Put five men on top of a 30 meter pole. Ask them to tie a rope around themselves and fall backward into the air, spinning around until they reach the ground. This is what happens several times a week in Puerto Vallarta as well as in Papantla, Veracruz and perhaps in other places in Mexico.
The Voladores, the Flying Men, participate in a pre-Hispanic ritual, now associated with the Totonac people. It is thought to have begun as a request to the gods to end a severe draught in the land. Papantla is a town in the state of Veracruz, on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico and this is where the ritual began.
The five men climb a 30 meter pole for the ritual dance. The foreman is the first to ascend and the last to decend. He plays a flute and taps a small drum during the whole event which lasts about 15 minutes.
The five men dance around the pole and then, one at a time, climb the pole to a small platform on the top of it., After they all reach the top, the foreman stands up on the platform and dances a "son of good-bye" dance, never stopping the beat of the drum and the flute. Each of the other 4 men wind a rope around themselves 13 times. Four men times 13 equals the number 52 which represents the number of years in the mesoamerican solar cycle.
The four directions of the platform represents the 4 cardinal directions: north, south, east and west; as well as earth, air, fire and water. The foreman who will remain on the platform, represents the sun.
The four men launch themselves backward to spin to the ground. They fall backward, keeping their faces to the foreman to acknowledge the sun. They spin slowly to the ground making 13 revolutions around the pole. As they fly down, they create a pyramid shape. They spin very slowly, upside down, until they reach the ground.
Finally the foreman climbs down the pole, still beating the drum and playing the flute, and at the bottom of the pole they all do another "son of goodbye" dance.
What a breathtaking event to watch!
The foreman begins the ascent.
They are at the top of the pole beginning to wrap the ropes around themselves.
They fall backward acknowledging the sun.
They spin around 13 times, forming a pyramid shape.
Here the people who were watching the Voladores walk away, still amazed at what they saw.
The Voladores perform on the Malecon several times a week.
And when I turned around, I couldn't resist taking a picture of the church just off the Malecon.
Maybe someday you will get to see the Voladores, either in Puerto Vallarta or in Papantla.
Hasta luego.
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