Mayan Spirituality
A Tale of Survival
| Since the time of the
invasion of the American continents, the traditional culture, practices and
spirituality of its Native inhabitants have been under constant threat. The
devastating effects of colonization, globalization and religious imposition
continue to put Indigenous peoples and their traditional ways at risk
throughout the Americas and around the world. During this period, and in many
cases continuing to this day, Indigenous communities have carefully guarded the
depths of their ancient spirituality from the abuse and exploitation of the
invading cultures. In many cases, spiritual traditions, ceremonies and
teachings have been kept within family and tribal circles, often taught and
practiced in ways that were secretive to outsiders. Many of these traditions
maintained, and still carry prophecies that speak of a time of change upon the
earth and the need to restore a balanced and harmonious relationship between
the mother earth and her inhabitants. For the Indigenous peoples of the world, the earth has always been viewed as a living being, not as an object left for exploitation by humans. Many of the Native traditions have retained the knowledge and the wisdom of how to restore this balance. It has been in recent years that some of the Indigenous peoples have begun to share their teachings and ceremonies with non-natives, the people who have lost much of their own earth-based spirituality, with the realization that we share one planet together and together we are responsible for the furtherance of life upon it. This step of faith has been met with mixed results: On one hand, exchanges have been and continue to be had in a respectful mutually beneficial ways; on the other hand, Native and non-Native people have both exploited and been exploited during such exchanges. To this day, the seemingly endless speed of progress continues to threaten and destroy traditional culture, lands and spirituality while the dominant society's lack of connectedness and understanding of the deeper essence and interconnectedness of life continues to thrust humanity further along a path of self-destruction. The Mayan people of Guatemala are one of the groups of Indigenous peoples of this continent with an incredibly rich, deep spirituality and understanding that has been largely preserved during the period referred to as 'the cycle of darkness', roughly the past five hundred years. Throughout the Spanish invasion, a continuing religious Inquisition, forced slavery and serfdom that continues to this day, brutal military dictatorships and a horrific 36 year civil war that targeted Mayan peoples and their spirituality that ended only six years ago, Mayan elders, Ajq'ij (spiritual guides/ priests), and others have managed to preserve and pass on the traditional ceremonies, teachings and awareness of life to this day. Many have given their lives to ensure that these, the most precious treasures of the people would not be lost. Currently, the greatest threat to the traditional Mayan spirituality in Guatemala comes from expanding development resulting from the spread of globalization and the zealous Protestant churches that gained influence during the period of the civil war. Some of these fanatical church members and leaders have been carrying out a campaign to actively exterminate what they consider to be the "work of the devil." The actions of these groups have included the pouring of acid to destroy ancient carvings, the willful destruction of altars and sacred places, the harassment of Mayan priests and the efforts to discourage participation of younger generations in the traditional ways. While the peace accords signed in Guatemala in 1996 largely stated guarantees to the Indigenous peoples protecting their sacred sites and spirituality, the government has done little to ensure their implementation. The effects of development brought about by expanding globalization have had devastating consequences on the traditional culture of the people. One of the most notable threats is the advancement of the "Plan Puebla Panama"; which seeks to unite Mexico and Central America in a free trade zone. The plan calls for the removal of Indigenous communities that exist in the way of the building of roads or the development of land resources. A feared effect of this plan is that it will force countless Indigenous people to work in the "Maquiladores", sweatshops that will further destroy the fabric of families and community. The Maya consider themselves to be the keepers of time; to that end they have maintained twenty calendars, some of which hold prophetic meanings. A part of that prophecy, like that of other Native peoples, recognizes that the times we are in currently are of great significance, that these are times of great change and transformation. This information does not point to the end of the world or the fact that we are helpless to our predestined fate. Rather, these prophecies serve to both warn us and show us what is possible: While the world as we know is indeed in the process of deep transformation, how that transformation takes place is up to all of us. It is the message of the elders that now is the time to unite in solidarity so that balance and harmony may be restored upon mother earth. The preservation and sharing of ancient native wisdom is essential to this process. In recognition of the ancient prophecies, the current threat to their traditional spirituality and under the guidance of the Mayan elders, some Mayan Ajq'ij and elders have begun to look to share their teachings and ceremonies with the world. These elders and spiritual guides have stressed the importance of involving younger generations in this process. At the same time, non-traditional societies must, and have begun, to provide support to Mayan communities so they may be returned the rights and dignity they deserve and to help with the preservation of their ancient traditions. Adam Rubel - Saq' Be' Adam Rubel is Co-Director of Saq' Be': Organization for Mayan and Indigenous Spiritual Studies, a non profit organization based in New Mexico, US. Saq' Be' works to bring people, especially young adults, together with ancient traditions for the purpose of cultural and spiritual preservation and to open the doors of opportunity for those traditions to share their teachings with the rest of the world. Preservation programs include Radio broadcast capacity for the Native community in Chichicastenango, Guatemala and support for filmed documentation efforts of elders and guides of the Mayan tradition. Meetings programs include trips to Native communities in Guatemala (next trip is for the Mayan New Year, June, 2004) and arranging for travel and teachings for the keepers of this ancient wisdom to the US and abroad. More information can be found at: http://www.sacredroad.org, or by email at: saqbe@sacredroad.org. This document is "copy-left" under the following terms of the Creative Commons license: Attribution. The licensor permits others to copy, distribute, display, and perform the work. In return, licensees must give the original author credit. Noncommercial. The licensor permits others to copy, distribute, display, and perform the work. In return, licensees may not use the work for commercial purposes -- unless they get the licensor's permission. No Derivative Works. The licensor permits others to copy, distribute, display and perform only unaltered copies of the work -- not derivative works based on it. Whoever has associated this Commons Deed with their copyrighted work licenses his or her work to you on the terms of the Creative Commons License found here: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd-nc/1.0/legalcode This document may be used and distributed as per the terms listed above so long as the entire document above the two asterisks "**" are displayed. The original article may be viewed at: http://www.sacredroad.org ** -Dominique- Silver-Wolves.Com |