Siraj Sabha

11/06/17

Mayan Creation story

The maya were once, one of the strongest and most powerful mesoamerican civilizations
of their time. They maya date back from the 8th century, and were around till the late 9th
century. The maya were known for many things, most commonly known for their calendar. They
were also very good with construction, having built whole cities, intricate pyramid-like
buildings, and huge monuments. The maya reached their peak around A.D. 250, they call this
period the; Classic Period. The maya expanded to 40 cities, each having thousands of residents
living their. The maya population was estimated to be around 2,000,000 people. The decline of
the maya is still kind of a mystery. There have been several different ideas to what happened, but
it's still not one-hundred percent certain what happened. One idea is that the maya ran out of
resources. They had run their supplies low, and stripped the environment of all supplies. With
their huge populations they eventually couldn't sustain it anymore. Another theory is based on
environmental change. Where a natural disaster may have caused them to eventually die off. No
one knows for sure what happened, but the Maya disappeared never to be seen again.
(History.com Staff. Maya. History.com, 2009).
The Maya were an indigenous group of people, who resided in south america. Maya
believed in the gods and cosmology. They believed that no one was ever born, and that nobody
has ever died. The maya creation story goes into more detail. Maya believed that gods created
everything, starting with the earth and the sky. They wanted to be worshipped, loved and
idolized, so they created animals of all kinds. The animals couldn't speak though, the gods
considered this a failure and decided to try again. This sprung the idea of man, which they started
trying to create. They mixed mud and earth in an effort to create a body, but it would dissolve
and crumble each time. The secondary attempts included mixing wood, with the mud and earth.
The second attempt was a success, creating the first man. The population eventually grew and
there were many families. However these humans did not worship the gods, so they were
destroyed by a great flood sent by the gods. Eventually the gods used corn and water to create
the flesh of man. This man impressed the gods, they had perfect visions and perfect knowledge.
They also worshipped the gods and prayed to them. (Holloway, April. The Maya Myth of
Creation. Ancient Origins)
This maya myth would be considered a Cosmogony. A Cosmogony is a myth that relates
to the origin of the world. The mayas believed that the gods created man, and everything. This
specific mayan myth is a Divine craftsman theme. A divine craftsmen theme is when their is a
creator being that creates with their own hands. Just like in the maya creation story. This ties into
the readings we have been reading. Since many indigenous groups also have cosmogonic myths
they believe in.
The maya were once a powerful indigenous civilization. Who had a strong belief in many
different myths. These myths helped them understand, and interpret the world around them. Just
like the Yoruba. The Yoruba are a group of indigenous people located in southern Nigeria. Who
also have cosmological myths. They also share a common myth theme. They both have divine
Siraj Sabha
11/06/17

craftsmen myth themes. Many different types of people are all connected, through the myths of
their culture.

Bibliography
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11/06/17

Holloway, April. The Maya Myth of Creation. Ancient Origins, Ancient Origins,
www.ancient-origins.net/human-origins-folklore/maya-myth-creation-0063.

History.com Staff. Maya. History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2009,

www.history.com/topics/maya.