The Mexica had a sophisticated tradition of medicine and healing, which was closely tied to their religious and cosmological beliefs. The Mexica believed that illness was caused by a wide range of factors, including the will of the gods, the imbalance of the body’s internal forces, the influence of malevolent spirits, and the effects of witchcraft. The treatment of illness was therefore a combination of religious ritual, herbal medicine, and practical surgery. The Mexica had a wide range of herbal remedies, including remedies made from plants, animals, and minerals, and they used these remedies to treat a remarkable variety of ailments. The Mexica had a class of professional physicians, called ticitl, who were trained in the calmecac schools and in special institutions attached to the major temples.
The Causes of Illness
The Mexica believed that illness was caused by a combination of natural and supernatural factors. The natural factors included the imbalance of the body’s internal forces, the effects of the weather, the consumption of harmful foods, and the consequences of injury. The supernatural factors included the will of the gods, the influence of malevolent spirits, the effects of witchcraft, and the consequences of offending the divine order. The Mexica believed that the most serious illnesses were caused by supernatural factors, and they required the intervention of religious specialists to cure them.
The Mexica believed that the body was composed of three main forces, which were associated with the heart, the liver, and the spleen. The heart was the seat of the soul and the source of life, the liver was the seat of the emotions and the source of courage, and the spleen was the seat of the intellect and the source of wisdom. The balance of these three forces was essential for health, and illness was believed to result from an imbalance of the forces.
The Mexica also believed that the body was influenced by the gods and by the spirits. The gods could send illness as a punishment for wrongdoing, and the spirits could cause illness by entering the body or by attacking the soul. The Mexica believed that the most effective way to cure illness was to identify the cause and to address it directly. If the illness was caused by the gods, the treatment would involve the propitiation of the gods. If the illness was caused by the spirits, the treatment would involve the expulsion of the spirits. If the illness was caused by an imbalance of the body’s forces, the treatment would involve the restoration of the balance.
The Ticitl, the Physicians
The Mexica had a class of professional physicians, called ticitl, who were trained in the calmecac schools and in special institutions attached to the major temples. The ticitl were organized into a hierarchy, with the most skilled physicians serving the Tlatoani and the nobility. The ticitl had a wide range of skills, including diagnosis, surgery, herbalism, and ritual healing.
The ticitl diagnosed illness through a variety of methods, including the examination of the patient’s pulse, eyes, and skin, the reading of the calendar to determine the cause of the illness, and the casting of maize grains to divine the will of the gods. The ticitl also had a sophisticated understanding of the medicinal properties of plants, and they used this knowledge to prescribe herbal remedies for a wide range of ailments.
The ticitl also performed a variety of surgical procedures, including the treatment of wounds, the setting of broken bones, the removal of tumors, and the extraction of teeth. The ticitl had a number of surgical instruments, including obsidian knives, copper needles, and bone awls. The ticitl were also skilled at the use of anesthetics, and they used a variety of plants to dull the pain of the surgical procedures.
The Herbal Remedies
The Mexica had a sophisticated knowledge of the medicinal properties of plants, and they used a wide range of herbs, roots, and other plant materials in their remedies. The Mexica used these remedies to treat a remarkable variety of ailments, including fever, cough, diarrhea, dysentery, headache, toothache, rheumatism, and skin diseases. The Mexica also used the remedies for more serious conditions, including wounds, fractures, tumors, and infections.
The most important source of information about Mexica herbal medicine is the Badianus Manuscript, an Aztec herbal prepared in 1552 by Martín de la Cruz and translated into Latin by Juan Badiano. The manuscript is the earliest medical text from the Americas, and it includes descriptions of over 200 medicinal plants and their uses. The manuscript is now preserved in the Vatican Library, and it provides a detailed account of the Mexica approach to medicine.
The Mexica herbal remedies were prepared in a variety of forms, including infusions, decoctions, poultices, salves, and powders. The Mexica used the remedies internally, as teas and potions, and externally, as washes and poultices. The Mexica also used a variety of animal and mineral materials in their remedies, including honey, wax, animal fats, and mineral salts. The Mexica had a sophisticated understanding of the dosage and the preparation of the remedies, and they were able to use them effectively to treat a wide range of ailments.
The Ritual Healing
The Mexica also used a variety of ritual healing techniques, and the religious specialists played an important role in the treatment of illness. The ritual healing techniques included prayers, offerings, bloodletting, and the use of sacred objects. The Mexica believed that the ritual healing techniques were effective in curing illness, particularly when the illness was caused by supernatural factors.
The most important ritual healing technique was the offering of blood, which was believed to be a powerful way of propitiating the gods and of curing illness. The Mexica would offer their own blood by cutting their tongues, ears, or other parts of the body, and the blood was then burned or otherwise offered to the gods. The Mexica also offered the blood of animals, particularly turkeys and dogs, and they offered the blood of sacrificial victims in the most serious cases.
The Mexica also used a variety of sacred objects in the treatment of illness, including the Tonalpohualli almanacs, the ritual bundles, and the sacred idols. The Mexica believed that the sacred objects had healing power, and they would use them in the treatment of illness. The Mexica also used a variety of ritual baths, in which the patient would be immersed in water that had been blessed by the priests.
The Specialty of the Ticitl
The Mexica ticitl had a number of specialties, and they were organized into a hierarchy based on their skills and their experience. The most important specialties included the ticitl, who specialized in general medicine; the ticitl, who specialized in surgery; the ticitl, who specialized in herbalism; and the ticitl, who specialized in ritual healing. The most skilled ticitl could combine these specialties, and they were able to treat a wide range of ailments.
The Mexica also had a class of midwives, called ticitl, who specialized in the care of women in childbirth. The midwives performed a wide range of functions, including the practical care of the mother and the newborn, the prayers and rituals of welcome, and the consultation of the calendar to determine the child’s name. The midwives shaped the Mexica medical system, and they were honored for their role in bringing new life into the community.
The Mexica also had a class of bonesetters, who specialized in the treatment of fractures and dislocations. The bonesetters were skilled in the use of splints and bandages, and they had a sophisticated understanding of the anatomy of the human body. The bonesetters shaped the Mexica medical system, and they were consulted for the treatment of injuries resulting from war, from accidents, and from the workplace.
The Survival of Mexica Medicine
Many elements of the Mexica medical tradition survived the Spanish conquest and continued to influence Mexican culture. The Spanish recognized the sophistication of the Mexica medical tradition, and they attempted to learn from it. The Badianus Manuscript, prepared by indigenous physicians in 1552, was an attempt to preserve the Mexica medical knowledge for the benefit of the Spanish rulers. The manuscript is now considered to be one of the most important documents of Mesoamerican medicine.
The Mexica medical tradition also survived in the folk medicine of the colonial and post-colonial periods. Many of the Mexica herbal remedies continued to be used, and the indigenous healers, called curanderos, continued to practice the Mexica medical tradition in modified form. The modern Mexican folk medicine, which combines elements of the Mexica tradition, the Spanish tradition, and the African tradition, is evidence of the long history of medical practice in Mexico.
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See also:
- What were common Aztec herbal remedies? — the plant-based medicine
- What did Aztec physicians treat? — the range of illnesses
- How did the Aztecs approach mental illness? — the psychiatric conditions
- Education in Aztec Civilization — the training of physicians
- Family Life and Childhood in the Aztec World — the role of midwives
- Aztec Art, Architecture, and Science — the broader context