A War of Witches : A Journey Into the Underworld of the Contemporary Aztecs

An overheard plot to do away with an unwanted son-in-law begins this mesmerizing and astonishing journey into the Aztec underworld—a world of magical dreams and mysterious healing, shadowed by a deadly justice.Aided by two local curanderos, or healers, American anthropologist Timothy Knab embarks on a spellbinding adventure of sacred Aztec rituals and mystical dream journeys into Talocan, the underworld of gods and lost souls. Along the way, he begins to understand the Aztec belief system and the art of healing, as well as the dark past of San Martín—infamous through Mexico for its brujos, or witches, and a mysterious "War of Witches” fifty years earlier that may never have ended.Capturing time and place as surely as a jeweler sets a stone, Knab chronicles his spiritual immersion into the contemporary Aztec culture and, ultimately, his remarkable transformation into an authentic curandero. Part murder mystery, part soaring supernatural dream tales—all informed by serious anthropological research— A War of Witches will keep you breathless and on the edge of your seat from the very first page to the explosive revelations in the final chapter. In the spirit of Carlos Castaneda's early books and Wade Davis's The Serpent and the Rainbow, an American anthropologist provides a suspenseful and chilling personal narrative of his harrowing initiation into the extraordinary world of the Aztecs. Radio promo. "An overheard plot to do away with an unwanted son-in-law begins this mesmerizing and astonishing journey into the Aztec underworld - a world of magical dreams and mysterious healing, shadowed by a deadly justice." "Aided by two local curanderos, or healers, American anthropologist Timothy Knab embarks on a spellbinding adventure of sacred Atzec rituals and mystical dream journeys into Talocan, the underworld of gods and lost souls. Along the way, he begins to understand the Aztec belief system and the art of healing, as well as the dark past of San Martin - infamous throughout Mexico for its brujos, or witches, and a mysterious "War of Witches" fifty years earlier that may never have ended." "Capturing time and place as surely as a jeweler sets a stone, Timothy Knab chronicles his spiritual immersion into the contemporary Aztec culture and, ultimately, his remarkable transformation into an authentic curandero."--Jacket Like Wade Davis's THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW and early works of Castaneda, this modern-day Aztec adventure is a fascinating teaching story that opens up a whole new view of reality. "(Timothy) Knab successfully bridges ancient and modern realities in this latest addition to the fast-growing genre of anthropologist-turned-shaman's-apprentice tales".--KIRKUS REVIEWS. Chronicles the author's spiritual immersion in Aztec culture and his transformation into a "curandero" or healer, revealing the supernatural underworld of Aztec cosmology I had been sitting inside with the old gentleman most of the morning while he helped me translate a tape of one of his fantastic stories I had made several days before.