The manifestations of God Seven -- Itzamna Kauil, Tzacol, Bitol, Tepeu, Gucumatz, Alom, and Caholom -- each had dominion over and were identified with a cosmic dimension, and later with a cardinal direction and color. The seven had the innate compulsion to create, so they took counsel and unanimously decided to say the word that would create the new dimension of breadth. Manifesting through the Heart of Heaven, breadth extended infinitely through the four quarters. Itzamna Kauil, Tepeu, and Gucumatz marked the cosmic center with three green stones. Tzacol sat on a black stone in the west quarter, Bitol on a red stone in the east. Alom sat on a white stone in the north, and Caholom sat on a yellow stone in the south. Each tried in vain to create progeny to help organize and administer his dominion. But not even the three in the center, acting together, could create, and after many independent attempts the seven still remained alone, floating like sparks of darkness in the homogenous chaos of the Heart of Heaven.

Taking counsel at the center, God Seven marveled that each had independently attempted to take the same course of action and failed. They agreed that creating progeny to populate their dominions was the right thing to do. Together they said the word once again: the blue-green light of differentiation filled the chaos and their progeny -- the seeds of heaven, matter (earth), and the waters of the underworld -- became manifest. All things were confounded within the two-dimensional universe, the Cha-Chan (low-down heavens), where generation after generation of denizens, the seeds of worlds-to-be, lived and had their being.

At that moment of creation, God Seven knew that any act of creation could be realized only if the seven were together with absolute concordance of all parts. This creative act of God Seven started cosmic evolution: the ethereal differentiated into substances, each attracted to and attracting its opposite, merging into each other and modifying its own essence into a duality that completely transformed its forces into something new which balanced its own innate characteristic. Each was akin to its own substance, the spiritual never changing its divinity, the ethereal becoming ether, the material becoming matter. The Cha-Chan was then a two-dimensional ethereal world. Generation after generation of denizens populated the intermingled two worlds whose opened portals linked them in a harmonious duality: at one end the spiritual world of the creators, and at the other the dark waters of Xibalba, the Underworld.

See: The Mayan Creation Story

The ancient Maya proved themselves no exception to this human need to give shape to the universe.

Everything we know about the ancient Maya comes from their as yet indecipherable four Codices, their cryptic architectural inscriptions, the tainted practices of their modern descendants, and the writings of culturally prejudiced Spanish colonists. Our picture of their world view is incomplete and open to interpretation. Most scholars agree that the Maya philosophy answered most of the fundamental questions of the universe by integrating their arithmetic, their astronomical measurements, their view of time as essentially cyclical, and their pantheon of gods. The Maya used science to validate their faith. The Maya saw science, especially astronomy, as an instruments for unearthing spiritual truth and reading the divine prophecies written in the night sky.

This harmony between science and religion is evident in the duties and functions of the ancient Mayan priests, the Ah Kinob. Astronomy and mathematics at the heart of Mayan philosophy were "priestly" inventions, and theologists of the Maya civilization also served as its scribes, mathematicians, astronomers, and intellectuals.

The Nine Mayan Gods (Bolontiku) are the principle deities having dominion over the area of Central America from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec to the Isthmus of Panama. To the indigenous people of the Mayan area, the Bolontiku have historically fulfilled a cultural role with their power, wisdom, sanction and protection were invoked for all earthly and spiritual transactions – for healing, divination, success in agriculture, trade, politics and war; for help in personal matters such as love, childbearing, grief; for carrying (telepathic) messages over distance; and so on.

Sophisticated mathematics allowed the Ah Kinob to conceive of a universe regular in its rhythms. In its simplicity, the Mayan number system employed only three characters - a dot symbolizing unity, a bar representing the number five, and an eye-shaped glyph representing zero. Mayan numbers were written vertically and divided into tiers, with the characters in each tier of the column having a value twenty times that of the characters in the tier directly beneath them. Summing the values of the tiers yielded the number represented in the glyph. Dispensing entirely with fractions, the Maya expressed all non-integer quantities in terms of ratios or equivalencies.

