Pre-Classic Maya: Meditation and Science

The pellagra crisis devastated the Maya community from 2400 to 1600 BCE, including nine banishments out of El Salvador, and one banishment within El Salvador. The Chol-Ch'orti'-Tzeltal lineage remaining in El Salvador probably went into a long period of self-examination and renewal. This post describes what came out of this period of renewal - a time of meditation, movement, gymnastics, and science, including bird watching and shark study. (Click to enlarge map.)

The Chol-Ch'orti'-Tzeltal lineage likely moved from Igualtepeque at Lago Güija to Chalchuapa soon after the discovery of the nixtamal process in 1600 or 1500 BCE. Chalchuapa is located 40 kilometers southwest of Igualtepeque and about 40 kilometers inland from the Pacific. Importantly, the Maya would have had access to the ocean from the nearby Rio Paz, about ten kilometers away. Chalchuapa is also 10 kilometers north of the Apaneca Range, with an altitude of 1800 to 2365 meters.

Chalchuapa was occupied for 2700 years by the Ch'orti', from 1500 BCE to 1200 CE, when the Ch'orti' probably moved to their current location in eastern Guatemala. Sometime between 1200 CE and the arrival of the Spanish, a Quiche-related Pokomam group moved into Chalchuapa and were present at Spanish contact. The Chol-Tzeltal lineages probably left the Chalchuapa area near the end of the pre-Classic period for the Chiapas-Palenque area, while some of the elite Ch'orti' went to Copan at the same time.

The Chol-Ch'orti'-Tzeltal built five ceremonial centers in Chalchuapa: Tazumal, Pampe, Trapiche, Casa Blanca, and Las Victorias. Unfortunately the Maya names of the latter two have been lost. The remaining names around Chalchuapa tell a story of meditation, yoga, and gymnastics, most likely beginning soon after they moved there in about 1500 BCE.

Tazumal at Chalchuapa

The first location that the Maya went to was probably Tazumal, later a pre-Classic and Classic site. Tazumal is tas uh mar in Ch'orti' or "sacred cutting of open space," referring to clearing the land when they first arrived. Not surprisingly, within a few hundred meters of Tazumal, is a park called Jardines de Eden. Eten means "challenge of flattening" and is a word the Maya had associated with clearing land before a new settlement since their arrival in El Salvador in about 8680 BCE.

Half a kilometer from Tazumal, in the opposite direction as Jardines de Eden, is a lagoon, Laguna Cuscachapa (right). In Ch'orti' it is k'ux kach ap ha' or "sore from tied swing over water." They likely tied a swing to the top of a tree in the lagoon and became sore from dropping at high distances into the lagoon.

Another pre-Classic site at Apaneca, 15 kilometers to the southwest, also speaks to gymnastics. Apaneca is ap bah neh k'ah and means "happy swinging of bodies with tails." "With tails" most likely refers to a rope system tied around the swinging bodies. Perhaps the Apaneca swinging bodies were similar to the flying dancers of the Totonac who still conduct a flying dance with ropes.

The name Chalchuapa speaks to both the gymnastics of the Maya as well as the meditation or yoga. In Ch'orti', Chalchuapa is ch'a'al ch'u ap bah or "hanging, swinging, and horizontal bodies." This was a center of movement and meditation. 

The gymnastics and meditation spread to Ch'orti' communities in the northern part of present-day San Vicente department, where there is a lagoon named Laguna Chalchuapa. To reinforce that it was named after the movement activities at Chalchuapa and not the name itself, a neighboring lagoon is named Apastepeque, or ap bah as te' (plus the generic suffix peque). Apastepeque means "practice bodies swinging in trees" and like Laguna Cuscachapa, the Maya used the lagoon water as a landing pad. One other interesting name here is the village of El Guayabo, way ahb ho', which means "likeable sleep swinging." This clearly refers to a hammock - in present-day Ch'orti' one of the meanings of ahb is "hammock." Either the hammock was invented here or simply used here.

Sketch of Maya Yogi relief carved above entrance to Temple of the Warrior, Chichen Itza. Source: Mayan Science & Religion; Bear & Co. Cited here.

Back in western El Salvador, one of the other ceremonial centers, two kilometers from Tazumal, is Pampe, which is bah am per or "drawn in spider bodies." While this could describe some gymnastic moves, it more likely is describing a yoga-like pose. (Note: the b and p sounds were identical at that time. Also the final r was often dropped in words ending in 'er'.) Pampe is also the name of a river that goes from near Chalchuapa to the Rio Paz. The Pampe River has an alternate name of Güeveapa or weh per ap bah, meaning "swinging bodies, drawn in flesh." This name speaks to both the gymnastics and the "drawn in spider" pose.

