Ix Chel
Ix Chel or Ixchel [iʃ'tʃel] (Goddess O) was in the mythology of Maya a lunar and fertility goddess . She should be identical or share characteristics with the fertility goddess Ixcanleom or with Ix Chup ( Ix Ch'up ), an embodiment of a young breastfeeding mother.
Even in the classical period, Ix Chel was often depicted as a woman with symbols of fertility, such as recognizable large breasts. She was often depicted as the moon goddess with a rabbit, which the Maya believed to recognize on the moon (see: moon face ). Likewise, often, if not predominantly, are images of Ix Chels as an old woman, medic, weaver and bringer of wisdom.
The Central Shrine, an important pilgrimage site with a catchment area from all over the Yucatán , was still on the island of Cozumel during the conquest . The entire island was dedicated to the Ix Chel . According to tradition, the goddess sent the swallow, her favorite bird, to the island as a thank you for building temples to worship her. Cozumel can therefore be translated as the island of swallows . San Gervasio , in particular the central building in the Ka'Na Nah complex, where there is also a cenote , is believed to be the central sanctuary of Ix Chel . On the otherwise originally uninhabited island of Isla Mujeres , people began to work around 550 BC. Used by the Maya a sanctuary in honor of Ix Chels .
In addition to attributes as the moon and fertility goddess in general, Ix Chel was also worshiped as the earth goddess, patroness of water, the rainbow and pregnant women and inventor of the art of weaving. She was made Itzamná to be the wife with whom she fathered the four Bacabs who supported the sky in the four corners of the world. The pair of gods had a total of 13 children, two of whom later appeared as creator gods.
In addition to mentions and images in the codices , it was also named in the Chilam Balam .
See also
literature
- Nikolai Grube : Los Mayas: una civilización milenaria , Hamburg 2006, pp. 428–449
- Ralph L. Roys : Ritual of the Bacabs. Oklahoma 1965