MYTH-601 Lessons

The walls of the classroom are still bedecked with painted scenes, though students can’t quite be sure if they’re the same ones. The same types of things are portrayed -- human sacrifices on pyramids, priests in elaborate headdresses, and ancient courtyards with ball games. Looking directly in front of them, students notice a collection of stylized, blocky figures that appears to be a procession of gods and goddesses. Professor Wessex is seated in the middle of it all, her head outlined -- probably not by coincidence -- by the headdress of one of the gods. When class is slated to begin, Professor Wessex stirs in her seat, rises and address the students to start the class.

Introduction
Welcome back to another week of Mesoamerican magic and mythology. Today we are shifting even further southward to the empire of the Maya. As there is much to cover over the wide expanse of time that the Maya were alive, we will be splitting this topic up into two lessons. Today, we will focus more on the cast of characters: gods, mythological creatures, and other major players that feature in their various myths. Next week, with the introductions out of the way, we will dive into the intricate stories that tell the Maya histories.

Background
Before that, though, we will take a moment of unfortunately obligatory review for those of you who have not taken Ancient Studies and as a reminder for those with memories like Bathilda Bagshot. To briefly summarize the important points about Maya civilization, they occupied the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, as well as parts of Honduras and Guatemala, essentially just a few hundred miles south of the area of Mexico that the Aztecs inhabited. They weren’t exactly tripping over each other, however, as the Maya civilization thrived from 1000 B.C.E. to 987 C.E., a few hundred years before the Aztecs emerged in 1427. Though, to say the Maya were completely obliterated in 987 would not be entirely true. While their empire was gone, some of the people -- and therefore fragments of their culture -- survived and spread around, influencing other societies.

Much like the various nomes of Egypt, the Maya empire was made up of many smaller cohesive groups. This meant, among other things, that defining one specific culture or pantheon for the Maya is tricky at best. Additionally, as noted with the Aztecs, the Maya pantheon overlaps considerably, with two gods occasionally combined as one, one god having multiple forms, or having multiple names for one god depending on the time or place, and sometimes just having different names for the same god based on regional cultural differences. This only adds to the difficulty in picking apart separate deities for modern-day researchers. Finally, you will likely notice some similarities between the Maya pantheon and the Aztecs based on the fact that the Maya’s pantheon came before and their beliefs exerted some influence on later societies.

Maya Pantheon
One thing you will notice as rather unique to the Maya pantheon is that often one god can have exactly four separate incarnations. In these cases, sometimes the gods will be referred to by a single name, sometimes each of the four incarnations will have four separate names, but be related to each other and considered to be part of the same god. That is, a god can be referred to with one name and be identified by that name, but can also have separate names for their four incarnations. You will see what I meant shortly. This phenomena is due to the beliefs of the Maya and the fact that they felt the world had four corners, thus creating a new facet of a god for each one.

Ah Mun
The god of corn, or maize, Ah Mun was highly respected as he represented the most important Maya crop. Naturally, he is also associated with agriculture. He is always depicted as a young man, with ears of corn making up a headdress.

Ah Puch
This god goes by many other names including Cizin and Yum Cimil, and can even be split into two separate deities known as  Hun Came and Vucub Came. No matter his name, he is always a highly feared and malicious god. Ah Puch was the primary god of the underworld in Maya tradition, called Xibalba. More specifically, his dominion was the ninth, and lowest level of the Xibalba. I could indeed go on for some length about the Maya underworld, its thirteen primary gods, and their domains (whether it was presiding over a level of the underworld or bringing disease to the humans above), but suffice it to say it was not an enjoyable place. The realm was treacherous to approach, with many obstacles in the path of unwary explorers. More, once an explorer arrived in Xibalba, much of it was full of traps and tests to snare them. You will see more of what I mean next week.

Bacab, or the Bacabs
The son of the head deity, Itzamn (who will be covered shortly), Bacab is associated with many magic rituals, including divination, particularly when related to predicting the fertility of crops. He also had an association with the sky like Itzamn. Each of them was placed along the four corners of the world in order to hold up the sky, as there were fortunately four incarnations. The Bacab of the north was named Cantzicnal, the south Hosanek, the east Hobnil, and the west Saccimi. The Bacabs are also highly intertwined with the four wind deities, Pauahtun, insomuch as in some traditions they are one and the same.

