Sacred Places

By Charlene Vigil

I am a 31-year-old woman with a husband and three young boys. My grandparents, Nelson & Arcelia “Archie” Abeyta, raised me. My grandparents passed on a while back, with cancer and leukemia as their life-threatening illness. With this being said, I inherited their home.

Looking back at pictures, and history that was put into building this “safe haven”, I have come to realize how fortunate my family is. My home not only has spirit, but as well, has LIFE. Sacred, to me means, encounters that will live forever as a memory and a special place in our heart. To the adobe that was made, and to the curtains hung in my home, and from the mirror hanging on the wall, it is still a little bit of presence of my grandparents.

A recent incident that I find so special is when we first started remodeling our roof. Our contractors began destroying the old, and began replacing with new wood. While, doing this, they encountered lumber, with my grandfather’s name and date of 1959. This piece of lumber was so Sacred to me, that I thanked them for saving it, to show me when grandpa, started his home.

Many loved ones have passed on in our ABEYTA & ROMERO family, however in our home, we all have a special, “Sacred” memory, which ties us back to this place. The meaning Sacred, does not always have to mean, a certain location, town, building, or recipe. Sacred can be described as something YOU, believe is treasured and special to oneself. May you, also find that Sacred place in your heart, as I have in mine.

Charlene Vigil is a resident of Ranchos de Taos.
 

"I love you when you bow in your mosque, kneel in your temple, pray in your church. For you and I are sons and daughters of one religion, and it is Spirit"
- Kahlil Gibran

The Lama Foundation was founded in 1967 by a host of visionaries as an ecumenical spiritual center in the mountains north of Taos. The intent was to create a space where teachers of all spiritual and religious traditions could be lovingly hosted and the community could study. Ever since, Lama has been known as a school. In the 1970's Lama quickly transformed into a retreat center, the first of its kind, hosting such renowned teachers as Ram Das, Hazrat Inayat Khan, Murshid Samuel Lewis, Jack Kornfield, Fr. Thomas Keating, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Robert Bly, Joshu Sasaki Roshi, Rabbi Zalman Schachter, and many others. The Taos Pueblo community helped build the dome, Lama's celebrated spiritual center, and remains an integral piece of the Lama Foundation.

The wilderness surrounding Lama is one of the principle factors that attracts people to the Foundation. Its reclusive location, surrounded by Carson National Forest, allows ample space and quiet for reflection. At 8600 ft above sea level one's personal relationship with the sun, moon, and sky are enhanced, only to be pulverized into a mysterious darkness at night, freckled by the silent stars. The deer, elk, and bears that roam this land share it with us, and we are grateful for them, as we are for the owls, ravens, bobcats, and every creature that calls this land its home.

One of the oldest intentional communities, Lama is home to year-round residents but blossoms in size at the onset of summer. During the winter Lama is open to visitors on Thursday evenings for Zikr, the Sufi practice of remembrance, and on Friday evenings for dinner, followed by Shabbat service. It's always best to call beforehand to confirm the schedule, as well as to check on road conditions. You may reach the Lama Foundation by calling 575-586-1269. During the summer, Lama hosts visitors, retreatants, hermits, and all who are called to the mountain. For a full description of Lama's visitor opportunities and retreat schedule, please visit our website at www.lamafoundation.org.

Visitors' Sundays in the Summer of 2010 are May 30th, August 8th, and September 26th!

Thank you, and blessings from the mountain...
 

We Have Five Excellent Examples in Taos

By Rachel Preston

I experienced my first labyrinth years ago, when completing my master’s degree in architecture in Europe. The labyrinth was tucked into a shade protected corner of a lovely yet overgrown formal garden at an Italian villa outside Rome. As I approached the hidden world before me, the sound of clacking wooden heels on stone and concrete walks gave way to the silent swooshing of grass. I wanted to take off my shoes. Before I could, a tiny gravel walk appeared before me, inviting me into the hidden world behind a hedge of arborvitae. A small meadow unfolded before me and within it were undulating circles of riverrocks, winding in and around each other, with gravel walks between. The paths were just wide enough to walk if you paid close attention to your footing.

For as long as man has tried to impose order on the land, man has endeavored to create places of beauty. One can only assume that man was inspired by nature’s tendency to organize—he witnessed flower petals in their rhythmic swirls, the way palm leaves order linear bursts of long green sub-leaves, and the waves created in sand dunes and snow as the air and wind blows across a flat terrace of land. Thus, once nomads turned to agriculture and land became a possession rather than a privilege, man borrowed these subtle markers of nature to delineate places which were “mine,” which was followed not long after by “beautiful” and “connected.
The earliest historical labyrinths showed up almost simultaneously in locations around the world about 3,000 years ago. There are labyrinth designs in the fibrearts of the American Southwest, Indo-European ceramics in Greece, Cretan coins; they are carved into petroglyphs, temple sculptures in South America, clay tablets from the Middle East; illuminated in Christian mystical manuscripts and set in mosaic, murals and paintings throughout Europe. Romans used labyrinths for training horse and rider to communicate silently and function in tight quarters as one being.

Labyrinths can be connected to music (rhythm), mathematics (geometry), geography (position within the world and solar orientation), and even spirit (sacred geometry and the chakras).
But most of all, labyrinths are a place of reflection, a place where one can go within.

A labyrinth is not a maze—there are no wrong turns in a labyrinth. You cannot get lost. Rather, one enters, and, as in life, has some sense of “going somewhere.” Only, in the labyrinth, the destination is usually obvious. There’s a center circle or square visible from the moment one enters the space. The path one walks winds nearer, and then further away, from that central destination point. Just like life. Pam Montgomery, owner of the labyrinth at the San Geronimo Lodge, calls the labyrinth a “journey”—and in the journey of life, there are no shortcuts. Cutting the walls which divide the paths to get to the center more quickly will only put you on a path that will likely lead you back out of the labyrinth, where you started. That’s the point, though. Walking a labyrinth is a moment in itself—a tiny commitment to starting and completing. In these days where many are experiencing frustration and worry, a labyrinth walk is a way to take a few moments where we can find silence and allow the mind to fall away, and see what resides in the places that we are usually too busy, or too worried, to listen to within ourselves.

On a physical level that also relates to a cosmic or spiritual level, labyrinths have at least seven—and sometimes as many as 11 or 14—places where the person walking it turns 180 degrees to access another path. Each turn is aligned to the spiritual principals of the chakras, and also to sacred geometry, and even, in some cases, to the 14 Stations of the Cross.


No matter what the basis, the esoteric meaning is still essentially the same. The first path one makes is primal. It sings to us, “I am alive.” This is the moment when we separate from our selves and our worries, and just come into being “Right Here, Now.”
The second path is about relationships. It is a way we can connect to our shared humanity. This path is where we often find the loneliness we temper by staying busy, and ask, “What am I doing here?”

The third path is about our inner strength. We come back into the presence of here and now, and recall that we are not, in fact, alone at all. This is the path of remembering “I am.”

The fourth path is about compassion and love. It aligns with the heart chakras. This is the place where we find ourselves thinking about our families and friends, wishing for what we miss, longing to love and show support, and wondering how to.
The fifth path is about our voice, our breath. We connect to the higher authority within and without as we take in each breath. Not only are we not alone, but we can connect at any time to those we love and that which we believe. We remember to call someone, suddenly. This place is about spiritual security. For some, this path becomes “I am connected (to Spirit, God, Universe, etc).”

Read the full article here.

Rachel Preston is an architectural designer in Taos, New Mexico, whose focus is on technology-free green design, historic preservation, and creating spaces of sanctuary. You can email her at intentiondesign@gmail.com  or visit her website www.archinia.com.

By Balinda Fiebiger
 
When I walk into my art studio, it becomes a sacred space. I create three-dimensional representations of the human form in clay, bronze, wax, even chocolate in this place set apart and dedicated to creative form.  When I glance up to face the amazing creation of Taos Mountain in the distance, I feel fortunate to be so near as the peaks stretch into the clouds or the clear blue sky. The time I spend creating each piece of sculpture is special as I lose myself in another dimension.
I have spent several years studying and struggling with the human form. The live model looks all fresh and perky as I open a new bag of white, water-based clay. I love the earthy aroma. I want to feel each human form from the inside out whether it’s a yoga pose, an angel, a young girl sleeping or an old man sitting in contemplation. The essence of the feeling is what creates a chord of unity captured in a moment, especially in a yoga pose.

I peel the plastic off and slice strips of the perfectly cured clay.  My fingers squeeze, press and poke the torso, the shoulders and neck. I roll two tubes of pale white clay for legs to push under the torso, and then smooth the connections while I contemplate the model again. If this is a standing pose I adjust the scaffolding any way I can to maintain the clay until it hardens to a leather like stage. Clay is about timing.  When the model is sitting or reclining and I don’t have to concentrate on the stance, I love the feeling of pushing and twisting until the poetry of the form begins to hum. The spine curves as I feel each bone and muscle attached under the skin. I bend the knees and grab a wooden tool to form the calves.  I twist the ankles and scrape the feet into two rough wedges. The clay morphs into a life-like unity. The golden geometry of the human form with its spirals, and curves, connects with the powerful vibrations of the mountains and sky in ways I was never aware of anywhere else.

Creating art can be a profound activity in Taos. The individual can connect with the universe through the night sky scattered with blazing constellations and falling stars. Sometimes I awake in the middle of the night and go to my studio to paint a moonlit scene on a moonlight canvas.  The subtle green-blue sky meets the blue-green mesa punctuated by a distant yellow light from a window.  My heart opens to the infinite spaces of the universe that connect to Taos as I dab the stars and moon onto a canvas. The snowy peaks glisten in the clear, cold air, as they do only in Taos. I absorb the dynamic energy of the moonlight on the mountains and mesa and it becomes the pulsing life in the painting.

If I take a mountain walk I can hear the water laughing over the rocks and ice crystals chiming in a harmony that is the basis of sacred geometry. A sculpture of a native contemplating a piece of crystal may evolve from this energy. Whatever develops from the clay and paint comes from this elemental space and time.
I believe anyone can open his or her heart to connect to form in a piece of art. I invite anyone to join me in my studio to experience the subtle energies of Taos.
Take a piece of clay in your hands, spread paint on a canvas, drink in the view of Taos Mountain and mesa or sit still and be the model.

Balinda’s Studio
105 Eototo Road
Jgfiebiger@gmail.com
575-737-9471

by Sandra Richardson, aka “Zandi”                               

January 2010                                                                                                             
 

Now I understand why they call New Mexico, “The Land of Enchantment.” It’s because the land itself enchants you, casting a spell upon you which can never be undone. The Land makes only one request, before bequeathing this blessing spell: First, you must open your heart.

You must open your heart to the swish of brown feathers of the hawk, as he floats by. You must open your heart to the hum of the lightning-fast beat of hummingbird wings. You must open your heart to the lightning that scratches bright messages of “Be Here Now” across the charcoal slate of the sky. You must open your heart to the rainbow, sometimes twins, that fill the space in the skies scratched open by the lightning, and rinsed clean by walking rain. You must open your heart to the warm rays of the fat golden sun smiling down at you from a sky colored a blue so pure it defies description. You must plunge your open heart into the deep gorge in Mother Earth, a gouge that boldly proclaims, “I am woman! Honor my cleavage, my caverns, my dark depths.” And honor your own. You must open your heart to the masculine majesty of ‘The Mountain.” The Patrón, cloaked in the color of Christ’s blood, expecting—as a good father would do—that you honor your Mother, your brothers and sisters. No longer a lonely child, in this enchanted land, you are gifted with a multitude of brothers and sisters: the rocks, the trees, the rivers, the creepy crawlies, the feathered and the furry four-leggeds, as well as the two-leggeds. One phrase describes ‘family’ here: “Mitakuye Oyasin,” (We are all related.)

If you can open your heart to these things, the Land will enchant you, as it has enchanted me. The stars that once astonished with their bright closeness become expected, taken for granted, until that one night you look up, smile, and you see them smiling back. I love this land! My Land. My part of God’s creation, just outside the backdoor of my house. My adobe mud house cuddles me within its soft corners. My house, which is also made of the land.

This is not my ancestral land. My people are not from here. My people are also wild tribes who worship Nature—but they are the Celts of Eire and Gaul, from far away, across the big ocean. I am not from here either. I am of the breed of roving souls and restless hearts, destined to cross many lands and seas searching for the place my heart could call home.

But do not be deceived, this quest for home has costs. Much is demanded of those who seek acceptance in this Enchanted Place.

The first struggle is with acceptance itself. To learn the wisdom of acceptance, you must learn to see with your heart’s eye. First, you must accept yourself—every nook and cranny of yourself. The Land lets you leave nothing hidden. Delving fearlessly into your dark center, you find your greatest gift—your creative nature. Now you embrace both ugly and beauty. This interplay of shadow and light informs all you create. Seeing past your own shadow, your heart’s eye recognizes that truly we are all one—no matter how different the appearance, practice or prayer. The center of your knowing must become this wisdom: we are all from the One Source. This knowing must stick to your skin, inside and out, like adobe mud between your toes. The yearly ritual of re-mudding your walls reminds you of Source. The adobe dirt cakes under your nails, its powdery breath lines your lungs. Micaceous Tierra-Blanca clay slick-coats your creative spirit, so it sparkles in the light.

Now you sense that the Land and you are one. It is in your bloodstream. This Enchanted Land has become your land. Where once you gawked and stood outside the circle, now you gravitate to the ancient ceremonies the Keepers of this Land repeat every year, year after year without fail, because they know how these rituals nurture the Land and the People. And one day, as the sun touches The Mountain at dawn, and then casts a rose glow on the bare chests of the dancers, it hits you! Like a magic arrow piercing your heart, you just know, NOW you belong.

Now you are truly IN the Land of Enchantment, and you will never be the same. And, you will probably never leave. But, I know, if I do leave someday, the Land will never leave me. I know this Enchantment will tell its story in the history of my heart forever.

