"Mayanical" E-Log #4: The sites, the sights!

Tulum

Cafe Internet Santa Lucia
Mérida, Yucatan - Mexico

What a whirlwind! We've been to three sites in as many days, and we're not stopping there. Each of them has been profoundly moving in distinctly different ways... I feel as if I carry a piece of each of them with me.

As my last Log had to be cut short due to bus departure time concerns, I will continue with the ruins at Tulum:

I found the energy of Tulum to be very similar to that of Delphi, in Greece- there was an impression of grace and harmony, and of people walking peacefully along flora-lined paths, with a real emphasis on spirituality. Granted, all Maya sites could be said to have an emphasis on spirituality, though this was more contemplative, less "My temple is bigger than your temple!" More... feminine, if you will. (Of course, this could be due to the fact that I was female in an incarnation there.) I felt like a wanted to walk with utmost reverence on the Earth.
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As we finished our circle of the site and were heading back towards the exit, I was strongly called off the main path, to the southwestern corner where Tulum's wall (supposedly built for defense, though I resonate deeper with the theory that it acts to define the boundaries of the "sacred area") meets in a "watchtower". I will remind you that iguanas were everywhere at Tulum, and there we found the Grandfather Iguana. (How appropriate that the patriarch of the site's "guardians" be near the watchtower!) He was nearly as long as my arm not including his tail, and meeting his gaze made something stir deep within. He was intensity within stillness. I offered him some of my Sacred Site essence and promptly fell into a liz-erie. The following is an excerpt from my journal:

The iguanas are the Time Keepers. They and their brethren (of which I got the impression there are many species) hold the energy (of the sites) until the rest of us Remember. They await the day when the ancient sites will once more be used for ceremonial purposes. They are grounding. They are like poles, grounding the cosmos into the Earth and visa versa. They are Peace/they project Peace. Their power is in their quiet. "Power in the moment." Power is in the now, in the potential for movement/action. They are ancient but they are still here because they know how to harness the present/presence. Their presence is Now, the now that is not dependent on time, the now that is beyond time. They are here now presently, and now then. It is the same. There is no time for the iguanas. That is how they keep it. They "present" it. They are present/presence.

Grandfather Iguana

(At the conclusion, Grandfather bobbed his head several times, indicating clearly we were done. I thanked him and offered another dosage of Sacred Site essence, and he squinted his eyes in Zen acknowledgement.)

We flew back down the road in order to check out of our cabaña by 11am, me in a state of elated "being" and reluctant to depart from the ruins. After stowing our bags at reception for an hour in order to enjoy the beach one last time, we moved to cheaper accommodations in town (appropriately, at "Hotel Maya"), which allowed us to be closer to the bus station and to enjoy Avenue Tulum's many delicious restaurants and- we confess- shopping.

That night we boogied until bedtime to live reggae-rock music and enjoyed authentic Italian gelato (mmm hazelnut and almond)! To say the least, it was difficult to leave Tulum.

From there it was on to Cobá, where fortunately we were able to stow our bags at the hotel/bus station while we enjoyed the ruins. Cobá is one of the oldest sites and considered to be one of the most "important" to archeologists. Its architecture mysteriously resembles that of Tikal in Guatemala, rather than the closer sites of Chichén Itza and Tulum (theorhetically marriage alliances were made between Cobá and Tikal). As the site is so extensive, bicycle rentals are available in order to more efficiently enjoy the far-reaching and widespread groups of ruins... Coast along jungle paths with a cooling breeze a step ahead of the mosquitos? You didn't have to ask us twice!

Cobá

We cruised comfortably down the forest-lined trails on our bikes- which we named Viva Verde ("Live Green") and Toro Rojo ("Red Bull"), respectively- me catching the spirits of the trees in my embrace so they could share in the flight. The energy at Cobá is very much tree/sun. Resting my palms on the stones of the ruins I perceived Sun Light, not there merely by nature of being in the sun but by intention, with deliberation. It was the language of Illumination, and while I couldn’t comprehend it cognitively, it flowed into my veins and found resonance within.

About 1.5 kilometers in we came to El Gran Piramide, Cobá's most dramatic structure and the largest pyramid in the Yucatan peninsula. It basically resembled a "black diamond" level slope of stone, with a single rope down the middle that one could grasp if they felt the need. I'm not good with measurements, but it must have been at least a gazillion feet high!

(I must appropriately insert here how impressed I am with the Mexicans' laid-back attitude- they non-chalantly sent us careening down rocky trails on mechanically-questionable bicycles and scaling mountain-size ruins without so much as a waiver. This approach apparently works for them, too- I have yet to hear of any Mayan temple staircase mishaps.)

Marlon and I both picked up on some contradictory residual energies at the pyramid: the focused and loving nature reverence of the astrologer-priests, and the belly-deep terror of the sacrificial victims. It was disturbing to us, and launched a philosophical discussion on the nature of duality, and the nature of belief. So far as we could intuit, the priests sincerely believed in what they were doing and their intentions- for the most part- were pure. Yet there was no denying the horror of those "sacrificed", and therefore the fact that the priests' actions- however positively meant- were negative in nature, and had negative repercussions.

