An indigenous take on family planning and population
by Saul Paau Maaz.
Cross-posted from RH
Reality Check.
Growing up in the deep, lush jungle of Petén in Guatemala, under an endless green
canopy, I learned that human life and the natural world are inseparable.
My parents and grandparents taught me that people are just one element
of Mother Nature; her protection and care is our responsibility.
For generations, my people, the Maya Q’eqchi’, have inhabited the
Petén, which has always been sacred for its forests, which shelter a
diverse array of animals and plants. The wealth of those forests extends
well beyond Guatemala’s borders: In fact, researchers describe them as
the Americas’ “third lung” because of their oxygen production.
But today, my homeland is in trouble. Its biological wealth is
threatened by drug farms, road building, cattle ranching, forest fires,
and rapid population growth. Multinational companies are destroying the
forests, as are sprawling human settlements. The jungle where I was born
is now a disaster area, plundered and exploited. Every year, 100 to
150 square miles of forest are lost. In less than three and a half
decades, Petén’s forest cover has shrunk from 90 percent to 50 percent
of the land mass.
It hasn’t always been this way
Traditional Mayan wisdom taught us to care for the environment and to
limit human numbers and impact. Before building a house, planting a
crop, or bringing new life into the world—indeed, before making any
changes to nature—we must first ask permission from the creator and
shaper of the universe, and find the appropriate nawal—the cosmic, natural energies that each of the 20 days in the Mayan calendar represents.
Nawales are essential to Mayan cosmogony, our spiritual narrative. Each person is born with a nawal that determines their temperament, their role in society, and even their daily actions. The Mayan people interpret the nawales’ communication in all things, including the timing of dreams, the
presence of certain animals, movements of air or planets, bird songs,
and other sounds. For these reasons, the Mayan people maintain a great
respect for nature.
For our elders, respect for nature meant careful stewardship of the
environment. When I was a child, my parents taught me how to grow crops
and protect the forest. The Maya Q’eqchi’ people practiced a
sophisticated form of field rotation. They also took care to walk 30
minutes or more outside of their community to plant their crops. This
protected the forest that sheltered our homes, and ensured a steady
supply of firewood. It also preserved the forest animals and the sacred
mountains.
The Maya Q’eqchi’ also practiced a traditional form of family
planning, based on the phases of the moon. The seven-day period which
starts on the first day of a woman’s menstruation was understood as a
time when sexual relations are permitted. After those seven days, there
is a fertile period which lasts from the eighth day until the 19th day. From 19th day until the next menstruation, partners can have sexual
relations with little risk of becoming pregnant. Because of this
traditional wisdom, there are elders today who have only had three or
four children during their entire reproductive life, though they have
never used any Western contraception.
Sex is sacred to indigenous people; sexual activity should not be had every day. The right nawal,
or the right day for fertilization, has to be considered carefully by
both the mother and father. If the series of fertile days are not in
harmony with the energies for fertilization, birth, and destiny of a new
life, sexual relations should not take place.
Traditional wisdom forgotten
In recent decades, however, the traditional Mayan wisdom about family
planning and environmental stewardship has largely been forgotten.
Colonization, cultural and linguistic genocide, the forces of
capitalism, and pervasive Western thinking have
all weakened the traditional knowledge of the indigenous people.
The decline of traditional knowledge has taken a toll on the
environment, and on reproductive health. Indigenous Guatemalan women
have, on average, eight children, often with no proper medical attention
before, during, or after each birth. High fertility can mean poor
health and lower life expectancy for both mothers and children.
And high fertility, combined with rapid industrialization and
internal migration, means rapid population growth. In my homeland of
Petén, the population has grown over the past four decades from 24,000 to an estimated 650,000.
As our numbers have grown, our way of life has become
impoverished—culturally and economically. The Maya Q’eqchi’ have
suffered a loss of identity and loss of respect for the forest and
Mother Nature. Two-thirds of our people live in extreme poverty,
existing on only two dollars a day; one-fifth live on less than one
dollar a day. Nearly half of children between the ages of 1 and 5
years old are chronically malnourished, a fact that has repercussions
for their physical and intellectual growth. And there is little access to formal education.
We face an uncertain future. The rainy seasons have profoundly
shifted, which has led to increasing hunger and declining economic
conditions. The floods are powerful, unexpected, and uncontrollable,
which profoundly affects the well-being of our communities.
Solutions are both modern and traditional
Some of the answers to these new problems come from the modern world. For example, education for women and girls is key. Fundación Propetèn (the Pro-Petén Foundation) found that illiterate women have an average
of nine children. In comparison, women with three to six years of
education have an average of five children; women who have completed 16
years of education have an average of three; and women who have
completed 18 years of education or a college degree have two children on
average. In addition to lower fertility, education has been shown to
have a positive impact on women’s social, economic, and cultural life.
This is why we advocate access to education for all.
Young people also need accurate information about sexuality and
reproductive health. As a community health worker, I have lobbied at a
regional level to incorporate and promote sexual and reproductive-health
education in schools for children and young people between the ages of
12 and 18. I have also worked to promote youth organizations and training
programs on community leadership, HIV, migration, and population and
environment at the Fundación de Universidad Pública (Public
University Foundation) in my village.
Service delivery is also crucial: For the last nine years, I have trained rural health workers and
traditional midwives to provide quality reproductive-health services,
including modern methods of family planning.
Other answers come from traditional wisdom. The Council of Mayan
Elders is working to promote a return to the agricultural practices of
our ancestors and to preserve ancient knowledge of natural medicine and
human reproduction in keeping with nature and the Earth.
Fundamentally, we can try to live by this native saying: “The Earth
is not ours; we merely borrow it from our sons, daughters, and
grandchildren.” Caring for the Earth is our responsibility if we want a
better, fairer world and, thus, a better life.
Related Links:
We can feed 10 billion of us, study finds—but it won’t be easy
Population facts and figures at your fingertips
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