Popol Vuh Compare And Contrast

Just like the mythology from virtually all the cultures, the mythology of Ancient Mayan was started by and based on how the universe or world was created, and where the human being came from. Most of the Mayan mythology comes from two books, one is called Popol Vuh, and the other one is called Chilam Balam. The two books do not have many overlaps because they tell the mythology of two different region. Popol Vuh talks about the highland region of Ancient Maya, or today’s Guatemala, and Chilam Balam were associated with the lowland region of Ancient Maya, the Yucatán area of Mexico. According to the mythology, at the very beginning, there is nothing in the world, no human being, no animals, no plants, no rocks, and even no lands, the only two

Because they all resided in the water. They were all in liquid form and have several personalities. “Each god was associated by color with the four cardinal directions, many had a counterpart of the opposite sex.” It is even more interesting that just like liquid, the Maya gods could morph with other gods and have shared personalities. Some notable gods are Itzam Ná and Ix Chebel Yax. Itzam Ná was attributed by people as the god of creation, and Ix Chebel Yax is the counterpart of Itzam Ná. Huracán is the Heart of Heaven, according to Popol Vuh, Huracán is the “giver of life”, and a supreme creator god. Hun H’unahpu is the maize god, and a creator of modern human. The Maya mythology has a different interpretation of the world unlike the heaven and hell interpretation of most cultures. The Mayan mythology believed in three levels of realms, upper world, middle world and underworld. There are also multiple levels in the upper world and underworld. The Ceiba tree is grown throughout all three realms. It is often used to interpret the cardinal directions. Out of all five directions, north, south, east, west, and center, the east is the most important direction, because the sun rises from the east, and thus it means the birth of