#ceremony – Cara Carozza

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Ajpu

Yesterday was my Nima Q’ij, or Great Day. I spent the morning in ceremony and the afternoon working. As much as I wanted to spend the entire day in prayer and celebration, my day job didn’t allow for that this cycle. It’s tax season and the flow of paperwork is relentless. If I don’t keep it moving, I will drown in it. Still, I couldn’t help but infuse the magic of my birth Nawal into all that I did to serve my clients. Ajpu asks us to see the divinity in the mundane and to find the hero that lives within us.

The hero’s journey is not an easy path to walk. Meeting our shadow is uncomfortable, at best. Ajpu is the promise of light at the end of the dark tunnel. It’s the elixir that is waiting on the other side of our greatest challenges. It’s the return of spring after a long dark winter. Kej has created the container for our blossoming. As the Nawal of the Maya religion, Kej is a spiritual teacher. I was an excellent student while under Kej’s tutelage. I was prepared for my Great Day. Some of the most important people in my life were born during the Kej trecena and I celebrated each of them with a personalized ritual.

Now I’m ready to integrate my ritual making skills into my business. Personalized ceremonies to initiate and close financial cycles. A divination card deck that I’ve designed from the messages spoken to me through my dreams and the symbols of the Cholq’ij. My second memoir which explores the themes of money, magic and menopause and my own hero twin journey. I can’t wait to share these offerings once they are fully gestated. They’ve alchemized my healing and illuminated my path forward.

Yesterday we also had a total lunar eclipse, also known as a blood moon. In the Popol Vuh, the K’iche’ Maya creation story, the mother of Jun Ajpu is named Ixquic which means blood moon or blood maiden. Perhaps this eclipse is inviting us to rebirth ourselves as the divine beings that we are. The world could certainly use more light right now and that’s what I intend to channel for the remainder of this trecena.

May you be the hero of your own life,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Kej

I’m ready for the steady and grounded energy of the stag after yesterday’s convergence of astronomical events. The trecena of magic ended with a solar eclipse, the return of Venus to the evening sky and the final day of Wayeb or Tz’apin Q’ij. Wayeb is the five-day period at the end of the Maya solar year. It is seen as a time of introspection and in some communities, public ceremony is avoided entirely until the new year lord or Mam has been seated. Jun Kej will guide us over the coming solar year and the next thirteen days. Yesterday was also the Chinese or Lunar new year. According to those traditions, we will be guided by the fire horse this year. Another four legged for the journey.

Yesterday was also the first day of my Mayan Cross. Your Mayan Cross is calculated using your date of birth. Here is where you can look up yours: http://www.walkingthewhiteroad.com. There are nine Nawals in your cross and they all occur within a twenty-eight day period, every 260 days. This period is often referred to as, “The Path of the Feathered Serpent” and it’s an ideal time for personal reflection and intention setting. I’d originally planned on making a small fire ceremony for my ancestors yesterday. Oxlajuj’ Kame is, according to many, the day when the veil is most thin. Both the number and the Nawal are associated with the ancestors and the unseen realms. Mother nature had her own ideas about what was best for me yesterday and she poured rain all day, extinguishing my plans.

I almost abandoned my ceremony making. I’m in the middle of my busiest time of year. Yet, if I’ve learned anything about this calendar, it’s the power of listening to the energy of each day and meeting it where it is. I’ve also learned that ceremony can happen anywhere, at any time. Your presence and your intention are what’s most important. My ceremony yesterday supported me in all the ways that I needed to be supported right now. I spent the day at the spa. I invited my ancestors to join me in the sauna and then I made a prayer as I poured water over the hot rocks. My sauna was followed by a purifying shower and then a restorative deep tissue massage. It soothed my body and cleared my mind making it easy to feel the magic that was all around me.

Kej is the Nawal of the wilderness and it carries a decidedly masculine frequency. It is not unlike the fire horse archetype that was welcomed yesterday by so many. It’s also the Nawal of spiritual leaders and priests and priestesses. Kej derives his power from the force of nature itself. The deer embodies stability through it’s four powerful legs. It holds all four of the cardinal directions within it’s medicine and that medicine is best taken outdoors. That is the guidance for the next thirteen days and also the coming solar year. Get outside. Bathe in Mother Natures tonics. It will soothe your soul and heal you.

