cosmological associations have been lost,
the tobacco gourd also appears to have been rich with symbolic import. A
Chamula folktale I collected recounts how the Sun-Christ deity’s tobacco gourd
transformed into Hummingbird at the end of the First Creation, explaining both
the origin of the hummingbird as well as its unique dietary preferences:
Our Father’s tobacco had its container [its gourd] (yavil moy). When he
ceased to walk the earth long ago, his tobacco gourd was thrown aside
and fell into disuse. It felt sad there where it was left, so it transformed
into a bird, it became a hummingbird (tz’unun). Now that humming-
bird—[Our Father’s] tobacco container—it didn’t know how to eat food,
it just sucks the juice of flowers. This is because nothing but [fresh]
tobacco was placed in the gourd [when Our Father carried it], nothing
else. That’s why it turned into a bird, into a hummingbird. That’s why
the hummingbird is called ‘Our Father’s tobacco gourd’ (stzual smoy
jtotik). The tobacco gourd sprouted wings, spouted feathers. It began to
flutter about in the air. So that tobacco gourd, it has a soul, its soul is
Hummingbird…
As this folktale fragment indicates, the tobacco gourd is symbolically linked
to the origin of the hummingbird and seems to share something of its essence (or
vice versa). As the final line reveals, the soul of the tobacco gourd is
Hummingbird, messenger of the Sun and protective animal companion of
warriors throughout Mesoamerica. After relating this account, the narrator
explained that the primordial link between the tobacco gourd and the
hummingbird is preserved as a ‘‘sign’’ in the form of the gourd: the body of
the gourd (tzu) is seen as a hummingbird’s body, with the stopper (suk stzual
moy) forming its head, the string (yak’il) for the stopper suggesting a beak, and
the elongated tip (neil) of the gourd resembling the hummingbird’s tail. Gossen
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 23
(2002:98) noted that in Chamula they metaphorically refer to the hummingbird
as ‘‘Our Father’s Tobacco Gourd’’ (stzu jtotik), and two species are locally
referred to as ‘‘little tobacco gourd’’ (bik’ital tzu) and ‘‘big tobacco gourd’’
(muk’ta tzu).
This story appears to draw on widespread Mesoamerican beliefs relating to
the protective potency of both the hummingbird and the tobacco plant. Gossen
(2002:1033) reported that the hummingbird is considered sacred in both Chamula
and Zinacanta
´n, and is ‘‘associated with the Sun god and tobacco.’’ Recinos
(1961[1952]:105, cited in Page Pliego 2005:146) pointed out that Hummingbird
was connected to the ancestral creator deities of the Popol Vuh, acting as their
animal soul companion, the ‘‘guardian and protector of the people and their
souls…’’ Similarly, Guiteras Holmes (1961:248) reported that in the Tzotzil
community of San Pedro Chenalho
´, Hummingbird is considered to be one of the
most powerful animal souls, possessed only by the totilme’il (‘‘father-mothers’’),
a hidden cabal of supernaturally powerful men who protect the community from
illness and other invasive threats. Hummingbird protects peoples’ animal souls
from predation by Jaguar, who will kill and consume them should they find
themselves unprotected (Guiteras Holmes 1961:134). Alonso Me
´ndez Ton (1961)
recounted a Tenejapa Tzeltal tale in which a man is saved from a jaguar by the
protective power of a gourdful of ‘‘holy elder brother’’ tobacco (ch’ul bankilal).
In addition, Hunt (1977) established a close connection between Hummingbird
and the Sun, an association reflected in the aforementioned myth from Chamula,
in which the tobacco gourd serves as a protective ‘‘helper’’ to the young Christ
deity, before his death and resurrection as the Sun.
