Monthly Archives: December 2023

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

New Video – The Trecena of Imox (5th – 17th December 2023)

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The trecena of Imox is a time for a new dream. It is far from something which can be brought in to place right now, but it gives the opportunity to plant the seeds for the dreams you wish to bring to fruition over the next 260 days.

12 No’j / 2024 Calendar

My 2024 calendar is now available. The calendar shows the days of the Chol Q’ij, formatted onto the Gregorian calendar. This year it is available electronically as a pdf in both English and Spanish. Printed versions, in English, are available locally here in Guatemala, from Palo Santo and Lava Love Cacao in San Marcos. It is also available at the candle shop of Nana Maria Feliciana, opposite Banrural in San Juan la Laguna. See this link for details on how to get your pdf.

Konojel

When I mention programs within my videos, it is because I personally know the people involved and can vouch that your donations will actually go towards helping the people for which they are intended. During the video I mention the Konojel program and their work in San Marcos la Laguna. They have turned from a basic, “let’s make sure bellies are full” program to one of much more social development. You can check out their programs and make a donation here https://konojel.org/

Odim

Within the village of San Pablo la Laguna, there is an organisation doing great work. They are called ODIM and are specialising in medical and educational services. During the pandemic restrictions, they helped feed many people, but this is in addition to their regular, long term work there. You can find out more about them through this link http://www.odimguatemala.org/donate

Popol Jay

Popol Jay is an ancient name to define the House of the Council of Elders, among the Maya of Guatemala. These were places of wisdom where sacred knowledge about medicine, the calendars, music, spiritual practice and more was kept and passed to future generations. They were all burnt down during the Conquest and subsequent Colonization periods. Today, the Q’eqchi’ Maya Council of Elders Releb’aal Saq’e has joined forces with many supporters to rebuild the Popol Jay of the North, in the lowlands of the Petén region, heart of the Maya culture of the Classic Period. The Elders have worked hard to acquire land and co-design this Center of Knowledge to share ancient wisdom with the World. To donate to the Elders of Peten to fund the Popol Jay, please use this link https://tinyurl.com/8s7vkvr

Calendar Workshop

If you would like to dive deeper into the sacred calendar, I will be running a workshop via Zoom from 10am – 2pm (Central European Time, UTC +1) from 11th – 15th December 2023. There are currently some spaces available. For more information, please go to https://thefourpillars.net/?page_id=1120 

Trecena Video

You can see the Imox trecena video here: https://youtu.be/QNcpTK0TUDU

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

1 Imox (5th December 2023)

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1 ImoxThis is a day to begin a new dream. It brings new inspiration to develop over the coming 260 days. Today we begin a new a new trecena, and some would say a whole new cycle of the calendar.

For me, the day 1 Imox has the words “in the beginning” very firmly attached to it. The Popol Vuh tells how before the creation event “only the sea alone pooled under the sky; there is nothing whatever gathered together. It is at rest. Not a single thing stirs”. As Imox represents the great ocean, 1 Imox could very well be seen as this moment before creation.

Imox is pure potential, limitless and directionless. Likewise, the number 1 also represents potential. Today is a day to dream, and dream big. It may be confusing, the initial images might not make sense to begin with, as so often with dreams. Now might not be the best time to attempt to fit them together. Just allow the ideas to come and grasp their energy for use later on.

Today may be for delving deep into the collective consciousness, to see what dreams are possible. It is the seed hidden deep in the dark moistness, with the ability to become whatever you wish it to. It is yours to grow, yours to guide, but today a little encouragement from others, to start to grow this dream seed, may prove very helpful. They may also help you to pull yourself out of the depths and come up for air once in a while.

Nawal Imox

Nawal Imox represents the collective consciousness, the great ocean. It is the moment before the “big bang”, when all that existed was the dream of the creator. It is everything and nothing in one place, the ovum from which reality was conceived. Imox is still very much in the other world, requiring another component to physically manifest the dream into reality.

Imox is considered to be a feminine nawal. Sometimes called water lily, sometimes crocodile, it is an embodiment of the primordial. It was from the great ocean that the four first men raised sky to create the world which we inhabit. Imox can also be seen as the Darwinian swamp from which all life emerged. It is fertile and creative, the mother that gave birth to our entire reality.

Imox is our common origin, and as such links us all together. It is the place of dreams, the collective conscious we delve into on our nightly voyages. It may also relate to the place that certain plant medicines take us to in order to bring us wisdom. However, as the font of all of creation, Imox harbours the dark as well as the light.