Naturally,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Imox

Imox is the Nawal of water and the collective consciousness. It’s where we plant the seeds of our next creative dream. I’m not sure I’m ready for a new creative dream. I may have overeaten at the banquet that Q’anil offered me over the last thirteen days. I’m still feeling a bit energetically hung over from it all, or maybe it’s the intense solar activity we’ve been experiencing. Either way I feel spun and in need of grounding.

Imox is not a grounding energy. It’s an energy of pure potential and all those possibilities can feel overwhelming. Quiet presence is what Imox asks for and what I intend to cultivate as I enter the busiest time of my professional year. It won’t be easy. I still have a lot of crops in my garden from last season to tend to. Maybe this is why I don’t feel ready for any new dreams quite yet. I’m still digesting last season’s bounty. It was very delicious. The seeds of community and creativity that I planted during the last Imox trecena nine months ago flourished magnificently and I couldn’t resist tasting the fruit of each and every one of them.

My Q’anil banquet began with a Mayan personal ritual workshop which inspired me to harvest water from a natural source for my altar. That inspiration led to an invitation to visit my friend Kim. Kim lives near a seasonal lake and I hadn’t seen her in over a year. Our friendship was definitely in need of watering. My thirst quenched from our visit, I was then offered payment for tax services rendered from a new client in the form of an in-home massage. My main course followed. A retreat that included a sound bath and a cacao ceremony. It was hosted by another new client that I’ve added to my garden. My dessert was served at the edge of the pacific, in the baths of the Esalen Institute by my new friend Elena.

It was certainly a bountiful feast, but I’m ready to get back to my routine now. I’ve lost touch with my daily practices in the frenzy of my harvest celebrations. Without them, I risk drowning in the pool of Imox’s fertile waters. Staying present is what will keep me afloat. Presence arrives for me through my breath. If I can just remember to breathe deeply, then I will be okay.

In Peace,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of Toj

I’ve had a lot of opportunities for gratitude over the past thirteen days, but I was not immune to the sting that the medicine of Ajmaq often brings. After eight long months and many hours on the phone with the Internal Revenue Service, Mercury Retrograde delivered my sister’s tax refund. The last thing I had been waiting for in order to finally close her estate. All that remained was to sort through her personal possessions. She left a surprisingly small amount of stuff. She’d done a massive purge and even managed to get her house into escrow in the weeks leading up to her suicide. She made the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do as easy as it could possibly be for me. For this I will always be grateful.

I’ve kept what I think my niece and nephew will want the most when they are finally able to look at it. I found a few things that I know they will never want to see. I’ve set those aside to burn in ceremony this evening. Today we welcome the energy of Toj. Toj is the Nawal of reciprocity and the sacred fire. The fire ceremony is the Mayan’s most fundamental ritual and also my favorite. The fire is our portal to communion with the spiritual realms and our ancestors. It’s where we offer spiritual food to the energies that sustain us. Toj teaches that in order to have balance in our lives, we must make offerings in payment for what we have received.

I’ll be offering rose petals and rosemary from my own garden today. I’ve been trying to use what I have and what already knows the land. I will also offer cacao, tobacco, copal and agua florida from my favorite local sources in Central America. Supporting the indigenous wisdom keepers of the spiritual practices that feed my soul is part of the reciprocity of Toj. It’s another offering from me to create balance in my life.

The fire also offers an opportunity for purification. Fire cleanses and transmutes. Today I will burn the documents of old agreements. I will pray for the transmutation and renewal that only the flame can deliver and I will offer prayers of gratitude for the financial stability that my sister’s departure has created for me. I invite you to light a candle each day for the next thirteen days and take a moment to offer your presence and your gratitude for what you’ve received this year.

In Service,

Cara

Living Maya Time – Symbols of N’oj

Every choice is sacred. This is what I heard as I reflected on the second anniversary of my sisters passing on the Cholq’ij calendar. She passed on 9 E’. A day when our new life path may be clearly revealed. For the Maya, the number nine represents the number of lunar cycles that a human baby gestates. The Nawal E’ is the road or the journey. To live in harmony with the energies, one is said to be walking the white road.

My sisters’ choice to commit suicide changed the course of my life path forever. For two cycles I have been wearing a heavy coat of grief, unable to connect to her energies. Shame and survivor guilt have obscured her presence. The calendar offered another perspective. What if I could accept her choice as sacred? Perhaps then, I could receive her gifts and connect with her spirit more deeply.

