Ubèel pixan : the path of souls. Family and collective ancestors among the yucatec maya

The aim of this article is to analyze the funerary customs and contemporary rituals relative to the souls of the Yucatec Maya in order to better understand their relationship to pre-Hispanic burial patterns. It has been suggested that the souls of the dead are considered ancestors, which in turn can...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Le Guen, Olivier
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2009
País:México
Institución:UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL AUTÓNOMA DE MÉXICO
Repositorio:Península
Idioma:español
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.pkp.sfu.ca:article/44354
Acceso en línea:https://www.revistas.unam.mx/index.php/peninsula/article/view/44354
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Prácticas funerarias
mayas yucatecos
culto a los ancestros
Funerary practices
Yucatec Maya
ancestor worship
Descripción
Sumario:The aim of this article is to analyze the funerary customs and contemporary rituals relative to the souls of the Yucatec Maya in order to better understand their relationship to pre-Hispanic burial patterns. It has been suggested that the souls of the dead are considered ancestors, which in turn can be classified as family and collective ancestors when considering several criteria: the place of burial, the place of ritual performance, and the ritual treatment. In this article I will consider funerary practices as well as ritual categories of ancestors (family or collective), as reminiscences of ancient practices whose traces can be found in historical sources. Through an analysis of the current funerary practices and their variations, I aim to demonstrate that over the time —and despite socioeconomical changes— ancient funerary practices from the Post-classic period maintained some homogeneity, preserving a number of essential characteristics that can still be observed today.