Mayan people were known to be religious and they really honor death. They believe in heaven like after death life but they fear death because of the judgement their God's will weigh heavily on them as well as their anger. When one member of their family or society dies, these people offer great respect by telling the accomplishments he made while he was alive and would by mourning.
Any death would always have a reason behind and these people would have categories which would suggest the place where the dead will eventually belong in his eternal life. The death which is caused by fighting in the battlefield, which offered themselves as sacrifices, for pregnant women who died because of giving birth are considered to be noble and believed that they were directly brought to heaven.
Xibalba, the underworld is the hell version of the Mayans. It is the place for those who have died who were involved in crime and those have been greedy. They are bound to suffer until eternity as a result of their doings while they were still alive.
Whenever they don't fall in any of these categories, Mayans believed that they are still on their way to heaven and might have the chance to live a second life through rebirth. Those who belong to the significant Mayan family will serve as deities watching over their descendants as well as their family members.
The Mayans believed that heavens are in the North and West part that is why the burial sites are pointing at these directions. For some, they were buried in the caves because they also believe that it is the entrance to the other world. They were buried with maize, jade, and stone beads on their mouth. It is done with the belief that they need it in order not to be hungry and for them to have currency as they continue their journey. On their journey towards the spirit world, they also offer whistles and small carvings of deity to be their guide. Red is the color of death and rebirth for them and it is painted in the walls of the tomb and as well as the body of the dead.
The dead will be in a sitting position and will be laid flat just as the contemporary way of burying the dead in the present times. Cremation was another common way of burying the dead. The social status and the era which they died suggest how they will be buried. Those who belong in the high ranks will be laid in family crypts. This is why rulers are buried in the ceremonial building.
Any death would always have a reason behind and these people would have categories which would suggest the place where the dead will eventually belong in his eternal life. The death which is caused by fighting in the battlefield, which offered themselves as sacrifices, for pregnant women who died because of giving birth are considered to be noble and believed that they were directly brought to heaven.
Xibalba, the underworld is the hell version of the Mayans. It is the place for those who have died who were involved in crime and those have been greedy. They are bound to suffer until eternity as a result of their doings while they were still alive.
Whenever they don't fall in any of these categories, Mayans believed that they are still on their way to heaven and might have the chance to live a second life through rebirth. Those who belong to the significant Mayan family will serve as deities watching over their descendants as well as their family members.
The Mayans believed that heavens are in the North and West part that is why the burial sites are pointing at these directions. For some, they were buried in the caves because they also believe that it is the entrance to the other world. They were buried with maize, jade, and stone beads on their mouth. It is done with the belief that they need it in order not to be hungry and for them to have currency as they continue their journey. On their journey towards the spirit world, they also offer whistles and small carvings of deity to be their guide. Red is the color of death and rebirth for them and it is painted in the walls of the tomb and as well as the body of the dead.
The dead will be in a sitting position and will be laid flat just as the contemporary way of burying the dead in the present times. Cremation was another common way of burying the dead. The social status and the era which they died suggest how they will be buried. Those who belong in the high ranks will be laid in family crypts. This is why rulers are buried in the ceremonial building.
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