Title: Bell Ringer 1: (B) 4/18/11
1Bell Ringer 1 (B) 4/18/11
- When the Mayans suddenly disappeared, they left
behind an unknown writing system, monuments,
artifacts, etc. leaving archeologists with
several questions about their cultures, beliefs,
and intelligence. - Why do you think an entire civilization of people
disappear into the jungle? What type of people
do you think the Mayans were? How do you imagine
they lived their daily lives? Explain your
answer!
2The Popul Vuh
3The Popul Vuh
- The greatest surviving Mayan document.
- It was written anonymously in the Mayan language
using the Latin alphabet between 1554 and 1558. - Scholars believe this document is either a
translation of a manuscript in the ancient Mayan
hieroglyphic language or a collection of stories
and songs recorded directly from the Mayan oral
tradition.
4The Popol Vuh
- In about 1700, a Catholic missionary translated
The Popol Vuh into Spanish - He spoke the Mayan language fluently, and he
persuaded the Maya to show him this manuscript of
their ancient history. - There is no record that any other Spaniard ever
saw the Mayan document. - The Spanish manuscript disappeared for 150 years.
- In the 1850s, it was discovered in the library of
the University of San Carlos in Guatemala City
and was first published in Vienna in 1857.
5The Popol Vuh
- It reveals more than the talent of the anonymous
recorder. - It reflects the thoughts and values of this
ancient people and the ability of their language
to express them. - The language and some of the ideas are similar to
the opening chapters of the Old Testament. This
is not surprising, given the fact that Spanish
missionaries were already teaching the Maya about
Christianty when The Popul Vuh was being
recorded.
6Things to consider
- Compare the type of human beings the Maya gods
wished to create and the relationship between
these gods and their people with those of other
creation myths.
7Writing Assignment
- You can only imagine the excitement when the
lost translation of The Popul Vuh was
discovered in the 1850s. - Your job today is create an archeologists
profile of the Mayan people based on their
creation myth. - What do you infer about the Mayan people?
- What did they worship?
- What were the goals of their society?
- What were the like?
8(No Transcript)
9(No Transcript)
10(No Transcript)
11The Mayans
- Mayan World View
- Creation Myth
- Religion
- Gods and Goddesses
12Mayan World View
- Maya conceived of the earth as flat and
four-cornered. - Each corner had a color value
- East-Red
- White-North
- Black-West
- Yellow-South
- Center-Blue-Green
13World Supports
- Each corner was held up by four Powahtuns (old
deities) - The sky was held up by four Bakabs
(Human/Atlantean figures) of the correct color
for each direction. - Although sometimes these are represented as
trees.
14Mayan religion
15Mayan Religion
- Religion was important to every part of Mayan
life. - The Mayas worshipped many different gods. Each
day, month, city, and occupation had its own
special god or goddess. - The Mayas had a variety of religious festivals
and celebrations. Most of these celebrations
included human sacrifice.
16- Each Mayan city -state had a ruler called the
halach uinic. He may have also served as the
high priest during religious ceremonies. - The Mayans believed halach uinic was a living
god. He ruled until his death. At his death,
his oldest son became the next halach uinic. If
the halach uinic did not have a son, his brother
would rule. If he did not have a brother, the
ruler's council elected a member of his family to
serve. - The halach uinic dressed in elaborate and
colorful clothes. He also wore a very large
head-dress. Temple wall paintings show him with
large ear decorations, crossed eyes, and many
tattoos.
http//www.spanishome.com/mayas/religion.htm
17Priests
- Many other priests served with the halach uinic.
- These priests, named ahkin performed many duties.
- They had the knowledge of mathematics and
astronomy. Some of the ahkin performed medical
rituals. - The Mayans believed that only the priests could
explain the mysteries of life and death. - They thought earth was on the back of a crocodile
that floated in a large pond. At another time
they believed the earth was the floor of a lizard
house.
18Mayan Worlds
- The Mayas' religion taught that there were 13
layers of heavens above the earth. - They also believed nine underworlds were below.
They thought that they lived in the fifth
creation of the world. - The previous four worlds had been destroyed by a
great flood. - At the beginning of the fifth world, the gods
created humans from corn.
