Rosita Arvigo is director of Ix Chel Tropical Research Foundation and the founder and co-director of Terra Nova, the world's first and only biomedicinal rainforest reserve. She is author of Sastun: My Apprenticeship with a Maya Healer in which she charts her years of training with Elijo Ponti in Belize. Nadine Epstein also co-wrote that volume.
In this very practical new volume, the authors outline the six principles of Mayan medicine that is based on life energy, the interpenetration of spiritual and physical realms, a reverence for plants and natural cycles, healing as a team process, "asking the blood," and the theory of hot and cold. Mayan medicine works in harmony with the body's natural inclination to heal itself and emphasizes natural, nontoxic, and inexpensive alternatives that complement modern medicine.
Arvigo and Epstein present remedies for over 50 common ailments of women, men, and children that can be treated with ingredients from the kitchen, garden, or local grocery store. Try oregano and garlic tea for bronchitis or a chronic cough. Put together a cabbage leaf poultice for carpel tunnel syndrome. Eat papaya snacks to bring down your high blood pressure. Drink ginger tea when you have a headache. You'll also find remedies here for spiritual illnesses such as fright, sadness, and fear. The Mayans found that eating roasted or raw pumpkin seeds by the handful is a fine antidote to grief.
Rainforest Home Remedies is a handy treasure trove of herbal wisdom from ancient Mayan tradition.