Daily Archives: 18th January 2022

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

5 Ajmak (19th January 2022)

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5 AjmakWorking on being a better human might seem like a good theme for any day, but today this is strongly highlighted. Today this work is about embracing everything that makes us human, our joy, our mistakes and our ability to forgive.

When we consider the numbers within the Mayan sacred calendar, there is a general rule of thumb that even numbers are considered more fortunate than odd numbers. Whilst this generally holds true it can be a little more subtle than that sweeping statement and certainly every number has its own overriding properties. However, it can also be seen that odd numbers and even numbers may also represent introvert and extrovert, or internal and external processes. If we try to apply the external properties of a nawal on a day which highlights internal work, we are unlikely to get the desired outcome. Therefore, the day will seem unfortunate, whereas it is just the inappropriate application of principle.

Whilst the number 5 represents work, and we say that these days can represent hard work, this would be particularly the case if we are looking at the external world. These days are more appropriate for internal work, and here we see the number 5 appearing with the nawal of redemption and forgiveness, Ajmak.

Our modern world rewards success, punctuality, perfection and correctness. Sometimes it drives us outside the boundaries of human reality. It is as if the perfection sought after, particularly by the corporate world which cascades into society in general, seeks to dehumanise us. Ajmak is here to restore our balance, to bring us back to being human.

Ajmak is us, it is our humanity. It represents our frailties, our errors, our failures and our imperfection. Today as I pasted the glyph for Ajmak into this post I saw that it was crooked. At first I thought to correct it, but it seemed so appropriate that Ajmak was a little imperfectly aligned. In fact it brought a smile to my face and that is what Ajmak is all about, relaxing, being human and bringing the sweetness into life.

If we choose to look at the 5 representing the internal work, 5 Ajmak would suggest that we work with our inner humanity. Bring out that joyful human, that one that dances through life making the odd mistake. Embrace and work with your “imperfection”, it is what makes you human, and the ability to forgive is perhaps one of the most essential traits for all humans. So, allow your humanity to forgive yourself for making mistakes, for the imperfections in your life, and allow that forgiveness to extend to those around you who are asking for it.

I’m Sorry

Please forgive me

Thank you

I love you

When the creators fashioned the four first men, the Bacab’ob, they created them as equals. These four first humans had superhuman abilities, including the ability to see through space and time. As equals were not desired, the gods smoked the mirror of perception, giving us our human set of senses. When we lost the ability to see through time, we lost the ability to see the true consequences of our actions and thus we needed to start asking for forgiveness. Sometimes even well meaning actions can cause problems at a later date. Ajmak represents this ability to forgive others, the ability to forgive ourselves and the ability to accept forgiveness.

Ajmak is a sensual energy, which creates some of the reasons for its needing to be forgiven. It is kind and very lovable, but irresponsible. It can be a very talented energy, with great ideas. However it can also be very easily distracted, especially by anything that makes it feel nice. This often leads Ajmak to failing to fulfil its true potential, although due to its lovable nature it is easy to forgive. One of the lessons with regards to the Ajmak energy is learning to forgive oneself.

The Sacred Mayan calendar is often said to be a calendar of human life, and parts of it can be seen as a microcosm of the human body. The number five is one of these parts. It is representative of the hand with it’s five digits. It is with our hands that we work, and with what we earn for that work that we pay our debts. Five is also a number that relates to the sacred fire where we pay our debts with offerings and prayers. Five might be so busy working that it fails to remember what it is working for. It can also signify that what it is attached to becomes work, or is “hard work”.

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

The Heliacal Rise of Venus, 5 Ajmak (19th January 2022)

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The cycle of Venus was of great importance to the ancient Maya, and often used to time ritual activities including warfare and sacrifices. Venus was generally seen to have an unsettling influence, particularly during the time of the heliacal rising of Venus.

Today we enter that period of potential turbulence, the first rising of Venus as the Morning Star. This is said to be the time when the influence of Venus “spears” certain victims. Although these victims are often leaders, this turmoil is affecting all of us on the planet. That said, whoever holds “high position” would do well to avoid rushing into impassioned decisions  or judgement during the first few days of the Morning Star.

Here is the particular page in the Dresden Codex which refers to the heliacal rise of Venus on an Ajmak day. In the top left hand portion of the page, you can see the glyphs Q’anil, Tijax, Q’anil and then Ajmak. These positions relate to superior conjunction, rise as evening “star”, inferior conjunction and then rise as morning “star”. According to biblioteca pleyades, the heliacal rise of Venus on an Ajmak day in the Borgia Codex “The Venus Lord is illustrated with a bird on one ear flare, and a snake on the other (or issuing from his mouth). This is the deity on the Venus pages that can most readily be identified as Kukulkan. The victim is illustrated as a turtle headed deity with a jade necklace. The victim’s name glyph includes the K’ank’in turtle head. Thompson equated this deity with “the turtle god of rain”. Ethnographers report that turtles are protected in the Yucatan to avoid drought.  In the Borgia, the Venus Lord, identified by Seler as Quetzalcoatl, spears a goddess, who Kelley identifies as Chalchihuitlicue, Jade Skirt, a water goddess. Drought is implied. ” Drought, both today and to the ancient Maya, is of course a serious occurrence. Maya sites such as Tikal had no natural water sources, they were supplied from reservoirs which would catch rainwater during rainy season.

In the page pertaining to this Venus event, the top panel (above) shows the Corn god standing before the Death god. Venus will remain as a morning planet until 7 E’ on 12th September. Could this signify a dry summer for the northern hemisphere, or the possibility of a crop failure? Perhaps this would have been used as an almanac to understand when to plant more corn to mitigate for a possible lower yield?

However, there is a more positive way in which we can look at it. In order to do this, we have to jump cultures a little and refer to the story of Quetzalcoatl. Quetzalcoatl was an Aztec deity, the Maya equivalent would be Kulkulkan in the post-classic Maya civilisation, Q’ukumatz is another variant.

Quetzalcoatl arrived as a teacher of the people, a civilising influence that taught astronomy, mathematics and agriculture. As the world became a better place, his popularity and influence grew, which attracted the jealousy of his brother, Tezcatlipoca. It is said that Tezcatlipoca disguised himself as an old man and gave Quetzalcoatl pulque, an alcoholic drink made from maguey. He became intoxicated and ended up “cavorting” with a celibate priestess (who may also have been his sister). Shamed, he then either sets himself on fire and rose into the sky to become the morning star, or sailed to the east on a boat of snakes, depending on which version we hear.

It is this aspect which can be seen as being particularly interesting. The rise and fall of Quetzalcoatl mirror the the “rise and fall” of Venus as the morning “star.” Today, Venus will return as the morning “star”, and it will get higher and brighter in the sky for the next 60 days, reaching its greatest western elongation (height above the Eastern horizon) around the day 1 No’j (21st March 2022). From our own point of view we can also see this as our own return to brightness, a time to rise and shine again.