The creation myth of one Maya city was recorded in the 1500s. It begins with water. It holds that long ago, water was all there was. The water contained six gods. Working together, these six deities created first the earth, then the sky, and finally the plants and the
The famous stepped pyramids of the Maya were an integral part of their religious beliefs.
animals. Only one problem remained. Because they could not speak, the animals could not worship the gods.
The gods decided to solve this problem by creating people. In their first attempt they made people out of mud. But these people lacked souls, so the gods sent a massive flood to destroy them. Next the gods fashioned people out of wood, but these wooden people still could not worship. When the gods destroyed them, some escaped and became the monkeys in the trees.
The gods tried one last time, making people out of a combination of white and yellow cornmeal. These people could speak, had souls, and correctly worshiped the gods. From corn, the gods created true, lasting humankind. The myth demonstrates the tremendous importance of corn to Maya society. The establishment of agriculture led to the high-density population of city life, so in that way corn actually facilitated their civilization’s creation.
The Maya believed the universe consisted of three layers. The lowest layer, beneath the world in which the Maya lived, was Xibalba, or the underworld. Much of this area was a deep, dark, disease-filled place. However, some parts were fertile or even comfortable. In these places, living kings and priests could enter the underworld to communicate with ancestors during religious ceremonies.
n the center of the universe was the world in which the Maya lived, a sacred place floating atop water. Some stories say it was on the back of a turtle, but others say the creature holding up the world was a caiman, a large reptile related to crocodiles and alligators. Growing up through the center of this world into the third layer, the sky, was the World Tree, or the Tree of Life. This was a ceiba, a type of tree common to the Maya lands.
The Popol Vuh is a Maya holy book that tells a creation story as recorded in the 1500s by the people of Quiche, Guatemala.
This story includes the creation of the world, humanity, and the first ball game. This version of the story is shared throughout Maya history, though there are several variations in the details. There was no single holy book that every group of Maya people followed.
The Maya did not have one god but many. There was no clear hierarchy among them; for instance, during a hurricane, the god of storms might be more powerful than the god of the sun. Chac, the rain and lightning god, often appeared in artwork holding axes and snakes, which he used to affect the weather.
Some of the gods had more than one name and performed multiple functions. The Maya world was a complex place and it took a great deal of effort to keep so many gods happy and working together for the good of the Maya. It was the job of the priests and the king to decipher the heavens and make sure all was well for the Maya.
The world the Maya lived in was divided not only into layers but also into the four cardinal directions. At the center of these four compass points was the center of all things, the World Tree. As in many other cultures, the
Maya associated each direction with a color; the color of the center was blue-green. Maya kings symbolized this center.
Of the four directions, east was the most important because it was the direction in which the sun rose. The Maya believed each morning the sun was resurrected after making a nightly journey through the underworld, the land of death. Because of this association between the east and rebirth, the Maya buried important people on the eastern sides of plazas and patios. The color for the east is chac, or red.
The Maya thought of the south as the left-hand side of the sun. The color of the south was kan, or yellow. The west, associated with the death of the sun each night, was assigned ek, or black. The north, also known as the side of heaven, was the direction from which the rains came. Its color was zac, or white.
The Maya believed the gods were the source of all life. They had created the world, the animals, the plants, and even people. These same forces of nature, including the sun and rain, continued to keep the world alive. They expected something life-giving from mankind in return.
Central to some rituals practiced by the Maya was a form of sacrifice called bloodletting, a practice the Maya believed activated the soul and connected the Maya with the living force of the entire universe. A Maya noblewoman who wanted to speak to an ancestor would first pierce her tongue with a stingray spine and then pass a cord with thorns embedded in it through the wound, causing even more blood to flow. She collected her blood on strips of paper that she would then burn. As the smoke from this blood sacrifice curled upward, she would be able to look into it and see both the gods and her beloved ancestors.
The Maya collected blood offerings in a variety of ways, including running the thorn-embedded cord over a cheek or lower lip. Cuts were also made with obsidian blades. Archaeologists know bloodletting was not limited to only the kings and queens, because the obsidian blades have been found throughout Maya villages. Some blades were simply used as knives in everyday household use, but they also made it possible to practice bloodletting in private rituals.
Blood was considered a worthy and essential payment for the gods to continue favoring the Maya with the daily sunrise and the movement of the moon and the stars. The most powerful blood of all was that of a king, a man who could speak to the gods.