Two exceptional features of the Mayan mathematics - the use of zero and the assignment of value by position - made this system the most advanced of its time. The Hindus, once thought to be the original discoverers of zero and the position convention, developed them a thousand years after the Maya. This allowed the Mayans to reconcile their various calendrical systems and compile lists of multiples for use in reckoning the periods of astronomical events, as well as keep accurate records of governmental and commercial transactions.

Mayan religion pervaded all aspects of daily life. The rituals the priests prescribed, the holidays the Maya celebrated, the idols they venerated, even their dietary habits - in short, the pulse of Mayan life-were all religious in origin. Every material object in the Maya world, as well as every moment in time, had divine worth and godly significance. Additionally, the interplay between rival gods and between the gods and humankind supposedly manifests itself in daily occurrences.

The Maya conceived of the world as flat and four cornered, with the directions of the four corners lying approximately in between the cardinal directions . Each corner had a characteristic color; the north's color was white; the south's, yellow; the east's, red; and the west's, black.

Bacab (plural Bacabs) of the Four Directions:

Mulac: North,

Cauac: South,

Kan: East,

Bacab West

Green was the characteristic color of the earth's center. According to the Mayan model, the earth spins around a central axis consisting of a huge ceiba tree called the Wakah-Chan, or "World-Tree", whose trunk extends into the heavens toward the North Star and whose roots delve deep below the plane of the earth. The heavens themselves rotate around this axis as a giant celestial sphere, making the Mayan model of the Earth highly reminiscent of a spinning gyroscope.

The Mayan model holds that Earth is but one of three coexisting universes: the Upperworld, the Underworld, or Xibalba, and the human or concrete world . Unifying these three planes, the World Tree serves as a portal between the human world and the other two worlds through which gods pass freely. Four Bacabs, or Atlases, support the plane of the Earth from below; in turn, four giant ceiba trees located at each corner of the world hold aloft the Upperworld, which hovers over the plane of the earth during the daytime. Most of the benevolent gods in the Maya pantheon, called oxlahuntiku, inhabit the Upperworld, which the lofty branches of the World Tree divide into thirteen levels. The Underworld, situated below the plane of the earth, is a grim place of darkness and decay very similar to the Mesopotamian land of the dead. Evil gods known collectively as the Lords of Death or bolontiku, the bearers of drought, hurricanes and war, dwell in the nine levels of the Underworld.

A multitude of deities governed the Maya universe. In addition to patron gods of cities and kingdoms, the Maya revered gods for every profession from beekeeping to hunting; gods for days, months, years, and epochs; gods for emotions; gods for objects animate and inanimate; and gods of noble families. So many gods existed for seasons of the year, days of the week, and other calendrical events that the Maya faith has been called a "solar and temporal cult". Many of the more widely worshipped deities had four constituent gods representing each corner of the world; some even had Underworld counterparts and female partners, in keeping with the dualistic theme of the Maya faith. At least one hundred and sixty six major gods received homage from the Maya priests and figure prominently in texts such as the Codices and the Popol Vuh; it is likely the Maya worshipped a plethora of other gods on an informal basis.

THE GODS OF THE UNDERWORLD

Each of the Nine Gods of the underworld has his or her own specialty (there are four female deities and five males). The Bolontiku communicate with their votaries through what we would call channeling and prophetic dreams, which to the Maya were as much a part of everyday life as the telephone and television are to us. A dream prompted by the Bolontiku can be distinguished from a normal dream by the invariable presence of one personage who says nothing but who stands in the background of whatever scene is unfolding. Upon awakening the dreamer realizes that this mute personage was actually inducing and directing the entire experience, and is in fact one of the Nine revealing a message of importance. Non-Mayans do not necessarily see the Bolontiku as Mayans: to my benefactor they appear (in dreams) as long-haired hippies; and when they have appeared to me they come in three-piece suits.

The city of Tikal, located in the remote jungle of northern Guatemala, was (and is) the sacred home city of the Bolontiku. Abandoned mysteriously a thousand years ago, the jungle swallowed it up until its excavation by the University of Pennsylvania fifty years ago (see National Geographic magazine December 1975 issue). These archeological ruins are now part of a national park-cum-nature preserve administered by the Guatemalan government.