Imox is a day to celebrate the spirit of the times, to understand the collective mind. It is a day to dream your creations, your art, your music. Imox helps us all feel connected, when the psychic field between us may be particularly strong. Discernment may be called for, to understand when to dissociate from the collective. It is important to remember your individuality.

The Number One

The number 1 is representative of the seed, of unity. It represents birth and beginnings. It is a low and odd number, which usually represents something challenging. However, the seed can grow into a mighty tree, it is full of potential. It needs the correct nutrients and conditions to germinate and develop its potential. We also may need encouragement to develop our ideas.

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

13 Ajpu (4th December 2023)

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13 AjpuThe connection to the ancestors should be strong and powerful today. Guidance in matters such your spiritual path, your hero’s quest, should be obvious. Be prepared for the answers to appear right in front of you.

13 Ajpu is a day when we see ourselves and the true selves of those around us. Today allows us to embody who we truly are. We may judge those around us based on our values, but what we see in them is their truth. 13 Ajpu may also bring reflections of our own behaviour. We should be careful not to judge to quickly, we might be seeing our own faults.

This can be seen as what we have been waiting for appearing, nine months of gestation leading to this day. It is the resurrection of the Maize Lord, and his ascension to the spirit world all in one. It can be seen as the move to the next level, where the power of the ancestors is revealed.

Today the feeling of divinity in the world is intoxicating, when you notice the extraordinary around you. It is essential, then, to stay well-grounded as Ajpu has a penchant for spiritual intrigue. Ajpu can draw people towards the overly mystical. They may become lost in its charms or bewitched by its words. With the otherworld power of the 13 attached, this may result in an intense experience.

Make your art today, bring the essence of the divine into the physical world.  If you look for inspiration in the natural world, spirit will guide you to create exceptional beauty. It is, of course, a great day to make an offering to the ancestors for their guidance.

The Nawal Ajpu

Kinich Ahau, the solar deity, lord of space and time. From the Dresden Codex.
Kinich Ahau, the solar deity, lord of space and time. From the Dresden Codex.

Nawal Ajpu is once again a nawal with a multitude of meanings and translations. In the Yucatec language it is known as Ahau, in Kiche is is also known as Junajpu. These are variously translated as lord, hunter, blow gunner, flower and sun. Each one of the translations has its merits, and represents an aspect of this auspicious nawal.

Within the ancient Mayan society, the royals were not just political leaders of their particular city-states, they were priest-kings and priest-queens. They served as the conduit to the divine, deriving their wisdom for guiding their people through their connection with the Hearts of the Earth and the Sky. This wisdom enriched both the ruling dynasty and their people, as they would be working in harmony with the gods. The ruler of the city was also the physical embodiment of the divine, and Ajpu is closely related to this. Likewise it represents our potential, the state of divinity to which we may aspire.

Ajpu represents the holiness in life, the divinity in the physical world, and our search for it. It is the search for underlying meaning, understanding that each person is a part of the whole. Whether we like it or not, and however we judge it, we are all a part of creation.

Every action of ourselves and others gives an opportunity to explore ourselves and our reaction. Sometimes we are attracted, sometimes repelled by the action of others. Occasionally Ajpu can lead us to become immersed in the other world, to lose sight of reality. It is important to remember to stay in touch with the Earth as we reach to the Sky.

The Number 13

The number 13 is the final number. It represents the spirit world. It is said that on Samhain, 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. Both the positive and negative aspects of the day come through strongly. It is a very good day for activities such as divinations. Ceremonies on 13 days are best left to experienced Aj Q’ijab who understand how to work with that energy.

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

12 Kawok (3rd December 2023)

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12 KawokThe number of life experience, combined with Kawok, gives the opportunity to finally wash away “stubborn stains” from the past. Should you allow the process to happen it can lead to rebirth.

I have an image of the nawal Kawok as a wise and loving, but firm, midwife. She has seen many new children brought into this world and knows what she is talking about. She is here to assist with the birth process. At this point there is no going back, there is only one way and that is to move past the pain to allow the new life to emerge. She is here to comfort and encourage, and occasionally to push you forwards when the process feels too hard. The flow that she brings cannot be stopped, if resistance is encountered the storm intensifies until her waters wash away the obstruction. It is, therefore, better to heed her advice, grit your teeth, and move through the process before the full power of the storm is unleashed.

This is the penultimate day of the trecena of ripening, and some would say the penultimate day of a cycle of 260 days. As 13 Ajpu is such an important day that is being birthed, it is the most experienced of midwives which is called upon in 12 Kawok. Here the analogy is that of bringing together all of your life experience in order to birth into being your own true ripeness.

You have the power to confront and overcome that which stands between you and your new life today. The energy of the day is conducive to clear the obstructions and allow your blossoming, your new growth to occur. It can be easy, if we allow it to be, or painful if we resist.