Sandra Richardson is a free-lance fashion designer, art dealer and writer who moved from Sydney, Australia to Taos, NM in 1994. See her original designs by appointment (575) 751-1882 or on-line: www.zandidesigns.com

By Whitehawk, January 2010

I was living in a studio in Marietta Georgia, surrounded by eight lane interstates and pollution of all types. John and I were planning a vacation to the Southwest U.S. and surprisingly, I got the feeling that we were going to be moving to the Southwest, not just vacationing. We had no idea exactly where, so I was impressed to dowse the map with my pendulum to find the location of our new home. There was no “action” anywhere except a very strong “yes” over Taos, New Mexico. I didn’t know anything about Taos, so we went onto the internet. I remember saying “I hope we like living there because Taos is without a doubt our new home.”

Four months later we were here. I felt I was on a Sacred Journey and as we drove through the canyon and came up over the ridge, I saw Taos laid out before me and experienced a strong sense of being safe in this Sacred Place. Immediately I felt energized and excited which continues to this day.

After two years of intense living here, a friend pointed out The Mother of Taos Mountain (a pregnant woman lying on her back). Her head is known as El Salto and her hair flows down into Arroyo Seco. I know that her energies called me here and inspired me to create a series of paintings of her Light Energies and the “unseen” events that occur here. I have been painting light energies for many years, obviously in preparation for this time. When I paint, I ask for and allow the energies to come through me onto the canvas and watch in amazement as the images, colors and information are made manifest. My way of knowing feels very comfortable here in Taos.

Let me share some of the information that comes in when I focus on The Mother. Her energy was in place millions of years ago during the first ice age. We feel her power today as it draws creative people who love to take leaps…leaps into the known of the conscious mind and the unknown of the super conscious mind. Only those who are ready and willing to be part of the new 5th Dimension adventure will be passionate about their Inner Knowing and focused on Being…being who they are here to be.
   
The Mother of Taos Mountain is our key to the knowing in the Now. She was created and energized to support us on our paths here on Mother Earth.
The Mother is a Resonator that supports the encoding of the Cosmic DNA into our physical and non-physical bodies.
You can focus on an Octahedron of Light that is above her, and balance your male and female aspects of consciousness.
We are not alone in the universe…there are Light Ships above us.
Inside the head of The Mother is a powerful in-land sea which is a Crystalline Energy Charger.
The famous Taos Hum is the lullaby she sings to us.

Back in Georgia after I dowsed the map and knew that we were moving to Taos, I was impressed that I would be involved in changing the money consciousness and I had no idea what that looked like except it had to do with something bigger than myself. I knew I was where I needed to be even though there were many challenging times. I asked, watched and waited for four years while I went through redesigning myself as people do when they are drawn to Taos. There were times when I wondered how I was going to make a positive difference in the money consciousness here. Then one afternoon during a conversation with some artists, I heard about an organization for visual artists which was just forming. I felt very strongly that I should attend the next meeting and I did. There were nine of us sitting in a circle in an artist’s studio talking about the need for visual artists to have a voice and it was time to get organized. I left there knowing that I came here to be part of establishing TAO Taos Artist Organization which would definitely make a difference in the economy and money consciousness here. We are keeping the Taos Art Colony alive and well.

When I meet someone here, I ask “What is your story? How did you get to Taos?” It is fascinating to hear all the stories of how the energy here draws creative people and people who appreciate and support creativity in all forms.  We are rejuvenated and inspired when our Sacred Journey leads us to this Sacred Place.

I am grateful.
 

By Rita R. Adams

My enchantment with this little corner of Northern New Mexico began early. I was born in Taos, delivered during an April tempest just over thirty years ago. It had been a wet winter, much like this one. The mountains were heavy with melting snow and the skies dark with rain and thunder when my parents brought me home from Holy Cross Hospital.

We found the bridge over Cabresto Creek washed away, blocking access to our house. The water was a chocolate torrent and the only crossing was a rickety footbridge. There is a picture of us just after we'd crossed; my mother is holding me close as she ducks under a barbed wire fence. It is my first photograph; the world is wet and green and full of promise. I've always thought it was a typical Taos beginning: soaked in beauty and spun from wayward plans.
My childhood around Taos was steeped in natural wonders. Going into the high country with my father when the aspens started to blaze gold, I learned to bugle like the bull elk and get them to answer me. I spent the summers hopping black basalt boulders in the Rio Grande gorge, fishing for trout and swimming in the cool green waters, discovering springs and petroglyphs, spying out bald eagles and bobcats.

I consider myself blessed, not only to be from such a unique and wild land, but also to be part of such a rich culture. We Taoseños have always been a diverse group, and that diversity has enriched my life. I learned to speak Spanish here, to make tamales, to roast green chile and dance the Two-Step. Most of all, I learned to appreciate the cultures of others.

As a family we went to the first Taos Pow Wow ever held at the Pueblo. I was six years old and I wanted to dance but couldn't, because I wasn't part of any of the specific tribes. Towards the end, though, the MC called out, “All tribes dance!” and we all took to the field. After the dancing I asked my mom, “Does that mean we're part of a tribe?” And she responded, “Yes, honey, we're part of the Taos Tribe.”

I see the sacred here every day, in a thousand ways. I see it in the pair of Mountain Bluebirds that nests above our door every spring; in the smell of sage and piñón after a rain, in a ruddy sunset, and in the neighbor who is always willing to lend a hand. I carry a piece of Taos with me wherever I go.

Rita R. Adams still lives in Taos. When not writing, she’s working as a fly fishing guide. Check rioroseflyfishing.com to learn more.
 

Influenced by local Native American culture, El Monte Sagrado Living Resort & Spa is committed to a philosophy of ecological preservation and sustainability, maintaining an awareness of the natural world in all areas of the property. The resort seeks to live in harmony with the earth and does so without sacrificing luxury,
comfort, or style by incorporating available technology to reduce and offset power.
 
Celebrating the diversity of cultures throughout the world, El Monte Sagrado integrates global influences into every area of the property, including its AAA Four-Diamond de la Tierra Restaurant, nurturing Living Spa, elegant event space and 84 lavishly designed and culturally inspired guestrooms and suites.

The AAA Four-Diamond El Monte Sagrado Living Resort & Spa features distinctive accommodations and facilities that inspire while offering luxurious service.   Its secluded location and artful surroundings create a tranquil sanctuary that invites rejuvenation and exploration. Now you can discover the intriguing details
behind El Monte Sagrado’s design and operation with a free tour throughout the property, exploring the cultural symbolism and extraordinary methods
utilized for natural sustainability. The one-hour tour includes the areas of: Guided Walking Tour of El Monte Sagrado Sunday - Thursday 10:30 . To download a copy of the Guided Walking Tour Brochure click here.

Photo Courtesy of Rachel Preston

By Rachel Preston

New Mexico, and Taos in particular, is known internationally for a unique architecture that seems to relate really well to its environment. Many people may not realize that these traditions were begun over 600 years ago, or that this architecture was “sustainable”, before that concept was an ideological glimmer in the mind of some forward-thinking hippie. Our ancient forefathers, like many of our hippest local designers are doing today, designed buildings that embrace locally available materials, and use building shapes and orientations that are a direct response to our hot-arid environment, and our frigid winters! In architectural parlance, this is called Vernacular Architecture, and within this are lessons we can use to improve our built environment.

When the earliest people came through Taos, they did not stay. They would hunt and gather, then move along to the next place. The nomads found places they liked, often in seasonal locations, and wanted to stake a claim on that spot so they would not constantly have to be building a shelter. So they would build a semi-permanent shelter that they could return to the next season. They built pit-houses that were buried several in the ground, upon which they would construct a roof of wood beams and layers of branches covered in earth. This ingenious design maintained a constant temperature of approximately 56 degrees throughout the year. A small fire efficiently heated the space in the winter and provided a warm and comfortable, if not exactly bright and airy, home for early Native American families. [A visit to an accurate interpretation of a pit-house is included in SMU-in-Taos’ archaeological curriculum and could be offered through the free lectures and tours SMU does with the Taos Archaeological Society for those that might be interested in seeing one up close.]

With population growth and as attacks by neighbors grew more common, local families banded together into loosely associated tribes and began building small fortified versions of the buildings we know as pueblos. The stacked design and thick earthen walls of the pueblos act very much like big above-ground versions of the pit house – the cool inner core maintains a relatively constant near-earth temperature which can be accentuated with fires in stacked hearths. This allows all the levels of the pueblo to stay cool in summer and also to share heat in winter. Originally designed for security, the small, highly placed windows also serve to minimize the reflection of sunlight off the ground and into the homes, and eliminates glare. Large outdoor terraces allow for communication directly with nature, and shading devices provide cool outdoor spaces for living in the summer. The southeast orientation of the Pueblo maximizes solar gain in winter. I only realized a few days ago, in a conversation with painter Anita Rodriguez about when she worked on the Pueblo years ago, that one of the greatest benefits of pueblo architecture is that your grammie might be just a few feet away, so on days she was not feeling well, you could take her a pot of posole and a warm blanket very easily. When you think about it, there is no better neighborhood than one in which everyone is accountable to everyone else and you can work together to accomplish collective goals and take care of one another. There is also no better security system.

Spanish settlers arrived in the early 17th century and started building a community based on agriculture. They brought with them several important concepts, the most important of which was the hacienda. The hacienda is manifest in various scales, and La Loma plaza (a true Spanish Colonial plaza) and even the main plaza in town effectively function as gigantic haciendas. Haciendas were critical for security, in that they provided a protected entry and exit and presented a fortified face to the outside. Windows on the outside walls were non-existent or small and highly placed, providing security as well as solar protection. Spanish Colonial structures were only as deep as the length of locally available vigas, minimizing the amount of material needed. The covered walks around the interior courtyard effectively shade and cool the exterior spaces in summer, and also prevent ice from forming on the walkways in winter, minimizing the need for maintenance and also protecting building foundations and walkways from frost damage. This interior courtyard is also an effective means of cooling in the summer heat. The small windows on the outside walls and openings on second floors and vents through the earthen roofs can be opened, creating a type of natural air-conditioning called “stack effect”. The interior courtyard is the piece de resistance. Often planted with trees, providing shade as well as an outdoor living area, and is often also the site of the well. Having a well and associated fountains allows humidity to cool the air through evapo-transpiration. To put this in easy terms - it is a swamp cooler – the cooler air sinks, and fills the courtyard, thereby making it even cooler!

Later inhabitants of Taos brought with them new building materials and techniques of construction common to the places where they migrated from. Many modified the design of the early Taos buildings, adding pitched roofs and ornate detailing, which became known as the “Territorial Style”, but it was the very earliest settlers of Taos that really set the standard for green design.

In the mid 20th century, homes in Taos, like those everywhere else, became dependant on mechanical heating and cooling, and the techniques of our forefathers were all but lost in favor of inexpensive, less labor-intensive, less maintenance required framed faux adobe. Living in the desert has a unique way of showing us how to live in relationship with nature, however, and several local designers today are moving away from these energy-dependent practices and integrating the design techniques of the past with modern “green” or sustainable design. Some of our current Taoseno designers are working in both traditional and modern architectural vocabularies while maximizing the use of local materials, using salvaged parts from old buildings as well as recycled non-traditional materials like earth-stuffed tires, integrating solar systems, greywater reuse and water harvesting techniques into their designs, as well as orienting the building to take advantage of solar heat gain in winter and minimizing solar impact in summer through shading.

Whether its a recycled, hand-built building on the mesa, a high style energy-balanced building, a building that is totally off the grid and designed in the old style to minimize any use of mechanical or electrical, or even if you want to restore your old building to its former glory and use its original design features to minimize energy needs… Taos is the place to re-discover the very best in green design.

Rachel Preston is an architectural designer whose focus is on technology-free green design, historic preservation, and creating spaces of sanctuary. You can email her at intentiondesign@gmail.com or visit her website  archinia.com.

Photo Courtesy of Rachel Preston

By Rachel Preston

Courtesy of the Taos Horsefly Newspaper
Using universal techniques from Feng Shui, Vasstu and Intuition
to create space you will love to live in.

In architecture school we studied the creation of space. It was a balancing act between the loud cries of structural engineers, mechanical/electrical/plumbing engineers, contractors and owners to bring something beautiful together that met everyone’s needs.

In the days after completing my master’s degree, which was largely a study of historic buildings in the Eastern U.S. and Europe, I determined that I wanted to really understand “sacred space.” From the construction of the Ziggurats of Mesopotamia to the missions in Latin America, to Feng Shui and Vasstu (a Hindu tradition of space design to promote harmony) from the ancient Orient, I wanted to learn how “sacred” was defined in architectural language.

What I discovered was that, like religions—many of which share some basic tenets—the creation of sacred space in just about every culture involves a simple set of ideals that everybody can use to create space. This somehow allows us to become the beings we are destined—and hopefully, determined—to be.

The key ingredients:

Clearing
What you collect in your clutter-drawer, your closets and your beliefs represents what stands between you and your real self. Only clearing out what is no longer needed can clear the way for new things to become. The challenge comes in remembering the difference between WANT and NEED.

Before you start “making,” you have to “unmake” what you no longer need. Sit with your space, feel what’s not right, take it away. Gift it to someone who will love and cherish it, sell it, donate it—but don’t put it in a box to deal with later. To put something off until later just means you have issues you are choosing to repress.

Inside of your space and yourself, in every nook and cranny, if it doesn’t serve you, be rid of it. Think about why you kept it past its time of usefulness. It is likely that you will see a pattern that develops. This pattern will help you identify what you want to change about yourself, on the inside, which is ultimately the reason why we do this exercise.

Intention
It is vital that when you begin to create space around you, you understand how you want to use that space.

Will it be:

Ceremonial? (Often, entries and dining rooms.)

Comfortable? (Usually bedrooms, living rooms, and patios.)

Functional? (Kitchens, laundries, garages, guest bathrooms, guest bedrooms.)

What do you want to come from your effort of creating the space? Will it be the perfect room for romance? An art studio? Do you want to feel less compressed?

Then, determine in which of these rooms you most need to create a space that “sings” for you. This space needs to take priority over all others.

Start thinking about what you’d really like to see there. Begin going to garage sales, flea markets, stores that you LOVE, and fill that space with things that inspire you. Do layaway if you need extra time. Just set your intentions and DO IT.

