Harmony is the center of the “cosmovision” or worldview of the Tseltal Maya People. That is to say, everything in Tseltal life has as its objective, harmony. Tseltal life is a dialogue, explicit and implicit, among people, with nature and with superior beings, and the objective is to achieve harmony. This is a sort of harmony where all thoughts, feelings and acts of each being--“ya snuhp’in sbah”—coincide, one with the other, various beings with other beings.

A very important element necessary to achieve harmony is the word, rather dialogue, with the goal of arriving at “jun pajal o’tanil”—a union of hearts, a concordance (from the Latin “cor” for heart). ["When there is no consultation, the plans go awry, but if one seeks advice, they come to fruition. Proverbs 15:22.]

In Tseltal, an important subject matter is called “k’op” or “word”, but what this means really is the need to dialogue. The phrase “the heart is an important organ of the body” is translated in Tseltal as “the heart is an organ around which one has dialogued.” “Pact” or “agreement” is translated as “chapbil k’op” or “word or topic settled by dialogue.” “We’ll be seeing you” in Tseltal is: “We will be talking.”

One’s word has so much importance in Tseltal that “to say” is equivalent to “do.” For example, “thank you” in Tseltal is “hokol awal,” which means, “you are being troubled.”

This importance of the word appears in the narration about creation in the Popol Vuh: 

[Translator's Note: The "Popul Vuh" is the sacred text of the Maya, written in the Classical Quiché of Guatemala.]

This reminds us of the story of creation in the first chapter of Genesis, especially verses 2 and 26.

The Popul Vuh also tells us that one of the reasons the gods created human beings was so they could talk among themselves, where the importance of dialogue emerges.

This article consists of three parts: Part 1: Aspects of Harmony; Part 2: Loss and Restoration of Harmony; Part 3: The Training and Formation of Reconcilers.

Part 1: Diverse Aspects of Harmony

People were created to be happy , but happiness can only be achieved by making others happy, and for this to be possible “jun pajal o’tanil” is essential: the concordance or harmony with the universe. Harmony encompasses diverse types:

1.    Harmony of One’s Person:
       (a)    One will have biological health if what the body says is in harmony with what the heart and the head say.
       (b)    Psychological health: a person who is calm and pleasant is described in Tseltal as “nakal yo’tan,” which means “his heart is peaceful in its home.” In contrast, lack of tranquility or harmony within oneself is “cheb yo’tan,” which means “a heart broken in two or in pieces.”

2.    Harmony of the Couple:
In the Tseltal language of ceremony, the wife and the husband are called one to the other: “snuhp’ jti’ snuhp’ ko’tan,” which means, “the match of my mouth, the match of my heart,” or more exactly, the person whose words, acts and feelings coincide with mine.

3.    Harmony of the Community:
To understand the Tseltal concept of harmony, I will analyze the concept of justice, of authority and the form of making decisions.
       (a)    Justice: In the Western world, justice means “to each according to what s/he deserves.” The judge’s order is not necessarily to bring about harmony, but more probably will cause one of the parties to feel unsatisfied. In the worldview of the Tseltales, justice requires that there be “jun’ pajal o’tanil,” concordance or harmony among the members of the community. Later we will see the way this concordance is achieved.
       (b)    Authority: There are two types of authority.
               i.    Authority that is consented to: this means in Western societies that the law and the power to mandate and to act are granted to an elected person (generally by way of vote). Society, simply by electing the person, does not bestow qualifications or prestige on the elected person to carry out the office well. This type of authority, usually found in Western societies, does not promote in and of itself harmony because the group that loses the election does not feel satisfied, even if the election has been legitimate.
               ii.    Authority that is acquired: The same person, because of her conduct, has acquired the capacity and prestige to carry out her duties. We must take into account that, among the Tseltales, leaders are not elected by vote, but those who have served the people well acquire the authority and prestige to govern because of their conduct. This type of authority promotes harmony because whoever governs is not the person elected by the vote of one group, but is the person who has earned authority through universal prestige—this is to say, he is regarded by all as one who acts with “jun pajal o’tanil” (one heart).

       (c)    Making Decisions:
               i.    In the West, the authorities decide, or the case is taken into chambers and is dispensed of by vote, which is not necessarily conducive to “jun pajal o’tanil” because the result may leave one of the parties unhappy. Moreover, sometimes those who have been elected do not govern or make decisions in ways that the voters wish.
               ii.    Among Tseltales, the community or run-of-the-mill cases are decided by a group of “principales”  who “know how to serve” and thus have acquired their prestige. The “principales” constitute the “maximum authority.” [TRANSLATOR’S NOTE: “Principales” are members of the community with moral authority by virtue of their personal traits and record of service to their communities. They do not nominate themselves as leaders, but rather arrive at their stature after demonstrating the strength of their character and commitment to the public good.] They don’t arrive at a decision by vote, but they discuss and dialogue about the case until they arrive at consensus or “jun pajal o’tanil.” When the case pertains to something of great importance to the whole community, the principales explain the problem to the people and dialogue with them until they reach “jun pajal o’tanil” or harmony.