Myths from Guatemala emphasize a similar Sun-Hummingbird-Tobacco
connection. A Mopan Maya folktale reported by Thompson (1970:364) describes
an adventure of the young Sun deity who, while attempting to woo a young girl
who would later become the Moon, slipped and fell in front of her. As she
laughed at him, he transformed into a hummingbird and darted back and forth
between the flowers of a tobacco plant, presumably drinking their nectar. After
the girl’s father killed the hummingbird with a blowgun dart, the girl took the
dead hummingbird into her room where it revived, and they fled together to
become the Sun and the Moon. A cognate myth collected among the Kakchiquel
Maya indicates that at night the Sun transformed into a hummingbird in order to
visit his lover—the future Moon—in a disguised form that would not be noticed
by her father (Thompson 1970:365). In a Kekchi version of this same story, the
young Sun deity is explicitly identified as Xbalamque, Jaguar Sun, establishing a
line of continuity with the hero twins of the Popol Vuh (Thompson 1970:364).
Despite the gaps and inconsistencies in these diverse myths and folktales,
they allow me to account for many puzzling features of highland Maya tobacco
culture, including: the plant’s enigmatic metaphorical names (‘‘elder brother’’
and ‘‘great old man’’), its close connection to personal protection (particularly
against atmospheric and meteorological threats), as well as various symbolic
associations found in both ancient and syncretic folklore fragments. Elucidation
of the full cosmological import of tobacco must await further research into
Ancient Maya symbolism, as well as additional ethnobotanically-focused
ethnographic and ethnohistoric studies.
24 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
Changing Patterns of Tobacco Use and Potential Health Impacts
Unfortunately, this well-developed ethnobotanical tradition of tobacco use
and lore is in danger of disappearing due to the availability of commercial
cigarettes combined with widespread conversion to evangelical Protestantism,
both of which have led to the rapid decline of traditional tobacco ingestion
throughout the highlands. While tobacco use continues, the contours of
‘‘traditional’’ practice have shifted, becoming at once more limited and more
closely associated with orthodox religious beliefs. Among Mayan Catholic
‘‘traditionalists,’’ tobacco snuff has become increasingly sacralized and is now
almost exclusively associated with ritual, medicinal, and protective uses, while
its more secular and social functions have been replaced by commercial smoking
tobacco.
Commercial cigarettes (sikarol), are now commonly used in ritual,
therapeutic, and secular contexts. While traditional tobacco remains well known
and respected (and is frequently used in rituals and ceremonies of all sorts), its
daily use as a stimulant is almost extinct, save for a few old men who still walk
around ‘‘drunk on tobacco.’’ In many communities, particularly those dominated
by Evangelical Protestant converts, traditional tobacco use has been completely
abandoned. The plant is closely linked to the practice of traditional curers, a
group that has been rejected by Protestants as morally suspect and possibly evil.
As a result, many of the powerful ritual substances associated with traditional
curing, especially those with an intoxicating effect, such as tobacco and cane
liquor, have also been rejected as corrupt and spiritually threatening.
The replacement of traditional chewing tobacco with commercial cigarettes
will likely lead to an increase in tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. Limited
data suggest that ‘‘smokeless’’ tobaccos may pose fewer of the health risks
associated with burned and inhaled forms (Broadstock 2007; Foulds et al. 2003;
Powledge 2004; Roth et al. 2005). Specifically, the use of high-pH, low-
nitrosamine, chewing tobacco appears to maximize the desired effects of mild
nicotine intoxication while offsetting some of the most common risks associated
with commercial cigarettes (Boffetta et al. 2005; Bolinder 1994; Ferlay et al. 2004;
Lagergren et al. 2000; Levy et al. 2004; Lewin et al. 1998; Luo et al. 2007;
Rosenquist et al. 2005; Schildt et al. 1998). In addition, the addictive potential of
chewed tobacco may be lower than that of smoked forms. Recent research
suggests that nicotine dependence is related primarily to the speed of nicotine
delivery rather than to absolute levels of free nicotine (Foulds et al. 2003;
Henningfield and Kennan 1993; West et al. 2000). Although oral tobaccos
produce a greater availability of free nicotine, it is delivered to the brain at a
slower rate than inhaled form, which may offset some of the addictive potential
of higher nicotine concentrations (Foulds et al. 2003).
