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Mayan New Year begins in the month of July according to Gregorian calendar. Mayan calendar has 260 annual days. This is also called Wajxaqib’ B’at’z.
Worship of many gods is a typical Mayan tradition. The focus shifts to a different God in the New Year. The Mayan temples are colored in sacred color blue and new idols are made for worshipping. One significant aspect of Mayan New Year is renewal ritual which entails destruction of old pottery and fiber mats. It is a tradition to put on new clothes. People put on new hat and carry traditional Mayan bag during New Year time.
What the Mayans celebrate on New Year is the cycle of life that reaches full circle. Ritual practices take place in sacred and religious sites. New priests are inducted for community service through ceremonies.
Mayan New Year 5125 was celebrated by the Guatemalans on the 22nd day of February 2009. It was celebrated in Iximche. Mayan New Year has ‘wind’ or ‘Iq’ as its ruler. This year the celebrations were not a secret affair because of the participation of numerous state institutions. New Year celebrations were marked by dances, baseball games and fire ceremonies.
Mayan solar year has 360 calendar days that comprise eighteen months of twenty days each. There is an additional nineteenth month of five days called Wayeb. There are specific rituals to be executed during these nameless days. Mayans also called these extra days as ‘time out of time”. It is the time to offer thanks to the blessings of the previous year and look forward to the positive energy of the solar cycle that is yet to begin on Mayan New Year. This Wayeb period sees hosting of Mayan fire ceremonies. Sunrise and sunset ceremonies are held during this period. There are several mid day ceremonies that take place in places around the Lake Atitlán.
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