What is the Mayan Calendar, Really?

It’s ancient. It’s powerful. It’s surprisingly effective. And it’s one of my favorite things that I've discovered since living here in Guatemala, also known as the heartland of Mayan culture. 

Now, there's a lot of confusion around the Mayan calendar. There's this belief circulating in popular culture that it ended in 2012, which is false. 

If there's one thing you should know about the Mayan calendar, it's a system of cycles within cycles. 

So what people really mean when they say that the calendar ended in 2012 is that a certain cycle ended and a new cycle began. And that's actually what I love about learning this calendar - it's all about learning about the cycles and seasons within my own life. 

In fact, tuning into the Mayan calendar is like getting a powerful weather report that helps me anticipate what's coming and understand what's happening in my life. 

Another misconception is that the Mayan calendar is some sort of religion. And that's absolutely false. It's a way of viewing and perceiving and interpreting the world and the events that are unfolding in my life, but it's not a system of gods and goddesses. Nay, friends. It’s a system of understanding the movement of lifeforce energy happening all around us.

Some people have this attitude of like, “I don't need to learn about that, I've got Jesus.” And I'm like, friends, they're not mutually exclusive. That's like saying, I don't need to watch the weather report because I've got Jesus. Well, honey, Jesus or not, if it's raining, you're going to get wet. 

Wouldn't you like to know that it's going to rain tomorrow so you can bring an umbrella and maybe put your plants outside? That would be a wise way to interact with the forces of life that are happening one way or another, just like the weather. 

In fact, what I love about learning about the Mayan calendar is that it helps me learn how to live in harmony with the natural forces at play. 

Photo by Mark Elmy

And how does it work? Well, it's based on mathematics. It's based on the movement of the planets and the natural cycles of time. It's an ancient system that took a lot of smart and very wise people over long periods of time to create. 

So if there's a great system, why not use it? Why not learn about it? 

In the Mayan calendar, there is an energy reading for each day, and then there’s my own energy signature that was created when I was born, and the fun part is learning to understand how my energy interacts with the energy of the day. 

For example, if I know today is a Q’anil day, which is all about reaping your harvest, and I’m B’atz, which is all about creativity, then I know that today could be a good day to work on the creative project I have brewing because the energy today is favorable to bring my ideas towards their bountiful harvest. Like that, I can go with the flow of life so I get the maximum reward for my efforts, and I don’t waste my energy trying to swim against the current.

I also know when to avoid doing certain things. For example, the sign of Ajmak is all about being human, making mistakes, and engendering an attitude of forgiveness. Knowing this, I wouldn’t want to embark on a trip on that day because it’s likely something might happen that will be a kind of human error that would call for forgiveness. I would rather wait to plan my trip on an ‘E day, because that energy is all about the spiritual path we take in life, so it’s a more favorable day to set out on a journey.

This knowledge has given me such a leg up on learning how to dance with life. It's given me so much perspective on what I’m going through at this moment of my life, and how it relates to the bigger picture. It's really helped me understand myself better, and what I need to do to be happier and at peace with life, which is invaluable to me as I walk my path.

My teacher is Mark Elmy, who is a photographer, former chemist, total space nerd, reiki master, and a dear friend of mine who has dedicated himself to learning about the calendar for over twenty years. I’ve been learning from him since I came across one of his “Living the Sacred Calendar” trecena talks in San Marcos in January 2021. That first talk blew my mind and I’ve been hooked ever since. 

Aside from these trecena talks he puts out every two weeks on his Youtube channel, he has a famous blog where every day he puts out an energy forecast reading of the day. His website is www.thefourpillars.net you can go there to learn more about the calendar and the specific energy that each day carries. You can also follow his Facebook page for daily updates and notifications on any classes he’s offering.

If you're really interested in going deeper, hit him up and he can do a personal reading for you to go in-depth into your energy sign and what it is that you need more of in life and what it is maybe you need less of.

The goal is to help you live a happier, healthier life, more aligned with who you really are so you can be your best self and ultimately make the contribution your unique soul was sent to this earth to make. 

And isn't that the point of it all? 

Thanks for reading. Love you!