Perception of covid-19 in the Zoque indigenous population of Chiapas

Abstract

This paper explains how the pandemic caused by coronavirus (covid-19) manifested among the Zoque people in Chiapas State. It also introduces possible therapeutic formulas that the Zoque people used in order to fight the virus or reduce its risks. The paper aims to understand and present a panorama of the indigenous understanding of the disease, its causal origin, and the temperature-related classification of the afflictions it produces. Through the use of a qualitative methodology, a contrast with the Zoque medicine perspective is presented and the way the Zoque people perceive the covid-19 pandemic is analyzed. From an indigenous perspective, coronavirus is explained through the presence of “dirty air,” polluted by a “cold quality” that is potentially harmful. Besides, it is considered to be a likely cause of death. According to the vision held by the Zoque people, diseases can have their causal origin in three clearly defined sources: those of natural origin, those of supernatural origin, and those that are self-inflicted.