A village eight kilometers west of Chalchuapa is Izcaquilio or ix kah ki' li ho, meaning "beginning of likeable movement beside the heart." This seems to indicate that it was here that the yoga-like meditation was first done. It is interesting that it began away from Chalchuapa where the elite would have lived. It was someone of more common descent, who lived outside the main center, who invented this meditation. This type of meditation having its origin point in this area is reinforced by the nearby town of Turin, or tur in, which means "first condition."

About eight kilometers from Izcaquilio in the opposite direction of Chalchuapa is a village called Cuyanausul. In Ch'orti' it is k'u(ar) yana us ul or "explain useful changes to the founders (leaders)." The useful changes refer to the spiritual-emotional changes caused by the yoga meditation. This also shows that the meditation practice spread to several villages before they explained it to the leadership of Chalchuapa. Izcaquilio, Turin, and Cuyanausul are all in the modern-day department of Ahuachapan and the name Ahuachapan supports the idea that yoga-like meditation began there. It is ah wa' ch'a' ban in Ch'orti' and means "the one being in a good horizontal (position)" or "the good horizontal being."

Another clear indication of Maya yoga-like meditation is the written symbol for the tzolk'in day sign Ch'i' (Manik in Yucatec) - it is a mudra. Ch'i' means "growth," linking the meditation pose to growth as human beings. Curiously, this mudra is called Chinmaya in Buddhism. Chinmaya would mean "Maya vibration" in Ch'orti'.

The Ch'orti' taught the neighboring Lenca in eastern El Salvador to do yoga. The name Arambala is ahr am bah lah and means "the time of fatigued spider bodies." The spider body mention matches that of the Pampe River near Chalchuapa. Arambala is located north of the Torola River in Morazan department.

Maya Feathered Serpent doing a finger mutra. Source: Mayan Science & Religion; Bear & Co. Cited here.

There is evidence that the Maya yoga-like meditation, begun near Chalchuapa, continued through the Classic period to the Maya post-Classic. Meditation images are seen at Chichen Itza, a post-Classic site in the northern Yucatan. These images are associated there with Kukulcan, the feathered serpent. In the Chol-Ch'orti'-Tzeltal family of languages, Kukulcan is Kukulchon. In Ch'orti', Kukulchon is kuk k'ur chon or "exchange of rolled up one and one with points (feathers)." Kukulkan is the combination of serpent (a rolled up yoga-meditative body) and the feathered one (a gymnast swinging from the trees).

The concept of the feathered serpent seems to have originated in El Salvador during the time of meditation and gymnastics in the pre-Classic. This is seen in the name Chanmico, found in at least three locations in El Salvador.  The most prominent Chanmico is a lagoon and nearby town in present-day La Libertad department about ten kilometers east of the pre-Classic and Classic era site of San Andres and even closer to the Joya de Ceren site. Chanmico is chan mi k'o and means "cat's bird serpent." The bird serpent seems equivalent to the feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl or Kukulcan.

A second example of Chanmico is a place name (cantón) in current-day San Salvador within two kilometers of the Zacamil place name mentioned later. A third example of Chanmico is a village in current-day San Vicente department not far from the Lempa River and about ten kilometers east of Apastepeque, mentioned earlier. While it is impossible to prove the date of the use of the name Chanmico, all three examples of Chanmico lie within areas of pre-Classic Maya activity including meditation and gymnastics.

There are links between the Ch'orti' language and Toltec yoga-like meditation. This demonstrates that the Ch'orti' Maya were the likely originators of the Mesoamerican yoga-like meditation. The name of this meditation in Toltec is Kinam. This name comes from kin am in Ch'orti' and means "spider limbs" - a direct link to the name Pampe ("drawn-in spider body") at Chalchuapa.

Among the four steps of the meditation process among the Toltec, the third and fourth steps still retain meaning in Ch'orti'. The third step, which means divinization in Toltec, is teochiwa. In Ch'orti' this is teo ch'i' wa' and means "growth of the divine being." The fourth step means transparency in Toltec and is chipawa. In Ch'orti' it is ch'i' bah wa' and means "growth of the body being" or body-spirit being.

