The Complete Idiot's Guide to 2012 - Dr. Synthia Andrews Nd [19]
The center of most cities and villages had a Ceiba tree or Yaxche tree, representing the central axis, or Tree of Life. You might have seen pictures of one of these trees; they grow very large and are often featured in magazine articles. Ceiba trees have large roots, massive, straight trunks, and four main branches that spread in the four directions. The branches form a canopy overhead and house eagle nests. Openings in the trunks of older trees provide housing for bats, emissaries to the underworld.
Portals
You might be getting the idea that portals were an important part of the Maya-view. This is true. Interacting with the invisible realms was highly desired. Activating portals created a sacred space that allowed passage from one realm to the next. Ancestors, gods, and Wayebs could all pass through to the material realm, and humans could pass through to celestial realms. Keep this in mind in Chapter 3 when we discuss how the Maya knew about galactic time spans!
In addition to creating portals, there was security and safety in a properly ordered place. When the positions of buildings were aligned with the primary directions and anchored through the tree of life, the world was safer. It was protected by kings and deities alike. The king lived in the center of the city, the heart of the heavens; the city revolved around him.
Other Sacred Structures
The legend of the Hero Twins shows the sacredness of ball courts. They were also believed to be located at the intervening threshold between this world and the celestial world. Sacred ball games and sacrifices were conducted here to please and placate the gods.
Tombs were where rich people were buried and were built to mimic the function of caves. Temple doorways were symbolic of cave entrances that allowed kings and priests to enter the sacred mountain and communicate with the lords of Xibalba. The tops of temples were flat to allow the kings and priests to stand on top of the mountain, gaining access to both k’ul, the vital life force, and Hunab K’u, the highest god.
Gods of the Maya
The gods of the Maya could be confusing and overwhelming. One could turn into another; they had visible and invisible qualities and could transform themselves at will. They represented polarities, so their actions and functions seemed contradictory based on what side of the polarity they were expressing. They expressed different aspects based on the quality of the direction they were facing or the color they were wearing. These are not your Greek gods!
Some scholars think the Mayan gods were representations of the numbers and cycles on the calendars. Others say the numbers and cycles of the calendars were important because they reflected the myths and legends of the Mayan gods. In Maya-view, what is the difference? Matter is a reflection of the spiritual essence that flows through it ….
Monotheism
At first glance, it seems obvious that the Maya believed in polytheism, or more than one god. Have you learned by now that nothing with the Maya is obvious?
According to creation legends in the Popol Vuh, Hunab K’u is the supreme god. All other gods are said to be different faces of Hunab K’u; different expressions of one complex dude! In this sense the ancient Maya were monotheistic, worshipping one supreme god whose essence animates many lesser fragments of himself. Since everything is part of Hunab K’u, all of existence is a part of god. This is a common theme in Earth-based religions.
Abilities of the Gods
Each of the gods had separate traits and abilities. However, a good or evil trait