To ensure that history isn’t lost or erased by a backhoe, INAH (National Institute of Anthropology and History) staff in Nayarit, along with specialists from Durango and Mexico City, are working on an exciting project: creating a book that compiles the sacred sites, their symbolism, and their meanings for our indigenous communities.
The idea is not only to showcase the state’s cultural richness but also to protect these sites before someone comes along and destroys them, as has already happened in other areas. Othón Quiroga, director of INAH in Nayarit, explained that this catalog will help people learn about, respect, and value these spaces, which for many communities are sacred, not just “hills or rocks.”
Quiroga detailed that the project is being carried out jointly with other states such as Jalisco, Zacatecas, Durango, and San Luis Potosí, and that work in Nayarit began last year with the support of anthropologists from the National Museum of Anthropology. They have visited communities such as Jesús María and Mesa del Nayar, where they have already identified several sites that will be included in the catalog.
This “sacred book” is part of the Justice Plan for the Nayeri, Wixárika, and O’dam peoples, and seeks to create a serious record of these places so that they are not lost to oblivion or to greed. Because culture cannot be bought; it must be respected and cared for.
“We are going to continue working on the Sacred Places catalog. We are developing a catalog of sacred places in the state of Nayarit. We are also working in several other states, such as Jalisco, Zacatecas, Durango, and San Luis Potosí. We are working on updating this catalog of sacred places. We started some work here last year, with the help of anthropologists from the INAH center in Durango and the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. We worked in several communities in Del Nayar, such as Jesús María and Mesa del Nayar, identifying some sites that are already being included in this catalog of sacred places, which are part of the commitments of the justice plan for the Nayeri, Wirra, and Odam peoples.”
Source: meganoticias