Embedded in the first syllable of Kukulcan/Kukulchon is K'uhk', the Ch'orti' word for the Siguanaba, described by the Wisdom, University of Chicago, Ch'orti' dictionary as an "ugly female apparition who is protectress of stream and fish and who frightens immoral people on lonely trail at night." Some people in Central America still believe in La Siguanaba who is seen as half hero - half mysterious, feared ghost. The root of La Siguanaba takes us back to meditation and gymnastics. Siguanaba in Ch'ort'i is si wa'an ahb pah or "series of rising, swinging bodies." La Siguanaba are those who protect the forest and streams, swinging from the trees.

The Maya day sign Ahmok speaks to meditation as well. It is am mo' ok and means "walking bird spider." The walking bird probably came first to honor the flying bird men who were gliding in 2400 BCE and possibly earlier, according to Palenque inscriptions. At that time Ahmok would have translated as "the bird one". The spider refers to yoga practice. Ahmok may have been the very first Quetzalcoatl/Kukulcan incarnation, but beginning as a feathered spider rather than a feathered serpent. Very soon, with Kukulchon, it became a feathered serpent.

Whether from the gymnastics or the yoga-like moves, the Maya had to deal with pain and soreness. A kilometer from Tazumal is a neighborhood called Cuje. This is k'ux che' and means "handle soreness." One way that they dealt with soreness is explained by the name of one of the five ceremonial centers, Trapiche (right). In Ch'orti' it is t'a' lahb pi che' and means "handle rubbing companion's flesh." The Maya were practicing massage.

Another way that the Maya practiced healing arts was through the sweat lodge. There are clues that this practice may have begun during the pre-Classic period in El Salvador as well. The sweat lodge is called temazcal or temazcalli in Nahuat and it is easy to see the Ch'orti' origin of this word. In Ch'orti' it is te' max cal li or "next to cavity of wood and lime." Temazcal is "cavity of wood and lime" and describes the oven to bake limestone into lime that was then used to soak corn in the nixtamal process. The Maya found the smoke of the baking limestone to be especially healthful.

While Temazcal is the oven, Temazcalli is the sweat lodge next to the oven. This also shows the derivation of the Nahuat word calli from Ch'orti'. Calli means house or structure in Nahuat and its first meaning must have been from sweat lodge or Temazcalli. Calli would mean "beside the lime" in Ch'orti'. Calli is one of the 20 day signs in the Aztec 260-day calendar. This same day sign in the Ch'orti' calendar is Ak'bar, the founder of the Ch'orti' lineage upon arrival in El Salvador in 8680 BCE. This is a clear indicator that it was the Ch'orti' lineage which originated calli, the house beside the lime.

Maya Science and Education

During the pre-Classic period at Chalchuapa, the Maya developed a knowledge base of birds and sharks. These are probably only the beginning of their science knowledge. This also may be when they developed an education system for their children.

The Maya knowledge of birds was so extensive that they were able to differentiate local birds and non-native (migratory) birds. Before one can identify a migratory bird one must identify most or all local birds. The primary areas of bird watching were the area around Chalchuapa as well as much of the current-day departments of Ahuachapán, Sonsonate, and to a lesser extent, La Libertad. Another cluster of bird-based place names occurs in Cabañas, about 120 kilometers northeast of Chalchuapa, indicating that it was another center of Maya population during the pre-Classic era.

The pre-Classic Maya often used the noun k'o' or "bird-beak" to denote bird. I translate it as bird beak even though the meaning in most cases is bird.

Turquoise-browed Motmot or Torogoz in El Salvador (national bird). By JoAnn Miller from Mexico City, Mexico (DSC00631 Uploaded by Snowmanradio) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Ahuachapán bird-based place names:

• Atiquizaya: at ti' ki' tz'a' yah - swollen bright-breasted bathing at opening. Atiquizaya was probably named before the meditation practice began since it is nearly at the midpoint of the three places with meditation-related names, yet does not have a meditation-related name itself.
• Los Huatales: wat ahr ehtz - time of observing the return (of migratory birds)
• Suntecumar: sun te' k'um aht - non-native washing itself in bath by trees
• Rio Sunza (Guatemala border): sun tz'a - shiny non-native
• Ataco: aht tak k'o - bird-beak dry (dust) bathing
• El Arco (near Ataco): ahr k'o - the time of the bird-beaks

Coastal Ahuachapán-Sonsonate bird-based place names:

Osprey. "Mike" Michael L. Baird [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

• Rio Sunzacuapa: sun sak wahp bah - regularly returning white-bodied non-native (osprey?)
• El Zarzal: tz'a' sal - boastful one in the wetlands
• El Salamo: sal h'a mo' - boastful parrot by the river
• Guaymango: way man k'o - sleep-trader bird beak (nocturnal)