The trecena of K’at offered me the ideal opportunity to liberate myself from the choking entanglement of my grief. I’ve had my sisters’ ashes on my deck since the dry season began. She’s been surrounded by flowers. Flowers whose vines had intertwined. This became my ceremony, untangling the knots that had formed. When I was done, the plants mirrored my own feelings. They looked healthier and there was room for new growth.

Today’s energy invites us to receive the wisdom that N’oj offers. We can only receive this knowledge when there’s space in our minds and in our hearts. Each Nawal offers us a symbol or glyph. The glyph for N’oj depicts a brain and circles which represent the potential for human spiritual evolution. My daughter and her father both carry the Nawal of N’oj and they are both engineers. The archetype of the engineer is the first symbol that I ascribed to the Nawal N’oj.

Part of the magic of this calendar is its’ insistence upon looking within ourselves to find the wisdom of spirit. Through storytelling and imagery, we can create our own library of symbols. Using our own unique language, we can connect more intimately with ourselves, our ancestors and our guides.

On 7 N’oj, I was invited to participate in the inaugural session of a Cholq’ij study group. The group has been created by Diana Paez who carries the Nawal of 4 N’oj. She has an excellent website, www.walkingthewhiteroad.com, which is filled with information about the calendar if you want to dive deeper into its’ wisdom. Diana is an excellent scribe and I have added that symbol to the engineer archetype that I already identified N’oj with.

As you move through the next thirteen days, take note of the symbols that you are offered. Journal the dreams that stay with you upon waking. Record the images that appear during your meditations. Use this information to distill your own knowledge. You are your own guru and you don’t need anyone else to connect to your higher wisdom.

You’ve got this!

Living Maya Time – The Trecena of E’

Kawoq ushered in a chorus of women that I have planted seeds of relationship with over the past few years. They all showed up eager to be watered. It should not have been such a surprise. The energy of the midwife and the rainstorm had been my conductor. She eased me into my labor with a quiet meditation retreat with my friend Cathryn. A once-a-year date to spend the weekend together doing something creatively empowering. It left plenty of time for leisurely meals and lots of conversation. Nice and easy.

The contractions got my attention when I got a call from my new sister, Maat. “I got my dispensary license! Remember you told me when we were in the Dominican Republic that you would take care of the taxes, right?” I did, but had forgotten. She would be my first cannabis client. Family and in an aligned business. I really couldn’t say no, especially after what my family had been through. Kawoq encouraged me to breathe. You got this she said. You’ve studied the law. You’re the best person for this work. She is so wise.

Transition came with a request from a client I had not worked for in a while. A delicate project, closing a family business and preparing the final tax returns. But also, something else. “I’ve seen the ceremonies you make for yourself online and I want you to create one for me and my husband for our anniversary.” Ashley is an artist. She ran for the City Council of Carmel – by – the -Sea and I was her campaign treasurer. We connected immediately. I got paid to learn a ton and collect money while drinking wine and eating cheese at all of her fund-raising events. It didn’t even feel like work.

I was surprised, but completely intrigued by her request. Almost immediately, I got a case of imposter syndrome. Am I qualified to create a Mayan’ish fire ceremony for someone else? I decided to just start and see what took form. Checking their anniversary date, I saw that it was today, 1 E’. Time to push.

E’ is the Nawal of the road, the journey and the new path. It nurtures and expands the new life birthed during the Kawoq trecena. Ideal energy for a ceremony to initiate a new financial direction. This was all I needed to fuel my creativity. Everything I needed was there. I didn’t need to buy anything. I just needed to allow the process to happen. And I had SOOO MUCH fun doing it! Equally fun was delivering it to her. She had gifted me one of her sculptures after the campaign. Now I was able to reciprocate.

A new path is emerging. One where my spiritual practices intersect with my business services. Fertile ground for more of my authentic self to emerge. I am feeling an exhilarating excitement building. The energies of this Trecena will also be supporting my journey to San Diego. My husband and I are visiting our daughter and one of our sons. I’m so excited to squeeze them both. Travel is auspicious for the next couple of weeks. Inward journeys are also supported. I’m starting one of those too. A 21 day cacao immersion. Can’t wait to meet Madame Cacao more intimately.

Bon voyage on your journey, I hope it surprises and delights you.

