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The tonalpohualli
The tonalpohualli, a Nahuatl word meaning "count of days", is a 260-day sacred period (often termed a "year") in use in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, especially among the Aztecs. This calendrical period is neither solar nor lunar, but rather consists of 20 trecena, or 13-day periods. Each trecena is dedicated to and under the auspices of a different deity.
In part due to the sheer antiquity of the tonalpohualli, its origin is unknown. Several theories have been advanced for this unique calendrical period: that it represents a Venusian cycle, that it represents the human gestation period, or that it represents the number of days when the sun is not overhead between August 12 and April 30 in the tropical lowlands. On the other hand, some scholars including J. E. S. Thompson suggest that the tonalpohualli was not based on natural phenomenon at all, but rather on the integers 13 and 20, both considered important numbers in Mesoamerica.
The other major Aztec calendar, the xiuhpohualli, is a solar calendar, based on 18 months of 20 days. A xiuhpohualli was designated by the name of its first tonalpohualli day. For example, Hernan Cortes met Moctezuma II on the day 8 Wind in the year 1 Reed (or November 8, 1519 in the Julian calendar).
The xiuhpohualli and the tonalpohualli would coincide every 52 years. The "year" 1 Reed was the 1st in that 52 year cycle.
Tzolk'in (from the revised Guatemala Mayan languages Academy orthography, which is preferred by the linguists of the Summer Institute of Linguistics, formerly and commonly tzolkin) is the name bestowed by Mayanists on the 260-day Mesoamerican calendar originated by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica.
The tzolk'in, the basic cycle of the Maya calendar, is a pre-eminent component in the society and rituals of the ancient and the modern Maya. The tzolk'in is still in use by several Maya communities in the Guatemalan highlands. Its use is marginal but spreading in this region, although opposition from Evangelical Christian converts continues in some communities.
The word, meaning "division of days", is a western invention coined in Yukatek Maya. The corresponding words used by the K'iche' and Kaqchikel peoples of Guatemala, which have maintained an unbroken count for over 500 years, are, respectively, Aj Ilabal Q'ij 'the sense of the day' and Chol Q'ij, 'the organization of time'. The actual names of this calendar as used by the pre-Columbian Maya are not widely known. The corresponding Postclassic Aztec calendar, was called tonalpohualli, in the Nahuatl language.
The Tzolk'in was extensively used in Mayan inscriptions and codices. Symbolism related to the Tzolk'in is also observed in the Popol Vuh (which, though written in the early post-conquest period, is probably based on older texts). For instance, when Ixbalanque has set an impossible task for Ix Quic of collecting a netful of corn from one stalk and Ix Quic successfully completes it, she leaves the imprint of her net in the ground, and the day "net" is the opening of the Venus cycle which follows "ahau" ("ajpu" in K'iche'), just as her child is the heir of Hun Hunajpu.
The uses to which the ancient Maya applied the calendar are unknown, nonetheless modern Maya communities employ the calendar as follows:
For Maize cultivation.(The zenith transit days may have been significant for agriculture along the south coast of Guatemala because April 30 occurs just before the rainy season. Modern Maya plant their corn at the end of April or early in May. In the August 13 zenith transit the Maya initiate its current era in this day', approximating the harvest of the dried corn.
For modern Guatemalan highlanders, the 260 days are employed in training the Aj K'ij, or 'calendar diviner'. Nine months after commencing training in divination, the novice is "reborn" and initiated into office. The tzolk'in is explainable, in principle, as a calendar of midwives, since it counts 260 days from the 20 day period of the conception, from when the heart of the fetus starts to beat, until birth.
For days which are suitable for certain actions. For instance, a low-numbered Ak'ab'al or B'en would be a good day for a wedding, whereas K'an would be a good day for building or maintaining a house.
For divination based on casting lots and counting forward through the calendar from the current 'year bearer' to arrive at a day which is then interpreted. This is not pure cleromancy because somatic twitches of "blood lightning" can either be specifically consulted or arise spontaneously during the process.
For traditional Mayan names, which are based on calendar days, often birthdays. As in astrology, personal characteristics are associated with birthdays (see Mayan astrology for details).
TEONANACATL: Ancient Shamanic Mushroom from Mesoamerica.