Click here to read the remainder of the article .

Photo Courtesy of Rachel Preston

By Rachel Preston
 
There’s so much that’s special about Taos:
The crescent-moon of mountains on the east that embrace this place; the desert that spills out from this container toward the west—and our ever more beautiful setting sun; the great chasm that provides and protects our water sources in the form of the Rio Grande Gorge; rainbows that splash across the sky in layer upon layer after summer rains; the Pueblo, stacked to take advantage of the concept of “smallness” that allows desert dwellers to shed heat in the summer and share heat in the winter; the multicultural community that includes the children of Mexicans, Central, and South Americans of every indigenous mixture; Native Americans from Plains and Pueblos and Woodland cultures; crypto-Jews; Europeans; Africans; and Asians of many lineages… our culture, and thereby our traditions, our foods, our music, our architectural forms…These are the things which make Taos divine.
 
The beauty of being something that was created as a response to a living environment, and not as an imposition or adaptation that works despite the environment, is what makes Taos’ remoteness so precious. It preserved who and what was created here. The forms you see in the Plaza, at the Pueblo, as you gaze out over our agricultural landscape from the overlook in the gardens at the Couse House, and even the Earthships on the mesa - are real, living beings. They breathe the sun and wind and what little rain there is. In the spring, as the mountain is transformed from a snowy pleasure-seeker’s paradise into a green living breathing ancestor, the water overflows the banks of the acequias and brings life to all. We see wildflowers larger than you can imagine, animals and gardens flourishing, hummingbirds and monarchs and every manner of wild animal, and the people working the land as best they can. In our hot dry summers, before the rains come, if they come at all, all the beings of Taos – the buildings and the people, the acequias, the plants, and the animals  - all move closer to the earth, into the shade where it is cool.
 
Taos responds to the environment and the cultures within, and provides a unique, rich and varied shelter to those that seek it out.
 
We are artists, musicians, craftsmen, writers, architects… we are healers, creators… spiritual beings searching for our voices. We come here to find sanctuary. Sanctuary, since the 4th century in England, is a concept of having a right to safety, and to pursue life outside of what was expected… It is the right to ‘be’, outside of political, religious, or cultural requirements.  Taos was these things when Mabel Dodge Luhan brought her salons here from New York and Europe to the beautiful home on the east end of Kit Carson, and this spirit and the artistic and architectural forms it produces are still very much alive today.
 
 
Rachel Preston is an architectural designer in Taos, New Mexico, whose focus is on technology-free green design, historic preservation, and creating spaces of sanctuary. You can email her at intentiondesign@gmail.com  or visit her website www.archinia.com.

Victor Higgins (1884-1949)
Winter Funeral
oil, 1931-1932
Gift of the Artist
Photo courtesy Harwood Museum of Art

Winter Funeral is one example of many flagship works from the Taos Society of Artists that will be exhibited during the summer of 2010. The work featured in the Brandenburg Gallery will be selected based on the Founders artistic intepretations of Sacred Places. Long considered the masterwork of the museum collection, Winter Funeral was originally hung above this fireplace by the artist.  Higgins' mother died during the autumn before this picture was painted, setting the dark mood. It may also be the depiction of an actual event, the burial of a boy killed in an automobile accident. Taos Mountain dwarfs the people gathered for the service. Storm clouds smother the mountain - nature is ascendant in this environment.  At the same time, ice is melting on the creek and a break in oppressive clouds foretells their coming end.
 

The Taos bookstore directory was created by Robert Cafazzo. He owns Two Graces in Ranchos de Taos, just 4.2 miles south of Taos Plaza. Ranchos Plaza is where you'll also find the internationally known San Francisco de Assisi Church (O'Keeffe, Ansel Adams and many othes have depicted its iconic facade). The Two Graces book collection, www.twograces.blogspot.com, specializes in books about the Taos area including rare, out of print and autographed books. A visit to Ranchos and Robert's gallery is a must. Check back soon for more Taos literary lore...

Moby Dickens Bookshop
124 Bent Street #A
575-758-3050
www.mobydickens.com

Brodsky Bookshop
226 Paseo del Pueblo Norte #A
575-758-9468
www.taosbooks.com

Fernandez de Taos Bookstore
102 Cam Paseo del Pueblo Norte
575-758-4391

Made in New Mexico
104 West Plaza
575-758-7709
www.madeinnewmexico.com

G Robinson Old Prints and Maps
124 Bent St. #D
575-758-2278
www.johndunnshops.com/GRobinsonPrintsAndMaps.html

Redwing Book Company
202 Bendix Street
575-758-7758
www.redwingbooks.com

Two Graces Curio Shop & Gallery
66 St. Francis Plaza, Ranchos de Taos
575-758-4639
www.twograces.blogspot.com

The Plaza Gallery
68 St. Francis Plaza, Ranchos de Taos
575-758-4101

Modernist Gallery & Bookstore
1046 Paseo del Pueblo Sur
575-758-3699

UNM Bookstore
115 Civic Plaza Drive
575-737-6266
www.bookstore.unm.edu

Second Chances Thriftshop
1103 Paseo del Pueblo Sur
575-751-4824

Bill and Lisa Brown during the construction of their home in Hondo Mesa

For Lisa and me, Taos is in the middle of everywhere we want to be and almost everything we want to do. A short trip in any direction takes us to alpine forests on stunning mountains, Juniper-Piñon forests on the lower hills and mesas, red rock canyons, sagebrush mesas, the Rio Grande Gorge, the High Plains, the San Luis Valley, the Jemez Caldera, the Great Sand Dunes. We came here for the land, the diversity of cultures, the architecture, food we love to eat every day, and the relative isolation from too many people, too much traffic, too much noise, and too much light at night to see the heavens.

We came to retire and live a life of travel and exploration with our new home as a base. But serendipity led us into new kinds of compelling work that now fills our calendars in ways we could not possibly have imagined. For the first time in our lives we are our own bosses, commanding networks of people and organizations dedicated to a bright and beautiful future for our children, our community, our region, our country, and our planet. The energy here is so great that it flows far beyond our valley and exerts influence in huge proportion to our population.

Taos is a model of sustainability and future thinking for communities throughout the arid lands of the American Southwest and elsewhere. Our general architectural style is energy-efficient and has been that way for centuries. Taoseños use less than half the electricity demanded by the average American. Our adobe buildings respond passively to the seasons, storing heat in the winter while keeping cool in the summer. Most of the food we eat is produced nearby by people we know: neighbors who provide eggs and tamales, friends at Cerro Vista Farm and Rio Culebra Cooperative who sell us fruits, vegetables and beef.

Our local utility, Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, Inc. works in concert with its members to offer solar and wind power alternatives to the dirty energy that pollutes our land, water and atmosphere. Our town government has steadily produced legislation to require even more energy-use and water-use efficiency in our building stock. Local builders and citizens act independently to install solar photovoltaic (PV) and thermal panels, residential wind turbines, water catchment systems, and weatherization retrofits. These combined efforts serve our economy by increasing local circulation of the money we pay for energy rather than sending that money to out-of-state energy providers.

The progress of clean energy construction is such that Taos has real possibilities of becoming mostly independent of regional energy grids by 2020. Visitors to Taos should note the solar PV arrays at the University of New Mexico, Klauer Campus and over the parking lot the Kit Carson Electric Cooperative, Inc. offices. New solar PV arrays are also being built at the Town’s water treatment plant and near Questa, about 25 miles north of Taos. A 30-megawatt solar PV array is under construction on 250 acres near Springer, NM, about 80 miles to the east. Meanwhile, local companies like Paradise Power and Valverde Energy have been installing solar PV and solar thermal systems on Taos homes for many years.

Our local non-profits are professional, assertive, and influential on a regional and national basis. Of very special note are Amigos Bravos and the Western Environmental Law Center whose powers of purpose and integrity have protected so much of our precious lands and waters and the air we breathe for the past two decades.

As a federal Earth Scientist for 36 years, my experience and skills in the energy and minerals sector have allowed me to create a consultancy in Taos that focuses on energy science, technology, policy and economics. My work is largely voluntary and sometimes paid, and I and my partners and associates have dedicated ourselves to assisting our community in its transition to a new energy economy. This transition is taking place globally and will define the future of our planet. I can’t imagine working on anything so powerful, so important, so fulfilling and in such a supportive environment as Lisa and I have in our community.

It is all here for Lisa and me. Out on a quiet mesa, we have a 360-degree perspective on mountains, the Rio Grande Gorge, Juniper and Piñon covered hills, an eternally changing sky – all seen from our small parcel of the sagebrush sea. We had not known that the sagebrush could be so vibrant. Our space is ever alive with cottontails and jackrabbits, coyotes, “wall” lizards who bask on our sun-warmed adobe, a quail covey among huge numbers of resident and migratory birds. From my office window I see all these and more. Magnificent hot-air balloons lift off nearby to float along the gorge and occasionally drift down for a landing on the road by our house. My panorama of the Taos Mountains section of the Sangre De Cristos extends from Pueblo Peak northward to the Latirs, with rounded Ute and San Antonio Mountains accenting the horizon. Our home is an ideal location for our being and our work – ever comfortable, ever serene, a place of true peace of mind for the rest of our lives.

www.billbrownclimatesolutions.blogspot.com
www.theclimateprojectus.org

This place is beautiful. The earth here is solid, full of life and bedrock and the sky is so huge, it extends forever. Sunlight in Taos draws artists from around the globe who wish to recreate such celestial refractions upon the form of their work. Every morning lustrous sunbeams kiss the curves of the Sangre de Cristos at dawn and lick their way down the mountains, aflame with the glow of another full day at sunset. There is something about the way life looks in Taos. Following the Noble Eightfold Path, Right View, our personal perspective, is the first step towards freedom. Our view, or opinion of life defines how we live it. If we see beauty every day, we see the world as beautiful.

Right view is about perspective and also, honesty. To view the world as it truly is, free from the delusions and tricks our minds can play on us, is to see, (and be) clear. Often, people come to Taos “by accident”; on the off chance that world travels bring them up the winding canyon roads into our little town. These encounters are just good timing, like sunlight that illuminates the Rio Grande gorge, a rift that splits the earth deep into it's core. The Gorge is a true “peek” into the heart of the earth, and traveling down the river is to follow the currents of grace. Similarly, visitors to Taos experience profound and otherwise unknown integration with nature, true spirit, and even themselves. That feels good, and so, they stay.

Many others enjoy Taos for the expansiveness. Space. Around the world, communities are becoming more and more crowded, stressing the delicate relationship between earth, beings and sky. We literally have space to breath in Taos, room to stretch and room to grow. Much like houseplants, when humans are given room to explore and to be creative, we learn what serves us best, we grow stronger roots, and connect to the essence or heart of community. As we become intimate with our own true nature, we see more clearly our role in relationship with others. Spaciousness to be ourselves leads to making honest choices, and living with more integrity. In this way, Taos encourages us all to look more intensely at the reverberations of our actions. A little town with a big heart can stay small, act local, and still connect globally.

The art made in Taos speaks highly of our chance to be real here. Creativity is our clearest expression of heart, the easy way to express our own perspective of life, love and the pursuit of freedom to do both. Rightly so, there is nothing casual about life in Taos, as there is nothing casual about life in general. The sheer elevation of the high desert hints at a closeness to the expansive sky, a place where our hearts and dreams are free to roam. Taos' art world is vast because to live fully is to be creative and artful in your action. Art is just the thing we do when we feel full of life.

The acme of Taos mountain seems to float in the heavens, hinting at the integration between real, tangible life and something bigger. We are surrounded by peaks that reach into the sky here. It is within the mountains where mystical secrets are held, in nature where we find truth about humanity, and among the members of a diverse community like Taos where we are free to be most authentically ourselves. The raw natural beauty of Taos is reflective of unfettered relation with truth, Right View, and real life. This is a place of both honesty and connection as well as wild freedom. Come to Taos and join our community for some yoga at Shree Yoga Taos.

-Suki Mierzejewski, Genevieve Oswald, Amani
Shree Yoga Taos
575-758-8014
shreeyogataos@gmail.com
www.shreeyogataos.com

I left the city behind.
When I first got to Taos, just looking at the sky and how the light and clouds played across the mountain would cause a little ripple of joy to run through me. Breathing the fresh, clean air and watching a raven soar overhead was magical. Just greeting the day seemed like a ritual.
Then I found my sacred place.

It was October 3rd – easy for me to remember because that’s my daughter’s birthday. As a birthday treat, I suggested we hike up a wonderful trail I’d discovered off the road to the ski valley. It was cool in the shade of the trees as we hiked up the steep, rocky path. The textures of moss and rock, delicate ferns and evergreens, along with the sounds of water moving over and around the stone-floored stream were tickling all my senses.

Hiking uphill, the exertion caused us to lose an outer layer, tying jackets around our waists. The air felt cool on face and hands, but we were warmed by exercise. We didn’t talk much - just looked, listened and soaked it all in. Once in awhile one of us would say, “Look!” and point to some tiny wildflower or mossy stone.
The trail wound around enormous tree trunks, widening and narrowing in a pleasing, organic way. No paved areas here. No fences or guard rails. No signs. Crossing the stream on glistening stepping stones called up our seldom-needed sense of balance and each step from stone to solid land became an accomplishment, even if it wasn’t really difficult. The further we went up, up into the embrace of the mountain, the more I felt a part of it all.

We reached a waterfall, an area of large almost-level rock, the furthest I’d ever been on this trail. At first my instinct was to turn back but I saw that the trail continued though it was narrower, and steeper. Since this was her birthday, I asked my daughter if she’d like to go on, and she said let’s keep going.
By this time I was feeling the altitude and taking little breather breaks. The path went up and then down, which surprised me, and then back up with a turn so that we couldn’t see what lay ahead. Watching my feet to avoid tripping on roots or rocks, I had no idea what I was hiking into.