The famous stepped pyramids of the Maya were an integral part of their religious beliefs.
animals. Only one problem remained. Because they could not speak, the animals could not worship the gods.
The gods decided to solve this problem by creating people. In their first attempt they made people out of mud. But these people lacked souls, so the gods sent a massive flood to destroy them. Next the gods fashioned people out of wood, but these wooden people still could not worship. When the gods destroyed them, some escaped and became the monkeys in the trees.
The gods tried one last time, making people out of a combination of white and yellow cornmeal. These people could speak, had souls, and correctly worshiped the gods. From corn, the gods created true, lasting humankind. The myth demonstrates the tremendous importance of corn to Maya society. The establishment of agriculture led to the high-density population of city life, so in that way corn actually facilitated their civilization’s creation.
MANY LAYERS AND MANY GODS
The Maya believed the universe consisted of three layers. The lowest layer, beneath the world in which the Maya lived, was Xibalba, or the underworld. Much of this area was a deep, dark, disease-filled place. However, some parts were fertile or even comfortable. In these places, living kings and priests could enter the underworld to communicate with ancestors during religious ceremonies.
n the center of the universe was the world in which the Maya lived, a sacred place floating atop water. Some stories say it was on the back of a turtle, but others say the creature holding up the world was a caiman, a large reptile related to crocodiles and alligators. Growing up through the center of this world into the third layer, the sky, was the World Tree, or the Tree of Life. This was a ceiba, a type of tree common to the Maya lands.
Holy Books
The Popol Vuh is a Maya holy book that tells a creation story as recorded in the 1500s by the people of Quiche, Guatemala.
This story includes the creation of the world, humanity, and the first ball game. This version of the story is shared throughout Maya history, though there are several variations in the details. There was no single holy book that every group of Maya people followed.
The Maya did not have one god but many. There was no clear hierarchy among them; for instance, during a hurricane, the god of storms might be more powerful than the god of the sun. Chac, the rain and lightning god, often appeared in artwork holding axes and snakes, which he used to affect the weather.
Some of the gods had more than one name and performed multiple functions. The Maya world was a complex place and it took a great deal of effort to keep so many gods happy and working together for the good of the Maya. It was the job of the priests and the king to decipher the heavens and make sure all was well for the Maya.
CARDINAL DIRECTIONS
The world the Maya lived in was divided not only into layers but also into the four cardinal directions. At the center of these four compass points was the center of all things, the World Tree. As in many other cultures, the
Maya associated each direction with a color; the color of the center was blue-green. Maya kings symbolized this center.
Of the four directions, east was the most important because it was the direction in which the sun rose. The Maya believed each morning the sun was resurrected after making a nightly journey through the underworld, the land of death. Because of this association between the east and rebirth, the Maya buried important people on the eastern sides of plazas and patios. The color for the east is chac, or red.
The Maya thought of the south as the left-hand side of the sun. The color of the south was kan, or yellow. The west, associated with the death of the sun each night, was assigned ek, or black. The north, also known as the side of heaven, was the direction from which the rains came. Its color was zac, or white.
BLOOD
The Maya believed the gods were the source of all life. They had created the world, the animals, the plants, and even people. These same forces of nature, including the sun and rain, continued to keep the world alive. They expected something life-giving from mankind in return.
Central to some rituals practiced by the Maya was a form of sacrifice called bloodletting, a practice the Maya believed activated the soul and connected the Maya with the living force of the entire universe. A Maya noblewoman who wanted to speak to an ancestor would first pierce her tongue with a stingray spine and then pass a cord with thorns embedded in it through the wound, causing even more blood to flow. She collected her blood on strips of paper that she would then burn. As the smoke from this blood sacrifice curled upward, she would be able to look into it and see both the gods and her beloved ancestors.
The Maya collected blood offerings in a variety of ways, including running the thorn-embedded cord over a cheek or lower lip. Cuts were also made with obsidian blades. Archaeologists know bloodletting was not limited to only the kings and queens, because the obsidian blades have been found throughout Maya villages. Some blades were simply used as knives in everyday household use, but they also made it possible to practice bloodletting in private rituals.
Blood was considered a worthy and essential payment for the gods to continue favoring the Maya with the daily sunrise and the movement of the moon and the stars. The most powerful blood of all was that of a king, a man who could speak to the gods.
World History
