Ancient Traditions Refresh Aztec Pride
|
EL PASO — Two elders lifted conch shells to their lips and bellows from these primal trumpets — primordial prayers aimed at the sky — signaled to a third man to kneel as smoky incense wafted from a clay cup in his left hand. The offering ceremony, repeated three times as the heuy tecuhtlis, or elder leaders, paid tribute to mother earth in a rite that has been performed for thousands of years, long before European settlers set foot in the new world. This is how the Danza Azteca, or Aztec Dance, began at the Mercado Mayapan, a local marketplace and community center. “The dances that we do are thousands of years old. They’ve been passed down from generation to generation,” said Ramón Arroyos, 60.