Mexico: a date with
mystical Mayan time lords
New archaeological finds are quickening interest in the
Maya, a people whose history is shrouded in myths. Nigel Richardson, touring
their former lands, found old beliefs as potent as ever .
Between the ruined Mayan cities of Kabah and Uxmal, in the Mexican state of
Yucatán, there is a red church on a hill. The interior is lined with strange
wooden shrines, their doors ajar like cabinets of curiosities. A caretaker who
was clearing away the guttered candles welcomed us and said sadly, “We don’t
hold so many religious festivals these days. Because of the chupacabra, you
see.” The chupacabra? It translates literally as “goatsucker” – a cryptid, or
mythical beast, that the villagers of Santa Elena believe preys on livestock.
If you hold a festival you are just asking for the chupacabra to saunter along
and pick off the goats and pigs you bring to feed the festival-goers. So it’s
best not to hold festivals in the first place. Superstition runs deep here – as
deep, indeed, as el inframundo, the underworld, which underpinned the beliefs
of the old Mayan civilisation of Mexico and Central America. This year the eyes
of the world are turning afresh on this extraordinary people and period of
history. Read rest here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/centralamericaandcaribbean/mexico/9287547/Mexico-a-date-with-mystical-Mayan-time-lords.html
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