Mayan Art, Music, and Dance
The Maya loved to dance. During ceremonies and festivals the men gathered in a circle and two dancers performed in the center. Women were not included.
The Maya’s favorite musical instrument was a drum made from a hollow log and skins. They also played gongs, flutes, and whistles.
A favorite Maya game was pok-a-tok. The object of the game was to drive a rubber ball through a ring located in the middle of the court. The players could use only their feet, legs, and hips.
The Maya painted murals on every available wall and sculpted statues in wood, stone, and metals. Their basket and cloth weaving was magnificent. They also worked with gold and silver.
Religon
The Maya believed the world was created by spirits. At some time, these spirits spoke the name earth and it appeared. Man was created from mud, but was so weak he was destroyed by a flood. Then the spirits sent twins, who conquered evil. The twins were believed to be the ancestors of the Maya people.
The Maya worshiped hundreds of spirits. Most of them were nature spirits. The Maya sacrificed birds and other small animals to these spirits.
The major celebration took place during Mol, the moth when all the spirits were honored. The Warriors’ Feast and the New Year were also special times.
Each celebration was marked by feasting, dancing, and sacrifices to the spirits.
The Mayan people were very careful. When a person died, a priest had to purify the house. Bad spirits were thought to be the cause to most sickness and death.
The Mayan Calendar
The Mayan Calendar was amazingly accurate. It had 365 days. There were eighteen months of twently days each. The remaining 5 days were “unlucky days.” No activities went on during this time.
There was also a 260-day calendar used to plan daily life. Priests studied the stars and decided which days were lucky and which were unlucky. No Maya took a trip, planted a crop, or married on an “unlucky day.”
The Maya also had a lunar calendar based on the cycles of the moon. This calendar told them when to plant and harvest.

Warfare
Until the Spaniards came, the Maya were among the mightiest people in the area. The Maya fought one another from time to time, but joined forces when threatened by an outside enemy.
In battle the Maya used bows and arrows, spears, and blowguns. Soldiers also used wooden swords, copper axes, and short lances. War paint was used to frighten the enemy, as was loud shouting and hissing.
Important prisoners were sacrificed to honor the ancestor of a town.
The Maya Today