The Bolontiku themselves are delighted to see their sacred city restored to at least part of its former grandeur. There is the spectacle of immense pyramids and plazas set in the midst of impenetrable jungle teaming with exotic birds, howler monkey and jaguars. Moreover, the Nine promise to give a valuable lesson to any visitor to Tikal who wishes to invoke them.

The cult of the Nine Mayan gods has fallen into general neglect among the Maya. At the same time, the fragile ecosystem of the Mayan area has been and is being threatened by the destruction of massive tracts of tropical rainforest. As a result, the Bolontiku have been calling foreigners in to revive their cult, to publicize their ecological concerns, and to buy up and preserve as much virgin rainforest as possible.

In front of this pyramid there is a row of eight steles, with a ninth stele in front of the row of eight. Before each stele is a squat, cylindrical altar

In Mesoamerican myth, Au Puch, also known as Yum Cimil and Cum Hau, is the Mayan Lord of the dead. His realm is Hunhau, which literally means "spoil." It is a bitter land of the dead where punishments are inflicted on evil doers. Au Puch presides over the ninth and worst layer of Hunhau. He is usually depicted as a skeleton (skull head, bare ribs and spiny projections from the vertebrae) or with bloated flesh marked by dark rings of decomposition and a menacing grin. In his hair are bell like jewelry and he takes great pleasure in causing eternal torture and torment to the damned. According to some legends, he is said to occasionally roam the earth looking for evil people, causing war, sickness, and death. Once someone is condemned to Hunhau, they can never leave. Sacrificial victims were offered to Au Puch in the cenote or sacred pool.

Ahau-Kin -  Called the 'lord of the sun face'. The god of the sun, he possessed two forms - one for the day and one at night. During the day he was a man with some jaguar features, but between sunset and sunrise he became the Jaguar God, a lord of the underworld who travelled from west to east through the lower regions.

Ah Uuc Ticab - Deity of the underworld

Bolon Ti Ku - Underworld Deity

Chamer - Mayan god of death in eastern Guatemala. His consort is Xtabai

Cizin -  God of death. He burns the dead in the Mayan underworld. Cizin is the Mayan god of death. His name literally means "stench." He is described as having a fleshless nose and lower jaw. Sometimes his entire head may be depicted as just a skull. He wears a "collar with death eyes between the lines of hair, and a long bone hangs from one earlobe." (Jordan, 57) Cizin's body may be shown as a spine and ribs or it can be painted with black and yellow spots, which are the Mayan color of death. He resides in Tnal, the Yucatec place of death. His primary job is to burn the souls of the dead. The soul of the deceased is first burned on the mouth and anus by Cizin. When the soul complains, Cizin will douse it with water until the soul complains again. The soul is then burned until there is nothing left. The next stop is to the god, Sucunyum, who spits on it's hands and cleanses it, after which the soul is free to go where it chooses.

Cum Hau - Mayan god of death.

Hanhau - Underworld Deity, Mitnal

Hun Came - Quiche Maya co-ruler of Xibalba, the Mayan underworld. In the Popol Vuh creation myth he murdered Hun-Hunapu and Vukub-Hunapu. Subsequently he and his co-regent Vukubcame were destroyed by Hunapu and Xbalanque.

Hun-Hunapu - In the Quiche Maya Popol Vuh creation myth, Hun-Hunapu was the divine twin of Vukub-Hunapu. They were the sons of Xpiyacoc and Xmucane. The two were murdered in a ball game by the two rulers of Xibalba, the Mayan underworld. They were avenged by Hun-Hunapu's children Hunapu and Xbalanque.

MAYAN CONCEPT OF CREATION: At the beginning, there was nothing. Then came the creator, Tepeu and Gucumatz, one but at the same time, two. They are surrounded by clarity,which represents the Holy Spirit, therefore, the Trinity. In scientific terms these three forces could be called positive, negative, and neutral. In other words: Ying, Yang, and Tao. Every culture, at a certain stage of development, seems to describe the creation of the universe in similar terminology.There seems to be a basic truth, a unified principle, which somehow evolved in more than one culture around the world.