Then I raised my head and gasped. I looked at my daughter and saw we both had the same expression on our faces: eyes wide and mouths agape in amazement. We had stepped into an enchanted forest of gold – sunlight flashing off fluttering leaves and white tree trunks that soared upward like a gothic cathedral.
It took my breath away, that hidden aspen grove. I was overcome with a feeling of privilege to have been called there on that magical day. It was an honor to witness and celebrate the power of such an enchanted and sacred space.

Lesley Ivy lives in Ranchos de Taos.
 

By Susan Sims

Since last summer, I've lived near the famous San Francisco de Asís church. I see the steeples from my porch, and through a break in the bushes down my street hides a small grove that opens onto the church grounds. I can take a little pilgrimage any time I want.

I swear those steeples whisper my name, usually just before sunset, the best time of day here. This is when everything lights up with magic and you understand why it's called the Land of Enchantment. I sneak away from the daily grind and step for a spell into a pocket of peace and delight.

This adobe church exudes vitality from its body of holy mud and straw. Once, I spoke with a lone young visitor who described the building as chunky and fleshy; these are delicious, perfect words. Through annual remudding rituals, at least two centuries of hands have anointed this church, flesh to muddy flesh. Traditionally (and, to my mind, appropriately), only women applied the mud. The church's velvety curves suggest femininity, softness embodying strength. Mother Church indeed.

I've attended Christmas Midnight Mass here, with its enchanting combination of Catholic solemnity, Spanish singing and folk guitar, luminarias lining the courtyard and little bonfires in the parking lot. In the gift shop, I've stood in awe before the icon paintings of Father Bill, the assistant priest. I've been to the annual bazaar and witnessed a glorious fusion of Aztec and Catholic prayer-dancing by the group Teonantli (“godly mother” in Nahuatl).

But it's the courtyard that calls me, that is my destination. There, statues of St. Francis in the west and St. Clare in the east face each other. When I go just before twilight, the setting sun behind Francis lights up Clare's face. I think this is how it was for them in life. Rarely together physically, they were joined in a spiritual dance, always looking toward and illuminating each other.

In summer, a lush flower garden circles Clare. This is the spot where I most like to be, among scads of small bizarre creatures called hummingbird hawk moths. They look, as you might expect, like a cross between a hummingbird and a moth. Unruffled by my presence, they suck nectar from flowers so close I can see the long proboscis straighten out into a blossom like fishing line into a river, then quickly curl up into the mouth.

Clare and Francis stand in quiet agreement as doves chortle in the bell towers, ravens echo around the sky. Tourists and artists come clicking cameras. Clouds sweep over flowers rapt with whirring moth wings.

A symphony, with deep adobe as the secret bass line. Senses and spirit exult.

How sublime that there’s this harmony of animal, plant, and human life at a church dedicated to St. Francis, patron of ecology, lover of all creatures. I adore this place, where Mother Church and Mother Earth interlace in a brilliant dance.

Susan Sims is a resident of Ranchos de Taos.

 

By Michael Shaw II

One of the greatest things I have enjoyed during my time in Taos has been the medley of personalities of those who live here. On a daily basis I never know who I will encounter while shopping for groceries, working in the service industry, or hitchhiking to my broken down “Taos car.” Whether a fifth-generation true Taoseño, or a just-arrived refugee from a despotic republic; a former rock star from England, or someone that just bussed in from Wisconsin to learn about Earthships, all fit easily within the Taos’ profile and are not the least bit of a surprise.

The one trait that all of these people seem to share is their happiness at being here. As it is often said, and I admittedly paraphrase, Taos either loves and embraces and keeps you here, or it chews you up and spits you out. I believe these words could not be truer, and the town, community, or the Mountain, as some claim, constantly manifests this premise.

Examples of this are the people that end up in Taos by misfortune. How many people do we know that ended up here traveling through and were struck ill? Or their car broke down and they never got to leave? Or showed up in town with only the clothes on their backs? And yet, those that remain have thrived!
The counterparts are those people we all know, here from some big city, cosmopolitan lifestyle, thinking they will take the “small pond” by storm. I have never lived anywhere where the adage, “If you can make it there (New York), you’ll make it anywhere” has proven less true. I have known incredibly impressive people straight from the Big Apple that have basically fled after six months with their tails between their legs. And there is no known explanation. There are simply people that “fit” here and can live by our rather loose but peculiarly practical principles, and those that cannot.

What this creates is, again, a populace of true, sincere, happy people. Basically, if you are here, you are meant to be here, and it shows in your attitude. Even if someone has come here to be in solitude, that is much more possible here than most other places. And this makes these people even more pleasant when it is necessary to come to town. This place allows and embraces these differences like nowhere on earth.

So whether I am playing pool with an acclaimed architect, standing behind a movie star at the coffee shop, or bussing dirty dishes to an oft-published dishwasher, there is always a certain smile, a nod, a glance — a bond. We are happy to be here. We are happy to welcome newcomers, and hope that they belong and feel that joy. We simply KNOW that Taos is OUR place. And that we are TAOS’ people. There is nothing Taos can do about it and nothing we can do about it, but it IS true. To me, that is sacred.

Michael Shaw II is a transplanted Hoosier from Indiana who moved to Taos in 1990. He says he is Taos’ pre-eminent “chirotender” — opening Shaw Chiropractic while tending bar at the Alley Cantina and Sabroso.
 

By Roger Martínez

Being born at a time in Taos history that there was no Catholic church in town, I believe, has further encouraged me to search for the sacred.
When I was born, the church of Our Lady of Guadalupe had just burnt down and it would be several months before a new church would come up in its stead. Meanwhile, I was baptized in the St. Joseph School gymnasium. I may have been one of the first children to run up and down the aisles of the current standing church of the Virgen de Guadalupe, but knowing my parents, I was merely one of the first to cry in the church. I was already a year and 10 days when the new church was dedicated.

Growing up I got to listen to the Penitente Brothers, Los Hermanos de Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno, sing their spiritual songs, alabados. Back then, there was an undying breed of men who would celebrate their spirituality at the historic Taos Morada throughout the year, during Holy Week in particular. This morada was also named in honor of the Virgen de Guadalupe back in 1698 when it was built at the edge of Taos Pueblo land with an amazing view of the sacred Taos Mountain. Shortly after it was built, the Taos Pueblo deeded a strip of land to the east of the morada for spiritual/religious use as a place to invoke Christ while praying to the Stations of the Cross in supplication.

One afternoon, while taking my almost daily walk, I happened about the morada and the stations. This was a moment in my life I could not, and still have not, found the words to express how I felt. I was guided through each of the stations, sensing, feeling some of what Christ Himself must have experienced. I had been here about 25 years before and had experienced a similar sensitivity, only this time with more intensity. I am drawn to this place; I can easily spend hours on any one particular station or at the foot of the cross at the end of the stations, el Calvario, or the cross outside the morada at the end of the stations. Each room within the morada carries a presence within that fills my soul with joy, the pure joy that Saint Francis of Assisi talked about and shared amongst those he preached to.
From the sight of the morada, to the path of the Calvario, every step I take, every breath I breathe in and around the morada, bring in the sacred presence of a history of faith, of joy, of love for Christ, of love of Christ. This spiritual place: numinous, solemn, cherished, venerable and holy are for me what is sacred in Taos.

Roger Martínez is a photographer, native of Taos and active parishioner at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church.
 

Why should visitors come to Taos
This is their chance to escape from a crazy life in their part of the world. It is a perfect setting for them to see what the unspoiled American west looks like and enjoy the pristine environment. People go home with wonderful stories about their adventure, their new-found resting place that rejuvenates their body, mind and spirit. This makes an incredible vacation, or great seminar, or an enlightened workshop –a step into another world- that will be talked about and shared with their friends and relatives for a long time.

People experience the peacefulness of the city on its walking streets full of unique shops, the museums and art galleries with original works that represents the southwest. Experience is on a personal level engaging the natural wonders of mountains, water, canyons, and desert manifested within each season.

How does Taos make us feel
This is a bucolic setting –rarely found anymore in America- which allows us to participate in all the things we want to do in Taos. Some people talk about ‘Taos time’ as work that seems to take forever. Others talk about ‘Taos time’ as a chance to slow down life and take stock of their personal endeavors and desires. ‘Taos time’ to me means that I have a chance to use my ability to be truly human and engaging with other people with little fanfare.

This town, in some mystical way, seems to slow down our aging process. When our children and grand children come here they have fun. They go to bed happy, and with great excitement for what tomorrow will bring!

-John and Prudence Abeln
Dreamcatcher Bed and Breakfast
575-758-0613
www.dreambb.com

Taos is alive. It sings and vibrates with a unique energy all its own. The crisp blue sky appears larger than life. The sunsets transport you to a place of serenity and calm. The special magic of the Santo de Christo Mountains serve as the backdrop for all your days. The color of the light sparks your creative juices. In Taos, the night sky is lit only by the Milky Way which reminds you that you are a part of something remarkable. Taos’ energy is relaxing, soothing and healing. It can be strong, deep and penetrating. These energies inspire world class healers to live and work in Taos and add an extra dimension to the quality of their healing practices. Consult our healing directory and see the many opportunities that you can experience during your stay here. Come to Taos with an open heart and an open mind and experience the magic.

-Astra Amis
Taos Heals: A Sacred and Healing Arts Collective
575-613-6941
sharpay@earthlink.net
www.taosheals.com

It’s difficult to describe “why Taos”…but, the light, especially in the early evening in Fall…it really is different than anywhere else. The influence of our Hispanic and Native American cultures. Taos’ part in the westward movement…read Blood and Thunder. The book skillfully describes the role of Kit Carson, and many others, in the founding of the West…a must American History read! The Gorge Bridge and the vistas that seem to go on forever…wow… especially if you come from an urban area. There’s also a spirit, or maybe it’s an energy, that you can’t help but feel after settling in for a few days. And do take the time to slow down…I think it’s a place where you can feel the true vastness of this country by simply enjoying a patio dinner at the Stakeout restaurant…the views are truly difficult to describe. But you will never forget them.

-Audrey Farley
Critters Grooming
575-613-2825
crittersgrooming@kitcarson.net

A curve in the road reveals an expansive landscape sliced open by the Taos Gorge which kindles a spark that infuses your Taos experience with awe and beauty and takes your breath away. Add fresh mountain air, vast starlit night skies, and the ever present force of Taos Mountain. Then add a collection of inspired people who thrive in the environment, building that spark into their own creations. Take a deep breath – slow down and open your senses. Rich in the arts and earthly delights with access to the great and sometimes rugged outdoors, Taos holds something for everyone.

Whether it is your first visit or your 27th, the Taos spark is the perfect catalyst for inspiration and expression. The musicians who perform in the Taos Concert Series of Music from Angel Fire carry that spirit into their playing. It calls them back year after year. It creates a framework in which they inspire each other and their audiences.

Ida Kavafian, Artistic Director of the Festival, understands the special quality of northern New Mexico. She recently told a new Festival participant “You will find Taos and Angel Fire magical and unspoiled once you are there. Very unpretentious in addition to gorgeous. The music and musicians are both superb and the camaraderie unique.”

The Taos Concert Series of Music from Angel Fire will be performed on August 21 & 28 and September 1 & 4, 2010 at the Taos Center for the Arts (TCA). We hope this will be a great opportunity for more Taos residents to spend time with the artists and become a part of the Festival “family”.

Music from Angel Fire is recognized as one of America’s premier repertory festivals for chamber music. The summer of 2010 will mark Music from Angel Fire’s 27th Season of exquisite, world-class chamber music in northern New Mexico. Beginning on August 20 and continuing through September 5 more than 35 international artists will perform an impressive array of works from the great classical, romantic, baroque and contemporary masters. The Festival will present 15 concerts in the beautiful New Mexico mountain communities of Angel Fire, Taos, Raton and Las Vegas. Tickets range from $20 - $35.

-Nancy Ondov, General Director
Music from Angel Fire
888-377-3300
www.musicfromangelfire.org

As I rounded the mountain coming into the Taos Valley the sky above was clear clean and blue with frothy white moving clouds. To the left cutting deeply into the vast plateau was the deep dark Rio Grande Gorge. “oough” As I looked to the right there were the beautiful Sangre de Christo Mountains. “ahhhh” This was my “oough-ahhh” moment. The magic of the sharp colors and the drama of vast spaces had stirred me deeply. I had succumbed to the lure of Taos.
The colorful images moved me to paint and delight in the idealized landscape and architecture of Northern New Mexico. This is my depiction of my “Journey to New Mexico”.
—Mary Ellen Matthews

Nichols sees that Taos and his creativity are intertwined. A thread that is woven in the tapestry that makes his artistic life what it is. It’s living in an unknown territory not sure of the final chapter but enjoying the journey. A journey path that he is still partaking, from subject matters of: landscape, figurative works and still life. Acutely aware of the delicate hues created by light, Richard strives to render, in his words "a visual poem" with each stroke. Whether brushed in oil, a textured charcoal to a splashing stroke of watercolor he tries capture not of the knowing but of the feeling. Allowing that unknown creative spirit to be the guide of his works from that of a Sunflower petal of a Still Life, Bustling street of the a City, to the Plein Aire light that the Sangre De Cristo’s enchant with.

-Richard Alan Nichols
575-779-4892
nicholsstudio@gmail.com
www.richardalannichols.com

"A Sacred environment for creativity"

says Jan Mellor, owner of the taos gallery and the newly formed Taos Art Experiences.

Taos – “one of the chosen spots on earth” according to writer D. H. Lawrence. – has been a Mecca of creativity for centuries.

From painted images on rocks 6000 years ago to modern artists using state of the art techniques, Taos remains a Mecca of creativity and the arts.

What is it about Taos that nurtures the creative spirit? Is it the light that drew Georgia O’Keefe, the scenic beauty captured in Ansell Adams work, and that of so many landscape artists? (Many artists of today were attracted to Taos because of the scenes painted by Russian Artist Nicolai Fechin in the 1920s (www.taosartmuseum.org) and the colorful people and their traditions and ceremonies – providing perfect subjects.

Some will tell you that it started with the rock paintings 6000 years ago. Take a hike by the Rio Grande River among the petroglyphs.

