face="Bookman Old Style" color=#800080>I remember a curandera doing the "Egg
ritual" to an aunt when I was younger. They would rub the egg all over the body
while praying . . . Once they had rubbed the egg completely they would crack the
egg in a glass of water and read the egg. The egg would tell the curandera
wether there was a curse/negativity/future reading on the person. They
would finish the ritual off with herbs (rosemary & others i dont remember)
rubbed all over the body again.
face="Bookman Old Style" color=#800080>
face="Bookman Old Style" color=#800080>~janet in South
Cali.
From: ranchos@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:ranchos@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Erlinda
Castanon-Long
Sent: Monday, July 25, 2005 9:58 AM
To:
ranchos@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [ranchos] explanation of a
ventosa
My first cousin, from Jerez Zacatecas sent me this
explanation of a
ventosa so I thought I'd share it. It's a real
combination of
spiritual with physical which is old world... any comment
from the
Dr. in our group?
A ventosa is as follows: Mother
would get a meduim size water
glass and pour a little alcohol into it
and swirl it in the glass;
then she would light it with a match and
immediately place it on the
area where the sprain was. The heat would
cause the muscle to pull
upward into the glass and that would release the
tension on it. The
glass would remain there a few seconds and then she would
repeat the
procedure. My husband used to enjoy getting them whenever he had
a
back problem. She used them mostly on the torso. The extremeties she
would massage with her hands after she applied an ointment. The one
thing she did not believe in was "el mal de ojo". She called that
brujerias (witchcraft). This is where they would apply a raw egg on
the
body and this would do away with " el enhechizo" ( the curse)
but, at
the same time they had a lit candle and they would go back
and forth over
the body while they'd pray. It was quite interesting.
I can't remember what
else they'd use along with the egg. I tell you
how I regret not writing all
these costumbres down.
Linda in Wa..