In order to fully understand what we mean when we say Land Back, land conservation, protect the land, etc., we believe we have an obligation to piece together how colonialism, conquest and industrialization have severed our ties to the natural world. We will focus on the exploitation of Cemanahuac—the Americas—with a specific focus on the present day American Southwest, to the north and northwest of Anahuac, homeland of our Nahua ancestors. We want to emphasize that we are not scholars, historians, anthropologists. Our narratives are a small part of a sprawling and colorful world full of indigenous languages, world views and ways of life. The lands we speak of have held so much life, we could fill the cosmos.
Through learning and walking alongside each other, we weave an understanding, we surpass emotion and grief in order to step into our wisdom and power. May this knowledge serve us as a solid starting point.
Con humildad y respeto.
Long before the Spanish invasion, many different types of peoples, languages and spiritual practices spread throughout what we now know as North America and Mesoamerica. Up until around 12,000 BCE, our prehistoric ancestors traveled across the Bering Strait land bridge from northeast Asia until climate change caused rising water levels that submerged the landbridge. These first peoples carried with them an ancient wisdom, a deep connection to the land, to animals and the spirit of the natural world. We spread across land, developing our stories of creation, our languages and cosmic visions.
Hunting, gathering and the nomadic way of life were suitable in the vast grasslands until the cool winds of the northern ice cap were again affected by climate change. Out of the new warmth, particularly in Mesoamerica, thick majestic jungles were born. By 2000 BCE, our people had learned to live amongst the mountain ranges, the highlands and lowlands, the coastlines, the desolate deserts. They had cultivated a variety of chilis, avocados, beans, squash and most importantly, maíz.
These sacred plants, our relationship with soil and the nutrition it provided us changed our way of life profoundly. Agriculture and a more sedentary way of life allowed for denser and more complex communities, whose philosophical examination of the world around them gave rise to sacred stories of creation which in most cases were intertwined with the birth of maiz. A profound understanding of time and the cosmos, the beginnings of artistic style, pottery, tools and commerce flourished. This understanding served as the foundation for great empires that would soon fill the natural world with a new kind of human magic, mythology, spirituality, language, storytelling, culture and warfare.
The great Olmeca set the stage for the Maya, Zapotec, Mixteca, Toltec and eventually would influence the Uto-Aztecan tribes of the north like the Mexica who entered Anahuac and saw themselves as the inheritors of the Toltec way through prophecies ordained by the gods.
Existence was deeply ritualistic as we honored the elements and the natural world through our gods and deities. We used the land as our tool with honor and respect, animals were deeply intertwined with our spirits, we valued corn and feathers and precious stones over gold and silver. We were, and continue to be, dual in nature, profound and complex. We cared for our poor and sick, our old and orphaned. We thrived off of war, sacrifice, theatrics. There was wisdom, intelligence and intention behind our efforts.
Use this tab to start at learning about our precolonial and prehispanic roots. Knowledge of what we were capable of, our connection to each other and the land will serve us as a strong foundation as we continue our journey to a better, more well rounded understanding of ourselves and the world we inhabit.
The Prehispanic Mesoamerican World
Myth, Belief, Narration, Image: Reflections on Mesoamerican Mythology