Tz’apin Q’ij is seen as a time of introspection. We are allowed to take stock of what has happened over the previous year. In some communities, it is seen as a time when public ceremony is avoided. Some people do not wash or comb their hair, many do not leave the house. It is a time when the energies of the days are unsupported and misfortune may occur.
The posts that I write every day concern the Chol Q’ij. This is the Maya sacred calendar, which consists of 260 days. However, this is not the only calendar used by the Maya people. One of the other calendars is known as the Macewal Q’ij. This has been called a civil or agricultural calendar, it is the solar calendar. There are ceremonies associated with certain days of the Macewal Q’ij, particularly the arrival of the new Mam or Year Bearer. This is the first day of the new Solar year. Kenneth Johnson wrote an excellent first-hand account of his experience in Momostenango of the arrival of the new Mam here
However, the new year is not here just yet. We first pass through the Tz’apin Q’ij, the closing days. These are the five days at the end of the 365-day count. They are thought of as an unpredictable time when the energy is directionless. The final five days of the solar year are overseen by the previous Mam of the same nawal. 9 Iq’ was the Mam for 2021. If we imagine time as a ship and the Mam as the captain, it is as if the captain has died and been replaced by the ghost of the previous captain. Maybe this is why this period of time is thought of as being so unpredictable.
The First Day of Tz’apin Q’ij
The introspection of the first day of Tz’apin Q’ij is used to review the previous year. Its combination here with the day 9 Iq’ suggests a review of the words and changes during the previous 360 days. This is during the period of the current year, 13 Iq’, which began on 18th February 2025.
9 Iq’ can be seen as the breath of life. It can also be seen as the strong, feminine word. Iq’ can be highly inspiring when channelled correctly, and highly destructive when it isn’t. It gives the opportunity to breath life into what we wish to grow. We can use our words to bring things to life. What have you brought to life through your words in this past cycle?