Sonsonate-area bird-based place names:

• Sonsonate: sun tzo naht te’ - distant non-native nesting (resting) in tree

Red-lored Amazon Parrot, today a rare visitor to El Salvador. By Carlsonbl (Own work) [GFDL or CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

• Rio Sensunapan: tzen sun ap pan - laughing non-native fruit parakeet (parakeets or parrots are generally not migratory so this may refer to one on the edge of their range, like the Red-lored Amazon Parrot)
• Sonzacate: sun sak kat' te' - white non-native crossing the trees (Swainson's hawk or osprey?)
• Caluco: k'ar uk' k'o - retaining the mournful bird-beak (dove or pigeon?)
• Izalco: - ix sa'r k'o - moving boastful bird
• Talcomunca: tal k'o mun k'a - arrival of excess of satisfactory bird-beaks
• Salcoatitan: sa'r k'o aht ti' tan - boastful bird-beak dust-bathing its heart (breast)

La Libertad bird-based place names: 

• Chiltiupan: chir ti' up pan - hear mouth of parakeet on rope
• Quetzaltepeque: quetzal te' - quetzal in a tree
• Tacachico: tah kach ch'ih k'o - large bird-beak in a net in the forest OR large satisfactory bird-beak in the forest

Another cluster of names are in the present-day San Salvador area, demonstrating a Chol-Ch'orti' presence there in the pre-Classic era:

American White Pelican. By Vkulikov (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

• Panchimalco: ban ch'ih mar k'o - large beautiful sea-bird-beak
• Soyapango: soy yah ban k'o - beautiful arched swollen bird-beak (pelican?)
• Ilopango: ir lo' ban k'o - view beautiful long bird-beak

Elegant Trogon. By dominic sherony [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Another Chol-Ch'orti' population was based in the present-day department of Cabañas, based on the number of bird-based names there.

* Ilobasco: ir lo' bas k'o - view long-wrapped bird-beak
* Guacotecti: wa' k'o tech ti' - bird-beak is opening mouth
* Sensuntepeque: tzen sun te' pek ker - laughing non-native in tree on the hill

Jiquilisco in coastal Usulután also appears to be a bird-based name: ji' ki' il li ix k'o or "observe the moving breasted bird next to sandbar." This is only a portion of the bird-based place names in El Salvador. This should demonstrate the extensive practice of bird-watching, most likely taking place in the pre-Classic time period, mostly in western El Salvador, but also in pockets around present-day San Salvador and Cabañas. The identification of non-native birds - eight examples cited above - show that the Maya had an extensive mental or written list of native birds: a scientific method.

By Gouldingken (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Not only did the Maya observe birds, but also iguanas. There are several place names in El Salvador with iguana names:

• Juayua: juh yuh ha' - necklace iguana in the water
• Jujutla: juh hut lah - tired-faced iguana
• Jutiapa: juh ti' ap pa' - food swinging in mouth of iguana

"Companion Shark"

One of the most fascinating aspects of the Maya's scientific inquiry had to do with sharks. This took place at the site known as Cara Sucia in far western El Salvador. There are at least two shark-based place names in other parts of El Salvador. The first is the municipal seat of Jucuarán, located in the east, in Usulután department. Jucuarán is about 13 kilometers from the ocean, but the municipal territory extends to the ocean, including Playa El Espino. Jucuarán is huhk' wa'ar ahn in Ch'orti', meaning "sharp-edged jaguar in the current." It seems they used the image of a jaguar to describe the shark. This was likely an attack or death due to the shark. It is likely that the name El Espino - "the spine" - also originated from this same incident.

Shortfin mako shark. By Patrick Doll (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

To the west, the beach and beach-side town of Majahual in La Libertad, is in the midst of the international surfing zone, also refers to a shark, and likely a shark attack. Majahual is mah h'a wa'ar, meaning "bad water jaguar." This reference is clearly referring to a shark rather than a jaguar, calling it a "water jaguar." Additionally, Majahual is situated right on the beach.

This takes us to the lagoon next to the pre-Classic and Classic site of Cara Sucia. Cara Sucia had two stages of development. During the pre-Classic period it had development starting from 1200 BCE through the late pre-Classic. Most of the structures were built during the late Classic from 650 CE to 950 CE. The site is unique along the Pacific Coast being so close to the ocean - about ten kilometers. During the pre-Classic period it would have been even closer to the ocean, given the rising western Central American continental shelf.

