The Magic & Mysteries of the Sacred Ruins of Uxmal
By Sheri Rosenthal
Uxmal is one of the most majestic of all the sites in the Yucatan. Incredibly well preserved – the Pyramid of the Magician has a special architecture rarely seen – rounded corners and the western staircase of the pyramid is situated so that it faces the setting sun on the summer solstice.
Uxmal is said to mean “thrice built” reflecting the number of times the city has been rebuilt, however I personally prefer to relate this wording to the Mayan cosmology of the underworld, middle world, and upper worlds. The underworld represents the shadow aspects of ourselves that we have rejected and must retrieve, accept and honor in ourselves to be whole. The middle world embodies our day to day human lives lived from the perspective of the ego mind. And the upper world is Infinite Divine Consciousness as it manifests in and through us.
Uxmal and all of the sites around Uxmal are designed in the Puuc style (named for hills of this region) and if you visit the other Mayan sites in this area you will find these ruins particularly artistic and graceful.
Along the Puuc Route are the smaller sites of Kabah and Loltun. Kabah (”Strong Hand”) is actually connected by a walkway to the south of Uxmal. The most famous structure at Kabah is the “Palace of the Masks,” the facade decorated with hundreds of stone masks of the long-nosed rain god Chaac; it is also known as the Codz Poop, meaning “Rolled Matting,” from the pattern of the stone mosaics. Beautiful! Lotun is a set of caves known for its recovered animal bones and paintings on the walls from ancient times. Ancient tools were also recovered.