Chac, or the Chacs
Like the Bacabs, the Chacs (also called the Chaacs or the Chaahks) were another four-in-one deity. The Chacs functioned as rain gods, each one associated with a cardinal direction. Because of their association with rain, they were heavily involved in any rituals or prayers surrounding agriculture or rain. They were all associated with the same aspects and were prayed to equally.

Ek Chuah
Also called Ek Chuaj or Ekchuah, this formidable god was a violent one. He was the god of war and the god of death in battle or human sacrifice. This made him quite prominent in Maya society. Interestingly, he had other functions and associations, such as being the god of merchants and one of the gods of travelers.

Hunahpu and Ixbalanque
These two figures, also known as the Hero Twins, feature prominently in many Maya myths. They fall in the grey area between human and god, for reasons you will see next week. They are not to be confused with their father, Hun Hunahpu (and his twin, Vucub Hunahpu), who had some similar exploits, but is not as celebrated. Many rulers of the Maya empire claimed to be able to trace their ancestry back to these hero twins as a way to prove their worth and their right to rule.

Itzamn
Also known simply as Zamn or Itzamna, this god was the lord of the heavens and was in control of both the day and night. Itzamn occupied the top, most powerful spot of the Maya pantheon, and was their creator god. Interestingly, he was viewed as quite benevolent and was called upon for help and mercy, something which is not often associated with Maya culture. He was often regarded as the spouse of Ixchebelyax and the father of the aforementioned Bacab.

Kukulkan
This god is widely regarded as the Maya counterpart to the Aztec Quetzalcoatl, as his name means “feathered serpent.” Confusingly, at one time, there was also a very powerful wizard named Kukulkan and it is hard to tell which came first: the man, or the mythological god. It is equally possible that a powerful wizard either named himself after a god for reasons of prestige, or that the man was so powerful and famous, that he become immortalized in legend and more myths were fabricated over time. Regardless of which is accurate, Kukulkan is famous for creating humankind after a few attempts, alongside the god Tepeu.

Tepeu
This god’s main claim to fame is the creation of humankind, alongside his partner Kukulkan. His initial failures (which will be mentioned next week) do not diminish his importance to the Maya people and he is viewed as a creator god.

A Maya Bestiary
There wouldn’t be much to mythology without terrifying beasts to slay, and that is what we will focus on next. As you can imagine, a culture with such a mix of traditions also has a wide a variety of beasts documented. These accounts are very important to those who study the ancient and magizoologists alike, as this is one of the few ways that animal migration, magical evolution, and even potential extinction events are documented. While some of these beasts may be nothing but mere fiction, we will examine them nonetheless as we seek to contextualize the opponents in many a Maya myth. Keep a sharp eye out for familiar faces, no matter how ghastly they are.

Alux
Potentially the offspring of House Elves and imps, or simply a more loyal offshoot of imps, Alux are fiercely loyal as long as proper respect is paid. They are described as a knee-high creature that can turn invisible at will, disappearing and reappearing like a swift wind. However, if disrespected -- either by the family they protect or outsiders -- they turn quite mischievous and cause no small amount of havoc, even to the point of bringing down whole buildings. If you are a stranger in the area of the Alux, you are much more likely to be subject to their cruel tricks unless you are in some way considered part of the family or make proper offerings. They are very protective of families as well as ancestral homes. The plural form of Alux is contested between Aluxes and Aluxo’ob.

Camaztoz
Far more threatening than even the most troublesome Alux, the Camaztoz does not exist to protect. Instead, these are feared creatures of the night. In ancient myth, they were described as residing in the wild jungles in between large cities, eschewing crowded groups of people for areas where individuals could be easily hunted. They are described as having a large wingspan with  a ferocious appetite for blood.

Many modern historians have pointed out similarities between the Camaztoz and the modern, sinister vampire. It is unlikely that vampires of that day and age would have belonged to  organized groups like our modern-day vampires, where intelligent discussions occur and strategies for avoiding hurting humans are shared. For example, no group of Maya vampires got together and decided to somehow refrigerate or keep willingly given blood to consume when needed. Most vampires would simply have given into instincts and hunted humans -- magical and non-magical alike -- to meet their needs -- and would have appeared to their human counterparts as terrifying monsters.