Others will direct you to Taos Pueblo (World Heritage & UNESCO Site) inhabited by the Native Americans for over 1000 years and continuing to hold a life rich in tradition and ceremony today, (www.taospueblo.com).Many of the Taos Pueblo people work with clay, fiber, leather, wood and stone, creating beautiful sculpture, mica-flecked pottery, hand beaded moccasins and log drums. Their traditional and contemporary pieces can be seen in the local galleries, museums and on the pueblo.

Some will point to the rich Hispanic art and traditions carried on today by the santeras and santeros honoring over 400 years of living in Taos. The Spanish settlers decorated their churches and homes in celebration of their faith creating an art form unique to this area. Many of the Hispanic artists have developed contemporary work based on traditional techniques of painting on wood (retablos), tin-smithing and woodcarving (www.martinezhacienda.com).

And for some they will tell you that the art scene as we know it really began in 1898 when Ernest L. Blumenschein and Bert G. Phillips, two young painters who were on their way to Mexico from Denver when just north of Taos their wagon broke down and Blumenschein lost the coin toss and carried the wheel to Taos for repair. That was it, some say. That’s how it all got started – a wagon wheel, fate, two men eager for discovery and a quiet unspoiled little settlement that had already earned a place in American history.

In 1915 Blumenschein, Phillips and four other artists formed the Taos Society of Artists (www.taosartmuseum.org) and soon other creative intellectuals such as Mabel Dodge Luhan, (www.mabeldodgeluhan.com), DH. Lawrence and Georgia O’Keefe joined them in Taos, helping to create a world-wide reputation for Taos as a center of creativity for artists, patrons and inspiration seekers.

Others come to celebrate life, to honor and nurture their spirit. Whatever the reason, Taos continues to provide a sacred environment for creativity.

The combination and integration of these cultures led to the formation of a long illustrious connection to the sacred world of creativity and tradition which continues today.

Many of the studios and homes of the Taos Society of Artists are now historical sites and/or homes to some of today’s artists. The homes of citizens who left their mark on this community; Ernest Blumenschein, Padre Martinez, Elizabeth Harwood, Governor Bent, Kit Carson and Nicolai Fechin, are now museums on the Historic Landmark Register. Art patron and designer, Millicent Rogers’ family created the Millicent Rogers Museum containing the core of one of America’s foremost Southwestern arts and design collections. (www.taoshistoricmusems.org)

Honoring and continuing this tradition of nurturing creativity, and born out of a gathering of artists over dinner, Taos Art Experiences was formed.
Taos Art Experiences not only continues the legacy of 1000 years as a sacred place but also the legacy of the former Taos Institute of Art: recognizing and nurturing creativity with personal freedom and deep respect for the people and cultures of Taos.

Experience Taos and discover why
we say:
Taos is the Soul of the Southwest!
Taos is one of the chosen spots on earth!
Taos is the original Art Colony!

www.taosartexperiences.com
www.thetaosgallery.com
 

By David Fernandez, Mayordomo, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Taos, NM

History of the Morada de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe:

In the year 1797 or 1798, the Taos Pueblo Tribal Council and religious officials, including the Cacique, granted the present lands where the Morada now stands to the Brotherhood, the Hermanos, with the understanding that the grant was for the practice and furtherance of the Hermanos’ religious devotions.

The Hermanos began preparing the granted land, clearing and leveling it, and construction soon began – the laying of foundations and erecting the Morada. According to documents of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, the Morada was completed to its full-size by 1834, built in the traditional massive adobe style.

The Morada of Fernando de Taos, or Fernandez de Taos, and its members fell under the authority of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, whence the religious name and dedication given to the Morada. The Taos Morada was the center for nearly all the Hermanos’ activities in the area for many decades, and thus it remains important to all present-day members of La Fraternidad Piadosa de Nuestro Padres Jesus Nazareno, the Penitent Brothers. World War II and other global and national changes and shifts in social, cultural and political life affected the Brotherhood. There was a decline in various Moradas and membership.

The Taos Morada was also affected by current, changing events locally. By 1973 a very small number of elderly Hermanos remained. Two Morada officials then approached the Kit Carson Memorial Foundation about acquiring the Morada so that it would be preserved for posterity.

This move by the Morada officials and the sale of the Morada to the Carson Foundation was extremely controversial, and was viewed by many as outrageous and illegal in the view of the original Pueblo Grant agreements. At the time, the entire Catholic Parish community, together with Hermanos Penitentes from all parts, held a prayer procession from Guadalupe Church in Taos to the Morada, headed by the Parish Priest. Prayers were led to ask that the Morada remain free from exploitation and that it would soon be returned to its original intended use and devotional practices.

Since then, and until very recently, title of the Morada remained with the museums – the group of local museums known at the time as The Taos Historic Museums, now consisting of two Taos museums, www.taoshistoricmuseums.com. The Morada was used as a repository for archives and artifacts. When the controversial sale was completed in 1977, steps were taken to have the Morada placed on the National Register of Historic Buildings and Sites. One major benefit of the controversial transfer of ownership was that with National Preservation Acts funds from the National Park Service, the New Mexico State Historic Preservation Office, and with CETA assistance, the Morada was restored to its former condition as when in full use during the mid-1800s.

The Morada was restored thanks to the Historic Museum Association’s efforts. But many lamented the fact that the Morada was not being used for its original, intended purpose. The situation was a quandary for all concerned. The Morada stood, wonderful and exuding the light, echoes, faith and devotion of countless Hermanos of the previous century and a half, but not really accessible to the Hermanos and the community.

In 2006, certain Hermanos requested permission from the Association to conduct an outdoor rite of the Via Cruces, or Way of the Cross, for the Taos community. On April 11, 2006, during Holy Week, the Hermanos led that devotion along the Camino del Calvario, the Way to the Calvary Cross, at the Morada.

The Parish Priest of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish also participated, and he blessed the Morada site once again. The local newspaper, The Taos News www.taosnews.com, reported the event as “The reawakening of the Morada.” In 2007 and 2008, on Holy Tuesday of Holy Week, the Via Cruces has been held again.

Most recently, title of the Morada was returned to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church by the Taos Historic Museum Association, and the Parish is in the process of organizing the future for the Taos Morada.

Visit Taos Morada under Our Sanctuaries to learn more about the Taos Morada.

By David Fernandez, Mayordomo, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Taos, NM

The “Taos Morada” is the Penitente Morada de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe, also known as the Morada de Fernando de Taos de la Fraternidad Piadosa de Nuestro Padre Jesus Nazareno. It is on the National Historic Register as a Historic Landmark, located not far from the Town of Taos Historic Plaza, also on the National Register. It is one of the most valuable of the Taos/Northern New Mexico area’s spiritual jewels.

Directions to the Morada: from the Town of Taos primary intersection of Highway 64/68, which is also Kit Carson Road and Paseo de Pueblo Sur/Norte, head east on Kit Carson Road .2 miles to Las Cruces Road and take a left (do NOT turn on Morada Rd.–oddly enough that does not go to the Taos Morada); follow this narrow, winding way to Penitente Lane, take a left and this will bring visitors to the Morada.

Visiting the Morada is encouraged, and photography is permitted, as is using the site for plein air painting or photography workshops, but groups should register their visits with me, David Fernandez of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 575-758-7608. And, of course, visitors are asked to be respectful of the Morada, its surroundings, and the residents who live in the area. Donations are welcomed and encouraged for the maintenance of this wonderful historic structure and may be made at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church’s Parish Office, or by mailing a check to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 205 Don Fernando Street, Taos, NM, 87571.

The Morada is infinitely valuable as an enduring physical sign of the centuries-old Catholic lay religious practice and devotion of the Penitente Order of the Hermanos, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penitentes_(New_Mexico).

In addition, the Morada is held in the highest regard by the Catholic world, in the Taos and Northern New Mexico communities. It is considered to be a spiritual and cultural treasure by all who know of it, by all who continue their association with it, and by those who know its fascinating, inspiring and sometimes tragic story.

The story, and the meaning of the Morada, is epic and compelling, but it is also tinged with dark tragedy, neglect, and even exploitation–sometimes by those who profess to care deeply for it. And, for some, the Morada and its meaning is occasionally misunderstood.

Visit History of the Taos Morada under Our History to read about the historical and factual background of the Morada. But equally important, its living meaning and importance now and for the future, as the spiritual bedrock that it has been, is, and should continue to be for our communities.

 

Photo Courtesy Gak Stonn

Taos Pueblo is a sacred Taos place, unique among the many other such destinations in the Taos historic and tri-cultural area. Taos Pueblo is geographically comprised of approximately 99,000 acres, with unique multi-level adobe structures clustered around a central plaza area and river, still traditionally inhabited and maintained today.

Taos Pueblo is the only dual-registered UNESCO (United Nations) Living World Heritage Site and a National Historic Landmark in the United States. Built over 1,100 years ago, the structures of Taos Pueblo are a major visitor destination in Taos (the structures are approximately 2 miles from Taos Plaza), with tours conducted regularly by members of Taos Pueblo. Please remember that Taos Pueblo is the tribe’s home, and that rules must be strictly followed with regard to access areas, photography, recording devices, etc. Please go to the Taos Pueblo web sites for information, www.taospueblo.com and www.taospueblopowwow.com.

Check out Galavanting Web Travel Series for great footage of Taos and the Pueblo.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Church Has  A Long History

By Roger Martinez for the  Taos News

On Nov. 18, 1801, permission was granted by Bishop Olivares in Durango to the community of Taos to build a church.

This church began as a mission of San Geronimo Parish at the Taos Pueblo, served by Fray José Benito Pereyro, OFM. In August 1826, the Franciscans, under Fray Mariano José Sanchez Vergara, OFM, the last Franciscan to serve Taos, turned the parish over to diocesan priest Antonio José Martínez.

In 1833, Bishop Zubiria, of Durango, decreed the making Our Lady of Guadalupe a parish. Fr. Martínez, already serving as pastor of San Geronimo, became the first pastor of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. This parish became the first parish under the patronage of Our Lady of Guadalupe in what is now the United States.

The churches of San Geronimo and San Francisco de Asís in Ranchos de Taos then became Visitations of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. This first church honoring the pregnant Virgin of Guadalupe was built facing south on what is now a parking lot northwest of the historic Taos Plaza.
 

This adobe church was completed in 1802 and held the prayers of its parishioners for about 109 years when it was recognized by Archbishop of Santa Fe, Jean Baptiste Pitaval, to be irreparable and restoration was not an option. He ordered Fr. Joseph Giraud to bring down the old church and build a new church on the same site.

The second structure, also continued to be named in honor of Our Lady, was built on the same spot and completed before the year was over with a total budget of $11,000.

This house of prayer that witnessed many baptisms, weddings and funerals of parishioners was destroyed by an accidental fire July 24, 1961, by boys searching for pigeon eggs in the belfry.

Eighteen months later, after parish involvement at all levels, under the leadership of Fr. Alberto Chávez and the Parish Council, the new adobe edifice of Our Lady of Guadalupe was dedicated on Dec. 16, 1962, by Archbishop Edwin Byrne. Monsignor Charewicz had the opportunity to serve the parish from its completion until 1967 when he was replaced by Fr. Robert Beach.

Today, Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish continues to serve parishioners of the Taos Valley including families of the historic St. Jerome Mission at Taos Pueblo, the chapels of Nuestra Señora de Dolores in Cañón, Santa Teresa de Avila in El Prado, Immaculate Conception in Ranchitos and San Antonio in La Loma, where Masses are held regularly.

Last year the parish had opportunity to get back the legendary La Morada de Nuestra Señora de Guadalup, which had been owned by the Taos Historic Museums since 1988. It had been built after the land was acquired from the Taos Pueblo in 1798. It’s prayerful use had been consistent for almost 200 years, sitting near the base of the Sacred Taos Mountain.

This morada had been the center of New Mexico Penitente Brotherhood for much of that time. For the last couple of years, Stations of the Cross have been prayed on its Calvario during Lenten Fridays and a pilgrimage from the parish was taken, ending with Stations of the Cross on Good Friday.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Par ish has several active organizations including the Mayordomos/Parish Council, Finance Council, Catholic Daughters, Holy Name Society, Guad alupanas, Peregrinos, St. Vincent de Paul Society, Knights of Columbus, Secular Franciscans, and the St. Michael’s Youth Group.

There is a full religious education program having at least two classes per grade. There are three full-time choirs, a long list of Lectors, counters and two deacons — Deacon Donald Martínez and Deacon Jerry Quintana. This year, 2009, Our Lady of Guadalupe has had 176 years as a parish, and celebrated its 175th anniversary under the leadership of Fr. Lawrence Brito who has now served just over five years as its parish priest.

Read the remainder of the article here.

Photo Courtesy Rick Romancito

When I think of art I think of beauty. Beauty is the mystery of life. It is not in the eye it is in the mind.  In our minds there is an awareness of perfection.

–Agnes Martin   (El Palacio, 1989)

Agnes Martin (b. 1912) has been recognized as one of this county's leading artists from the time of her emergence as a vital presence of the New York art scene in the 1950s.  More recently, she was honored with a retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art (1992) and the Golden Lion award at one of the world's best known international art shows, La Biennale Di Venezian (1997).  The first museum to show Martin's work was the Harwood in 1947.  

A native of Maklin, Saskatchewan, Canada, Martin moved to the U.S. in 1931.  Her introduction to Taos began with graduate art studies at the University of New Mexico's Summer Field School of Art in Taos and continued with a period of living in the community between 1952 and 1957. After a period in New York, she returned to New Mexico in 1968 and to Taos in 1992. Martin has described her paintings as starting with a visual image of the work before actually putting paint to canvas. She then concentrates on getting the scale and proportions right. The paintings in this exhibition were shown at the Harwood in 1994 and later at the Carnegie Museum of Art. The artist made a gift of them to the Harwood which has constructed this gallery specifically to house them.The seven paintings are abstractions, without objective subject matter but infused with the artist's devotion and lifetime commitment to finding truth on a deep, transcendental level.
 
Visit www.harwoodmuseum.org for more information.

