Last Updated on October 31, 2024 by Ellen
Foco Tonal is somewhat mysterious. It’s thought by some to be a spiritual vortex. Other people say it’s simply a spot to collect money from tourists.
It does have a gift shop, but that didn’t bother me. Especially after I had a fantastic experience at the special spot. And there were hardly any tourists when we went so we had it practically all to ourselves!
The site is less than an hour’s ride from Ajijic and Chapala. The easiest way to get there is by car on a highway a bit north of the lake, through corn and agave fields. My spouse Tedly figured out how we could get there by bus (we don’t travel with a car). It would have taken at least four hours, so we opted to splurge on a cab.
Our driver had never been to Foco Tonal. There was one sign off the main road, and then we asked directions from someone to confirm we were on the right path. We arrived around noon on a Monday. Great time to go because we had the place to ourselves. Our driver would wait an hour, then drive us back to Chapala.
The vortex exists behind a rather large and ornate home. There is a 30 peso admission fee (roughly $1.50 USD) to the yard. The house is not open to the public.
I won’t get into the history of the place too much – there are some sites that go into that detail if you want to Google search them.
We were greeted by a man wearing white (it’s suggested you wear white, if you have it) who said he didn’t speak English.
He told us a few things about the grounds and what we could do, and then he left us alone. I have read where there is some sort of ‘lecture’ or ‘talk’ about the site – but we didn’t get that, likely because we aren’t fluent is Spanish.
With an open mind, I went first. I stood in the center, said my name aloud, and heard the echo-ish vibrational response of my own voice come back to me, for which the site is well-known. It was quite fascinating, and inexplicable.
For me, just as impressive, was the incredibly strong energetic push into the space from over my right shoulder. It was intense.
I took a few moments, said a prayer. I listened to my breathing, which held a slight echo.
Tedly came into the spot and gave me a hug, and it was a beautiful feeling of peace and love and light.
He also took some moments in the circle. He later said he enjoyed the experience, and the odd echo of his voice, but he said all he felt was the warming of the sun – no other energy.
I had two messages come to me, in addition to the wonderful intense and lifting feeling I experienced. One was — I was right where I was supposed to be — in every sense of the phrase: in life, in spiritual growth, in my physical presence at that spot in time.
Also, that wasn’t a place to connect with lost loved ones, but a place to look forward on your own path with the firm knowledge that loved ones were on their own journey.
That second message came to me during my second time in the circle, after Tedly took his turn (yes, I went in twice – a benefit to having no one else there!). Tedly told me to say names of dead people… and so I did. Margaret, George, Marie, Harry, Marie Dill, Bob….. all the names echoed in the space. Hollow echos, then the comforting message to focus on my own journey.
Message number one came back to me again: that I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be and learning what my soul is supposed to learn.
There are a few places outside the vortex that have been arranged for one to have a quiet meditation. Tedly and I did that for a little while. Our hour went fast.
Tedly actually did have a message, he joked. He said the message became clear to him only after he left Foco Tonal, but had actually been delivered earlier in the day. He said the universe told him to take a cab earlier in the day, and not the bus, if he wanted to have a happy wife. Hahahahaha.
So while Tedly thought it was a pleasant experience, and is stumped over the odd echos in the center space, he didn’t feel any special vortex energy.
I thought it was a pleasant experience – in every way possible. Ultimately, I felt lifted up and at peace. For me, some of the beauty in spirituality is in its pursuit. As an old friend and I once discussed, spirituality can be a good search for more.
I was there 3 wks ago. I was more relaxed AND had glitter on the outside of my palms after saying a prayer.