4.    Harmony with the Sacred Earth:
Leonardo Boff writes about some ancient cultures:

(Boff, Leonardo, “Espíritu, Materia y Vida: Eras de lo Humano,” in the weekly column of Leonardo Boff, March 23, 2007, 212.)

This also happens in the worldview of the Tseltal People: all beings, even those that we call inanimate, are alive, especially the Earth, which is not an object, not even of exploitation. Earth is a living being, the Sacred Mother, who gives life and sustenance. Even when she is cultivated, she must be mistreated, which supposes a rupture in harmony with her, so one must ask her pardon and offer her gifts.

Also, there is harmony with all other beings: trees, rivers, hills, etc. All of these are alive and must be respected because they contribute to our well-being.

The Popul Vuh tells of domestic animals, tools and other inanimate beings that rebelled against people precisely because they hadn’t respected them and broke the harmony of the universe. (Popul Vuh, p. 31.)

5.    Harmony Between the Community of Earth and Heaven:
According to the Tseltales, each saint chose a community or town with which the saint made a pact: if the people honor the saint, the saint will give the community health and life and all that it needs. To achieve “jun pajal o’tanil” or harmony with the saint, the community has to fulfill its part of the pact by way of the “fiesta” [feast day celebration] that is an essential ingredient of communal harmony. The “fiesta” is an audiovisual representation of utopian life, which will not be fulfilled if harmony does not reign in the work of the community, in happiness, and especially in sharing all that one must.

Part II: Loss and Restoration of Harmony

1.    With the World Above:
       (a)    Harmony is lost when the community fails to fulfill the pact with the Patron Saint. Harmony will be restored by celebrating the traditional feast.
       (b)    Harmony is lost because of an offense by one member of the community of another, because all of the townspeople are under the protection of the Patron Saint, who, as a consequence, will punish the guilty. Moreover, when one person damages another, harmony is lost within that person. He is anxious and fearful; his heart is divided (“cheb yo’tan”) because he fears the punishment that may be meted out by the superior world. His family will also have its “heart divided” because possibly the punishment will reach them. Harmony is restored when the guilty confesses before the “principal,” who is the representative of God and the community, who metes out a punishment that corresponds to the wrong and prays for pardon and for the restoration of harmony between the guilty and the superior world. With each debt that is settled, harmony returns not only to the family, but also to the community.

2.    Harmony Among Members of the Community:
       (a)    Among Westerners, justice consists in giving “to each what s/he deserves.” Accordingly, the judge dictates the sentence and imposes sanctions that imply some sort of reparation of damages. Frequently, there may be restoration of “legal” harmony, but this does not mean there is restoration of feelings between the offender and the offended, especially if the one who has been offended is not in agreement with the sentence.

Among the Tseltal People, justice is “jun pajal o’tanil” or concordance among all the members of the community. Neither the concept of “judge” nor “sentence” exists. The remote equivalent of “judge” is “jmeltsa’anwanej,” which means “reconciler” or “settler.” This duty is carried out by the “principales,” who because of their many years of service to the community have reached “sapience” or “wisdom of the heart,” and are therefore, competent to discharge this duty.

       (b)    We will first examine how a simple conflict is resolved, and later, the different instances of reconciliation.
               i.    First Example: There were three “reconcilers.” (We note that in the Tseltal culture a duty is never carried out by just one person.) The “assistants” to the “reconcilers” were members of the families of the offender and the offended and various people from the village. We note that in all Tseltal cases, the “assistants” have the right to intervene. Dialogue and discussion have a place as a cathartic way for the parties to calm their feelings. It is the first step in reconciliation. In this case, the crime was the theft of a pig.

First, the complainant “shared his word,” or recounted his story. He gave a rich account with lots of details, expounding on the qualities of his pig, the precise care with which he had raised it, the pig’s excellent form, and consequently its value: $800 pesos. During his account, his family members intervened, supporting him.

The accused acknowledged that he had committed the theft, but disagreed with the complainant’s description of the pig. The pig’s form was not as excellent as its owner had proclaimed so its worth was only $700 pesos. In this, the accused’s family members supported him. This started a long discussion between both parties about the qualities and defects of the pig.

The reconciler proposed that the pig be valued at $750 pesos. At first, the complainant and the accused refused to accept, but after dialoguing a long time with their respective relatives, they reached an agreement.

At the conclusion, the offending party (the one who took the pig) offered to each person present a little bit of “aguardiente,” hard liquor,  in the same glass. This symbolizes concordance and is a sign that the offense is completely forgotten, something in the past, and now the parties are of one heart. [Translator’s Note: In many Tseltal communities, because of the problems with alcoholism, the people have decided with certain ceremonies to replace the use of hard liquor with a non-alcoholic alternative such as a carbonated beverage. In other cases, the communities use the locally-brewed liquor in a very measured way for ceremonial or medicinal purposes.]

               ii.    Cases of Different Instances of Reconciliation: I will now describe how the Tseltal “reconciler” or “settler” is functioning in the Jesuit Mission of Bachajón, Chiapas, where this traditional model [of resolving conflicts] has been promoted and developed.

