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Priests and Shamans

Shamans were holy men who communicated with deities and interpreted the universe. They also performed healing, divination, and ceremony. They tended to the needs of the common people. Priests emerged as society became more complex and worked for the elite class. In the early Mayan cities, the kings were shaman-kings; but as time went on, priests took on more and more of this role.

Shamans and priests dedicated their time to maximizing the synchronization between human activities and cosmic events. Rituals were utilized to accumulate k’ul in sacred sites so it could be accessed to empower human activity. You might call this the mechanisms of a blessing. Asking one of the gods to bless something is asking him or her to place their attention on a specific target. This naturally brings more energy to it and empowers its success.

A typical ritual began with purification. The people involved in the ceremony would often fast, and all the objects were purified with energy from the sun and moon. Music and processions followed, which helped elevate the participants to higher states of mind. The participants burned incense, usually a tree resin called copal. The copal cleared, purified, and uplifted the individual. After everyone was presentable to the gods, the gods were offered gifts of tobacco, corn, and food. For a very important ceremony, the god might have been offered blood. The blood could be collected from cutting someone, or in very important ceremonies, from sacrifices of animals or humans. The ceremony closed with dancing, feasting, and drinking.

The Life Span of Buildings

Mayan buildings and cities were designed to maximize the accumulation and movement of k’ul. Constructing a pyramid or temple, for instance, required matching the function of the structure with the specific time cycle it would be used in. The time cycle may have been a long galactic cycle, like the 26,000 years of the precession, or it might have been related to a shorter cycle. The building was “born” with initiation rituals before construction began. It would have a life span, during which time it had maximum flow of energy into it from both celestial and terrestrial realms. It acted as an accumulator of vital life force, or k’ul. The k’ul could then be used by the priests and shamans to bless human endeavors.

When the time cycle it was made for ended, the building would no longer be in sync with the new cycle. This means it would not be able to hold the energy of the new time. The temple was said to have died, would receive termination rites, and would be dismantled. Not wanting to lose the energy that had amassed at the site, the Maya built their new temples on the same sites as the old. The new building, in sync with the new cycle, was more powerful than the last as it magnified the energy from the past. As kings built and rebuilt on top of the old, sanctums became ever more sacred and established portals that allowed ancestors and gods to pass through.

This process was true of cities and private homes as well as temples and sacred places. The function of different buildings varied, so they would be geared to different cycles. When communities believed the power of their city was finished, they simply walked away. This may explain the many abandoned Mayan cities in 900 C.E. Could it be the cities were not in sync with the coming new time cycle and lost power, causing the people to leave? Maybe all the new construction prior to abandonment was a failed attempt to repower their structures.

Codex Cues

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice that seeks the proper placement of homes, objects, and space in order to increase the harmonious flow of chi. To see how proper alignment and energy flow can improve your life, pick up a book on feng shui principles and try them out! Our favorite is The Complete Illustrated Guide to Feng Shui, by Lillian Too (Element Books, 1996).

Sacred Design

Mayan buildings