Abstract
Anthropologists and social scientists have examined how Oaxacans oppose conventional models of health, insisting on maintaining their own epistemologies for practical, spiritual, and economic reasons. Much of the academic literature does not consider Indigenous knowledge of emotional health. While other scholars focus on the social forces on Oaxacan mental health, this essay draws a through line from Indigenous knowledge to emotional injury through their experiences of migration. In the context of strong Occidental influence on Oaxacan traditions, contemporary healing rituals practiced by Zapotec communities are resilient and creative forms for reproducing Indigenous epistemologies in times of social strife. This essay addresses two main questions: Why are Indigenous healing practices meaningful for Zapotec members who experience emotional injuries like susto or profound sadness from migratory separations? How do healing practices constitute interconnective relations across space and time? Through ethnographic analysis of interviews and participant observation of healing rituals, the author documents how Oaxacan healing practices known within Zapotec communities validate sentient beings, ancestral knowledge, and Oaxacans’ relations with their environment. Such practices are especially relevant for family members who experience emotional distress related to migration and inequality.
