How Indigenous field hockey is reviving Mapuche culture

On a field in a working-class neighborhood of Santiago, Chile, a group of people is playing field hockey. 

But this is no average game. It is a sacred act that has been played by the ancestors of these people for generations. See, this community is Mapuche, the Indigenous people from Southern Chile, and this game is reinvigorating their connection to the past.

Today, there are roughly 2 million Mapuche Indigenous people in Chile and Argentina. Many have moved from their ancestral lands to the city. But they have not forgotten their history. And they are rekindling it again. Using their ancestral sport to breathe life into their culture and traditions. Using their sport as a type of resistance. 

“It feels so good to play,” says 55-year-old Oriana Castro, who is on the field. “Because we are living our ancestral game. We, Mapuches, are ambassadors of our own culture.”

The game they’re playing is called palín. It’s like field hockey, but with some key differences. The guiños, or sticks, are made from bent tree branches that they or others find and carve until they are smooth.

Players still try to score on the other team by knocking the palí, or ball, over the goal line on the other side. But the teams don’t line up on each end of the field; instead, they line up longways. 

Each player is matched up with someone on the opposing side to be their contrincante, or con. It’s kind of like man-on-man defense, but with an important twist. You’re not just playing against your con, you’re connected to him or her. 

“It means that if you’re playing and your con is tired or weak, you have to help wake them up,” says Coach Javier Soto Antihual. “If they get hurt and can’t play, you have to leave the field, too. So, it creates this rivalry, but also friendship.”

They say this duality of two opposing sides finding equilibrium is an important facet of Mapuche cosmovision. That spiritual connection to the past was something that the Mapuche people say they were losing in recent years and which they have rekindled. Palín is helping.

“Today, palín has become a way of revitalizing our culture,” says Ivone Gonzalez, a member of the Mapuche radio station Werken Kurruf. “And the older players want to help motivate the next generations. Their children and their grandchildren.”

Gonzalez says that palín is at the heart of Mapuche identity. In the past, it was a means of resolving disputes peacefully—an integral part of their most-important ceremonies. Today, she says, it’s played before community meetings. Mapuche candidates running for local office often kick off their campaigns with palín.

But it is not just a sport.

“This is the way that we are able to continue our culture,” says Guillermina Rojas, 55. “We practice it and it’s not just about sport, it’s about our spirituality. That fills us and gives us the strength to continue.”

She says she’s only been playing for two years, but that it has changed her life. 

“It’s like magic,” she says as tears run down her face. “It’s hard for me to run. I’m heavyset. But I feel like when I’m on the field, it’s not me who’s running. It’s my ancestors. My Mapuche ancestors,” she says.

Palín was actually banned by the Catholic Church for hundreds of years. Yet, the Mapuche people continued to play their ancestral game. Resistance in the past. Resistance in the present. Resistance through this sacred sport.

Hi folks, thanks for listening. I’m your host Michael Fox.

I grew up playing ice hockey. And the Mapuche community that I focus on in this story invited my family and I to play palín with them when we visited Santiago late last year. It was an incredible experience.

Much of this story is based on a piece I produced for The World last year. You can check that out in the show notes. 

You can also see exclusive pictures that my family and I took on my Patreon. That’s patreon.com/mfox. I’ll add a link in the show notes.

Folks, also, if you like what you hear and enjoy this podcast, please consider becoming a subscriber on my Patreon. It’s only a few dollars a month. I have a ton of exclusive content there, only available to my supporters. And every supporter really makes a difference.

This is episode 54 of Stories of Resistance, a podcast series co-produced by The Real News and Global Exchange. Independent investigative journalism, supported by Global Exchange’s Human Rights in Action program. Each week, I bring you stories of resistance and hope like this. Inspiration for dark times. If you like what you hear, please subscribe, like, share, comment or leave a review.

Thanks for listening. See you next time.