Curanderismo: Traditional Healing of the Mind, Energy & Spirit (Coursera)

As the third of four courses on Curanderismo, the art of Hispanic/Latino traditional medicine, this course focuses specifically on traditional healing of mind, energy and spirit. As an educational and cultural platform, this course will share a number of traditional body therapies. Trained traditional healers will share their knowledge of cleansings from different cultures such as spiritual, energetic and Tonalli Cleansing.

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Learners will not become certified traditional healers at the completion of this course but will be able apply basic principles or traditional medicine for health and illnesses. They will become familiar specifically with the traditional therapy of the sweat lodge temazcal, laugh therapy risaterapia and they will learn about the creation of sacred spaces and healing grief through Día de los Muertos.

The Final Curanderismo course will be:

• Global and Cultural Influences of Traditional Healing: African traditional medicine from Uganda and Gabon; Afro-Latino from Cuba and Puerto Rico, Native American spiritual cleansings and Mayan acupuncture and other topics.

What You Will Learn

- Provide information on the healing traditions, rituals, and remedies of Curanderismo.

- Interpret the spiritual/energetic components by observing the importance of creating a sacred space and healing through traditional events.

- Compare different types of spiritual/energetic cleansings including Tonalli and susto magical fright.

- Describe the benefits of Laugh theraphy, sound and music and how they can transform your life.

Syllabus

WEEK 1

Spiritual healing (limpias) & healing fright and shock (susto)

Laurencio shows an energetic cleansing and the elements involved in it. Rita explains how to heal traumatic experiences.

WEEK 2

Spiritual cleansings (limpias) & Tonalli cleansing

In this module, students will recognize different types of limpias. Velia highlights the importance of people’s needs whether they are spiritual, mental or physical in this cleansing. In the Tonalli Cleansing, Patricia will explain how to open a power portal that travels through the energetic meridian in a patient.

WEEK 3

Burning incense for harmonising & laugh therapy (risaterapia)

Rita explains the variety of incense burners used in traditional energetic cleansings and demonstrates her own type of cleansing with copal incense. She demonstrates how laughter reduces negativity and hostility and increases efficiency and morale.

WEEK 4

Sweatlodge (temazcal)

Rita and others demonstrate the health benefits of the plants, vibrations of the drum, and other items and elements that are part of the sweatlodge temazcal, ceremony.

WEEK 5

Healing through sound & healing with music

Juan Carlos performs a traditional healing technique by using the vibrations of the conch shell sound in combination with the obsidian stone. Elena discusses the impact of music, sound, and song on our health.

WEEK 6

Creating sacred spaces for healing & healing grief through day of the dead (día de los muertos)

Rita and Tonita, discuss the creation of a sacred space (an altar) that they create with natural elements. This sacred space is part of a temazcal sweat lodge ceremony, which honors the four directions. Dr. Anselmo Torres provides insight on the meaning and significance of one Mexico’s most important celebrations, the Day of the Dead.