“An ancient ritual”

Only he who carries on his lips the power of prayer; only he who keeps the gratitude of an offering in his lap; only he who considers the physical effort to be a form of sacrifice, know the profound meaning of taking part of a pilgrimage like the Sacred Mayan Journey.

In the Mexican Caribbean, and for about ten centuries, the ancient Maya went on pilgrimage to venerate the goddess Ixchel, the white-skinned, the goddess of the Moon cycles, the fertility, the art of weaving and painting, the medicine, the divination, the fishing and the storms.

Around 500 BC the pilgrimages to her oracle in the island of Cuzamil, today’s Cozumel, departed from the most remote cities in the Mayan world. The ports as Xamanhá, today’s Playa del Carmen, and Polé, today’s Xcaret, served as a bridge to cross the deep waters of the Caribbean and venerate Ixchel. By the mid 16th Century, the navigation to the Indies was prohibited by the Spanish crown and the shrine of Ixchel disappeared.

The project of the Sacred Mayan Journey was founded more than three years ago by Xcaret together with Cozumel and Solidaridad municipalities. Recovered from the written glyphs, narrated by the Chroniclers of the Indies and interpreted by the Maya culture specialists, today, Ixchel’s depiction helps us understand the intimate connection between the natural forces and the human nature. About 300 oarsmen made the contemporary history of this sacred journey, showing the world what discipline, attitude, faith and teamwork accomplish. The Sacred Mayan Journey is a shining example for Mexico to follow

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It’s time to travel back to the past through the ancient tradition in which you are history.

Come & join us on May 20, 21 & 22, 2010 and rediscover an ancient tradition to honor the goddess Ixchel.