The Arvigo® Institute is now Tul’ix Indigenous Arts. 

 

More on the dreaming behind and the seeds of this decision below…

​

Why Change the Name? 

 

Although we recognize that the Arvigo® Institute was the forerunner of bringing indigenous womb work to the ‘West’, we have also painfully borne witness to the places where this has inadvertently impacted indigenous communities. This work cannot in its essence belong to a single entity or be regarded as intellectual property without becoming appropriative. 

 

The truth is that the bodywork, spiritual healing and herbal wisdoms gifted from Don Elijio and other native healers are part of the library of medicine of our species. The fact that these rememberings came through his Masewal Maya community need to be centered and of benefit to them. 

 

Dr. Rosita Arvigo is the tangible human bridge via which this knowledge reached post-indigenous communities, and gratitude to her for this is eternal. The work itself exists outside of time. 

​

It was clear from day one that the name had to evolve to honor and carry the medicine of its roots. However, we were in the thick of Covid in 2020 and bodyworkers were deeply struggling. Out of care for the community, and seeking for the right name to present itself, we waited.  

​

The Story Behind the Name 

​

Tul’ix (too-leesh or tool-eesh) means dragonfly in Yucatec Maya. 

​

In one of countless myths about Ix Chel, dragonflies rescued her from the bottom of a lake after a beloved took her life. They transported her to the Moon to live as a sovereign being. 

​

The red dragonfly came to me on my ancestral lands in Oman in 2002 and began the process of leading me to this work. She helped me to remember through my own body what was stolen from my parent cultures through colonization and war. I have witnessed it do the same for innumerable people. 

​

In February 2024, just as our name change came to the light, I had the privilege of being immersed in three back-to-back bodywork trainings at Sky River Sanctuary at Opoutere, Aotearoa/New Zealand. We have been absolutely and suddenly inundated by more dragonflies, swallows and spiders than biologically possible. Each of these beings are emissaries of Ix Chel. 

​

In 2019, on the ten year anniversary of a quest I took in the redwood forests of Northern California, I asked a question that layered on the one I had asked a decade prior. My first question had been: “Show me what you want me to do.” In the days after, this work came into my life. My second question was: “Show me how you want me to do it.” 

​

As I walked through the trees, I heard a message: “If the Ancient wishes to survive, it must give birth to new forms.” Some minutes later, a small animal ran in front of me. Realizing it was not a fox but a baby coyote, I became aware of a presence behind me and turned to face its Mother.  

​

Covid came and went. Four months ago in Taos, New Mexico I had encounters with three coyotes in broad daylight in the weirdest and most unlikely circumstances. I kept flashing back to the redwood forest, and in my bones I felt the time for this name was coming. 

​

I spoke to Maria Garcia, Don Elijio’s niece and Chairperson of the Itzamna Society and Elijio Panti National Park, about my sense that Tul’ix might be the name. Her heart joined in this feeling. 

​

The addition of Indigenous Arts rather than the word institute or school or any other kind of colonial educational overstructure pays homage to the our indigeneity activated within each human body when they touch the breath of their ancestors; and the art forms of feeling, listening and remembering that make up the tapestry of the bodywork. 

​

What about Arvigo® Therapy and the Registered Trademarks?

​

Because we are deeply aware that many, many practitioners rely on the brand values of Arvigo® Therapy for their livelihoods, we are retaining all registered trademarks and have had comprehensive legal consultations. 

​

The name of the Institute was never trademarked. It can and has evolved. 

​

The names of the trainings and bodywork system will remain Arvigo® Therapy. This at once honors Rosita’s deep contribution and allows participants to continue using the name if it is of benefit to them. However, once a person trains they have a CHOICE.  

​

If it is in resonance with practitioners and their communities to refer to themselves as Arvigo® Therapists, they have the right to do so.

​

If it is not in resonance with practitioners and their communities to have a non-indigenous name superimposed on native work, they can choose to call their work Tul’ix Therapy/ies, call themselves a Tul’ix Practitioner or simply say that their practice is rooted in healing traditions that come from Don Elijio Panti’s Maya lineage.  

​

We will never register or own a native name.  

​

Our prayer is that this is a step towards compassionate decolonization and one model for a world where the needs of all can be met in love and respect. 

​

Some Practical Considerations

​

Our website is currently in transition, so you’ll see the words Tul’ix Indigenous Arts and the Arvigo® Institute interchangeably for a little bit.  The website is now www.tulixindigenousarts.com although if you search for www.arvigotherapy.com you will be redirected permanently as we will retain this domain name.  

​

Kali can still be reached on office@arvigotherapy.com and if/when the email address evolves all emails will be redirected. Please bear with emails from the Arvigo® Institute for now.  

 

You don’t need to change anything you’re doing UNLESS YOU WANT TO. In which case follow suggestions about representation/branding above. 

 

Because we are not policing how participants choose to represent themselves, a membership system is moot. If you’ve ever trained with us and would like to be listed as a bodyworker or spiritual healing practitioner you can get in touch with Kali at any time. 

 

Spiritual Healing Classes were never trademarked by name, and will now exist under Tul’ix Therapies.  

 

We will keep working on improving our materials, teaching methods, social consciousness and expanding our hearts to protect the seeds of this work and the places on this beautiful planet where it chooses to grow.