Maya Horoscopes, Calendars, and Magic
Frequently Asked Questions
Maya Calendar Systems
Q: How many calendars did the Maya use?
The Maya used THREE interlocking calendars:
- Tzolk'in (260-day sacred calendar) - for divination and horoscopes
- Haab' (365-day solar calendar) - for agriculture and seasons (18 months of 20 days + 5 unlucky days called Wayeb)
- Long Count - tracking vast cosmic cycles, measuring time from their creation date (August 11, 3114 BCE in our calendar)
They also tracked Venus cycles (584 days) and lunar cycles with extreme precision.
Q: What was the Calendar Round?
Every 52 years, the Tzolk'in and Haab' returned to the same starting combination. This was a complete "century" for the Maya. These transitions were anxious times marked by renewal ceremonies, extinguishing fires, and religious observances.
Q: What is the Long Count and why is it special?
The Long Count is the Maya's way of tracking deep time in cycles:
- • 1 k'in = 1 day
- • 20 k'in = 1 winal (20 days)
- • 18 winal = 1 tun (360 days)
- • 20 tun = 1 k'atun (7,200 days/~20 years)
- • 20 k'atun = 1 b'ak'tun (144,000 days/~394 years)
They carved these dates on stone monuments (stelae) to record historical events. The famous "2012" date was the completion of the 13th b'ak'tun—not an apocalypse, but a major cycle completion like a cosmic odometer rolling over.
Maya Horoscopes & Day-Signs
Q: Did the Maya have horoscopes?
Yes! The Tzolk'in functioned like astrology. Your birth day determined your:
- • Personality traits
- • Life destiny
- • Spiritual patron
- • Compatible marriage partners
- • Suitable professions
Q: What were the Maya day-signs?
The Tzolk'in had 20 named days (with numbers 1-13), including:
Q: What did being born on a certain day mean?
Examples:
- •Born on Ik' (Wind) - You'd be a communicator, possibly a poet or storyteller, but unpredictable
- •Born on Ix (Jaguar) - You'd have shamanic gifts, magical power, possibly become an Aj Q'ij (daykeeper)
- •Born on Kimi (Death) - You'd be connected to transformation, possibly a priest who guides souls
- •Born on Ajaw (Lord) - Destined for leadership, nobility, mastery
Q: Were there unlucky days?
The 5 Wayeb days at year's end were extremely dangerous:
- •The portal between worlds was thin
- •Evil spirits could cross over
- •No marriages, no travel, no business
- •Fasting and staying indoors
- •Children born during Wayeb were considered cursed with bad destiny
Who Could Read the Calendars?
Q: Could ordinary Maya people read the calendars?
No. Calendar knowledge was restricted to:
Aj K'in (Daykeepers/Sun Priests):
- • Hereditary lineages of calendar specialists
- • Trained from childhood for 10-20 years
- • Could read hieroglyphic codices
- • Calculated planetary movements, eclipses
- • Performed divination and ceremonies
Ajaw (Lords/Nobles):
- • Learned to read and write
- • Understood calendar basics for timing warfare and ceremonies
- • Had personal Aj K'in advisors
- • Commissioned stelae marking important dates
Commoners:
- • Knew the names of days and months
- • Attended public ceremonies
- • Consulted local daykeepers for births, marriages, planting
- • Could NOT read hieroglyphs or calculate calendar math
- • Relied entirely on specialists
Q: How did someone become an Aj K'in (daykeeper)?
Usually through:
- •Hereditary succession - passed from father/uncle to son
- •Divine calling - born on special day-signs like Ix (jaguar), Ik' (wind), or Kawak (storm)
- •Long apprenticeship - memorizing the Tzolk'in, learning to read codices, studying astronomy
- •Initiation ceremonies - including vision quests and tests
Maya Magic & Religious Practices
Q: What magical practices did Maya priests perform?
