If you have seen the movie "The Golden Compass", the following might help clarify the concept of "daimons" for you. - Pholus
NAGUALES (Duality Totems):
The Nahua peoples, such as Aztec and Maya, believe each person has a connection to a spirit called a Nagual (NAH-gwahl), or more commonly by the Maya, Uay (oo-EYE) and Aztecs, Nahual (NAH-wahl), which is not necessarily a physical creature, but makes itself known to the person at some point and helps to guide and aid him or her. The word Uay or Nahual means “alter-ego” or “alternate form (or aspect)” and refers to the innate “duality” inherent in all gods and humans. Similar to the Eastern concept of Yin and Yang, implying “opposites”, but more generally, simply “different.” Duality is simply the Nahua way of saying that there are two sides to everything in life that had to stay in balance in order to maintain harmony.
These protector spirits are emanations of Spirit-Doubles from the soul. The concept is similar in many respects to guardian angels among Christians; Fetches among Pagan witches; Daimons among the ancient Greek faith which were both benevolent and malevolent spirits (Christianity absorbed the term as "demon" and, like the sylvan god Pan, changed them into evil creatures; devils); Kachinas among the Hopi and Zuni peoples; or Totem creatures among other Amerindian groups.
The Chontal people of Oaxaca in Southern Mexico maintain a belief in the independent life of a person's soul, similar to the life of Naguales. They hold that the soul lives in a person's heart or breath, and that it has a human form.
The Nagual is imagined usually as an animal, insect or bird, but could also be a plant like an ear of corn, a reed or a flower; part of the body like a bone, eye or hand; an object like a star, the Moon, a mirror, stone, house, or arrow; a title like shaman, warrior or an ancestor; a natural phenomena, such as light, darkness, rain, wind, lightning, solar flares or meteors; mythical creatures like fire-serpents; or even a concept like death, the Afterlife or an offering. Naguales are spiritually bonded to the person throughout their entire life and dies when the person dies. This relationship is called “Tonal” (Toe-NAHL) and the Nagual protects, guards and inspires the human or god with whom it is associated.
The term "tonal" is frequently used in contrast to the Nagual distinguishing between the creature or object and the relationship between the human and it's Nagual spirit. The term tonal derives from the Nauhualt word tonalli, a word bearing such connotations as solar heat, day, day name, destiny and soul or spirit. It is believed that the tonalli soul of an infant was sent from the highest of the 13 Heavens, Omeyocan, the Place of Duality. This soul was inextricably tied into the Aztec calendar called the Tonalphohaulli (called Tzolk'in by the Maya) of 260 days which is one of 20 Day-signs represented by a specific creature, object or concept, combined with a number between 1 and 13, representing a resonance of a galactic or cosmic energy or musical tone which modifies the Day-sign. In many parts of Mesoamerica, individuals were named for the day in the 260-day calendar on which they were born or baptized, and these dates had very specific auguries (auspices or omens) or "energies" related to them. For instance, 5-Monkey was considered a good day (He who was then born was like the workings and qualities of the day: telling of tales, and jesting, but there was no anger) but being born on the next day, 6-Grass, was evil (he who was then born lived only in torment on earth, suffered pain and trouble, and found afflictions).
People were not necessarily bound by these energies, but could be better understood as the "stage" upon which the individual played out their lives, and would learn to function within these energies tapping into other aspects of their life, through other names and personal Naguales.
As noted, often a child is given a Nagual at birth, such as the Day Sign which can be their spiritual name (i.e., Maya: Uuc Cauac/Aztec: Chicome Quiahuitl, which in English is “7-Storm” or “Reflective Firestorm"), or their given name is connected in some way to the Nagual. Most often, though, children are not told what their Nagual was until they were old enough to understand how to use the information. Othertimes, a person would find their Nagual by going off alone on a vision quest into the forest or desert.
The Nagual might appear in a dream or even be present when they wake up.
The Nagual might appear in a dream or even be present when they wake up.
The Nagual is powerful, and even has the ability to transform its charge into the very creature or thing the spirit represents. For instance, the Feathered Serpent is the Nagual of the hero-god Quetzalcóatl, and the Nagual of Tezcatlipoca is a Night Jaguar, otherwise, these gods typically appear as normal humans. A curious aspect of Naguales, which may not be limited to the gods, is that they can also temporarily take on aspects and personas of different animals or objects and therefore different names, such as when Quetzalcóatl becomes Ehécatl, “the Wind.” The gods have also been known to have more than one Nagual in attendance, such as the fire-god, Xiuhtecuhtli, who usually has two Fire-Serpents (Xiucoatls, “turquoise serpents”),in the form of solar-flares or “returning comets.”