(Click to enlarge.) Less than three kilometers from the pre-Classic site is a lagoon called either Gamboa or Bijagual, depending on the map. Gamboa has a rather generic meaning, k'am po' ha' or "useful hole of water," although it does suggest it has a specific purpose. Bijagual has an unequivocal meaning, pi ha' wa'ar or "companion water jaguar." Given the previous evidence that "water jaguar" refers to the shark, the meaning of the lagoon is "companion shark." This most likely refers to either befriending the sharks or studying the sharks. 

The lagoon is located 200 meters from a small river that flows into an estuary and then the ocean. The Maya would have needed to reverse the flow on this river to bring salt water into the lagoon, capture sharks with nets and guide them up the river into the lagoon, and then close off the lagoon. Their experience with public works, using gunpowder blasting, would have given them the engineering capability to carry out this task.

Several names around Laguna Bijagual support the idea of a shark enclosure there. Cara Sucia itself appears to be a Hispanicization of a Ch'orti' name, since it makes little sense in Spanish ("Dirty Face"). In Ch'orti', Cara Sucia is k'ar rah sus si ha', meaning "number of cutters in the retained slack water." "Cutters" is a reference to sharks. "Slack water" gives the impression that the river may have been an estuary up as far as the lagoon at that time, making river flow-reversal irrelevant.

On the other side of the lagoon about three kilometers is the village of El Gulsnay. It appears the name was sounded out when written in Spanish, but in Ch'orti' it would have been k'ul sin neh and means "series of flaps and tails." "Flaps" seem to be a reference to shark dorsal fins. Just west of El Gulsnay is the Rio Quequeishque. This curious name makes a little more sense knowing the Ch'orti' often dropped the 'r' on the syllable ker, which would then be ker ker ix ker, which would mean the slightly redundant "dividing, slashing movements that cut." It seems that the Rio Quequeishque is also referring to sharks. The seasonal Palma River and Quequeishque River meet southwest of the lagoon and may retain the name Quequeishque to the estuary.

Three other local names support the idea of a shark enclosure. A few kilometers upstream from the river that is next to Laguna Bijagual is a place called Irayol, or ir ha' yol. This means "see (them) put in water," which seems to indicate the sharks being placed in the lagoon. About eight kilometers east of the lagoon is a place called Faya, which would be bah yah and means "infected body." This probably refers to someone bit by the sharks. Finally, the Salvadoran border village with Guatemala is Hachadura. It is hach aht tur ha' and means "raised water condition of the bath (lagoon)," and seems to refer to filling the lagoon with ocean water. The Bijagual Lagoon impacted names up to 15 kilometers away.

It seems that the only purpose for the mid-pre-Classic settlement of Cara Sucia in 1200 BCE was to support the engineering of the lagoon and then the maintenance and learning of the sharks in the lagoon. This suggests that the shark enclosure was begun in 1200 BCE or soon thereafter, since that is when Cara Sucia was first settled. The Maya attempted either to befriend or learn from the shark (or both), possibly for several hundred years. The shortfin mako shark is the most common shark around El Salvador and may have been the one enclosed.

Education

There are a couple clues that the pre-Classic Maya around Chalchuapa may have developed a semi-formal education system for their children. One clue is the neighborhood of Amulunga about two kilometers from the Tazumal site. Amulunga is am ul un k'a or "explain desired spider to children." Someone was explaining the usefulness of spiders or the difference between unwanted spiders and desirable spiders.

The second clue is even more direct - about five kilometer southwest of Tazumal into the woods is a village called Zacamil. In Ch'orti' this is sahk k'am mi' il or "kittens useful searching and examining." The syllable mi can describe either cats or kittens but I think kittens is more appropriate here since the name seems to refer to children in an educational setting. Zacamil describes at least part of the Maya educational method: setting up searches for designated items and then examining. It is consistent with the scientific method.

There is evidence that Maya "schools" were set up in many areas. One sees the name Zacamil in several places in El Salvador. There are also Zacamil names in Candelaria, Tepecoyo, San Salvador, and Guazapa. The Zacamil by Candelaria is only 15 kilometers from Chalchuapa, so it is part of the same settlement area. The Zacamil by Tepecoyo is in the balsam range and is not a surprise - the Maya probably maintained a presence there since their first use of balsam sap and wood in about 7800 BCE. The San Salvador Zacamil, a famous insurgent neighborhood in the recent civil war, is further evidence, along with the previously mentioned bird-based names, of a Ch'orti' presence there in the pre-Classic era.

