Trecena Notes - 1 Wisdom (Cib)

Tzolkin Trecena Notes – 1 Vulture (Cib)

Day 196 of the 260 Day Tzolkin

July 5, 2009

Trecenas are thirteen-day periods in the Tzolkin. Each Trecena starts with the Number 1, but with
a different Day Glyph. As a wave of the Thirteen Heavens, the underlying energy is governed by
the First Day Glyph of the Trecena and influences all thirteen successive Day Glyphs. Being aware
of the predominant energy of the First Day of the Trecena, we can align our intentions with that
energy and allow our goals to manifest.

This Trecena starts with 1 Cib – Vulture/Owl – Ancient Warrior, Keeper of Wisdom, Defender of Universal Consciousness, Silent Inner Strength of Convictions.

This day sign is associated with Vulture because the Vulture not only feeds on the remains of the
dead, but also clears away the past. Vulture symbolically represents the purging of karmic patterns
and the emergence of new thought. Vultures and Owls were also revered as great teachers and
Keepers of Ancient Wisdom.

In Mayan cosmology, there were four divine figures called the Bacabs (Bah KAHBS) who personified
the four directions and were responsible for holding up the sky in each of the four corners. They
were depicted as beekeepers or sometimes even gigantic bees and wore conch shells on their heads.
The Maya associated this day sign with the conch shell as its spiral shape symbolizes emergence and rebirth. In many ancient cultures, the spiral represents death and rebirth as an ongoing process taking place within the human soul. To the Maya, the day sign of the Vulture also represented departed
spirits returning as butterflies or bees.

According to Tony Shearer in Beneath the Moon and Under the Sun, “In a Mayan translation of this
sign we learn that this day was a day of God, the Creator of All, when just before the end of the
long 1144 year epic the Creator would come down and clean up all the filth and corruption on
our Earth Mother, as the Sacred Buzzard cleans the filth from our highways and fields. It is interesting
to note that the population of Vultures in Washington D.C. has increased over the past few years. Perhaps this is a sign of a divine clean-up campaign.” (This was written in 1975.)

Another representation of the Trecena is that of a creative wave beginning at 1 and ending at 13,
with the numbers 6, 7 and 8 representing the crest of the wave. The crest could be interpreted as
a strong influential energy, although the underlying influence on the Trecena would still rest in
the beginning. In this Trecena, the crest falls on 6 Imix (Crocodile/Waterlily), 7 Ik (Wind) and 8
Akbal (Night/Hearth). Crocodile represents ancient primal forces and new beginnings. Wind is
the spirit or chi energy that gives life to primal energy. Night represents the temple which houses
the soul. The Vulture trecena encourages us to clear out old habits and patterns. The energies
available at the crest (new beginnings flowing in the wind influencing our spiritual house) help
us to attain a new level of awareness and new patterns of existence.

As we journey through each day of this Trecena: 1 Cib (Vulture/Owl) 2 Caban (Earth),
3 Etznab (Flint), 4 Cauac (Storm), 5 Ahau (Sun), 6 Imix (Crocodile/Alligator), 7 Ik (Wind),
8 Akbal (Night/Hearth), 9 Kan (Lizard), 10 Chicchan (Serpent), 11 Cimi (Death), 12 Manik
(Deer), and 13 Lamat (Rabbit), utilize the energy of Cib to release old patterns which no
longer serve in order to make way for new ideas and opportunities to emerge.

***For a list of all 20 Mayan Sun Signs - click here ***

In Lak’ech,

William and Viola