Santuario de Chalma

A short drive east of Malinalco, the village of Chalma exists almost entirely around its sanctuary, the second most important pilgrimage site in Mexico after the Basilica of Guadalupe. The church sits at the bottom of a steep, wooded canyon and houses the Señor de Chalma, an image of the crucified Christ that draws huge crowds on feast days.

Its origin story goes back to the 1530s, when Augustinian friars came to evangelize the Malinalco region. In a cave near here, local people worshipped a deity often called Oztoteotl, "lord of the cave." According to tradition, the friars found the old idol broken on the ground and an image of Christ in its place. The cave became a Christian shrine, and in 1683 the Augustinians moved the image to a church built for it on the canyon floor, which has been rebuilt and enlarged several times since.

Much of what pilgrims do echoes older traditions. Many walk for days over the mountains, bathe or wash in springs along the way, including the one at the foot of a giant ahuehuete tree, wear crowns of flowers, and dance in front of the sanctuary. The busiest days include Epiphany on January 6, Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, Pentecost and the feast of the Señor de Chalma on July 1, when the village is packed.