This is not to say that highland Maya tobacco preparations are without
danger. A number of health risks accompany use of ‘‘traditional’’ oral tobaccos:
in addition to some level of carcinogenicity, many are linked to periodontal
disease and may also contribute to the development of cardiovascular disease,
peripheral vascular disease, hypertension, peptic ulcers, fetal morbidity and
mortality, and pancreatic cancer (OTRU 2007). Highland Maya tobacco snuff is
Spring/Summer 2010 JOURNAL OF ETHNOBIOLOGY 25
informally produced, and thus quite variable. It is made from tobacco plants that
may vary widely in chemical content, it employs a range of admixtures (in
varying ratios) that may condition its effects on the body, and it is prepared,
stored, and used in any number of idiosyncratic ways. All of these variables
could potentially increase the levels of carcinogenic tobacco-specific nitrosamines
present in highland Maya tobacco preparations, considerably increasing
potential health risks (Hoffman et al. 1995; IARC 2007:74–81).
While the particular chemical composition and potential health impacts of
highland Maya tobacco snuff use must be directly assessed before any definitive
conclusions can be reached concerning intrinsic safety, traditional social norms
relating to its preparation, exchange, and use serve to moderate use in ways not
applicable to commercial tobaccos, which can be bought and sold with ease, and
consumed rapidly and in large quantities. While tobacco abstinence is certainly
the healthiest alternative, controlled use of traditional oral tobacco might be
considered preferable to smoking in contexts of mixed or habitual use.
Conclusions
This article documents contemporary highland Maya use of traditional
tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) preparations, providing an overview of the
therapeutic, ritual, and cosmological significance of this quintessentially
Amerindian plant. Among the Ancient Maya, Nicotiana was considered to be
sacred plant, closely associated with deities of earth and sky, and used for both
visionary and therapeutic ends. The contemporary Tzeltal and Tzotzil Maya of
Highland Chiapas are the heirs to this ethnobotanical tradition, maintaining a
complex tradition of Nicotiana use and folklore. The entire tobacco plant is
viewed as a primordial medicine and a powerful botanical ‘‘helper’’ or
‘‘protector’’ with uses both mundane and divine. Depending on the condition
to be treated, whole Nicotiana leaves used are used alone or combined with other
herbs to prepare various medicinal plasters and teas. In its most common form,
fresh leaves are ground with slaked lime to produce an intoxicating oral snuff
that serves as both a protective and therapeutic agent. This mixture, stored in
small, highly polished gourds, represents an unbroken tradition of Mayan oral
tobacco snuff use spanning more than a thousand years.
Unfortunately, this well-developed ethnobotanical tradition is in danger of
disappearing owing to the availability of commercial cigarettes (combined with
widespread conversion to evangelical Protestantism), both of which have led to
the rapid decline of traditional tobacco use throughout the highlands. A review
of recent biochemical research suggests that tobacco powder oral snuffs may be
less dangerous to health than smoked tobaccos, despite their addictive potential.
When seen in this light, the replacement of traditional tobacco snuff preparations
with commercial smoked tobacco products raises a number of health concerns. I
hope that this article stimulates further comparative medical-ethnobotanical
research into the social significance and cultural history of tobacco use among
both contemporary and ancient Maya populations, along with more detailed
biochemical assessments of the health impacts of traditional and commercial
tobacco preparations. Through such focused research we will come to better
26 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
understand the ongoing importance of this primordial medicine in the medical
culture and worldview of indigenous Mesoamerica.
Acknowledgements
This paper is dedicated to Johannes Wilbert—mentor, advisor, and friend. Thanks to
John Carlson, for encouraging me to write this article, to Vicente Go
´mez Lo
´pez Kulel for
introducing me to the world of Mayan tobacco, and to Xun Lo
´pez Kalixto for keeping me
supplied with Elder Brother over these many years. Field research took place at intervals
between 1992 and 2009. The bulk of data was collected in the Tzotzil community of San
Juan Chamula, with supplementary data and observations from the Tzotzil communities
of Santo Toma
´s Oxchuc and Tenejapa. Unless otherwise indicated, all native language
terms are presented in the Chamula dialect of Tzotzil, translated by the author from audio
and video field recordings, interviews, and fieldnotes. Field research and writing was
supported at various stages by the National Science Foundation, ISOP-Ford Foundation,
Tinker Foundation, the Department of Anthropology at the University of California Los
Angeles, and the Division of Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy at the
University of California. Informed consent was obtained from all research participants.
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30 GROARK Vol. 30, No. 1
Erratum
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