Maya mythology facts for kids

Maya mythology is a collection of exciting stories from the ancient Maya civilization. These tales explain how the world was created, where people came from, and how the sun, moon, and stars appeared. They feature powerful gods and goddesses, brave heroes, and amazing creatures. These myths helped the Maya understand their world and their place in it.

Important Maya Stories

Maya stories often explain how things in nature and culture came to be. They also teach lessons about how people should live and respect their environment. For example, you can find myths about:

• The origin of the sun, moon, and other planets like Venus.
• How mountains, clouds, rain, thunder, and lightning were formed.
• Where different animals came from.
• The colors of maize (corn), which was a very important crop.
• Diseases and the plants used to cure them.
• Tools for farming and the steam bath.

Here are some of the most important themes in Maya mythology:

How the World Began (Cosmogony)

The famous book called the Popol Vuh tells the story of how a group of creator gods made the Earth. It describes the steps they took to bring the world into existence. Another book, the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel, talks about a great flood that covered the world. After the flood, a giant crocodile representing the Earth was defeated, the sky was lifted, and five World Trees were planted. These trees connected the sky, Earth, and the underworld.

How People Were Created

The Popol Vuh describes several attempts by the gods to create humans.

• First, they made animals.
• Then, they tried making people from wet clay, but these creations were too weak.
• Next, they made people from wood, but these wooden people had no souls.
• Finally, the gods successfully created the first ancestors from maize (corn) dough. Corn was essential to the Maya, so it made sense that their ancestors were made from it.

Some other Maya groups, like the Lacandons, have stories about how different family groups and their special animal spirits (called 'totems') were created. Another myth says that skilled artisan gods, similar to the monkey brothers in the Popol Vuh, created humankind. Many Maya myths also include the story of how the Lightning gods opened the Maize Mountain, bringing food and life to people.

Heroic Adventures: Shaping the World

One of the most famous Maya hero myths is found in the Popol Vuh. It tells the story of the Hero Twins, Hunahpu and Xbalanque. They bravely defeated a scary bird demon and the gods of disease and death.

Another important story is about a Maize Hero. This hero defeated the gods of Thunder and Lightning and made a special agreement with them. Even though this story is mostly found in other parts of Mesoamerica now, many clues suggest it was once a big part of Maya traditions too. There are also myths from the Tzotzil and Chol Maya about heroes who fought jaguars and gained their power.

Marriage with the Earth

These myths explain the connection between humans, animals, and crops. In one story, a hero (sometimes Xbalanque) turns into a hummingbird to win the heart of an Earth God's daughter. She might be weaving when he finds her. Sometimes, he even takes her away. In the end, the hero's wife often transforms into animals like deer, bees, snakes, or even maize. If the hero wins, he might become the Sun, and his wife becomes the Moon.

The Sun and Moon's Origin

The stories about how the Sun and Moon came to be are very important.

• In some tales from Chiapas and Guatemala, a Younger Brother becomes the Sun, and his mother becomes the Moon. His jealous Elder Brothers are turned into wild pigs or other forest animals.
• In the Popol Vuh, the Elder Brothers of the Hero Twins are turned into monkeys, while the younger twins become the Sun and Moon.
• Many stories from west of the Maya area also focus on two brothers who transform into the Sun and Moon.

Understanding Ancient Maya Myths

It's hard to know exactly how Maya myths were written down in ancient times. While some "strip books" (like comic books) might have existed, the Maya books we have today are mostly about rituals and history. They don't have many mythical scenes.

So, to understand ancient Maya mythology, experts look at pictures on temple walls, stone monuments (stelae), and pottery (especially the "ceramic codex"). It can be tricky to tell if a picture shows a myth, a ritual, a daily life scene, or a historical event. The best way to figure it out is to look for scenes with characters we know from myths. This became much easier in the 1970s when many Maya vases became available for study.

In the 1970s, a leading Maya expert named Michael D. Coe recognized characters from the Popol Vuh hero myth on pottery. These included Hunahpu, Xbalanque, and the Howler Monkey brothers (Hun Batz and Hun Choven). This led scholars to interpret many vase scenes using the Popol Vuh as a guide.

Another expert, Karl Taube, connected a figure called the "tonsured maize god" to Hun-Hunahpu, the father of the Popol Vuh hero brothers. Scholar Linda Schele even put together a creation myth for this "First Father" using clues from ancient writings. This myth describes how First Father set up three stones to create the sky, built a house in the sky, raised the World Tree (Wakah-Chan), and made the stars move in circles.

More recently, new studies by Oswaldo Chinchilla Mazariegos (2011, 2017) have helped us understand Maya art better by looking at a wider range of Maya and Mesoamerican stories, not just the Popol Vuh.

Important Ancient Maya Stories and Art

Ancient Maya art, from murals in San Bartolo to later books, shows many mythological scenes. These ancient myths often connect to the stories we know from later times.