The first instance is resolution of conflict within a community. The complaining parties turn to the reconciler, named by the community because of his wisdom and experience. The reconciler speaks with both parties separately with the goal of understanding the root of the problem and its causes. The first thing the reconciler tries to do is get one or the other parties, separately, to relieve their feelings with the reconciler until they achieve catharsis. Then the reconciler determines if the parties are ready to dialogue, which is the first step toward reconciliation. If the reconciler finds any resistance, he or she exhorts each party to come together because of the damage caused by discord. Once this has been achieved, the reconciler suggests that each party make a proposal for the resolution of the conflict, including the repair of the damage.

In the meeting of the parties, they hurl accusations and recriminations at each other until they achieve another catharsis. Each one then makes his or her proposal, which are discussed and bargained over, until they reach “jun pajal o’tanil.” This procedure involves many meetings and can last weeks in a culture that values “the word and dialogue.”

The second example involves the case when the community reconciler cannot achieve agreement and the dispute goes to the Reconciling Council of the Zone (a zone is a group of communities). The Council is comprised of the “principal,” the president of the village and the community “scribe” or secretary, and their respective wives, in each community. This step involves even more time. After the council hears from both complaining parties separately, they talk (dialogue) among themselves and make proposals for the resolution of the conflict. They then dialogue again with the parties and offer the solutions they believe adequately resolve the dispute. If the council’s proposed solutions are accepted, they convene both parties, and as I indicated before, this involves more mutual recriminations and discussions until a catharsis is achieved. Later, they dialogue about the solutions proposed by the council until they arrive at “jun pajal o’tanil.”

The third instance involves the Reconciling Council of the Inter-Zone (an “inter-zone” is a group of zones). If the parties do not arrive at “jun pajal o’tanil” with the Reconciling Council of the Zone, the procedure repeats itself before the Reconciling Council of the Inter-Zone, comprised of members of the Council of each Zone or group of communities.

In the fourth instance, if the conflict has not been settled, the case goes to the Council of the Ts’umbalil. A “ts’umbalil” is a sort of “clan” or subculture among the Tseltal People. We note that if the complaining parties belong to different “ts’umbaliles” then the Council will be comprised of members from both “ts’umbaliles.”

Finally, in the fifth instance, if the conflict is not settled, the parties have as the last resort the Supreme Tribunal, formed by members of each of the five “ts’umbaliles” that make up the region of the Jesuit Mission of Bachajón. In the Supreme Tribunal, the parties generally achieve what they desire: “jun pajal o’tanil.”

Part III: Training and Formation of Reconcilers

As indicated previously, Tseltales choose certain people to discharge the duty of reconciler because of their record of service to the community, through which they have acquired “sp’ijil o’tanil” or “wisdom of the heart.”

The reconcilers are trained or formed through meetings convened every four months in which they study actual cases as a group, and therefore are mutually enriched. They also receive help from experts in human rights and Mexican law.

An important way to learn is by practice, and among Tseltales this is done through their traditional system of “Older Brother; Younger Brother.” The “Older Brother,” already experienced in the field, is accompanied by someone called “Younger Brother,” who acquires experience along the “Older Brother.” When the “Older Brother” finishes his term, the “Younger Brother” assumes the role of “Older Brother” and another person steps in as “Younger Brother.”

In the Jesuit Mission of Bachajón, the participation of women in public life has been encouraged. Her participation is important in all areas, but perhaps especially in this area of reconciliation. Other women feel they can confide more in a woman reconciler and that she will better understand them. They also feel freer to express themselves with another person of their gender. Moreover, for the resolution of problems between men, a woman’s point of view represents a very special contribution.

Conclusion

This manner of reconciling differences conforms to the “brotherly correction” of the Gospel that advises dialogue between the offender and the offended, and if the desired effect is not achieved, then the community intervenes to resolve the conflict. (Mat. 18: 15-17.)  

The way the Tseltales resolve conflicts also reminds us of the words of Saint Paul to the Corinthians:

Of course, in the crude reality of daily life, frequently the situation does not respond completely in the way I have just described. Nevertheless, even when complete success has not been achieved, the Reconcilers are proud of the work they do. For the past six years, there have been no cases that have gone to the Ministry of Public Government. The reason, as I indicated before, is that although a judge may pronounce a sentence and sanction a crime, the relationship between the offending and offended parties is not reestablished. In contrast, the way the Tseltal reconcilers approach conflicts, what matters most is the union of hearts.

Bibliography

Boff, Leonardo “Espíritu, Materia y Vida: Eras de lo Humano” (from the weekly column of Leonardo Boff), March 23, 2007, p. 212.

Popul Vuh, “Las antiguas historias Quiche,” translated by Adrián Recinos, México, Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1952.