Tortillas for the Gods: A Symbolic Analysis of Zinacanteco Rituals

in Zinacanteco society, located in the upper elevations of Chiapas, southern Mexico, rituals function for the Zinacanteco people as communication and to organize life into a four staged-life cycle. Zinacantan prestige comes with age, and some rituals are only performed by people of a a higher social status, such as elderly or wealthy mean. Women are often relegated to minor roles. Some rituals seem designed to alleviate the tensions between different classes as well as conflicting beliefs, such as tensions between Mayan and Christian traditions. Rituals dominate every aspect of the Zinacanteco society and are taken very seriously.