There  are nine Bolontiku or nine Lords of the Underworld. In the Dark Ages of the mayan Empire these nine gods ruled over all, each one for a day and rotating their power in succession in the same way the planets succeed each other in our week of seven days.

THE DWARF: There exists the belief that witches have instruments of evil called Ikal that come out at night to harm people, in some cases even causing death. The Ikal is sometimes depicted as a hunchbacked dwarf dressed as a priest. Presumably this symbolizes the fear of the white man who conquered the Mayans five hundred years ago.

THE FROGS: According to Mayan mythology, when a frog croaks it is calling for rain. Thus, four frogs are used in the ancient rain ceremony each one summoning the god, Chac from a different direction of the sky.

THE TURTLE: In Mayan mythology, it is said that if a turtle appears in your path during a drought it is a sign of impending rain because the turtle is also seeking water. It is also believed that the shell of the turtle is a map of the universe.

The Indians with the long hair and the white flowing robes seen in the jungle are the Lacadons, the last remnants of the ancient Mayan Empire who fled to the jungle when the Spanish conquerors arrived. They have yet to be assimilated into modern society.

THE DIALECTS: The Lacadones  speak a dialect called Carebbean, which is similar to the Mayan tongue spoken by the Diviner. The men and women wearing black mantas speak Tzeltal. All three dialects have their roots in the ancient Mayan language.

NUMBERS: Cabalistic numbers become the moving force of the events:

CYCLE OF 13 DAYS

In spite of the fact that their mathematical system was vigesimal, the Maya counted the days also by fives, thirteens and twenties. They gave numbers from 1 up to 13 to series of 20 day names in a continuous cycle. These thirteens are so important, that we have to devote a special chapter to them. In the manuscripts we can find cycles which are multiples of 13, for example, 26, 52, 65, 78, 91, 156, 182, 208, 234, 260 etc.

At each moment, the resulting force of all these magic numbers interacting

First there was nothing. The expanse of the sky was empty. All motionless silence in the darkness, in the night. Only the creator Tepeu, Gucumatz, the Progenitors were there in the water surrounded with clarity.

Then there was the word. Tepeu and Gucumatz came together in the darkness, in the night, and talked to one another. It became clear, as they meditated, that when the dawn came man should  appear. Thus it was disposed among the shadows and in the night by the Heart of Heaven who is called Huracan.

The first account of the Popul Vuh Synopsis An isolated village in the highlands of Mexico is suffering a severe drought. The local Shaman, consults his oracle, drinks the villagers' posh and predicts rain. He proceeds to pass out drunk.The villagers plant their crops, but the rain does not come. A comet traverses the sky and the villagers fear it to be a bad omen. That night the Cacique (village chief) meets with the village council. They all agree that their Shaman has lost his powers and has forgotten how to talk to the Gods. Some mention another man who could help them, a solitary Diviner who lives in the mountains and still knows the ways of the Ancients. The Cacique believes he's a witch and won't allow a witch roaming his village while he's in charge. He boasts of his contact with the white man, an engineer he once met. He insists that the old ways no longer work, that they should consult the white man's methods instead. He produces a flashlight from under his chamarra and shines his flashlight in the group's face, as if to prove his point; then he leaves. The next day a startled Cacique is awakened by the blare of a horn, signaling a summons to a meeting with the village elders. He dresses in a rush, as his two wives and an old woman watch him with vacuous eyes. As he leaves he see the comet again traversing the morning sky. At the reunion with the grandfathers, again he is told of the Diviner. The elders believe that only the diviner can summon Chac, the Rain God. They instruct him to round up his twelve captains and go find the wise man. This time the Cacique does not argue. He leads his group of captains up a steep mountain, while a mute boy, the son of one of the captains, spies their departure from behind a wall.After an arduous climb they reach the Diviner's dwelling. The Diviner seems to be waiting for them and invites them in. He then surprises everyone by asking the mute boy, who had been following all along, to emerge from behind the bushes. He instructs the boy to go prepare pozale, the local meal. From a large gourd the mute boy distributes pozale among the men under the watchful eye of the Diviner. When it is his turn, the Cacique greedily gulps down three large servings, while the Diviner studies him intently. The Diviner knows that the Cacique is skeptical,yet he agrees to help them.They set out on a strange journey, which takes them far away from their own land into the deep jungle. There the Diviner recruits the help of some very strange men (the Lacandons) who carry the group in canoes across a lake. At every turn the Chief and two of his captains grow more suspicious, fearful and rebellious. At night, around the fire, the Diviner tells a haunting story, the myth of the Twins, the Lords of Light who, through the use of magic and deception, destroy forever the Lords of Darkness. By the end of the long, hypnotic tale, only the mute boy remains awake. As the Diviner meditates his spirit enters a hawk that transports him through the night to ancient temples. There he connects with the knowledge of his ancestors.The next day they come to a rushing torrent. Without hesitation the Diviner walks into the water and proceeds to cross over the top of a treacherous waterfall. To everyone's amazement he does not sink, nor is he swept away. Immediately the mute boy follows. Most of the men fearfully go along too. But the Cacique and his two loyal captains, who have no faith in the Diviner, have had enough and refuse to cross the water. Instead they turn back and run away. The remaining men

