Dance students and instructors from Danza Azteca InLak’ech of Oakland brought the Corn Moon Ceremony and blessing to the SOL Community Farmers Market in Placerville Sunday.
The full moon of September, also known as corn moon or barley moon by some Native American cultures, arrives at harvest time for essential crops like corn. This year the corn moon rose Sept. 2.
“Corn is a life giver and it is important we honor and respect it, which includes growing it naturally and traditionally,” said Luli Velasco of the Chiricahua Apache and Tohono O’odham Nations and organizer of the SOL Community Farmers Market. “We had the blessing and ceremony Sunday to honor the moon and corn harvest, as well as the community.”
Sunday’s ceremony, led by Danza Azteca InLak’ech Capitan Manuel Garcia Jr., was a gift from the InLak’ech to the community. The ceremony opened with Placerville resident Kimberley ShiningStar Petree offering a Miwok blessing and prayer.
Sunday’s ceremony had more significance this year, Velasco explained. “We also brought the community together because there is much dissent in town and in the county. Relations are very stressed at this time and in the country as well. This is our land. We help to bring the healing,” she said.
The ceremony also had an ofrenda, or altar, placed on a traditional rug, made near a tree with corn stalks. The rug included fresh, organic, non-gmo offerings of flowers, fruit water, heirloom squash and beans. Attendees were invited to place mementos of loved ones on the altar to be included in prayer.
“Organic non-gmo is very important, as our traditional foods have been taken and we can no longer farm and hunt and gather as we did and there’s difficulty accessing these foods without all the toxicity in today’s soil and processing,” Velasco said.
Corn and corn stalks Sunday were donated by El Dorado County farms (Flying V Farms, The Natural Gardening Company, Limonada of Tahoe and Bigfoot FryBread). Roquero Medicine Bags and SOL Community Farmers Market sponsored other costs for the days events.
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