2010 marks the 40th anniversary of the return of Blue Lake, and its 48,000 acres, by the Office of the President of the United States to Taos Pueblo, signifying the successful conclusion of a more than 40 year lobbying effort. Commemorations are planned by Taos Pueblo for the fall of 2010. Check Taos Pueblo’s web sites for details about this and other events to which visitors are invited including San Geronimo Day, Taos Pueblo Pow Wow, and New Year’s Day celebrations.

As the Taos Pueblo websites indicate, “(Blue Lake) was taken by the U.S. Government in 1906 to become part of the National Forest lands. Among the ritual sites where Taos people go for ceremonial reasons, Blue Lake is perhaps the most important. Its return is a tribute to the tenacity of Pueblo leaders and to the community's commitment to guarding its lands for the spiritual, cultural and economic health of the Pueblo. The return of this land capped a long history of struggle. Blue Lake and mountains are off-limits to all but members of our Pueblo.” To read more about Blue Lake and the significance of this 40th anniversary, see The Taos Indians and the Battle for Blue Lake by R.C. Gordon-McCutchan.

Photo by _____. circa 19xx. From Harwood Museum collection.

Photo Courtesy Geraint Smith

Taos is known for many things, culture, art, and beauty–all spiced with a little adventure. The Rio Grande is a significant part of that. This historic river provides locals and visitors alike with spectacular opportunities for recreation and enchantment, including thrilling white water rafting and the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, one of the highest of its type in the world, which spans 1,280 feet across and 650 feet above the river.

 The Rio Grande runs from Southern Colorado and empties into the Gulf of Mexico. It spans the entire length of the State of New Mexico and is one of only 16 American Heritage Rivers in the United States. These are rivers designated to receive special attention in order to further three objectives, natural resources and environmental protection, economic revitalization and historic and cultural preservation. Learn about American Heritage Rivers  here.
 
While Rio Grande essentially means “big river” in Spanish, the Rio Grande is not navigable by ocean-going ships or small passenger boats. Its use has been divided among the states it flows through as well as Mexico.
 
The Rio Grande is an essential geographic character in Taos. Its historic importance can be seen through the many major motion pictures it has been feaured in including Rio Grande  starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara and  Heart of the Rio Grande   starring Gene Autry. The Rio Grande Gorge, the bridge and the river were also included in Terminator: Salvation.
 
To learn more about the Rio Grande and its history click here. For information on the Rio Grande Gorge click here. If you are interested in the many recreational activities available in the area visit the Bureau of Land Management page here.

Photo Courtesy Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs, Resort and Spa

To soak in Mother Nature’s waters and reconnect with the beauty of the wilderness is an unmatched experience. Whether you’re looking to relax and renew at one of our spas, or you specifically want to bask in the healing powers of natural hot springs, Taos and its surrounding areas offer several options to fulfill your needs.

Black Rock Hot Springs and Manby Hot Springs north of the Town of Taos are two natural outdoor hot springs open to the public. Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs Resort and Spa (Southwest of Taos) is an historic, natural hot springs setting, established by Native Americans over 140-years ago. You can still soak in the same natural waters, but now a charming full spa and resort surrounds the pools. Visit www.ojospa.com to learn about the spa’s history and offerings.

For an upscale experience, El Monte Sagrado Resort & Spa is in the Town of Taos and just might be what you’re searching for. Go to www.elmontesagrado.com for more information.

There are many other options including those listed at Taos Webb  and Taos Vacation Guide.
Read more about “Soaking in the Land of Enchantment” here. Learn about top ranking trails and hot springs in New Mexico here.
 

 Photo Courtesy of Seth Bullington

It is a cold and bright morning at Taos Ski Valley as you unload Lift 6 at 11,815 ft. The sun sparkles off snow crystals and the snow creaks under your skis as you glide to a stop at the Ridge Gate.

The excitement and energy of the skiers around you is contagious as you pop off your skis and lift them to your shoulder to begin the hike to Taos’ famed ridges.

For ten minutes you trudge through the trees and climb steeply, then you break out onto the ridgeline, and it is the view that steals your breath away. For miles and miles you see mountains and plains reaching all the way to Colorado. Hike a little further, choose a chute and take the plunge.

No matter what you choose to ski, from Oster to Wonder Bowl or Juarez to Kachina Peak, each run will return you to an experience of the sacred spirit that skiers have communed with for more than 50 years at Taos Ski Valley.

Taos Mountain is Sacred to Residents and Visitors Alike

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Among the most dramatic geographical experiences that tourists and residents alike have coming into Taos is the imposing presence of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. They are a sub-chain outcropping of the Rocky Mountains that run from British Columbia to New Mexico and beyond. The Rocky Mountains were first home to Paleo-Indians and then to indigenous peoples, including the Apache, Arapaho, Bannock, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Crow, Dunne-za, Flathead, Kutenai, Sekani, Shoshoni, Sioux, Ute and others.

Taos Mountain, which is included in this chain, is known locally as Pueblo Peak. It is 12,305 feet high. Sometimes it is called Mó-ha-loh or Má-ha-lu by the inhabitants of Taos. Spanish residents refer to it as “la Sierra de los Indios” and tourists tend to call it “Skull Mountain” for the curious skull shape seen on its southeastern slope after a good snow fall.

Local belief and lore attributes power to the Mountain. Many people who have come to settle in Taos and have had successful businesses or relationships here claim that it happened because “the Mountain likes me.” Conversely, whenever something goes array it is because “the Mountain doesn’t like me.” Some people even attribute The Taos Hum to the electromagnetic vibrations emanating from it. There is even a famous luxury hotel in town named “Monte Sagrado” after the Holy Mountain.

Taos Mountain as a sacred site was popularized by Mabel Dodge Luhan, tutelary goddess to and financial supporter of many literary and artistic luminaries during the 1920s through the 1950s. It was said that she learned to appreciate the power of the Mountain from her consort Tony Luján of Taos Pueblo.

Many books have often listed Tony Luján as Mabel’s “common-law husband.” However, her divorce papers from Maurice Sterne were filed in the Taos County Clerk’s Office and Mabel and Tony’s marriage license was issued in Taos by his life-long friend Enrico Gonzales. The couple was married in 1923.

Despite Mabel’s vast publicity about Taos Mountain’s sacredness and spirituality tourists today are no longer allowed to scale it. In 1970 it was included as part of the Blue Lake settlement between President Richard Nixon and the people of Taos Pueblo.

The mountain slopes leading up to Blue Lake have traditionally been held to be the place of the ancestral dead. That makes the Mountain holy. These “Faceless Ones” appear wrapped in blankets and stand against trees there. They watch over the yearly treks that many Pueblo residents make through the Mountain on their way to Blue Lake.

Taos Mountain was witness to the Encebado Canyon Fire that took place on the 4th of July, 2003. The fire was caused by lightening and grew into a 5,400 acre forest fire. For eleven days the fire spread east into the mountains and the Rio Pueblo watershed by many accounts in The Taos News.

When many people think of the personification of “Sacredness” on earth, immediately Taos Mountain jumps to the fore. It is visual reminder, in a concept that is both Native and Franciscan, that the splendor of God is manifested in His most glorious natural creations.

Following the death of their son, U.S. Marine Corps First Lieutenant Victor David Westphall III, Jeanne and Dr. Victor Westphall began construction of the Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel to honor the memory of their son and the fifteen men who died with him near Con Thien, South Vietnam May 22, 1968. The memorial grounds  includes a chapel, visitor's center, gardens, and an ampitheater. For more information on the Vietnam Veterans Peace and Brotherhood Chapel visit www.angelfirememorial.com.

La Hacienda de los Martínez reflects a By-Gone Era

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Resting alongside the Río Pueblo as it wends its way south is la Hacienda de los Martínez. This venerable old building is among the last of the great household ranches that used to reflect a kind of feudal-style system of living in the Southwest. It encloses two courtyards that used to serve as living quarters for the family of Don Severino Martínez and their household servants as well as enclosing a chapel, a forge, a granary, a dispensary and a colonial kitchen.

The Hacienda is the annual scene of re-enactment of The Old Taos Trade Fairs that were common to this area after the Spanish-Comanche Alliance settled by Governor Juan Bautista de Anza in the late 1700s. During this time, Mountain Men ply their wares in their camp outside the gates and explain how to hunt, dress hides, make flint arrow heads, load guns and hurl tomahawks. Old-style caravans are met at the two doors of the Hacienda where a detailed explanation of life in the 1800s is given before an audience of eager visitors.

They learn that the larger of the two doors into the Hacienda was used to bring together entire herds of animals on the hoof in case of hostile attacks and unwelcome visitors. The smaller door, called “the eye of the needle,” was the non-taxable door used by members of the household and honored guests.

But a building is merely a collection of adobes if one does not know the history of the people who lived, worked and died there. Severino and María del Carmel Martínez used to live in Abiquiú, New Mexico trying to raise and educate the eldest of their children. On October 3, 1803 Severino acquired 60 varas (rods) of land from Antonio Archuleta. He decided to move his whole household to Taos in 1804. His children Antonio José, María Estefana, Juana María all came with him. José María, José Santiago and Juan Pascual Bailón were born in the Hacienda.

When he came of age, the eldest of the children, Antonio José contracted marriage with María de la Luz of Abiquiú on May 20, 1812. Fourteen months later she died in childbirth and the distraught Antonio went off to Durango, Mexico to study for the priesthood under the guidance of Bishop Don Juan Zubiría. He became well-versed in Canon Law, rubrics and Latin. He thought that he was being groomed for the day when the New Mexico Territory might need its own bishop.

The year 1851 came and with its dawning, the announcement that a certain Jean Baptiste Lamy had been the newly-appointed bishop to Santa Fe by the Apostolic See in Baltimore, Maryland. He brought European and American ideas as to how the Catholic Church was to be run with little regard to New Mexico customs and traditions. Padre Martínez’ ideas and opposition to the bishop’s tithing plans as well as his support for the Penitente Brotherhood soon had him excommunicated by Bishop Lamy himself. It created a wound between the Institutional Church and the Folk or Tribal Church that was to remain unhealed for a hundred years until the Penitentes were brought back into the fold in the mid-1960s. It became the subject of Willa Cather’s classic novel, “Death comes for the Archbishop.”
 
A genuine sense of the past engulfs visitors to the Hacienda as they traipse from room to room, sample local territorial food and walk in the same dusty path as their not-too-distant ancestors. It is a welcome visit to another era.

Visit www.taosmuseums.org for more information.

Photo Courtesy Paula  Valentine

The Taos Fiestas combine the Sacred and the Mundane

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

What place could be more sacred than the heart of a community? The life center of Taos is right in the middle of the plaza where its residents gather once a year to celebrate their local culture. Smells of cotton candy meld with those of church incense. Squirts from water pistols compete with sprinkles of holy water.

Las Fiestas de Taos is a community celebration honoring its two patron saints, Santiago and Santa Ana. The annual event invites the local population to put aside their labor for two and half days and to bask in the leisure of the holy days. Young girls stroll clockwise and young men go counterclockwise each hoping to meet that special someone with whom to share the holiday. Both traditional folk and modern music blares out from the gazebo in the middle of the plaza and, rapt in moments of shady leisure, Taoseños are wont to forget, if for the moment, the two saints that are being honored.

The original Spanish colonists established their first church of San Jerónimo at Taos Pueblo. Padre Antonio José Martínez then changed the seat of ecclesiastical power to Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe in Taos proper in the early 1800s. But the festival that honors Santiago and Santa Anna seems to transcend both of these historical facts. The first day is dedicated to Santiago, who is the patron saint of Spain. On that day, men used to ride on horseback through the plaza in their finest livery, "encatrinados" as they were called in their fancy attire.

Popular tradition holds that James had preached in northwestern Spain when the area was still known as Finis Terre, or the End of the Earth. . It was to this area that the body of the Apostle of Spain was returned by two of the nine converts he had made in the area. The exact spot of the tomb of the martyr was lost for over 800 years. A hermit named Pelagius had a vision of the site of the burial place. The field that was uncovered was aglow with the light of a star, Campo Estellae, in Latin. The local bishop declared the bones to be "the authentic relics of St. James." Again, the tomb was lost for a thousand years and rediscovered in the late 1800s.

The second day of The Taos Fiestas is always dedicated to St. Anne. On this day women were wont to ride in horse-drawn carriages. Mothers and older sisters would hold tightly to the hands of the children and everybody marveled at the mystery of St. Anne, who is the perfect example of motherhood.
 
Joachim and Anne had been married both childless for twenty years. In those days to be without child was thought to be a curse since the couple was not contributing toward the birth of the promised Messiah. Anne wept not only because she was still childless at the age of 44, but also the gossip around town was that her husband had abandoned her.

They were both visited by the angel Gabriel who told them that they were to be the parents of the girl who would one day be known as “The Immaculate Conception.” From opposite directions they both ran to the city gate where Joachim planted a chaste kiss on Anne’s cheeks and that marked the moment of Mary’s conception.

The fiestas as they are celebrated today really were merely a socio-economic ploy dating back to the 1930s. But they are the inheritors of the old Taos Trade Fairs that date back to the Comanche and Spanish accords two centuries earlier.

Visit www.fiestasdetaos.com for more information.

Taos Pueblo is a World Heritage Site

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

When scientists and culturalists look back on our planet’s past they often say that the history of mankind is relatively new by comparison. However, certain corners of the world mark sacred areas honored for their contributions to the ascent of Man. There are hundreds of World Heritage Sites around the world designated by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). In the United States alone there are twenty one such sites. In New Mexico there are only three: Chaco, Carlsbad Caverns and Taos Pueblo.

According to anthropologists, Taos Pueblo dates back some one thousand years. In the scope of world affairs, just about the time that William the Conqueror was crossing the English Channel to fight with King Harold of England during the Battle of Hastings in 1066, Taos Pueblo was formalizing its foundations.

There are of course no written records dating back that far locally. What we know of the area comes down to us from legends and stories passed from one generation to the next supplemented by archeological digs.
 
Accordingly, the ancient legends tell about a time when Man was formed out of clay in the sipapú or womb of Mother Earth. There, the spirits taught Man how to use and respect the plants, minerals and waters of the earth and how to use their curative properties. These curanderos or folk healers had this power because they never sinned against the earth. But as Man progressed, he grew greedy and arrogant and the water tables dropped, forcing Man to undergo great migrations to escape the arid desert that took over once fertile plains.

