The religion of the Mayas, like their civilization, was complex and multi-layered. Based on cyclical times of growth and destruction, with an emphasis on the growing seasons, a time for planting and a time for harvesting, important dates were ruled by the need for survival.
The supreme deity, the creator of the world, Itzamná, also called Hunab Ku[,was also the lord of the fire and the hearth. He is pictured as a serpent god in many of the surviving representations.Itzamná was also the inventor of writing, and patron of the arts and sciences. His wife,Ix Chel, was the goddess of weaving, medicine and childbirth and was the ancient goddess of the Moon.
Under Itzamná, a multitude of gods had particular functions, such as god for life and death, agriculture, birth, sun and moon, travelers, weather, valleys and rivers, cities, medicine and the arts and sciences.Gods of death received souls into hell. Gods of climate tamed the wind and spared the crops. Gods of war oversaw martial conflicts.The gods lived in a multi-layered sky region supported at the four corners either by huge gods called Bacabs or giant trees with a silk-cotton tree, ceiba in the center. Individual gods ruled each of the layers. Not to be left out, the underworld also had layers, each ruled by a nightime ruler.As competitive as people, the gods vied for supremacy. When one earthly locale made war or took over another city or region, the victors tried to superimposed their patron gods and beliefs on the losing side, a fact that often led to more conflict.With a vast array of gods and goddesses linked to specific regions, functions and people, keeping them straight and balanced was a task for the priests and nobles.
The priests followed the Mayan calendar and arranged for the rites and celebrations required to ensure the continuation of the empire. Since they were also in charge of learning and ritual, they had a core role in the Mayan religious and civil daily life.
Part of the duty of the priests was the appeasement and feeding of the gods, who demanded human blood. Ritual blood letting by the rulers and nobles was part of a religious event.
When ritual blood letting wasn't sufficient to propitiate the gods, or in the case of a failing city, the rulers and priests turned to more drastic measures to recover the god's pleasure. They offered up human sacrfices to the gods. When they ran out of likely candidates in their own region, they looked elsewhere.Raids on other cities provided captives who acted as substitutes for the offering of noble blood. These captives were all ages, of both sexes. Children were particularly prized as offerings.
In the early days of the empire, it is likely that animal sacrifices were sufficient to nourish the gods, but as the empire grew, and the gods grew hungrier, human sacrifice depleted the population.
Absolutely!
During the course of the Survivors' time in Guatemala, they will be called to compete and offer up one of themselves on a regular basis, all in the name of the god of greed.
While cutting out the beating heart of a vanquished foe isn't called for, many a Suvrivor will be called to the Tribal Council and voted off.
Many Survivors will leave broken hearted and broken in spirit and physical energy until at last, one survives the rituals and sacrifices to become the Sole Survivor.Who will the winner of the one million dollar prize be? Male or female?
What will prevail? Agile, athletic youth or seasoned, wily maturity?
We don't know yet who the Survivors are. We don't know their individual personalities, competitive spirits of strategies.
But we will when the Survivor Guatemala premieres on CBS in September!
Be here then to read the recaps of each Survivor episode! If you have questions or comments about Guatemala or the upcoming Survivor show, post them on the South America for Visitors Forum. If you're not already a registered user, you'll need to register, but it is easy and free.
