Wixaritari (Huicholes)
The wixaritari, "people who settle on places where there are thorny plants" or, Vishalica "Doctors, nurses, singers, soothsayers, dreamers, and walkers"; constitute along with the Naayarite, Southern Tepehuanes, and the mexicaneros, one of the four major native groups or tribes that live in the Sierra Madre Occidental, along with the states of Jalisco, Nayarit, Durango and Zacatecas. They are considered as one of the tribes that showed strong resistance against the colonization of Spain, and they are still pushing to preserve their costumes and worldview.
After the colonization of Spain, the jesuit missionaries tried evangelization, but found themselves with a strong resistance to christianism. In the 18th century they were evangelized by Franciscan missionaries who were rejected, but not in every aspect as they included some elements from Christianism into their rites and integrate them to their religious views, which is used by them up to this day, without taking the essence of the culture.
Precursors
The origins of the wixaritari are unknown, some believe they are descendents from tribes who lived in the Northeast, or from semi-nomads who lived in the northern desert; There's others who believe they come from the Nahuatl, because they both have the same mother language. In the prehispanic era, the Wixarika territory formed part of the Caxcana, part of the Nayar Sierra, an abrupt and uninviting region, where various archeological sites are located, in which the hill of Ixtle stands out, and here we can find various elements that are typical from Mesoamerica. The Chack Mool and a column dated back from 600 B.C. to 800 A.D. which confirm their long development, and the fact that they are older than the Mesoamericans.
In the basin of Bolaños river (located to the North of Jalisco), a series of elements has been found that suggest a level of social integration comparable to cacicazgo, with an area of costumes and religion surrounded by a building sector, plus another section that is separate from the two above, apart from the villages dependent from the central village, agricultural centers, and the lookout spots.
In the basin of Bolaños river (located to the North of Jalisco), a series of elements has been found that suggest a level of social integration comparable to cacicazgo, with an area of costumes and religion surrounded by a building sector, plus another section that is separate from the two above, apart from the villages dependent from the central village, agricultural centers, and the lookout spots.