Maya death rituals

Maya death rituals were an important part of their religion.

The Maya are thought of as religious people, who lived in fear of the destructive nature of their gods. Death rituals became an important part of their religion; they developed many traditions to commemorate the recently deceased and worship long-departed ancestors. The Maya greatly respected death; they were taught to fear it and grieved deeply for the dead. They also believed that certain deaths were more noble than others; for example, people who died by suicide, sacrifice, complications of childbirth and in battle were thought to be transported directly into heaven. The guilty and evil suffered eternally in Xilbalba, the Maya underworld. Otherwise, death was thought of as a journey, with the possibility of rebirth. The Maya believed that certain individuals, important to their lineage, became deities that acted as patrons for the surviving family and many subsequent generations.

The Maya dead were laid to rest with maize placed in their mouth. Maize, highly important in Maya culture, is a symbol of rebirth and also was food for the dead for the journey to the otherworld. Similarly, a jade or stone bead placed in the mouth served as currency for this journey. Often, whistles carved from rocks into the shapes of gods or animals were included in the grave offerings to help the deceased find their way to the spirit world. The Maya associated the color red with death and rebirth and often covered graves and skeletal remains with cinnabar. The bodies of the dead were wrapped in cotton mantles before being buried. Burial sites were oriented to provide access to the otherworld. Graves faced north or west, in the directions of the Maya heavens, and others were located in caves, believed to be entrances to the underworld.

Burial practices of the Maya changed over the course of time. In the late Preclassic period, people were buried in a flexed position, later the dead were laid to rest in an extended position. In the late Classic period, the elite constructed vaulted tombs, and some rulers ordered the construction of large burial complexes. In the post-Classic period, cremation became more common than elaborate burial sites.

There have been many archaeological discoveries of lavish tombs within ceremonial complexes from the Classic period. However, only a city’s most important ruler was buried in this way. These aristocrats were placed in tombs at the bottoms of funerary pyramids that sometimes consisted of nine stepped platforms symbolizing the nine layers of the underworld. Other temples were constructed with 13 vaults the symbolizing the layers of the heavens in Maya cosmology. These temples reflected the continued worship of these important nobles. The tombs were filled with precious goods including fine polychrome pottery, effigy figurines, jade and marble pieces, masks, mushroom figures, obsidian, exotic shells and valuable stones. In some instances, members of the royal family or young attendants would be sacrificed to accompany the lord in death.

Other elite members of society were buried in vaults with an array of luxury items. The bodies of higher-ranking members of society were buried inside sarcophagi. They sometimes were buried in family crypts or underneath the family home. These funerary constructions of the royal often destroyed the residence itself. Commoners were also buried near or under their houses. These graves did not have extensive burial offerings, but often contained objects that identified the individual: a tool or possession.

References

• Bunson, Margaret R., and Stephen M. Bunson. "death rituals., Maya." Encyclopedia of Ancient Mesoamerica. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 1996.

• Foster, Lynn V. Handbook to Life in the Ancient Maya World. New York: Facts on File, Inc., 2001.

• Gallenkamp, Charles. Maya: The Riddle and Rediscovery of a Lost Civilization. New York: David McKay Company, Inc, 1976.