The Nawal Kawok

Ixchel empties the water jar, washing away the old world in order to bring in the new. From the Dresden Codex
Ixchel empties the water jar, washing away the old world in order to bring in the new. From the Dresden Codex

While most healing roles do not seem to be gender specific, one is. Both women and men may be healers, prayer makers, herbalists and diviners, only women will become midwives. Kawok is the energy of the midwife. It helps to clear the obstructions from the birth process, in some ways it actually represents the birth process. Kawok brings the new into the world. In the Mayan cross, Kawok, the birth process finishes the sequence which starts with Aq’ab’al (conception) and moves through B’atz (gestation.) In the sequence of the calendar, Kawok precedes Ajpu. Ajpu represents the resurrection of the maize lord, also the creation of the world. Kawok creates the conditions for that to happen, the rain which brings forth the sprouting of the maize.

In its storm aspect, Kawok can be destructive, although it is a destruction which allows a new creation to happen. Kawok energy can give rise to some tempestuous situations, it can be a day which can give people a rough ride, although this may be for the eventual good. It is a day to ask for the gentle rain to bless your crops, and for the harsh rain to stop. It is a day which washes away the old and outworn in life, so that the new growth, life and divinity may emerge.

The Number 12

The number 12 is the penultimate number. In some ways it can be seen as the last Earthly number, the number 13 representing the spirit world. We travelled through the mortal world with 1 through 6, then the other world with 7 through 12. In this way 12 can be seen as a point of bringing all of the experiences into one bundle for presentation to the spirit world as we step into 13. As such, the number 12 brings a wealth of experience into one place, it is rather like writing an autobiography. It is totality, all that is, brought together.

Chol Q'ij - The Energies of the Days

11 Tijax (2nd December 2023)

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11 TijaxWhen working with a sharp object, it is always best to have an idea about how to use it and what you plan to use it for. This is especially the case today. Don’t run with the scissors in your hand!

Tijax is a sharp energy, which can be used to heal, create great beauty and rid the world of the mundane or unholy. However, in order to be used effectively it needs to be directed. Here we begin to understand a potential issue on this day 11 Tijax. The number 11 works intuitively and this can give rise to unpredictability. When a message comes, 11 hears it loud and clear and changes direction. When this is factored into a combination with the properties of Tijax, this can become a problem. In its most dramatic expression, the energy of 11 Tijax lash out at those nearby, but with an obsidian blade.

Even in the healing expression of Tijax, the strength and lack of predictability of the number 11 may create unintended consequences. Tijax is tenacious and 11 can be directionless, it may lead to a situation where you don’t know why you are taking a course of action, but you will not be dissuaded from the idea. Of course, you may be correct, but the energy of Tijax can be so cutting that you may end up causing injury where it was not intended.

Measure twice and cut once. Take a breath before acting, especially before making the final cut. You might find that you unintentionally burn some important bridges if you act too rashly.

The Nawal Tijax

Sacrificial Death God 1

The nawal Tijax represents an obsidian (or flint) blade. How the blade is used depends on the intention of the person wielding it, a warrior or a surgeon. These would seem like opposite ends of the spectrum, but where Tijax is concerned the aim is the same – healing and purification.

Tijax is the nawal of the holy warrior. In the Mayan book of creation , the Popol Vuh, the first act of the hero twins was a mission given to them by the Heart of the Sky to rid the world of the false gods Seven Macaw, Zipacna and Earthquake. By destroying the false gods, the twins brought balance to the world, and helped mankind, they brought healing to the world. They cut out that which caused disease, exactly as a surgeon would do.

Tijax is celebrated as a day of healers, particularly what could be seen as the masculine aspect of healing. It is a day of crusading, of standing up for what is right, the healer who refuses to give up on finding a cure. Tijax gives powers of discernment and refinement. Just as the surgeons scalpel cuts away disease and the warriors blade dispatches the evil, the sculptors chisel creates beauty by remodelling the base material. This is a day of alchemy, both internal and external, turning the ordinary into the divine.

The Number 11

The number 11 is a high and odd number. This gives it some rather challenging properties, although it can come good in the end. Imagine you visit Ireland and are transfixed by the green of the hills. Then you go to Morocco and are awed by the red of the buildings. Then you go to the Caribbean and are moved by the turquoise sea. You return home and paint a beautiful picture using those colours. When you were in Ireland you didn’t know you were going to paint that masterpiece. You may not have even known why you were there.  This is how 11 works. You are sure you need to be doing something, but unsure why. You are collecting experience through many wanderings.