Descendents of the Aztec, the Huichol or Wixáritari, are one of the last remaining indigenous ethnic groups located on western-central Mexico, who have lived for centuries in the Sierra Madre Occidental, primarily in the Mexican states of Nayarit and Jalisco, and that continues to be true to their ancestral roots.
For the Huichol community, religion is an essential and central part of their lives. Their beliefs center around four principal deities: the trinity of Corn, Blue Deer and Peyote, and the eagle, all descended from their Sun God, “Tao Jreeku”. Most Huichols retain these traditional beliefs and are resistant to change.
Like many indigenous American groups, Huichols have traditionally used the peyote (hikuri) cactus in religious rituals. These rituals involve singing, chanting, and contact with ancestral spirits. Their art is closely related to these rituals, as most of their work is an attempt to capture and record the visions and the messages they experienced and received from their deities during these rituals.