The day of payment and sacrifice joins with the number which represents the ancestors and the spirit world. This is a day to resolve any ancestral debt.

The energy of the nawal Toj does have its rather negative connotations, after all, payment and sacrifice are things we would generally rather avoid if we can. However, these are the actions that keep us in balance, the things which keep us healthy and harmonious. Life is a continuous cycle of receiving and giving, and sometimes we inadvertently allow this to fall out of balance. We take and we forget to give back. Toj days remind us that it is time to redress that balance, sometimes through sickness.

Today, this energy is combined with the strongest number 13, seen as representing ancestors and the spirit world. Today is a day on which we have an opportunity to resolve any outstanding debts with our ancestors, not only in this world, but in the distant past. It may be that there is recent physical debt that needs payment, but this may involve a debt to your more distant ancestors. This is a day to say thank you to your lineage for what they have provided for you.

However, sometimes our ancestors may have acted in a manner we would not choose today. They may have incurred debts which have been passed down the lineage for the next generations to clear up. This is a day to resolve any of these types of debt, to make amends for what your ancestors may have taken without payment.

As the days carrying the number 13 are said to be days when the spirit world is close and good days for divination, this could also be a very good day for a divination to understand what is outstanding, and how to pay it off. This could apply to both your own personal debts, both physical and energetic, and ancestral debts.

Main photo credit: Jay Rasmussen

The nawal Toj represents offerings and payment. It is part of the name Tojil, a Mayan god who gave fire to the people, although this was not a free gift. Tojil asked in return for sacrifice to be made. This is a day of payment and sacrifice, a day to resolve debts, both in the physical and spiritual realms. Toj is the nawal of the sacred fire, and it is to the fire that we make offerings in order to burn away what would commonly be known as karmic debts. In this way we restore balance, we bring our accounts back to zero.

Toj carries with it a form of divine protection, which is enhanced through selfless acts. These acts might involve a sacrifice of our time or energy in order to strengthen our community. We can choose to act or we can choose to ignore, but be aware – ignoring an opportunity to make a payment on a Toj day might bring a ill fortune, the removal of the protection. Payment should be made with an open heart, thanks might not be quickly forthcoming, and may not come at all. Your sacrifice could be  something as simple as picking up litter in your neighbourhood, it doesn’t have to be something elaborate.

The number 13 is the final number on the pyramid. It represents the spirit world. It is said that on Halloween, the veil between the worlds is the thinnest. However within the sacred calendar, this thinning happens every 13 days. This connection with the spirit world creates a powerful day, where both the positive and negative aspects of the nawal it is attached to come through strongly. It is a very good day for activities such as divination, however, ceremonies on 13 days are generally only carried out by the most experienced Aj Q’ij who understand how to work with that strength of energy.