Aj K'in and nobles performed:
Bloodletting (ch'ahb'):
- • Piercing tongue, earlobes, genitals with stingray spines or obsidian
- • Blood offerings to gods on bark paper, burned as smoke to heaven
- • Induced trance states and visions
- • ONLY nobles and priests—forbidden to commoners
Vision quests:
- • Fasting, sleep deprivation
- • Hallucinogenic enemas (yes, really—depicted in pottery)
- • Ingesting psychoactive substances (psilocybin mushrooms, water lily extracts, Bufo toad venom, tobacco)
- • Communication with gods and ancestors
Divination methods:
- • Casting sacred tz'ite seeds (red coral beans)
- • Reading smoke patterns
- • Interpreting natural omens (lightning strikes, animal behavior)
- • Scrying in water or obsidian mirrors
- • Crystal gazing (clear quartz skulls and spheres)
Cave ceremonies:
- • Caves seen as portals to Xibalba (underworld)
- • Offering ceremonies in sacred caves
- • Communing with earth deities
- • Only priests and nobles entered deepest chambers
Q: Did commoners have access to any "magic"?
Limited access:
- •H-men (local shamans/healers) - could perform basic divination, herbalism, curing ceremonies
- •Midwives - knew birth day readings, protective rituals for mothers
- •Household shrines - families made small offerings of copal incense, food, flowers
- •Protective amulets - jade, shells, carved symbols
- •NO bloodletting, hallucinogens, or access to sacred texts
Q: What about human sacrifice—was it like the Aztecs?
The Maya practiced sacrifice but DIFFERENTLY than Aztecs:
- •Less frequent than Aztec mass sacrifices
- •Methods: Decapitation, heart extraction, drowning in sacred cenotes (sinkholes), arrow sacrifice
- •Victims: War captives (especially rival nobles), occasional children for rain ceremonies
- •Timing: Specific calendar stations, k'atun endings, building dedications, drought emergencies
- •Cenote sacrifices: Famous at Chichén Itzá—victims and treasures thrown into sacred wells
Not all Maya cities practiced equal amounts—it varied by time period and region.
Maya Festivals
Q: What festivals did the Maya celebrate?
Each of the 18 Haab' months had its own festival. Major ones included:
Pop (Mat) - New Year Festival
Renewal ceremonies, house cleaning, new fire, idol refurbishment
Wo (Frog) - Deity Celebration
Honoring gods of writing, medicine, and hunting
Sip (Red) - Warrior Rites
Hunting rituals, offerings to gods of the hunt
Sotz' (Bat)
Agricultural blessings, fertility rites
Sek (Skull?)
Beekeeping ceremonies (honey was sacred)
Xul (End/Dog) - K'ukulkan Descent
Great festival at Chichén Itzá—feathered serpent shadow descends pyramid at equinox
Yaxk'in (New Sun)
Sun god celebrations mid-summer
Mol (Gathering)
Beekeeper festivals, honey offerings
Pax (Planting Time)
Warrior festival, music, dancing, mock battles
Kayab' (Turtle)
Late harvest, preparing for Wayeb
Wayeb' (Unlucky Days)
5 nameless days—fasting, fear, no celebrations. People stayed indoors.
Q: Did the calendar control warfare?
Absolutely. Wars were timed for:
- •Auspicious Tzolk'in days - specific day-signs favored victory
- •Venus cycles - Maya attacked when Venus rose as morning star (war aspect)
- •K'atun endings - major warfare campaigns to mark 20-year periods
- •Cosmic revenge - repeating calendar cycles from past defeats
Maya Education
Q: How did Maya children learn?
Education was strictly divided by class:
Noble Children:
- • Tutored by priests and scholars
- • Learned hieroglyphic writing (800+ glyphs)
- • Studied astronomy, mathematics, calendar science
- • Memorized history, mythology, royal genealogies
- • Trained in warfare, statecraft, ceremony
- • Boys and girls educated separately
Commoner Children:
- • Learned through apprenticeship (farming, crafts, trade)
- • Oral tradition only—stories, day-sign names, month names
- • No reading or writing
- • Boys learned father's trade
- • Girls learned weaving, cooking, household management from mothers
Aj K'in Apprentices:
- • Selected around age 7-10 (often by birth day-sign)
- • 10-20 year intensive training
- • Memorized entire Tzolk'in cycle (260 days) by heart
- • Learned to calculate Venus, Moon, eclipse tables
- • Practiced reading codices (accordion-fold books)
- • Underwent initiation rites—fasting, bloodletting, vision quests
Q: Could women become daykeepers?