19Sacrifices and Blood Offerings
- Many of the Mayas religious ceremonies included
gifts and sacrifices to the various gods and
goddesses. The Mayans believed the gods would
give factors to them in return for prayers,
offerings, and sacrifices. - In many ceremonies, the priests cut themselves to
get blood to present to the gods. - Other people like the king and high-ranking elite
would pierce their tongues, or in the case of
men, pierce their foreskin with a stingray spine. -
20Rituals
- The Mayan ritual acts were generally dictated by
the sacred almanac. - The numbers 4, 9, 13 and the color directions are
prominent. - Before the rituals there are usually periods of
sexual abstinence and food taboos.
21Two women drawing thorn-ropes through their
tongues.
http//www.northstar.k12.ak.us/schools/tan/project
s/mayan/relegion.html
22Sacrifices
- The Mayas had several methods of giving the human
sacrifices. - Often, the priests took the victim to the altar
at the temple. Then the priests cut the heart
out of the living victim and presented it to the
god. - In another method, the priests tied the victim to
a wooden pole. Then they threw spears and arrows
at the victim's chest in the area of the heart. - The priests were assisted by four old men, called
Chacs.
23Post-Classic
- In the third type of sacrifice, they threw the
victim into a sacred well. the most famous of
these wells is the Well of Sacrifices at Chichén
Itzá. - If victims survived the fall and did not drown,
the priests pulled them back out of the well.
The Mayas believed the gods had chosen to spare
these victims. - The priests then asked the victims what messages
they brought back from the gods. The victims
received special treatment from then on since the
Mayas believed they had spoken to the gods.
24Sacred Cenote
http//www.mysteriousplaces.com/mayan/Cenote.html
25Sacred Cenote at Chichen Itza
This view of the wall of the cenote shows how
high it is from the water (72 feet). It also
shows the green algae that guards the secret of
its contents.The walls visible here are made of
limestone. http//www.isourcecom.com/maya/cities/c
hichenitza/cenoteside.htm
26Ancestors
- The Mayas also worshipped the dead. They
believed the dead became one with the gods. - They worshipped their ancestors at many religious
ceremonies. - They also built pyramids over the sacred remains
of their dead rulers.
27Mayan Gods and Goddesses
- Pre-Conquest codices mention approximately 30.
- Post-Conquest manuscripts Ritual of the Bakabs
(18th c) depicts 166 deities.
28ITZAMNÁ
- He was the head god, lord of the heavens and lord
of the night and day. - His name meant lizard. Carved pictures show him
as an old crossed-eyed man, and sometimes with a
lizard's body. The Mayas believed he invented
books and writing.
29KINICH AHUAU
- He was the sun god and the god of the rulers.
30CHAC
- He was the rain god. Carvings show him as a
reptile with a large nose pointing down and
curling fangs. He had four aspects - Chac Xib Chac Red Chac of the East Sac Xib Chac
White Chac of the North Ek Xib Chac Black Chac
of the West Kan Xib Chac Yellow Chac of the
South
31YUN KAAX
- He is the god of maize (corn) and agriculture.
- Pictures always show him as a young man either
carrying a plant or has a plant as a headdress.
32AH PUCH
- He is the god of death. Carvings of him show a
skull and skeleton.
33EK CHAUB
- He is the god of trade. Mayan artists painted
his face black and he had a drooping lower lip.
34IX CHEL
- She is the moon and rainbow goddess. She is also
the goddess of weaving and childbirth. - Wife of Itzamna.
35BULUC CHABTAN
- He is the god of war and human sacrifice.
Carvings of him show a black line around his eye
and down onto his cheek. He is at times shown
with a torch or weapon in his hand.
36Minor Gods and Goddesses
- Cit Bolon Tum a god of Medicine.
- Ekahau the god of Travelers and Merchants.
- Ixtab the goddess of the Hanged. She receives
their souls into paradise. - Kan-u-Uayeyab the god who guarded cities.
- Kinich Kakmo the Sun god symbolized by the
Macaw. - Mitnal Mitnal was the underworld hell where the
wicked were tortured. - Nacon Nacon was the god of War.
- Tzultacaj (Tzuultaq'ah) For the Mayan Indians of
central Guatemala, known as Kekchí, this was the
god of the mountains and valleys. - Yaxche Yaxche is the Tree of Heaven under which
good souls rejoice.
37Writing Assignment
- Rituals, games, buildings, artwork, etc. from the
Mayan culture were tied into their belief system
concerning the gods, astronomy, calendar system,
etc. - Your task is to design a building, calendar,
mural, etc. that could have been used in Mayan
worship or cultural interest. - Be sure to include both a picture and EXPLANATION
that describes why the Mayan would use this as a
part of their daily life.