The Huichol Indians believe that Real de Catorce, or more specifically Wirikuta, a mountaintop near Real is their sacred land of origin. It is here that the Huichol Indians come once a year to hold their ritual celebration. At the peak of the mountain one finds a strange spiral of stones forming a nondescript and mysterious shape. Nearby is a niche formed in the rocks by thousands of years of wind that holds a colorful collection of significant items that have been carefully placed by the pilgrims.
According to the Huichol legend, their deified ancestors once lived on this mountain and were driven away to live as mere mortals in the western states of Jalisco and Nayarit. However, they must return each year to this place to pay homage to their ancestors, their religious homeland and for renewal.
Each year, the road to Real de Catorce is filled with brightly dressed Huichol men, women and their children walking barefoot on the 17-mile cobblestone road and climbing the mountain road to the tunnel and Real on the other side. This is the culmination of a 300-mile long journey that has taken the young and old over a month to make. A shaman-priest leads them on their journey, which promises to restore their faith and bring harmony to their lives.
As the Huichol walk to Wirakuta, they must be attuned to the spiritual forces. They walk together closely to avoid losing their souls as they are constantly tested by their experiences along the way. The Huichol are closely connected to their ancestors. As they travel they experience ritual attitudes and behavior of their deities. These are believed to be the connecting treads to those who gave them life in the beginning.
Wirakuta offers a rebirth for the Huichol. Once at Wirakuta they will be ritually cleansed, reborn and renamed as their lives are completely renewed. As the Huichol approach Wirakuta, those arriving for the first time must keep their eyes covered so as not to be blinded by the brightness shining forth from the illumination of Wirakuta. The novices will be baptized with water and be instructed in the ways of Wirakuta. Only then can they begin their search for the sacred peyote or deer as it is called.
The Huichol will take up the bow and arrow as they follow symbolic deer tracks in their search. Once they find the peyote, they "slay" it with the arrow. When they remove the peyote from the earth, they fill the resulting cavity with offerings to give thanks to the earth for this gift. The peyote is divided and offered to those in attendance to consume. The shaman-priest who well versed in the ways of peyote carefully administers the practice.
The ingestion of peyote brings about a fusing of past and present, young and old, men and women. There is a transcending of all separations and contradictions. Opposites become identical, time is obliterated. Visions of great beauty, the soul and eternity are shared. Wirakuta becomes as it was in the past and will be in the future.
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