Rarely in the Classic period. Most Aj K'in were male. However, women could become:
- •Midwives/healers - with calendar knowledge for births
- •Oracle priestesses - channeling deities, rare but documented
- •Noble women - could commission stelae, understood ritual timing
- •Modern daykeepers in Guatemala include women more commonly
Practical Use of the Calendar
Q: How did farmers use the calendar?
The Haab' (solar calendar) tracked agricultural seasons:
- •Pop (month 1): Prepare fields
- •Wo-Sip (months 2-3): Burn fields (slash-and-burn)
- •Sotz' (month 4): Plant maize
- •K'ank'in (month 11): Harvest begins
- •Pax (month 14): Main harvest
But—farmers also consulted Aj K'in for the exact Tzolk'in day to plant. Some days ensured good crops; others brought drought or pests.
Q: What else did people consult daykeepers about?
Nobles:
- •When to go to war
- •Coronation dates
- •Building dedications
- •Royal marriages
- •Prophecies (good/bad k'atuns ahead)
Commoners:
- •Baby name-day ceremonies
- •Marriage compatibility
- •Illness diagnosis ("Which god is angry?")
- •When to travel safely
- •Business dealings
Q: How much did it cost to consult a daykeeper?
Payment was in goods (no money):
- •Cacao beans (currency)
- •Copal incense
- •Woven cloth
- •Turkeys or other food
- •Labor service (working daykeeper's fields)
Creation Mythology
Q: What is the Popol Vuh?
The Popol Vuh ("Book of the Community") is the Maya creation epic, preserved by K'iche' Maya in highland Guatemala. It tells:
The Three Creations:
- 1st attempt: Gods made humans from MUD
→ They dissolved in water. Failed. - 2nd attempt: Humans from WOOD
→ They had no souls, no memory, didn't honor gods. Destroyed by flood and sent to become monkeys. - 3rd attempt: Humans from MAIZE
→ Perfect! These could think, speak, worship. We are the people of corn.
This is why maize is SACRED. You are literally made of it. The Long Count starts from the date of the third creation: 4 Ajaw 8 Kumk'u = 13.0.0.0.0 = August 11, 3114 BCE.
Q: Who were the Hero Twins?
Hunahpu and Xbalanque—legendary ballplayers who descended to Xibalba (underworld) to defeat the death gods.
- •Their father was killed playing ball in the underworld
- •They trained and descended to challenge the death lords
- •Won through trickery and cunning
- •Ascended to become the SUN and MOON
- •Story explains why ballgame has cosmic significance—reenacts defeating death
Q: Why was maize so sacred?
Because humans ARE maize:
- •Gods ground white and yellow corn to make human flesh
- •The Maize God (Jun Ajaw) dies and resurrects each agricultural cycle
- •Sprouting corn = resurrection from underworld
- •Maya nobles flattened foreheads to resemble corn cobs
- •Every meal is communion with the divine
Astronomy & Prophecy
Q: How accurate was Maya astronomy?
Terrifyingly accurate. Without telescopes:
- •Venus cycle: Calculated at 583.92 days (modern: 583.92 days) — 99.9% accuracy
- •Solar year: 365.242 days (modern Gregorian: 365.2425)
- •Lunar month: Tracked to within minutes
- •Eclipse prediction: Created tables predicting solar/lunar eclipses decades in advance
- •Mars cycle: Tracked with precision (780 days)
Q: What astronomical phenomena mattered most?
Venus (Chak Ek' - "Great Star")
• War planet—attacks timed to heliacal rising
• 584-day synodic cycle (disappears, returns as morning/evening star)
• Associated with Kukulkan/Quetzalcoatl
Milky Way (Wakah Chan - "Raised-Up Sky")
• World Tree connecting underworld, earth, heavens
• Dark rift in Milky Way = Xibalba Bé ("Road to Underworld")
Solar Zenith Passages
• Two days per year sun passes directly overhead
• Major ceremonial dates (varies by latitude)
Eclipses
• Terrifying omens
• Predicted via eclipse tables (Dresden Codex)
• Required protective rituals
Q: Did the Maya believe in prophecy?
