If you ever looked at one of those "what house plant are you according to your zodiac sign" articles, then you're one of us. And given that astrology dates back to at least the 14th century, it's not a new interest, but it's continued to gain more visibility in mainstream media.
The 12 zodiac signs that most of us know come from ancient civilizations. The first celestial coordinate system dates back to Babylonia in the first millennium B.C. Towards the end of the 5th century, Babylonian astronomers divided the ecliptic, the plane of earth's orbit around the sun, into the 12 zodiac sign system that we know today.
However, in Mesoamerica, our ancestors had a different way of doing things. You've most likely heard of the famous Mayan calendar (how are we feeling about the world not actually ending in 2012?). Unlike the zodiac system, Mayan astrology is based on yearly calculations according to their calendar. It's relatively common knowledge that these ancient civilizations were forward-thinking and incredibly advanced (don't let post-colonization tales tell you otherwise). Mayans were one of the most dominant Mesoamerican civilizations.
And so, their astrology system was just as sophisticated. It would take far more than this article to do this topic justice, so instead, we'll guide you through the Mayan Day signs, which would be the zodiac's equivalent.
The calendar consists of 20-day signs and 13 galactic numbers, which form a 260 day year. The Mayans associated each day with a sign, and the system associates days with parts of the world. The signs represent who a person is at their core, and their signs are dependent on birthdate, birth time, and birth location. For example, "day signs can indicate our life purpose and enlighten us to our talents but also our weak spots."
Now that we dove briefly into the history, here's a brief description of what the day signs are (if you want a more in-depth explanation, we've got you covered)
The Crocodile: Represents new beginnings and leadership
Wind: Symbolizes communication and intelligence
House: Represents optimism and hard work
Lizard: Represents freedom and entertainment
Serpent: Represents intuition and attractiveness
Death: Represents a strong connection to the spiritual world
Deer: Represents strength and protectiveness
Rabbit: Represents playfulness and high energy
Water: Represents kindness and being altruistic
Dog: Represents curiosity and adventure
Monkey: Represents artistic talent
Grass: Represents sensitivity and emotions
Reed: Represents confidence and easy problem solving
Jaguar: Represents charm and friendliness as well as mystery
Eagle: Represents freedom and new experiences
Vulture: Represents seriousness and patience
Earth: Represents intelligence and innovation.
Flint: Represents courage and strength.
Rain: Represents youth and friendliness
Flower: Represents romance and dreaminess.
Want to know which are yours? We used this calculator right here (and noooooo, we totally didn't spend the entire day doing this instead of working) but honestly, the results are so accurate you'll probably find that it matches your zodiac sign's characteristics.
So what's your sign? Is it accurate or not at all? Let us know by tweeting us @theluzmedia on Twitter!
