A 3 venue Festival

Takilhsukut Park	Archeological Site	Papantla

2012 Topic: Spirituality

The Path

A forerunner and an example of a sustainable proposal for holistic cultural tourism —spiritual, gastronomic, adventurous, historical, creative and cosmogonic— Cumbre Tajín presents, in 5 days, more than 5,000 activities of all areas of the arts to reach and treat audiences of different origins, ages and expectations.

In the year 2012, the Identity Festival celebrates thirteen years of existence with irrefutable outputs: it has consolidated cultural, social and educational projects as well as projects that safeguard the patrimony; likewise, it continues to develop new channels for dialogue, outreach, regeneration, strengthening, expression, contact and self-management that can benefit the Totonac identity.

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The Harvest

In the Spring that inaugurated the millennium, the world´s eyes focused on the north of the state of Veracruz, Mexico. Cumbre Tajín was emerging; a festival led by the Totonac culture, owner of a cosmogony of remarkable bonds with nature and an exemplary spirituality.

Twelve years later, Cumbre Tajín has become a Cultural Patrimony of Veracruz. It is considered to be one of the top 5 festivals in Mexico and among the top 100 in the world. It is a model of socioeconomic development based on culture. Having the festival revolve around the Spring Equinox is as important as Cumbre Tajin’s permanent cultural regeneration labor. This duality has led to the following achievements:

• The Ritual Ceremony of the Papantla Flyers is a Cultural Heritage of Veracruz and an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
• The archaeological site of El Tajín is a Tangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and one of the 5 most visited in Mexico;
• The Center for Indigenous Arts is an educational model with international recognition;
• Tajín Vive (Tajin Lives) is an exemplary site tour with great lightning that teaches respect for the heritage. It has the support of the National Institute of Anthropology and History.
• Takilhsukut Park is a sanctuary for thought, creativity and cultural indigenous activities.

All of this has been possible thanks to the host culture, the Totonacas, who are alive and getting stronger: the inhabitants of the Totonacapan —the land of the three hearts— possess an ancestral language, surprising gastronomy, traditional medicine, arts of multiple facets, rituals and deities of immutable presence, communion with nature, historical memory and a vital duality: they are a village of artists, of ritual beings: dancers, flyers, embroiderers, weavers… they are imprinted with creativity and warmth.