Yes—time was CYCLIC. Events repeated in patterns:
- •Each 20-year k'atun had a character (good/bad)
- •K'atun 8 Ajaw = war and suffering (repeats every 256 years)
- •Books of Chilam Balam (post-conquest) record k'atun prophecies
- •Spanish arrival happened during K'atun 8 Ajaw—predicted as time of "foreign invaders"
- •Not deterministic—rituals could appease bad k'atuns
The Maya Ballgame
Q: What was Pitz (the ballgame)?
The Maya ballgame was a sacred ritual sport played on I-shaped courts:
- •Ball: Solid rubber, ~8 lbs (heavy!)
- •Rules: Hit ball with hips, thighs, arms—NOT hands or feet
- •Goal: Get ball through stone hoop on wall (later addition) OR score zones
- •Gear: Padded belts (yokes), knee guards, helmets
- •Extremely dangerous—players suffered injuries, broken bones
Q: Was it just a sport?
No—it was cosmic theater:
- •Re-enacted Hero Twins' battle in underworld
- •Ball = sun moving through sky/underworld
- •Court = portal between worlds
- •Games held during major festivals, k'atun endings
- •Settling disputes, honoring gods, celebrating victories
Q: Did the losers get sacrificed?
Debated. Evidence suggests:
- •Sometimes—carvings show decapitations at ballcourts
- •More likely: War captives forced to play ritual games before sacrifice
- •Regular games between city teams were NOT to the death
- •Skilled players were celebrities, not disposable
- •Some theories: Winners sacrificed as honor (dying at peak glory)
The truth likely varied by time period, region, and game context.
Maya Codices & Writing
Q: What are codices?
Maya books—accordion-folded bark paper covered in lime plaster, painted with hieroglyphs and illustrations.
Topics: astronomy tables, ritual calendars, prophecies, deity almanacs, agricultural timing.
Q: How many survived the Spanish conquest?
Only FOUR codices survived.
Out of thousands burned by Spanish priests (especially Bishop Diego de Landa in 1562):
1. Dresden Codex (most complete)
• Venus tables, eclipse tables, almanacs
• Now in Germany
2. Madrid Codex
• Almanacs, horoscopes, ceremonies
• Now in Spain
3. Paris Codex (fragments)
• K'atun prophecies, rituals
• Now in France
4. Grolier Codex (disputed authenticity)
• Venus tables
• Now in Mexico
Diego de Landa burned THOUSANDS of Maya books in Maní, Yucatán (1562), calling them "works of the devil."
Ironically, Landa later wrote "Relación de las cosas de Yucatán," preserving some Maya knowledge he'd tried to destroy.
Q: Can we read Maya writing now?
Yes—about 90% deciphered!
- •Breakthrough by Yuri Knorosov (1952) - realized it was phonetic + logographic
- •Work by Linda Schele, David Stuart, others in 1970s-present
- •800+ hieroglyphs identified
- •Can read stelae, pottery, murals, surviving codices
- •Revealed royal histories, wars, marriages, bloodlines
After the Spanish Conquest
Q: Did calendar knowledge survive the conquest?
Yes—but underground.
- •Spanish banned Maya religion, burned codices, killed priests
- •Forced conversion to Christianity
- •But—in remote highland Guatemala, Aj Q'ij (daykeepers) continued in secret
- •Tzolk'in never stopped being used
- •Syncretic blend: Catholic saints merged with Maya deities
Q: Do Maya daykeepers still exist?
Yes! The tradition is ALIVE.
- •Highland Guatemala (especially K'iche', Kaqchikel, Mam peoples) - thousands of active Aj Q'ij
- •Still use 260-day Tzolk'in for divination
- •Cast tz'ite seeds, read fire, counsel communities
- •Perform ceremonies at sacred sites (mountains, caves)
- •Called upon for healing, life guidance, community decisions
Q: Is the calendar experiencing a revival?
Major revival since 1980s-1990s:
- •Maya rights movements after Guatemalan civil war
- •Decipherment of hieroglyphs rekindled interest
- •Younger generation reclaiming identity
- •Public ceremonies now legal (were persecuted under military regimes)
- •2012 "Maya calendar end" brought global attention (though misinterpreted)
- •New generation of Aj Q'ij being trained
"This is not ancient history. This is a living tradition practiced by millions of Maya people today. The count has never stopped."