CubaPLUS Magazine

El Templete, one of the most relevant buildings of Cuban colonial architecture, is located in the Plaza de Armas in Old Havana, and is part of the World Heritage Site.

Its construction dates from 1827, based on the plans of Colonel Antonio de la Torre and under the direction of Regidor Francisco Rodríguez y Cabrera. It was erected at the proposal of Captain General Francisco Dionisio Vives in the place where the Villa de San Cristóbal de La Habana is believed to have been founded in 1519. It owes part of its history to the ceiba trees that have accompanied it at different times.

The first mass that was celebrated in this place happened precisely under the shade of a tree of that species that from early time crowns the entrance of the enclosure. Since then, hundreds of habaneros come to the space every November 16, as a sample of one of the most deeply rooted rites in the capital's culture.

According to tradition, walking around a ceiba tree, going around three times, touching it and even kissing it, attracts prosperity. Part of the belief comes from the Yoruba culture, and is the result of the deep-rooted syncretism that the country experienced after the meeting of Spanish and African cultures.

In this Afro-Cuban religion it is considered a sacred tree or God: Iroko, they name it. In its leaves it is said that spirits and deities rest, so some rites can bring luck, health and professional development.

The mythical tree is also present in popular speech on the Island, with phrases such as "whoever shakes a ceiba tree only shakes his body", in clear allusion to its strength.