Mayan Traditions And Beliefs

Religion shapes change and development. A way of explaining the things that can’t always be explained, belief or faith in a spiritual or divine power can add meaning and significance to many people’s worldly lives. These beliefs and practices serve primarily as a source of social fabric that has managed to keep their traditions preserved and flourishing thousands of years. And this is because every aspect of Mayan life seemed to be centered on religion. And their religion would be classified as animism. This means that their religion centers on the fact that virtually everything in the world contains sacredness. This shows the notion that all objects whether living or non were embedded with spirits. (Culture counts)This fueled their culture and influenced their language and tradition, as well as, gave them a deep connection and appreciation for the sun and sky. Every object, whether it is part of nature or man-made, was considered sacred and worshipped. Especially corn, corn is said to have literally shaped earlier people and is one of the most sacred things.(Maya People)
In one of their most known sacred narratives, “The Creation Story” The earth and sky were made however there was no sun and no moon. And it is said that after the Hero Twins played and won a game of ball to resurrect their father as the maize god. Then they climbed up into the sky and became the sun and moon. With the sun and moon to provide light for the earth it was then that the deities decided to try a third time and created the final form of human beings using white and yellow corn. Thus where mud and wood failed, corn succeeded in creating lasting humans. As previously stated for Mayan tradition everything has meaning and everything is sacred, this isn’t surprising that this is seen through the rituals performed. Their traditions rely heavily on the Mayan calendar, as well as, corn. (Creation