'La planta prohibida' : multi-species cosmopolitics in the Mexican desert

Abstract

Focusing on the Chihuahuan Desert of north-central Mexico, I engage with multiple post-humanist theoretical approaches to understand how people relate to their world and the species with whom they co-habit. I focus on a community referred to as Las Velas - in this case over five thousand hectares, which is leased predominantly by three extended families. The inhabitants gain a livelihood through herding goats and sheep and cultivating corn, beans and squash. I focus particularly on their relationship with plants, whether that be in foraging for medicinal plants, in finding pastures for the herds, in cultivation, or in simply moving through the desert. A particular cactus (la planta prohibida) however, takes precedence. It is valued in the community for its medicinal properties, yet it is a much more treasured resource in that it is central to the ritual practice the indigenous Wixarika. Consequently, countless groups of Wixarika pilgrims make a 400 - 500 km annual pilgrimage to gather it. Furthermore, pilgrims must visit certain sites in order to propitiate deities manifest in features of the landscape. As it happens, one of these sites, a small hill referred to as Bernalejo, is located in Las Velas. Consequently, pilgrims pass through this territory in great numbers. This further attracts ‘new-age’ visitors who value the cactus for its psychedelic properties. It is also used therapeutically however, bringing Christian orientated groups of people recovering from substance dependence. I build on anthropological approaches to cosmopolitics (eg. Wardle and Schaffner 2017, Latour 2004, de la Cadena 2010), and take inspiration from phenomenologically inspired approaches to human-environment relations (eg. Ingold 2000, Basso 1996, Tilly 1994, Feld and Basso 1996), as well as manifold theorists who adopt a multi-species approach (eg. Haraway 2005, 2008, Tsing 2014, 2015, Myers, 2019, 2020, Kohn 2007, 2010).