When
the Spanish Conquistadores arrived in America, one of their main drives
was to eliminate the native religion, as it seemed to them the work of
the devil. The Mayan concepts of life and death were just too outrageous
for them to be able to understand them. Although 500 years of opression
have passed the mayan religion managed to survive hidden under the trappings
of the Catholic church. The recent incursion of the evangelical religions
into the area has threatened the native religion, but in Santiago the yearly
cycle of rituals is still followed. This is part of a mayan concept; that
humans have their place and duty in the greater sceme of things, and, in
order to ensure that the sun is going to cross the sky and the seasons
are going to change, it is necesary that the humans do their part. This
includes taking part in certain rituals and accepting some sort of sacrifice
to the greater good. There are a great number of religious celebrations in Santiago.
It seems like there is always a marimba singing in the air and firecrackers
exploding and informing the people that something is getting ready to happen. Check out the Cofradia page to understand a little about the native religious and social organization, find out about a real living nahual on the Maximon page, experience the incredible beauty of the highlight of the spiritual year on the Semana Santa page, and get a glimpse of the internal workings of the Yearly Cycle of religious events