What exactly is a mesa and what is it used for? I am going to attempt to concoct the most comprehensive of definitions (with a little explanation of course).

Courtesy of Ej Johnson

Put very simply: a mesa is an altar that is used shamanically for healing and connection with the natural world. One way to see the mesa is as "a living control panel, co-created by Spirit and the curandero [shaman], to become a vehicle for experiencing the ineffable." (1)

The word  mesa is a Spanish term meaning "table." It denotes the typically flat surface area in which a mesa is generally used.  The mesa geographically comes from the Latin Americas, most specifically Peru. There are many styles and variations depending on both the region and the individual user. This makes pinpointing a distinct and categorical definition of the mesa sometimes challenging. In essence, there is no one way or tradition of the mesa that is the way.

An altar is a created space where religious rites are performed to gain access and connection to whatever source of spiritual awareness one may have (God, Goddess, Nature, etc.). Anyone can use a mesa, there is no special priest or priestess hierarchy to go through in order to work with it. It is a very personal, individualized tool one uses in their spiritual work, though there are certain traditions and lineages that are worthwhile to recognize and honor as well. Here are some listed below.

CURANDERISMO

The curanderos (curers) of Peru are shamanic folk-healers with roots dating clear back to the ancient Chavín culture, approximately 900 BCE. The layout of a curandero's mesa usually consists of a type of cloth laid on the ground (or sometimes a table) with an assemblage of sacred artifacts (called artes) arranged on top of it. These artes act as tools for the curandero's use to conduct healing on others, assist in divination, and commune with the unseen world of spirit.

The assemblage of these objects is very personal in accordance with a curandero's own spiritual guidance. however there does seem to be an overall theme most curanderos in the north-coastal region of Peru follow. A curandero's mesa is generally divided into three vertical fields, or sections, called campos. Each one of these campos designate the type or style of healing that is performed on the client. For instance:

• Left side: called the campo ganadero, this field of mesa deals with releasing dark, dense energies.
• Right side: called the campo justicerio, this field works with raising lighter energies in the client.
• Middle: called the campo medio, this is the field generally associated with balance. 

" . . . the mesa can be regarded as a representation of divine (rather than human) scales of justice where the goal is equilibrium and order, not a weighted outcome in favour of 'light' or 'dark' . . ." (2)

From El Comercio.pe

PAQOKUNA

The paqokuna are a class of shamanic priests within the Quechua ( also known as the Q'ero) peoples of the Andes Mountains. The Quechua are the direct descendants of the Incas (1400 CE) and have maintained as much of their heritage as possible through centuries of colonialism. Unlike the open mesa of the curandero, the Quechua paqokuna (or paqos) operate their rites with the mesas closed in a bundle. Most paqos very rarely open their mesas, if at all. The bundle is full of sacred artifacts similar to the curandero's mesa, though they generally refer to these artifacts as khuyas.

The bundled nature of the paqo's mesa is very fitting to cultural framework of the Quechua. The Quechua are farmers and lama herders, they spend a lot of their time walking the landscape of the Andean highlands, toiling in the dirt. So, their mesa are conducive to this environment.

"Much like North American medicine men who carry the objects of their trade in a bundle that they keep by them at all times, Q'ero paqos carry objects they find in the mountains, that come to them directly from other dimensions, or that are given to them by another shaman." (3)

Courtesy Teri Gilfilen

THE PACHAKUTI MESA

The version of the mesa that I use can be considered a mix between the curandero and paqokuna lineages. The Pachakuti Mesa was developed by don Oscar Miro-Quesada, a kamasqa curandero from Peru who established a more cross-cultural component to the use of the mesa.

don Oscar

The Pachakuti Mesa Tradition facilitates a particular placement of various artes on the mesa cloth (also called a manta or banco) that honors the directions of the compass, as well as the elements of Nature. When invoked, these directions/elements create a generative field of energy that assists one in their medicine work. Using terminology from the Quechua, the directions/elements honored are:

• Pachamama: South/Earth
• Mama Killa: West/Water
• Wiracocha: North/Air
• Inti: East/Fire
• K'uychi: Center/Aether (Soul)

Although the Pachakuti Mesa follows this distinct regimen of unity, every single altar space is completely unique to the individual carrier of the mesa. Note these glorious examples from Pachakuti Mesa carriers across the globe:

Courtesy Michael Schuver

Courtesy Nancy Salmons

Courtesy Pamela Hess

Courtesy Shea Armstrong

Courtesy Rosanna Murphrey

Courtesy Aeyrie Silver Eagle

Life is never stagnant. It changes, goes through phases, and like a person who is often growing from one day to the next, so does the mesa. Mesas change and transform over time, and that is exactly the way it should be. For the mesa is not only a "control panel" to interact with the unseen forces of Spirit, but also a reflection of the inner realms that exist in every one of us. My own mesa is dynamic and has evolved over the years:

My Mesa from 2012

 "The Mesa itself is a mirror, a microcosm of the all-encompassing Self, which is paradoxically both internally experienced and externally expressed throughout the universe." (4)

Hope you enjoyed this brief introduction to the mesa. Stay tuned for more information on the philosophy and application of the mesa here on the Daedalus Thread.


FOOTNOTES

1. Magee, Matthew. Peruvian Shamanism: The Pachakuti Mesa. p. xvi
2. Heaven, Ross. The Hummingbird's Journey to God: Perspectives on San Pedro, the Cactus of Vision. p. 57
3. Wiiliams, J.E. The Andean Codex: Adventures and Initiations Among the Peruvian Shamans. p.47
4. Magee, Matthew. Peruvian Shamanism: The Pachakuti Mesa. p. xvi