Cara xoxo

Living Maya Time – The Trecena of Kawoq

I am welcoming today’s energies with an optimism that I have not felt in a very long time. Kame’s alchemy has transformed my perspective. I am ready to birth a new reality. Kawoq is both the midwife and the rainstorm. She can be a gentle sprinkle or a violent storm. Either way, she is there to ensure that new life and new creations are born. In perfect harmony, the Kawoq trecena follows the trecena of Kame. Kame is death, transformation and the ancestors. Kame extinguishes that which no longer serves our path. Kawoq follows to cleanse and purify us. She guides us through the rebirth process. She is the wisdom of the grandmothers and the divine feminine.

My pinched nerve turned out to be a rib out of place. It was really uncomfortable. And yet, all I could think about was getting back up into the attic. The momentum had started. I had the support of the ancestors. Now was the time. My enthusiasm was undaunted and I was rewarded. After all the empty card board boxes had been removed and recycled, there was plenty of space to view what remained.

**The Mineral people were welcomed outdoors with a smudging ceremony.**

Feathers, rocks and shells were the souvenirs of a lifetime of family camping trips, spiritual vision quests and hiking with friends. The attic was filled with mineral people eager to be liberated. This is where we began excavating memories. We did not confront the past as I had imagined, we were welcomed by it. We made ourselves comfortable and spent some time there. It was delightful. I could only agree with my mother when she remarked, “We sure had a lot of fun, didn’t we?”

Kame has gifted me with the perspective that transformation does not have to be uncomfortable. It can come gently and easily. Just like the adjustment from my chiropractor. I’m nurturing this energy by beginning the Kawoq trecena with a two-day meditation retreat. Quieting my mind to listen for what wants to be born. The Maya believe that time is a thread that weaves reality. Being still offers the opportunity to create our reality with conscious intention. To mindfully weave our experience. Seeking the wisdom of women will be supported and particularly blessed over the next thirteen days. I’ll be staying with my friend Cathryn this weekend. She invited me to the retreat. She’s very wise and also lots of fun. I can’t wait to initiate these creation energies together with her.

Joyfully Yours,

Cara

Living Maya Time – The Trecenas of Imox and Ix

Today begins the Trecena of Ix. We have been journeying through the Trecena of Imox for the past thirteen days and I’m ready for the shift. Imox holds the energy of the collective consciousness and rules dreamtime. It can be a little intense, especially for empaths and sensitives.

I had the opportunity to participate in a workshop that was in perfect alignment with the energies of Imox. Rest and Digest was offered by a childhood friend of my daughters and was an invitation to slow down. Just what I need in late Spring. We were invited to keep a dream journal and record our dreams each morning. On the night of the full moon, our leader planted a collective dream seed and we imbibed a devotional dose of blue lotus tea together.

The blue lotus was more subtle than I expected, but it was effective. Sorting through the images and impressions of my dreams is challenging for me. I tend to view the world from a very linear perspective. This serves me well in my waking life, but not so much in the spirit realms. Blue lotus flower gifted me with three dreams in response to our dream seed, “What does true nourishment look and feel like in body, mind and spirit?”

Blue lotus showed me an image of myself sitting in meditation listening to a recording of my own voice. In the next scene, my husband scooped me up and carried me across the room effortlessly. I felt held. My daughter joined me in my final vision. She was offering me a tube of the body butter that I buy from a local herbalist and which definitely makes me feel nourished.

Ix will be our guide for the next Trecena. Ix is often described as the Nawal of Mother Earth and embodies the energy of the divine feminine. Ix gives us the opportunity to connect with the spirit of the Earth. It rules alters and sacred sites. Ix invites us to communicate directly with our mother by making prayers and offerings of gratitude to her at her natural shrines. Ix is also associated with magic. Through our prayers and our offerings of gratitude we are able to connect to the magic of the planet and creativity.

It’s been too long since I spent time with my outdoor alter. My husband expanded the alter for me earlier this Spring and my traditional Mayan candles have finally arrived. It’s time for a fire ceremony and an offering. The ancestors are restless. They are ready to celebrate and I am their hostess. It’s going to be MAGICAL! Ceremony always feeds my soul and grounds me. I highly recommend it. I do like a fire, but you can do what ever is meaningful to you. Treat it like a party.

Happy Celebrating,

Cara