Medicina Folklórica Dominicana

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Comment by John Mirador on October 29, 2009 at 11:36am

Last weekend I walked the hills north of Maguana Arriba, and noticed that the Dominican population is increasingly abandoning the territory and moving to towns and cities, including San Juan, Azua, Baní, and Santo Domingo. The newly open rural spaces are being increasingly occupied by Haitians who cross the Artibonite river before dawn, walking their way by nightfall to the hills north of Maguana Arriba, occupying the empty houses and rural land. Most don’t speak Spanish. They arrive in very well organized and supportive groups, and although they are very self-effacing and submissive with me, I notice they’re afraid of me. After much effort at putting them at ease, I’m able to gather information. They are very laborious and are living off land that cannot support a Dominican family. They told me that the land is being laid bare of agave plants (maguey, as they are known in the DR), as people from afar comb the hills collecting them, for medicinal purposes, which include their favorable glycemic profile as a sweetener. Aloe vera (sábila) and other species, are also becoming scarce.

Comment by John Mirador on October 29, 2009 at 10:41am

These feet have never known shoes, a once too many occurrence in the DR Southwest. This particular pair belong to a young girl who lives in the village of Barro El Medio, Azua, who along with her sister take care of her mostly bedridden mother who suffers from hallucinations and delusions brought about by schizophrenia and worsened by her blind faith in the ministrations of a neighbor Haitian vaudou healer (Bocó, as they are known in the DR Southwest). Bare feet are a favorite entrance site to the human organism of a host of parasites, including Ancylostoma duodenale and Necator americanus, which cause a disease called anquilostomiasis that can produce growth and mental retardation among other illnesses.

Comment by Ann McKown on October 20, 2009 at 9:54pm

Maybe they weren't exchanging the "pepa de zamuro" at all but the fetching indian maiden!!! Very cute. I actually have in my purse an "ojo" o "pepa" in my purse from Sorte which had something on the front I think it might have been the "scales" for Libra but which has long since worn off from being in many purses and having gone to many places. It is so shiny and has always been my protection against everything bad in general-and I have good faith that it will keep on doing its good work.

Comment by John Mirador on October 19, 2009 at 5:06pm

Ann, the seed you mentioned as 'ojo de venado' and alledgedly used by the Maya in Precolombian times to make children crosseyed, is called in Venezuela as 'pepa de zamuro'. It also comes from a vine, and grows in pods like beans. It's universally recognized and used in Venezuela as a good luck charm, as 'protección' against evil spells and bad luck in general. The plant is known scientifically as Mucuna urens. However, I read an article recently which alledges, quite incorrectly, that the Venezuelan Amazon indians used it as money. Here's a quote from the article, and accompanying image (which I found quite cute ;-)

"En Venezuela, otras culturas utilizaron el “patrón moneda” para sus transacciones comerciales: La llamada “pepa de zamuro”, semilla de un fruto seco y duro de un arbusto, de forma redondeada y color oscuro de la selva amazónica, utilizada por los nativos del Orinoco como signo monetario, que se intercambiaba con el otro signo monetario de la cultura Maya de Centro América, la cual utilizaba otra semilla como monedas: del cacao… por su parte, los arawak, étnias de gran influencia en todo el mar Caribe y que fueron las primeras agrupaciones humanas que se toparon con los conquistadores españoles, utilizaban las “perlas” de Cubagua en intercambio comercial…"

Comment by John Mirador on October 19, 2009 at 4:07pm

Ann, the large seed I gave my daughter to keep in her pocket comes from a tree that is actually a gigantic vine, it's a legume, from the species Entada gigas, Fabaceae family. They grow in pods just like beans. I doubt the plant is native. Just this weekend Iwas up in the hills north of Maguana Arriba and asked campesinos if they could find me some. They directed me to a place which was too far for me to walk that day. They said they will have some for me on my next visit. They call the seeds 'popo' or something like that, and use them as 'resguardos' (charms) to keep in their back pocket, more as security than a good luck charm. Children play with them and rub the seeds together until they get very hot and place them against their cheeks. I've also heard they are ground up and used for something unespecific, maybe poison or hallucinogenic.

Comment by Ann McKown on October 19, 2009 at 12:21am

John, I was just looking back to the beginning of the comments here and noticed a picture of Angela holding the big lustrous bean which is a member of the fava bean family and which she held for good luck in her 8th grade exams. We always collected them and in Jamaica they make yo-yos out of them. In Mexico, you may remember me saying as I too always had one around, there is a smaller and slightly different version, also a seed which may or may not be in the same family, which is called "ojo de venado" and used to be used by the Maya to make their babies crossed eyed which was a desired trait. It was somehow tied between their eyes so that they had to look at it constantly producing the wanted effect.

Comment by John Mirador on October 5, 2009 at 7:44am

Alejandro, el uso de la expresión de cariño ‘Carlitos’ sugiere que conoces al señor Carlos Randolph Martínez en persona, lo cual no es cierto. El señor Carlos Randolph Martínez, a quien le tengo mucho afecto y lo trato como un sobrino, es nacido y criado en Santo Domingo, República Dominicana, tiene dos semestres aprobados en sus estudios de medicina, y no habla inglés.
Por otra parte, en mis comentarios en este foro, ya he expresado que tengo una orientación científica y que mis creencias religiosas no son pertinentes para esta discusión de curanderismo o medicina folklórica. Por lo tanto, sugiero dejar los temas religiosos para otro foro.

Tu hermano,

John Mirador

Comment by Alejandro Romero Santana on October 5, 2009 at 6:03am

No le critiques a Carlitos los errores ortográficos ya que es obvio que usa el inglés continuamente.

Comment by Alejandro Romero Santana on October 5, 2009 at 5:36am

Puedes dar más detalles sobre lo siguiente: "Soy pastor ordenado de una organización religiosa reconocida en los EE.UU.," tal como cuál organización, temas estudiados. Años completados.

Comment by John Mirador on October 4, 2009 at 10:19pm

Estimado amigo Carlos, si te hubieras tomado el tiempo de leer lo que he expuesto hasta ahora sobre la medicina folklórica dominicana, no solo te hubieras ahorrado los errores ortográficos, sino también los desaciertos que tienes sobre mi labor. En ningún momento he promovido la superstición, y he explicado claramente mi uso de un altar de religiosidad popular en términos psicológicos. Además, nunca he mencionado el espiritismo ni la invocación de seres sobrenaturales. Soy pastor ordenado de una organización religiosa reconocida en los EE.UU., lo cual es totalmente extemporáneo a mi misión como curandero. Además del uso de nuestras plantas medicinales tradicionales, cuyas propiedades farmacológicas han sido ampliamente reconocidas científicamente, también utilizó la fe innata con fines terapéuticos. Próximamente voy a postear sobre nuestra costumbre de automedicarnos con plantas medicinales, lo cual es muy peligroso, y causante de serios trastornos de salud y hasta la muerte.

Carlos, te sugiero eliminar el título de ‘doctor’ que antepones a tu nombre, pues eso puede provocar confusión, ya que sugiere que eres una persona diplomada y acreditada para ejercer la profesión de médico, lo cual no es cierto.

Saludos afectuosos,

John

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