Then, continues the story, two tribes came to the Place at Red Willows. This would be very near to where Pot Creek exists today. The tribes separated and one went north and the other went south. Western tradition called these the tribes of San Jerónimo and San Lorenzo. Today they are called Taos Pueblo and Picurís Pueblo respectively.

Taos Pueblo was founded on cast and pour adobe mud dwellings that allowed only for the building of squat, two-story houses. The doors and windows of these houses were located on the roofs with access to them being only by way of notched poles or kiva ladders that could be pulled up in case of enemy attacks. When Spaniards brought Moorish adobe building techniques learned from the ancestral Berbers of North Africa, this knowledge transferred to Native culture and the buildings of Taos Pueblo grew much higher.

The Pueblo rose on both sides of Rio Pueblo Creek that draws its water source high in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The early Pueblo parameters were defined in old Spanish chronicles as “a thousand varas (rods) radius from a cross planted in the middle of the cemetery.” That would have been in the patio of the old Church of San Jerónimo. In 1933 owing mainly to the fact that the people of Arroyo Seco have let many of their property back taxes lapse, the federal government formed the Pueblo Reservation by expanding its borders from the Pueblo all the way to El Salto Creek. Arroyo Seco residents on the east side of the creek had to relocate to the west side.

Today Taos Pueblo is visited by scores of tourists who come to marvel at its scene harmony in the shadow of Taos Mountain.
For more information visit  www.taospueblo.com.

Two Graces Gallery's Taos Altar.

Sharon Niederman Photo

Sharon is a food and travel writer and photographer based in northern New Mexico. Her upcoming books are: NEW MEXICO'S TASTY TRADITIONS: FOLKSY STORIES, RECIPES & PHOTOS (New Mexico Magazine: Summer, 2010) and SHRINES & SIGNS: SPIRITUAL JOURNEYS ACROSS NEW MEXICO
(The Countryman Press: Spring, 2011).
Please visit her website at: www.sharonniederman.com.


Even the Dead find that Taos is Sacred

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Did you know that Taos is so sacred that sometimes even the spirits of the dead don’t want to leave? There are certain times of the year, mainly in the autumn, when spirits of the dead stand by the side of the road near descansos. A descanso is the marker where a soul was spilt and is trying to complete its journey.

These Unfleshed Ones, called Descarnados, are lost souls trying to find a ride to their final destination. They usually wave and disappear as a car speeds by. They stand within a radius of 33 feet from the descanso. It is for this reason that friendly Taoseños, who might otherwise pick up a hitch hiker at other times of the year, hesitate to take someone into their cars as el Día de los Muertos approaches. Stories of people who have picked up Descarnados only to have them dissolve before their very eyes, send chills up and down the spine as the stories are recounted.

The belief in the idea that the dead are with us always is very prevalent in Taos. If a person comes into the room and grandma says, “Move over; your grandpa just walked into the place,” then one moves over with no questions asked. Never mind that grandpa has been dead for 40 years.

At Taos Pueblo the ancestral dead are honored on the Day of the Dead. A Mass is held at the chapel of San Jerónimo early in the day. The people of the Pueblo will bring offerings of food to be blest by the priest. At the end of Mass, the food is given to people who attended with the explanation that the Dead have already eaten the “essence of the food” and now the living may enjoy “the substance of the food.”

The Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Taos proper has a tradition of setting up an altar for el Día de los Muertos in the foyer of the building. It is usually decorated with marigold petals called “zampohanes” since this seems to be the favorite food of the Dead. Photos of relatives who have “gone to a better life” are set up as each parish family brings in pictures of those they wish to honor every year. Offerings of Mexican “pan dulce” and harvest fruits like apples and plums are put into bowls alongside the images. Sometimes prayer cards dating back to funerals of the dearly departed also grace a Día de los Muertos altar.

There is even a special folk prayer called a “Sudario” that specifically asks God to give the souls rest and to take them to “the glory of His resurrection.” The word “Sudario” means “a winding sheet” or a “mortaje” which used to be the traditional burial habit in Northern New Mexico. It says: “Señor Dios que nos dejaste la señal de tu sagrada pasión y muerte, la sábana santa en la cual fue envuelto tu cuerpo santísimo, cuando por José fuiste bajado de la Cruz, concédenos Señor, Oh piadoso Salvador, que por tu muerte y sepultura santa, te lleves a descansar las ánimas del Purgatorio a descansar a la gloria de la resurrección, dónde Tú Señor, vives y reinas en unidad del Espíritu Santo por los siglos de los siglos santos, Amén.”

(“Oh Lord God, who didst leave as a sign of your Passion and Death the holy winding sheet in which your most holy body was wrapped when you were taken down from the Cross by Joseph, grant Oh Lord, that by your own Death and Resurrection that the souls or Purgatory may be taken to the place of rest in the glory of your resurrection where you live and reign in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever, Amen.”)

  
 

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Some men like to have everything done their way. Arthur Rochford Manby was such a man. From the first 24 years when he lived in his native England to the next years when he plotted and schemed incessantly in Taos, New Mexico, he wanted everything under his control. This included acquiring the vast Martinez de Godoy Land Grant that took in a lot of Taos County.

The life of Arthur Rochford Manby was recounted in a historical novel that reads like pure invention because of its seemingly incredible episodes. When the late Frank Water, author of the novel “To Possess the Land” was asked why he wrote it more like a piece of historical fiction than fact, he simply stated “nobody would have believed it otherwise.”

Besides Waters’ account, a slim booklet titled “Headless in Taos” explores the mystery of how Manby was allegedly decapitated and yet was seen by many people long after his death. And if these episodes of intrigue and swindling weren’t enough to interest someone in the life of Arthur Manby, perhaps the idea that he ‘forced’ a river to run uphill would.

Manby had been eyeing some property near Arroyo Seco in the northern part of the county and he hoped to add it to his ever-expanding frontier empire. He acquired a parcel of land in lower Desmontes, as the place was called, owing to the fact that its first residents removed the stumps or ‘desmontaron’ in order to clear away the land. The only problem with this scheme was that there was no local water source with which he might irrigate the land.

Manby searched high and low, with the emphasis on the ‘low’. He found that there was abundant water streaming out of Twining Canyon overflowing the banks of a river that ran down to join the Rio Grande. Manby’s dilemma was this: How to tap into this water source and channel it uphill onto the Desmontes plain to irrigate his own land.

As he explored the area he discovered that there was an old buffalo trail descending to the bottom of the San Antonio Valley as Valdez was known in those days. He figured that, properly dug, the sloping angle of the trail might make a suitable bed for a manmade acequia stemming from Twining River.

According to the late Alberto Durán, who was a youngster at the turn of the century, Manby hired a bunch of local men to dig the acequia ditch using the buffalo trail as a guide. Alberto Durán had been hired by Manby to be the “aguandero” or water boy to bring drinks all day to the thirsty men.

As soon as the water was channeled into the acequia, lo and behold, the water ran uphill! A tree line along the ditch is easy to follow with the naked eye from across the valley of Valdez.

Water experts from the Office of the State Engineer assure the public that it is impossible to have water run upwards. They insist that the ground at the base of the canyon where the water springs forth from Twining, is in fact, higher than the ground at the top of the canyon where the water emerges. But local residents know better. They know that the water runs uphill because of the stubborn will of Arthur Rochford Manby who wanted his land irrigated one way or another. The old man is still getting everything done his way.












 
  

 
 

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor UNM-Taos

One afternoon in 1997, some men were clearing away the rotted boards from the sanctuary of the old church of La Santísima Trinidad in the valley of Arroyo Seco in Taos County. As they budged the square column away from the right side of the sanctuary they unearthed a metallic object buried just below the mud surface.
 
As they inspected the object they found that it was a medallion of sorts bearing the image of what they supposed was a saint. Just then the local priest came into the venerable church in ruins. The men gave him the medallion and told the priest that the piece had been buried face-down in the mud. He immediately recognized the image stamped on it as the face of Pope Pius IX. The Latin inscription also bore this out.

The priest walked with the medallion back to the parish rectory where he inspected the relic. It turned out to be a copper, gold-plated piece. Such artifacts were minted only during the reign of a particular Pope. He began to piece the history of this Pope and his relationship to New Mexico, but he was more interested in the relationship between the Pope and Arroyo Seco.
 
The mid 1850s had been a turbulent time in the history of the papacy in Rome. The Apostolic See in Baltimore Maryland had just chosen a French priest named Jean Baptiste Lamy to be the first bishop of Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1851. In his ad limina visit to Rome as few years later, this first Bishop of New Mexico had reported to Pope Pius IX and to Cardinal Barnabo that there was a renegade group of religious zealots known as Los Hermanos Penitentes who thought they were the Church of New Mexico. Pope Pius quietly told Bishop Jean Baptiste Lamy to get rid of the Brotherhood.

Pope Pius IX dismissed the matter as he was soon preoccupied with reports that a half-demented girl named Bernadette Soubirous was seeing an apparition in a cave located near a dump in Lourdes, France. Bernadette had claimed that the apparition seemed to be a lady clad in a white gown held by a blue girdle. She said she was “The Immaculate Conception.” Pope Pius was soon caught up in trying to make a ruling on the validity of her claim. The belief in “The Immaculate Conception” had been an interesting theological notion but as of yet it had not been proclaimed dogma nor doctrine.

Meanwhile, Bishop Lamy had returned to New Mexico and had confided the conversation he had had with Pope Pius IX to Padre Antonio José Martínez of Taos. Padre Martínez was outraged since he considered himself to be the spiritual head of the Penitente Brotherhood.

The parish priest began to frame the local events within an historical context. He surmised that the parish priest of Taos had come to Arroyo Seco where La Santísima Trinidad was his mission church. Arroyo Seco had been a cornerstone of the Penitente movement. He supposed that Padre Martínez had given the medallion a requiem Mass and had buried Pope Pius IX in effigy face-down in the mud.
 
A cedar-lined shadow box was crafted by a local parishioner. The papal medallion was encased within in and mounted on the eastern wall of the church sacristy. It is one of the treasures that many visitors to Holy Trinity can see whenever they visit this semi-functioning church in Taos County.

 

The Taos Hum: Do you hear what I hear?

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor UNM-Taos

It is well-known that certain animals can perceive tones whose pitch is too out of range for the rest of us. Dogs, for example, can hear and react to high-pitched whistles just a little above what humans can hear. In experiments using audiograms as means of assessment, mice, bats and beluga whales have been found to hear the highest range of pitches in terms of hertz and kilohertz.

Enter Taos, New Mexico where a growing number of residents and visitors are hearing a low-pitched sound that many describe as “a distant idling motor” or “an eternal DO note” on a musical scale. What makes these descriptions even more unusual is that the low pitched “hum” is heard more after sunset and in the middle of the night when men sleep and nature holds her nocturnal vigil.

Some of the ancient accounts of this area tell of ‘Nature holding counsel’ with her own as she resets her patterns of harmony every night. But now that Man has entered the equation, the patterns of harmony have been disrupted.

Many people have offered theories as to just why this Taos Hum is heard. Their ideas range anywhere from shifting wind patterns coming out of the Río Grande Canyon to electromagnetic vibrations emitted by Taos Mountain. Some attribute the Hum to low-flying alien spacecraft over the night skies to secret experiments in Los Alamos just down the canyon. All of these make for wonderful tales and tourist fodder. But now, let’s explore another possibility:

Taos is nestled deep within the Sangre de Cristo mountain range. Looming out of this range is a peak known as El Salto. It was this peak, reflecting the bright scarlet colors of the setting sun, that caused the first settlers in the valley to name the entire range for ‘The Blood of Christ’. It is called El Salto for the seven waterfalls that cascade down its side in summer and form frozen stalactites in the winter. The people of the village of Taos proudly say that the mountain baptizes the valley with its singing waters.

What makes El Salto unique in relation to the Taos Hum is that there are caves behind each one of the waterfalls. The caves are of different shapes and at different elevations. They tend to catch the sound of the cascading waters and echo it back into the valley much like the sound box on a colossal guitar tuned to geo-synchronous patterns.

The reason that most people hear only one low ‘hum’ has been explained by the idea that they are only standing at the lowest elevation. It would be like hearing a long, endless ‘DO’ on a musical scale. Mountain climbers who have taken the time to scale the falls though, report hearing another tone. This is like a ‘RE’, one note higher up in pitch. It seems that the higher one climbs, the wider the range of musical notes that are perceived.
 
A holy hermit named Giovanni Maria Agostini Justiniani who passed through Taos in the mid 1800s reported having climbed all the way to the top of El Salto and could distinctly hear seven notes of the musical scale as nature played her tune to the sacred valley. He described ‘the singing waters’ in a journal that he kept in four languages.

Could this be the source of the famous Taos Hum? Not all people hear it but those who do feel blessed and comforted by its nightly embrace. 

 

Is Taos Shangri-La, Ramadan or Tenochtitlán?

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor of UNM-Taos

Many people come to Taos every year seeking to get away from ordinary humdrum lives. They hope in Taos they will be able to find themselves through creativity, acceptance or nature. Every new resident who comes to Taos wants to be the last resident who moves to Taos and then shuts the door. But this sentiment isn’t merely a feeling limited only to the latest comers.

In 1923 Mabel Ganson-Evans-Dodge-Sterne was bored with her life of entitlement and glittering friends. She had already tired of Buffalo, NY, Florence, Italy and Paris, France, not to mention Greenwich Village and Provincetown. Seeking sexual and spiritual fulfillment she followed her reporter-journalist-lover Jack Reed to Mexico. From El Paso, via a visit to her friend Mary Austin in Santa Fe, she found her way north to Taos. It was here that she added another last name to the litany of previous husbands. It was Luhan after her Indian husband Tony.

From her salon at “the edge of the desert” Mabel began sending letters to her “movers and shakers” back east. She said, “Please come visit me; I have found Shangri-la amid the savage skyline of Taos.” And come they did.

