Ancient Maya Ritual For Learning The Future

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The future is as it was ordained to be by the gods. The people can know this future, it is not prohibited, it is just reserved to be revealed in small pieces to those that ask. For to reveal the future in its entirety all at once would surely put the fate of the gods themselves in jeopardy, so goes the saying of Tizimin an ancient Maya seer who foretold many events in the Maya Katun 5 Ahau.

In Maya mythology, the gods had sacrificed parts of their own divine blood to give life to man. Therefore, human blood was partially made up of the blood of the gods. In order to ask the gods to reveal a snippet of the future, the Maya believed that blood had to be given back to the gods.

To understand the words of the gods, it was necessary to request the aid of someone with a direct link between the spirit realm of the gods and the physical world. Such a link was the Vision Serpent.

Maya mythology describes serpents as being the vehicles by which celestial bodies, such as the sun and stars, cross the heavens. The shedding of their skin made them a symbol of rebirth and renewal. Thus the Vision Serpent could communicate and speak to the gods on behalf of one who is requesting to know a piece of the future. But to gain the aid of the Vision Serpent was no easy matter. It would have to be brought forth in a ceremony that opened the door between the physical and the spirit world.

The ceremony required the use of a pottery vessel that had been properly purified. The vessel was usually decorated with passages describing the roles of the gods and Maya ancestors. In preparation for calling the Vision Serpent, burning ambers and copal resin (blood of trees) would be placed in the vessel.

The Vision Serpent was brought forth by soaking paper with blood from a self inflicted wound and placing that paper upon the ashes of the burning amber and copal. The act of burning the sacrificed blood symbolized the transferal of the offering to the gods via the rising smoke.
From this smoke the serpent appeared. Its image would emanate from the pottery vessel and rising smoke and tower over the one who called it forth.

It is at this point that a snippet of the future would be revealed by the gods and communicated through the Vision Serpent.

Tizimin further states, "Be not surprised by what you learn; the act of asking to learn the future does not require the revelation to be what you would want it to be. The truth will remain the truth".

About the Author:
Sigi Frias spends his time in Mexico traking down pre-Columbian style home/office decore items. He is familiar with Maya glyphs and Aztec history. He has also spent time with the Raramuri in the Cooper Canyon of Chihuahua.
View his collection at {Ancient Mexico Imports| Ancient Mexico Imports}



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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