How did the precolonial Maya view their gods' relationship to mankind, specifically: were they considered benevolent, neutral, or antagonistic? I've seen a number of hints that they may have considered the gods to be angry, interested in wiping out mankind, but I'm afraid I just don't have any good evidence.
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The Mayans viewed their gods as both benevolent, and malevolent. As Sir John Eric Sidney Thompson stated in his book Maya History and Religion the Mayan gods were largely indifferent except for a desire for recognition in the way of frequent offerings. This is confirmed somewhat by the Popol Vuh which is mostly concerned with how the gods made man. This article argues that the Mayan gods were not akin to most Western conceptions of "gods," and the Mayan gods were just a part of the natural order of the universe, and as such they were not terribly active. Pre-Colombian sources are somewhat sparse, but there is no glaring evidence to suggest that the Mayan gods were not indifferent gods that could be good and evil. |
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