Each person’s Nagual, looks after that individual's needs on a spiritual level. On the rare occasions when a Nagual manifests as a material entity, it appears as a small animal of one sort or another. Normally, they communicate to their charges through dreams and visions from a realm called Uayib (oo-EYE-EEB), the Dreaming Place, that both can visit, but typically it is the Nagual that will travel while the charge sleeps to gather the information and report back in a dream. They can be sent off to carry out difficult tasks, such as confronting someone or helping someone who does not want to be helped.
To early Christian Colonial priests and missionaries, these form-changers, sometimes called, Naualli, were not considered simply to be baseless superstition, but were considered to be sorcerers or witches, and were a source of great concern. In 1600 CE, Fray Jaun Bautista warned of native sorcerers that transformed themselves into dogs, weasels, owls, chickens and jaguars. The 17th century parish priest Ruiz de Alarcón mentioned specific cases of native shape-shifters and explained their powers by claiming they had a pact with Satan. Although the concept of the Nagual recalls European conceps of witchcraft, it is clearly of native Mesoamerican origin, and closely tied to native concepts of shamanic power and transformation, and were frequently known for their ability to commit malignant acts, they also serve as protectors of the community. It was believed that even in battle, warriors could transform into a pack of wolves or jaguars to defend their territories. This can often blur the distinction between the shape-changing human and the actual Nagual.
A contemporary myth from El Salvador tells the story of a woman who could change into a pig. At the full moon she would kneel down or stand upon a rock. Turning three times to the right and three times to the left, she changes into a pig and frightens other villagers and steal from people as they came from the marketplace. One night a man watched as the woman transformed herself into the pig. When she left, he hid the rock. Try as she could, without the rock, she could not transform herself back and was forced to remain a pig.
Vision Serpent - a very important social and religious symbol, revered by the Maya. Maya mythology describes serpents as being the vehicles by which celestial bodies, such as the sun and stars, cross the heavens. The shedding of their skin made them a symbol of rebirth and renewal. During Maya bloodletting rituals, participants would experience visions in which they communicated with the ancestors or gods. These visions took the form of a giant serpent "which served as a gateway to the spirit realm." The ancestor or god who was being contacted was depicted as emerging from the serpent’s mouth. The vision serpent thus came to be the method in which ancestors or Gods manifested themselves to the Maya. Thus for them, the Vision Serpent was direct link between the spirit realm of the gods and the physical world. One of the most common rituals associated with the Vision serpent involved invoking ancestral sprits. Especially during coronation rites, the kings would contact the spirits for guidance and blessings. It is the Vision Serpent who provides the medium for contacting these deities. One such Vision Serpent was named Och-Kan.
Xiuhcoatl (Shee-wah-ko-ah-tul) or “fire serpent,” meaning “turquoise serpent” was serpentine creature with a segmented body and snout which can turn sharply backwards. Xiucoatl also means “returning comet,” and was associated with fire and the solar heat (i.e., solar flares). At least two nagual Xiucoatls attend the fire-god, Xiuhtecuhtli, and they are thought to signify the flames which represent the New Fire. Both the Sun and Night were adorned with xiucoatls, mythical and celestial serpents.
Itzam-Ye (EETS-ahm-Yay), the Serpent Bird, or Celestial Bird, is associated with the four corners of the world and perches high at the crown of the World Tree (Aztec: Ahuehuetl, Maya: Tzuk té or Yax'ché), the Tree of Heaven under which good souls rejoice, surveying all below. Itzam Ye is the Maya symbol of expanded consciousness, and is the personal Nagual of Itzamná. Itzam Ye flies forth from our consciousness, dispersing light around the world. In another guise, he may be Vukub-Cakix, "7-Macaw," the "false sun" the hero twins of the Popul Vuh shot from his perch atop the World Tree to prepare for the raising of the sky of the present world. The Quiche Maya identify the Big Dipper as 7 Macaw. Or it could be that Itzam-Ye and Vukub-Cakix are two distinctly different creatures. [source]Related Articles
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