When exploring another trail "off the beaten path" we came across a turtle! Turtles are associated with the Mayan rain god Chac-Mool, who had been announcing himself with brief and sporadic showers the last couple of days. I offered the Mother Turtle some Sacred Site, and again fell into a deep communication.

She waits patiently and listens. She is unafraid, but does not tolerate that which is outside her best interest/comfort. (She waits patiently for me to understand what she has to say.) Patience. Patience. She is free. (She is me.) She is the Earth. She listens. The ground talks to her as she traverses over it, a song in her belly. In the energetic sense, her shell is not hard and impenetrable but an amplifier. She simply chooses with great discretion and deliberateness what is to be amplified and what excluded from her womb of possibility. Her home is the water, therefore she is fluid in nature. Water: there used to be much more water here (Marlon just found some shells)! The turtles have been here always, have always Known... The turtle is a mother. I feel her force, her nurturing. That word again: "Womb". A womb of embrace, a womb of choice... (This is all we have time for.)

Mother Turtle

To say the least, I appreciate the presence of these animal emissaries and all of their wisdom!

I snapped out of my "turtlerie" just in time for us to race back to the bus station. We just made it onto the bus to Pisté, and I think provided quite the entertaining spectacle to the mostly Mexican passengers as we struggled to our seats while the bus was in motion!

In Pisté we decided to let our cab driver recommend a place (which previous experience has shown can be a gamble), and he took us to Flamboyanes (Flamboyant) Guesthouse, whose vibrant fuscia walls were indeed flamboyant! They had everything we've learned to require- hot water, a window, and a toilet seat- and were very warm and soft-spoken. It was one of the best nights sleeps we've had this trip, which made it difficult to get out of bed the next morning in order to get to Chichén Itzá before the tour buses (but as always, it was worth it)!

I wasn't quite sure what to expect at Chichén Itzá as it's been so thoroughly hyped- and was under the allegedly more blood-thirsty Toltec influence- but I was quite enraptured. (This still doesn't excuse the ten US dollars admission fee- they think they're sooooo special because they have the Mayan calendar in stone!) I scattered more flower essences at Chichén Itzá than anywhere else thus far, and was so thoroughly plugged into it that when we reached the platforms where they used to display the skulls and bodies of their sacrificial victims, I was abruptly overtaken by emotion. I don't mean to be dramatic, but the spirits of the slaughtered were crying out for release, and I was the nearest not-smart-enough-to-shield-myself conduit. Utilizing flower essences and prayers, ultimately the energy was released and healed, and I felt a sense of purpose in the whole thing.

Chichén Itzá

​Next we checked out the cenote (a sort of canyon/cave filled with natural water) where they used to enact all manner of ceremonial rites. I was determined to drop some essences directly in the water (where skeletons were found), however as it was roped off five feet from the edge- now the Mexicans choose caution- this was tricky. With Marlon's encouragement, I manifested a break in the throngs of onlookers and quickly ducked under the rope. Success!

Lastly, we visited the famous El Castillo pyramid, which is the Mayan calendar formed in stone, and an awe-inspiring presence. It's a Toltec temple built on top of a Mayan one, and I had this sense as I sat before it, of a gateway within.

El Castillo Piramide

​There's a gateway inside the temple. (Sacred geometry?) A sense of lines of energy crossing and meeting: pathways, pathways in/out, to/from places of the mind/universe! [I'm being told] both the same- the universe is contained within our minds. Every dimension, every galaxy, every world, every star- within our single cells, within us. We will never build a machine, rocket, what-have-you that will successfully travel through time or all of the way across the universe. They key is in us. This temple is a representative of the gateway that we are. It is the universe contained. It opens and closes with every breath- if we do not breathe, we do not exchange with God. We do not receive, we do not offer, do not live awake nor indeed, perceive. We are portals, gates, doorways! Temples, "sacred sites", etc. are merely meant to awaken within us our dormant gateways, to awaken within us the universe contained. We are not reliant on these places/structures in any regard for this- they are catalysts, not means. We are it. Awaken the temple within. Open the door. (Interesting- whole new dimension to the concept, "the body is a temple"...)
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Now we are in Mérida, which we will use as a base to explore some of the area's ruins, before flying out on Tuesday. We are staying at the positively awesome Hotel Trinidad, which more closely resembles an old European villa than a Mexican hotel- replete with two lush green courtyards (our room looks out on both of them), tile floors, dark paneled double doors with peek-a-boo windows, and moody plumbing! (There is also a rather regal chair in our room which I am convinced would make a great throne for Marlon if he would just give in to his royal Leonine sensibilities.) Indeed, central Mérida itself has a distinctly European flavor- we are enjoying it immensely.

I hope to do one last log before we depart, to detail our experiences at Uxmal etc... Until then-
As always, with much love,
Arielle

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