Curanderos unite in New Mexico for healing conference

By Russell Contreras, Associated Press/NBCLatino

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Incense burns at the door. Prayers are whispered in dozens of languages. A shell horn calls people back from lunch.

More than 200 traditional healers and students of alternative medicine from across the United States and Latin America are at the University of New Mexico this week for an annual conference on curanderismo, the art of folk healing widely used among indigenous populations. The healers, also called curanderos, are scheduled to attend workshops and provide training.

But unlike previous gatherings on curanderismo, this year’s conference features healers from Africa who wanted to share their healing methods and religious practices with those from the Americas, event organizer Eliseo “Cheo” Torres said.

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