The pre-Classic Maya made major advancement in many fields in the pre-Classic era, as evidenced by the place names in and near Chalchuapa, the main home of the Chol-Ch'orti' elite during the era. These fields include:

• gymnastics
• meditative movement
• massage
• zoology, including birds, iguanas, and sharks
• education

Given Chalchuapa's role as the base for the Chol-Ch'orti' elite throughout most or all of the pre-Classic period, it and the surrounding area are one of the most important pre-Classic sites throughout Mesoamerica. And Cara Sucia hosted the only known shark retention area, likely for study, of the pre-modern world.

Comments

[Account Deleted]

Aqui al oeste de San Salvador hay un lugar que suena como Amulunga, se llama "Mulunca". Tienes un significado?

Un lugar cercano con un nombre que se repite en varios sitios es "Chanmico". Tienes un significado?

Gracias Tim.

Un elemento que podrias explicarnos es acerca del uso del Temazcalli o salas de vapor y sus propositos.

Que te parece esto: http://actitudindigena.blogspot.com/2011/03/kinam-el-yoga-tolteca.html

http://actitudindigena.blogspot.com/2011/04/los-chakras-toltecas.html

[Tim Lohrentz]

Gracias Rolando,
Voy a ver tus vínculos mas. Creo que la meditación tolteca tiene raiz en la meditación de Ahuachapan y Chalchuapa.
Mulunca parece ser "montículo de niños alegres." Bonito pero no tan claro.
Chanmico ... oh, lo veo ahora "Serpiente pájaro de los gatos." O sea Quetzalcoatl-Kukulcan tiene su raiz en El Salvador. Voy a agregarlo al artículo. Veo Chanmico cerca de Joya de Ceren, donde hay mas Chanmicos?
No sé mas de Temazcalli o Temazcal, solo que en Chorti es te'maxkal o "ramas y kal en cavidad." El Temazcalli fue un lugar para cocer piedra de kal para hacer kal. Debidamente encontraron que el humo fue muy buena para la salud. Interesante.

[Account Deleted]

Te refieres a la laguna de Chanmico, cerca del volcan de San Salvador.
otro: canton al norte del paso de roldan en San Vicente.
otro: canton como a 400 mt al norte de mi casa.

[Account Deleted]

Hey Tim.

Hay un Zacamil en la zona de los izalcos, entre Armenia y Zacacoyo (http://w0.fast-meteo.com/locationmaps/Izalco.12.gif).

En esa misma zona, en Sonsonate, cerca del canton las higueras, esta la comunidad Chanmico(http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:UaFDFR-sPMAJ:www.ista.gob.sv/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_k2%26view%3Ditem%26id%3D299:ista_entrego_lotes_san_luis_porci%25C3%25B3n_iii%26Itemid%3D139+&cd=7&hl=es-419&ct=clnk&client=ubuntu)

Otro Zacamil esta cerca de Cutumay Camones en Santa Ana.

Un lugar que tambien se repite es Azacualpa (armenia, cerca de Cutumay camones, en metapan, sur de Chalatenango, canton en Ilobasco, canton cerca de panchimalco, )

nahuat?: "lugar en la vera del río", de at, agua, río; tzacual, vera, orilla; y pa, lugar,

Tienes un significado para Azacualpa?

Gracias Tim.

[Tim Lohrentz]

Hey Rolando - Voy a agregar los demas ejemplos de Zacamil y Chanmico.

Interesante Azacualpa. La de Metapan podria ser la primera. Es as ak' wa'al pah. "Practicar con piel de jaguar sobre cuerpo." Fue un lugar donde mataron un jaguar. Lo sacaron la piel y pusieron la piel en su cuerpo. Talvez ya habian visto los de Xibalba hacerlo.

Un dia tendre que traducir todos los caserios y quebradas de El Salvador. Hay mucha historia todavia oculta.

[Account Deleted]

La unica referencia que conozco sobre practicas espirituales sobres arboles es en los libros de Carlos Castaneda. Es una practica que se llama no-hacer y consiste en realizar acciones que rompan con la vision normal del mundo, existen varias.
Una de ellas consiste en colgar un hombre en un gran arbol mediante un arnes y dejarlo horas mientras siente el "alma" del arbol.
O sea es un entrenamiento para la sensibilidad.

Ellos descubrieron que al estar lejos del suelo existe una expansion del aura.

[Account Deleted]

Una practica que tambien me parece espiritual es el petrograbado.
Son como mandalas.