sun & moon
The cycles of celestial bodies, particularly the Sun and the Moon, form the basis of the Maya people as generator of light, time and energy on earth. A major Sun/Moon worship area in the planet.
The sun is very important in the Maya culture. The Maya Sun God was Kinich Ahau, one of the Maya creator gods. He was one of the most powerful gods of the Maya pantheon, considered an aspect of Itzamna.
Kinich Ahau would shine in the sky all day before being believed to transform himself into a jaguar at night to pass through Xibalba, the Maya underworld.
The Maya were careful observers of the Sun, able to accurately predict eclipses and celestial cycles.
Keeping track of the seasons for agricultural purposes was so important that buildings and settlements were designed to help follow the sun's yearly cycles.
In a story in the Quiche Maya council book called the Popol Vuh, the hero twins Hunaphu and Xbalanque transform themselves into the sun and the moon.
They created the haab (solar) calendar, used primarily for bookkeeping and agrarian purposes. This is a solar year system of 360 days divided into an eighteen-month, twenty-day cycle. Because the solar year is longer than 360 days, five days have been inserted between the end of one 360-day cycle and the beginning of another.
This period, called the wayeb, marks the change from the dry season to the rainy season. Although the wayeb is considered a period of renewal, celebration, chaos, rituals of sacrifice, and ornate.
