Coyolxauhqui imperative

The Coyolxāuhqui stone that laid at the base of Huēyi Teōcalli (Temple Mayor) in Tenochtitlan, which is a replica of the original mountain of Coatepec. The stone depicts her dismembered and fragmented body.[1]

The Coyolxauhqui imperative is a theory named after the Aztec goddess of the moon Coyolxauhqui to explain an ongoing and lifelong process of healing from events which fragment, dismember, or deeply wound the self spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically. The imperative is the need to look at the wounds, understand how the self has been fragmented, and then reconstruct or remake the self in a new way. Repeatedly enacting this process is done in the search for wholeness or integration. The concept was developed by gay Chicana feminist Gloria E. Anzaldúa.[2][3][4]

Scholars have applied her theory in varying contexts, such as in the need for educational institutions to recognize their responsibility to serving marginalized students; to look at the wounds they have caused so that they can reconstruct themselves in ways which promote holistic healing for students of color.[5] The theory has also been applied in regard to identity, by uncovering aspects of the self that have been buried as a result of colonialism, and then reconstructing the self by looking at the complexity of the wounds and recognizing the fluidity and interconnectedness of the whole.[4] The theory is recognized as one of Anzaldúa's central contributions to Chicana feminist theory, along with Nepantla, spiritual activism, and new tribalism.[6]

  1. ^ Maestri, Nicoletta (27 September 2018). "Coatepec: Sacred Mountain of the Aztecs". ThoughtCo.
  2. ^ Anzaldúa, Gloria; Keating, AnaLouise (2009). The Gloria Anzaldúa Reader. Duke University Press. pp. 279, 297, 303, 320. ISBN 9780822391272.
  3. ^ Anzaldúa, Gloria (2015). "Let Us Be the Healing Of the Wound: The Coyolxauhqui Imperative—la sombra y el sueño" (PDF). UNAM Voices: 120–22.
  4. ^ a b Keating, AnaLouise (2 April 2018). "3 lessons learned from Gloria Anzaldúa". Neta.
  5. ^ Hinojosa, Yndalecio Isaac; Zepeda, Candace (2018). "The Coyolxauhqui Imperative in Developing Comunidad-Situated Writing Curricula at Hispanic-Serving Institutions". El Mundo Zurdo. 6: 57–61 – via Academia.edu.
  6. ^ Juarez, Sergio Fernando (1 January 2017). "Resilience and Struggle: Exploring the Experiences of Undocumented College Students Through Chicana Feminist Theory and Dialogical Performance". University of Denver. 1350 – via Digital Commons.

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