Nagual
Similar to the Camaztoz, this is not a beast, but in fact a being. More specifically, Nagual is the Maya term for ancient animagi. They were humans who were known to be able to take a single animal form. Most were quite normal and expected, such as a dog or a turkey, though more impressive, prestigious, and even magical creatures were possible as well. This depended on each individual. Moreover, Nagual are described in myths to be equally likely to be cruel or kind, like humans themselves. As expected, they had the magical powers that most witches or wizards had, like the ability to place strong curses on their enemies, cure diseases, or divine the future.

Sea Snakes and Serpents
Finally, we arrive at the topic of all things that slither and swim. There are numerous myths surrounding various types of serpents or serpent-like creatures in Maya mythology. One of these is the “vision serpent.” This creature bears many similarities to the Aztec Quetzalcoatl. Like Quetzalcoatl, the Maya vision serpent is highly connected with celestial bodies and the heavens. There is also some room for others to read into this creature as a representation of highly revered seers, but the truth will likely remain buried with the rest of Maya civilization.

There were other stories of large, terrifying snake-like monsters other than that of the vision serpent, most of which had to deal with the sea. One of these tales involves Sipak, also known as Cipactli. The creature is described as having multiple toothy jaws on each of its appendages which, of course, were always hungry. More, Sipak was so large, he was the basis upon which the earth was built. According to myth, he was drawn up out of the waters by the gods and made to form the continent where the Maya lived. While it bears a more literal resemblance to an alligator, this creature’s long, sinewy, and powerful body also fits with the archetype of the Ouroboros. As Professor Morgan has already discussed, this was a serpentine creature so large that it had the power to destroy the world, which overlaps neatly with the Sipak’s size and the fear the creature inspired in various myths. Of course, these myths about Sipak (and others like it) were likely largely exaggerations, but the consistency of these types myths around the world speak to the possibility that there was once a species -- or numerous hybrid species -- of giant snakes that slithered the earth, much like the elusive, but still existent, Basilisk.

Vucub Caquix
Like the Hero Twins mentioned earlier, Vucub Caquix falls into the area in between mortal and god. This enormous and powerful bird was quite the troublemaker along with his sons, Zipacna and Cabrakan. His arrogance is well-documented in more than one myth, and it is not looked kindly upon by gods or humans. His name is believed to literally translate to “seven macaw.”

Naming Conventions
You may have noticed an interesting trend in some similarities between names this week. If not, I recommend you go back and look for similarities, particularly between the hero twins, their fathers, the god of the underworld, and Vucub Caquix. These similarities become more and more evident as one researches more into Maya myths, as the similarities do not stop there.

It is important to know that in Maya civilization, the fields of astronomy, divination, and arithmancy (among others) were very important and well-studied. Their calendar was second to none, and indeed is still used as a benchmark of excellence and exact measurements. For this reason, it should not be too surprising to know that calendrical names were popular. That is, names that were tied into the day, the year, or the month of birth. Additionally, because of heavy superstition in Maya culture, there were certain numbers that were seen to be more prestigious. Therefore, the repetition of “Hun” and “Vucub” in names (which mean one and seven, respectively), was to lend prestige. The name that then came after might have to do with the point in the ritual cycle the person was born. On the other hand, sometimes the name that came after was merely a description of the figure or person, whether after myths had been created or before. In any case, as you will see, many names of Maya figures are not names at all, but actually descriptions coupled with numeric designations.

Closing
That may be a bit of a list, but these persons and particulars are necessary to completely understanding the impact of the myths we will discuss next lesson. Before we tackle these stories, however, you have a few assignments. First, there is a quiz on the general information presented in the lesson, and then there is an additional assignment requiring you to deconstruct descriptions of ancient creatures and compare them to current beasts and beings we know today. Until next week.

Vocabulary
Maya: While it is common to see it written incorrectly, “Maya” is both the correct adjective and noun for the Mesoamerican peoples that lived from 1000 B.C.E. to roughly 900 C.E. “Mayan” is only used to refer to the language and “Mayas” is completely incorrect, as “Maya” is also the plural form of the noun.

Original lesson written by Professor Venita Wessex
Image credits here, here, here, and here