Thomas Wolfe the writer, Carl Jung the psychologist, Jaime Angulo the linguist, Aldous Huxley the utopian and Georgia O’Keeffe the artist all heeded Mabel’s call. Martha Graham the dancer, Jean Toomer the poet, Leopold Stokowski the composer and Willa Cather the Midwestern pioneer also followed. Somehow Mabel’s drawing room salon held a fascination for the brightest minds of the first half of the 1900s.

Meanwhile, over in England, other free-thinkers on a quest for the sacred on their own terms were toying with the idea of visiting Mabel in Taos. Dorothy Eugenia Brett was the daughter of the Viscount of Escher. She had grown up being babysat by Queen Victoria herself. Her younger sister was the Ranee of---. Dorothy wanted no part of that life. She preferred to hunt and fish and be alone with her deafness and with her ear trumpet “Toby.” She conceived of a plan to form a commune of intelligent people in Taos. It would be called “Ramadan.”

First to join in her literary scheme was David Herbert Lawrence and his wife Frieda Von Richthoven. Lawrence’s spicy novels and “pornographic” paintings had certainly won him an undercover following across Europe and America. But the laws of the day dictated that such material was obscene. Add to this the fact that Frieda was the first cousin to the Red Baron of Germany and that created a tension that called for release. When Mabel invited the Lawrences and Brett to visit her in Taos, the stage had been set for a folk style Eternal City.
 
D.H. Lawrence arrived in Taos where Mabel offered him a parcel of land in San Cristóbal in exchange for the manuscript to “Sons and Lovers.” Pleasant as San Cristóbal was, Lawrence was often found at Mabel’s home working on his “Plumed Serpent” manuscript. His writings led Lawrence to see Taos as a glittering, new Tenochtitlán. The phoenix bird became his personal holy symbol of rebirth.
 
In the mid-1960s another group of free spirits came to Taos. They were the hippies. They came to visit and they stayed and became part of the landscape. The sacred spell of Taos keeps bringing them forward. The sense of the sacred will not be denied.

Memories of San Jerónimo go back a thousand years

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Many people flock to Taos Pueblo on the last day of September. They come to celebrate a harvest festival that coincides with the Feast of St. Jerónimo. Some assume that the person being honored is Geronimo, the Chiricahua Apache leader who lived between 1829 and 1909. This is not correct.

San Jerónimo is the saint to whose protection and intercession Taos Pueblo was commended by the first Franciscan friars who arrived there in 1540. The saint, who lived between 347 and 420, is honored as a doctor of the Catholic Church. He was the person who first translated the Bible from the original Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek to Vulgate Latin. His Latin Bible was the only translation available to the western world until the King James I authorized an English version in 1604. San Jerónimo is patron saint of translators and librarians.

More to the story at hand though, the Feast of San Jerónimo begins several days before the 30th of September. Women have been cooking and baking in their horno beehive-shaped ovens for many days. The men have gone to the mountains to select a tall and sturdy tree, strong enough to support the traditional pole climb. Such pole climbing ceremonies date back to Pre-Columbian times.

After they have dressed the pole by sheering off its bark with planes and knives, the men make it smooth without any knots, leaves or limbs sticking out of it. On the eve of San Jerónimo the pole is brought into the village and aligned next to a deep post hole where it will stand until December. Using only brute strength and help from ladders and volunteers, the man will hoist the pole into place, inch by inch until it stands erect. Men pulling at the pole with ropes from all four sides will steady it until it is settles into place and is secured with picks and shovels.

During the vespers honoring the holy day a statue of the Madonna is borne in solemn procession after sunset, past the pole and the pavilion of aspen leaves. She is adorned with an orange or yellow gown instead of the traditional blue or white that she traditionally wears after sundown. The painted stalks that adorn her nicho inside the church indicate that this is her manifestation as The Corn Mother.

Early in the morning of San Jerónimo Day the men and boys from both sides of the creek that flows through the pueblo will compete in footraces of long-standing tradition. The runners will paint themselves with almagre. It is the traditional body paint secured from caves by the valley of Questa. The paint will make the racers run faster. Residents of Taos Pueblo will stand on the roof tops cheering for this side or that by making with high-pitched sounds. The statues of St. Jerome and other saints taken from the church watch the race from the aspen pavilion.

As the last runners come into along the pathway and the winning side is decided, the victors will dance past the homes crowned with cheering residents. They will be showered with gifts of silver and turquoise jewelry or popcorn balls and candy bars. They go back then get ready to celebrate and to be greeted by the Tsíponah or Black-Eyed Sacred Clowns that will rule over the rest of the day.

Visitors are encouraged to come and enjoy the centuries-old traditions. They are reminded though, not to bring any cameras, cell phones or any kind of recording devices as the day will be filled with sacred drama that is not meant for the media or the world beyond the pueblo walls.
 

Penitente Moradas kept the faith alive of Hundreds of Years

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

The first entrada or official expedition into the New Mexico territory from New Spain, as Mexico was called in those days, took place in 1540, led by Conquistador Francisco Vásquez de Coronado. He was accompanied by a retinue of 336 men, 3 women and some 500 Tlaxcala Natives from Mexico. He also brought a handful of Franciscan friars to introduce the Catholic Faith to any indigenous people they might encounter. Many of these friars were killed during the Pueblo Rebellion of 1680 but several came back in subsequent expeditions. Since they were busy proselytizing to the Indians, the European settlers largely had to fend for themselves when it came to interpreting their faith. That’s where the religious brotherhood of Penitentes came forward.

Penitentes in Northern New Mexico are ordinary lay men who act as religious, moral, cultural, social and economic leaders in small towns. They take no vows of poverty, chastity or obedience, but merely express their love of God each according to his own ability. They seem to have evolved as a hybrid of two earlier movements. The first was based on the aesthetic teachings of St. Francis and the early Church desert hermits and the second great influence came from the German flagellators that began the practice of whipping themselves during the Bubonic Plague of the Middle Ages.

In northern New Mexico the first recorded incident of blood being shed as a means of expiation for sins and as dedication to the land came when Don Juan de Oñate and his men shed their shirts and practiced flagellation in 1598 during Holy Week near what is now Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo. Later on, in 1630 Fray Alfonso de Benavides made mention of the custom of flagellation in New Mexico in a report addressed to King Phillip of Spain. In 1826 Padre Antonio José Martínez of Taos was appointed delegate minister to the “Third of Order of St. Francis” allowed the Brotherhood from Santa Cruz de la Cañada to display their faith publically in 1827.

With the coming of the Institutional Church in 1851, the first four French Archbishops of New Mexico drove the Penitente Brotherhood underground for a hundred years. Chapter houses, called moradas, became unofficial churches and chapels for the faithful who wanted to remain loyal to the official church but also express their folk religion in secret. Moradas became sacred places of instruction for new members much as kivas were for Native youth.

There are still over 40 of these sacred places ranging from as far north as Fort Garland, Colorado, as far south as Tomé , as far east as Cubero and as far west as Las Vegas, New Mexico. Moradas generally host meetings at least once a month and are most active during Holy Week. During those times scores of pilgrims congregate in them to pray rosaries for world peace or for the repose of the souls in Purgatory. The bultos or folk carvings of saints and Virgins at the morada shrines are dressed according to the occasion. Human hair on the heads of the bultos has been donated to the chapter house by the faithful for prayers answered.

As with many holy places in New Mexico, photography inside moradas is strictly forbidden. A book by Craig Varjebedian titled “En Divina Luz” chronicles the moradas still extant in Northern New Mexico with poetic commentaries by Michael Wallace.

 

Photo Courtesy Geraint Smith

San Francisco de Asís is home to the Mystery Painting

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

Billed “as most painted church in the United States,” San Francisco de Asís in Ranchos de Taos stands at the edge of town. Its back façade buttress, which contains ten thousand adobes, was made famous in a painting by artist Georgia O’Keeffe. In fact it kind of irks the church secretaries when tourists walk into the rectory and ask, “Is this the church of Georgia O’Keeffe?” They are sure to be rebuffed with a curt, “No, this is the church of St. Francis!” Everyone seeks the sacred in their own way.

Historically speaking though, San Francisco de Asís could have been built anywhere between the span of 1710 and 1840. Parish records kept during this time period vary greatly. But this church which is mudded once a year, brings the entire community of volunteers together to strip away the old coat of mud and reapply a new one in rainbow fashion. This labor of love by Catholic and non-Catholics alike takes many days.

The entire church is cruciform when seen from the air. It is meant to reflect Jesus upon the Cross. And just as Jesus’ head tilts to the right, then even so does the sanctuary part of the church also tilt right. That is why the back buttress seems off-center as seen on the outside.

Stepping into the venerable old building, both the devout and the curious are struck by the architectural harmony of the place. French prints of the Stations of the Cross line the walls of either side of the nave and the right wall is decorated with a long, unbroken wave of wood which is meant to represent the Cord of St. Francis. The windows on either side are Romanesque in design.

As visitors reach the transept in front of the altar, they stare in wonder at the reredos altar screen which is an ensemble of dark oil paintings on canvas adorned with swirls of brightly colored white, red, yellow and black patterns on wood. Visitors often remark that the style of the paintings seems to reflect the School of El Greco because of his trademark elongated figures, but as of yet no effort has been made of trace their place of origin. All anyone can say is that that came from “out of the country.”

A very realistic bulto of St. Francis himself crowns the middle base of the reredos just above the tabernacle in the sanctuary. Franciscan habits are usually brown, but this statue wears indigo. Indigo blue is the color that separates Old World friars from New World monks.

Among the treasures of the church is the Mystery Painting known as “The Shadow of the Crown.” It is housed in a side room of the parish rectory. It was painted in 1896 by French Canadian artist Henri Ault. It became the property of Mrs. Sidney Herbert Griffin who later donated it to the church.

It depicts a calm Christ walking along the Sea of Galilee. However, when it is viewed in total darkness, the shadow of a cross appears over Christ’s left shoulder, the keel of a boar by his right knee, and waters seem to swirl in wild profusion. The figure also seems of double in bulk.

Neither the artist nor scientists who have examined the work can explain why this effect happens. For those who believe no explanation is necessary; for those who don’t know explanation is possible.
  
 

The Search for Worldly Treasures leads to the Sacred

By Larry Torres, Associate Professor, UNM-Taos

The year 1540 marked a pivotal time in the history of New Mexico. Their hearts and minds filled with thoughts of treasure drove 336 men and 3 women into this territory. They were accompanied by a retinue of some 500 Tlaxcalan Indians from Mexico and hundreds of animals on the hoof. The 16th century ballads of Spain that lured them here told a tale of a land where worldly riches were as plentiful as harlots in Extremadura.

In the ancient ballad called La Tierra de Jauja “Tortillas hang from treetops and plants hold cornmeal mush near huge pots of warm menudo and posole nice and lush. The mountains are spun from sugar and the hills are made of tea. In the rivers flows nice coffee, rich with cream as it can be. The lakes are filled with oil seeping from each pore and fault and roast ducks fly through the heavens spiced with pepper and with salt. In the gullies runs rare whiskey if you’d like to sip and slurp and they strike ambitious people who prefer to sweat and work.”

After the initial expedition returned to Mexico in 1542, having found neither gold nor silver, subsequent entradas concentrated more on other kinds of treasures, namely, on spiritual treasures. The settlers began to focus more on the sanctity of the land and on seeing the majesty of God revealed in His creation.
They were to set the example for other residents hoping to wring out a living from the desert floor. The Sosa, the Oñate and even the DeVargas Expeditions knew before they arrived that the only real riches to be found were interior ones. Their descendants echoed their sentiments in their chapels and moradas, prayers and devotions. The few Franciscan monks who had accompanied them really came to try to Christianize the Indians. The settlers were left largely on their own to interpret holy writ by themselves.

Remnants of their efforts can still be seen in reredos (altar screens) in many churches around and close to Taos. Works of devotional arts by Rafaél Aragón can still be found in the chapel of San Juan de Los Lagos in Talpa. The elongated figures of Antonio Molleno are visible at San Francisco de Asís in Ranchos and the fine brush strokes of José de Gracia Gonzales can be studied at Holy Trinity Church in Arroyo Seco and in Trampas.
There are also religious pieces on a smaller scale scattered throughout the valley. The church of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores in Arroyo Hondo boasts of a small high relief retablo by The Laguna Santero. Ranchos church has a greenish crucifix by Benito Ortega. Arroyo Seco has crucifixes by Juan Miguel Herrera and Rafaél Aragón. Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Taos has a bulto statue of San José by The Santo Niño Santero aka José Manuel Benavides. Lesser known treasures of devotional are the property of moradas and museums around Taos County.

Taos is also the adopted home of modern masters such as Patrocinio Barela who was called “the find of the century” by Time Magazine. Leo Salazar popularized devotional art in cedar sculptures and even Argentine-born Victor Góler has chosen Taos to be his adopted home. Questa’s own santera Arlene Cisneros Sena decorated the Cathedral of Santa Fe’s Chapel of Perpetual Adoration.
The sacredness of the entire valley is reflected in all of these masters who came to work in Taos and make it their spiritual home on earth.
 

Just northeast of Taos, resides the highest mountain peak in New Mexico. It lies in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the southernmost subrange of the Rockies.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Peak_(New_Mexico)

Sitting at 13,161 feet, the peak is a wonderous site situated in the Wheeler Peak Wilderness, which includes almost 20,000 acres. The wilderness is  home to various wild life including Marmots, Pika, Elk, Mule Deer and Golden Eagles.

Summer activities include hiking and horseback riding, while winter brings snowshoeing and back country skiing.  Click here  for a list of trails and their available recreataional activities.

During the summers, visitors usually enjoy the Wheeler Peak Wilderness between the July 4th holiday and Labor Day and certainly in early July when Middle Fork Lake and Rio Hondo are stocked with fish. Additionally, in the summer Taos Ski Valley Mayor, Neal King, hosts full moon hikes to Williams Lake. This free event illuminates the beauty of the mountain.

A trip to Wheeler Peak and the vast wilderness is certain to reconnect you with the slendor of nature.  Click here
for more information on Wheeler Peak and the Wheeler Peak Wildnerness.