Cosmogony: Defeating the Great Crocodile

An old description of a Maya fire ritual mentions a crocodile that represents a great flood and the Earth. This crocodile, named Itzam Cab Ain, caused a flood and was defeated by having its throat cut. Ancient Maya art also hints at these events. A dragon-like creature on a Maya book (Dresden Codex) seems to be causing a flood. A mural from Mayapan shows a tied crocodile in water. And an ancient writing from Palenque mentions a crocodile being beheaded.

Creation of People: Monkey Brothers

On several ancient Maya vases, the Monkey Brothers from the Popol Vuh, Hun-Batz and Hun-Choven, are shown writing books and carving human heads. In Maya culture, writing and sculpting could mean creating human beings. A myth recorded by Las Casas explains how earlier attempts to create humans failed until these two artisan brothers were allowed to create mankind and the universe through their art.

Heroic Deeds

The Hero Twins

Stories about the Hero Brothers, Hunahpu and Xbalanque, were popular even in ancient times. However, the ancient versions were a bit different from the Popol Vuh story. For example, they weren't always shown as ball players.

Two or three other adventures stand out:

• The defeat of a bird demon, similar to the Vucub Caquix tale in the Popol Vuh. This story is seen in ancient art from Izapa and Copan and was known across Mesoamerica.
• Another episode, not in the Popol Vuh, shows the brothers taking care of a dying deer covered in a special cloth. This might show their father transforming into a deer, which in some myths, is how death began.
• Murals in San Bartolo might show Hunahpu making the first sacrifices in the four directions of the world.
• The Hero Twins often appear with the Tonsured Maize God, who is a Maize Hero.

The Maize Hero

The Tonsured Maize God is a central figure in many ancient Maya stories. He is often seen with the Hero Twins. Some experts think he is the ancient form of the Hero Twins' father, Hun-Hunahpu. They believe the maize god's head attached to a cacao tree represents Hun-Hunahpu's head hanging in a calabash tree.

However, others see the Tonsured Maize God as a hero in his own right. They compare him to maize heroes from other cultures and have found several episodes from his myths in Maya art:

• His birth and rebirth from water.
• A musical challenge he makes to the gods of water and rain (seen on San Bartolo's west wall).
• His victorious emergence from a turtle shell, which might represent the Opening of the Maize Mountain.

Another common scene shows the maize god surrounded by women. This might be because the Tonsured Maize God also acts as a moon god in some stories. In many Sun and Moon myths, a playful young man becomes the moon after being tempted by young women. Other scholars think the women are "corn maidens" or even the maize god's "harem," though this idea isn't seen elsewhere.

Jaguar Slayers

Many Maya groups in Chiapas believed that jaguars were a constant danger to humans in ancient times. Their myths and rituals tell stories of heroes who killed jaguars. These heroes would:

• Kill jaguars stuck to stone seats.
• Catch jaguars in stone traps.
• Burn them on certain rocks.

These jaguars often represented the power of enemy groups. Ancient Maya vases show similar feats, sometimes done by four men. A jaguar deity linked to war and fire is shown with a boulder thrown onto its belly, perhaps from a trap. Or, it's tied up and burned while sitting on a stone altar. Since jaguars could also symbolize enemy rulers and warriors, these jaguar-slaying stories are mentioned in ancient writings at Naranjo and in art from Tonina. These writings also connect the Jaguar Slayer theme to the story of the Jaguar Baby.

Marriage with the Earth

The Hummingbird Suitor

As mentioned earlier, the "Hummingbird" is a hero in a widespread story about winning and taking the daughter of a main mountain god. Since the daughter represents the "wealth" of the Earth, this story was also told when asking for a girl's hand in marriage. A famous ancient vase shows a suitor wearing a hummingbird mask, giving a vase to a god and what seems to be his daughter, the moon. Another well-known small statue shows a bird on a loom, watching a young woman weave.

The Abduction Story

Several ancient vases show young men with antlers, young women, and warrior women riding a deer. They surround an old, wounded or dying man who is the god of deer (Sip). Other scenes show the main god, Itzamna, riding a deer, and the hero brothers hunting a wild boar with Itzamna clinging to it.

The scene with the wounded old man has been explained as stories about hunting or as part of the Hummingbird myth's abduction story. One idea for an ancient version of this myth goes like this:

“The old god Huk Siʼp (the Lord of the Deer) became sick. One of the Twins changes into a deer to take his wife. Huk Siʼp's wife runs away with the Twins. The old god asks Itzamnaaj to bring his wife back. Itzamnaaj rides a deer and chases the Twins. The Twins attack Itzamnaaj and wound him. Itzamnaaj escapes them by riding a wild boar. The Twins then make peace with Itzamnaaj and give him gifts.”

Another idea suggests that an antlered maize god ("Maize-Deer God") is the one who takes the wife. Much of this is still being figured out by experts.

See also

In Spanish: Mitología maya para niños