Follow the Diviner into a deep cave where they find "the Mother of Waters", the original Spring,whose water they will use to invoke the Chac in their ceremony.They return to the village without the Cacique and begin elaborate preparations for the ceremony.The Diviner assigns tasks. He asks an old woman to make sacred mead, a young one to gather the choicest ears of corn, another to collect the purest honey and the mute boy to care for the ceremonial fire. Men make masks, cut wood and build four high platforms, one for each corner of the sky, where four dancers will enact the four Chacs. The Cacique returns and spies the proceedings from a hilltop above the village. He then slips to his hut, grabs his rifle and runs to the shaman to ask for help. The Shaman says that he's come too late, that there is nothing he can do.That night in the wild the Cacique encounters his Ikalin the form of a midget priest who apparently terrifies him to death. At night in the village all are gathered around a giant bonfire. The Diviner commences a chant of invocation to summon the Gods of Rain. Soon the whole village is chanting in unison. All night long the power of their voices flows like a river over hilltops and through valleys. At dawn, clouds move towards the village and fog envelops the crowd. The villagers believe that the rain has finally arrived. They jump up, embrace one another and cheer. But a gust of wind whistles through and skies clear again. An exhausted Diviner announces to the stunned crowd that Chac will not come until three days have passed. Then he departs in the direction of the mountains. The mute boy tries to follow him, but the Cacique reappears and bars his way with his rifle.The following day, while working the cornfield, the mute boy passes out and becomes ill. The shaman examines him and announces that the boy has been possessed by the Diviner's witchcraft. The boy's mother talks to those comforting her about how a Shaman once said her son was born mute so he would keep God's secrets. The boy utters "the fire" before he dies. The village council hastily meets. The Cacique rants that the Diviner has tricked them, that he has only brought evil to the village, but no rain. The boy's father demands vengeance. Another member fears that more evil will come to them if they harm the Diviner. But the Cacique explains that their Shaman said to drop the Diviner's body down a deep well to drown his evil spirit. An older captain reminds everyone that the Diviner said that rain was to come in three days and only two days had passed. The cacique allows one more day for the rain to come. After that, they will go kill him.Next morning, the rain still has not arrived. As the group departs towards the mountain the three older captains again try to dissuade the others from committing murder. But the Cacique and the rest of the men ignore their pleas. Meanwhile, on top of the mountain, the Diviner, while cleansing his body inside a sweat lodge, has a vision. When the villagers arrive at the Diviner's dwelling the cacique silently sneaks in with his rifle. He spots a hammock with someone in it and shoots. The rest of the men rush in to see. Blood drips onto the Cacique's feet. He opens the hammock and they are shocked to see that the Diviner has cut out his own heart as a sacrifice. They bundle up his body in a hurry and throw it off a deep cliff into the well. The body hits the water and a moment later drops of rain begin to fall, lightly at first, then torrential. The men scatter away while the cacique remains alone by the edge of the well screaming madly in the pouring rain.