Humbatz Men, Monday, October 31, 2011 - “We know it’s the right time, because the skulls are here”

by Kevin Garnnett – of Occupy Chicago

I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel from my home in Chicago to the Cahokia Mounds in Collinsville, Il and take part in the pilgrimage and ceremony of Mayan Daykeeper, Humbatz Men, who is leading a journey across the country with a group of elders -read: teachers, leaders, dignitaries…harbingers – carrying with them sacred crystal skulls. These “elders”, representing a wide range of culture and heritage, were of diverse ages, races and backgrounds, and each brought with them a crystal skull. Beginning on 10/28, this group left Manhattan, and will end their pilgrimage 11/11 in Los Angeles, stopping at many sacred “Mayan” locations on the way with the purpose of introducing the skulls to the area in order to “activate” the location and heal it and the surrounding Earth from the damage it has endured in the most recent Millennia. Cahokia, an ancient site of the Mississippian Indians, who constructed dozens of large earthwork mounds -organic pyramids, if you will- was one of the key stops on the pilgrimage and the site of a ceremony conducted by Humbatz and his companions. Atop the largest and tallest mound- Monks Mound- the ceremony took place on the afternoon of Halloween.

Humbatz and his companions were joined by 200 or so participants who, like me, had traveled to take part and see the crystal skulls. In the ceremony, we formed a large circle atop Monks Mound with Humbatz, the elders and finally the skulls in a circle in the center. The skulls being taken on the pilgrimage were joined by any skulls or crystals of those who had traveled to participate. Referring to sacred geometry, Humbatz explained the skulls and the crystals were arranged with emphasis on the number 7, repeated four times. 7 represented a variety of things, most notably, people and our 7 chakras, as well as the 7 great powers (of which, we unfortunately no longer have understanding, according to Humbatz). Most importantly, the arrangement reflected the power and nature of the moon; 7 representing the days of the week, repeated 4 times, for the 4 directions and 4 weeks in the month. 4 by 7 is 28, the cycle of the moon. Humbatz specifically called upon the Moon, followed later by the sun, to work with us, as we set about to release the energy and information of the skulls into the area, and thus revitalize the sacred space. At the conclusion of the rituals involving the moon, with ceremonial drums beating powerfully in the background, Humbatz, who had been watching the skies, pointed up, over our heads and said “look, we have invoked the moon, and the moon is here.” Truly, the moon had appeared and was there with us.

Later, as the ceremony resumed, Humbatz, along with 6 elders took their skulls and walked around the circle of participants, offering everyone to touch foreheads with the skulls they carried, and thus pass the energy and power of the skulls into the participant and to imprint the signature and energy of the individual into the sea of color and information of the skull. Humbatz explained his skull had been given to him by the llamas in Tibet, who had in turn received it from “space” from those known as the Mu Shu?-I may have misunderstood him at this point, he was speaking and his words were then repeated by 4 different people in succession so everyone could hear. The entire experience was very surreal, and as I’m writing this I realize how many specific things he said have just slipped my memory -. Humbatz noted that they [those from space, I think. ~J] would be returning and that it is important that we shouldn’t be afraid. After sharing the information of the skulls, Humbatz once again looked into the skies for several minutes, after which he thanked everyone and the ceremony ended.

This ceremony had a subtle yet profound effect upon me. Although, it felt surreal, it was neither out of place or uncomfortable. Being with Humbatz, the other elders as well as all those who had traveled to participate was very calming and comfortable to me. The entire trip for me was like this, as I felt completely safe and sure of myself…Everything that needed to happen happened, the information I needed came to me, the people that needed to be there were there. Everything in its right place, as they say…

The site of Cahokia in itself was unbelievable, and of course incredibly significant to the experience. I’d never been to Cahokia before Monday, but I’d always been fascinated by it for several reasons. First of all, it was the first major metropolitan center in North America, reaching its peak around a millennium ago. At the time, its estimated population was greater than that of Paris or London. More importantly, Cahokia offers a unique experience over other ancient sites of the indigenous Americans. Although, I am by no means an expert on this topic and have visited only a few ancient American sites, I’ve recently come to see Cahokia in a powerful light.

Unlike Mesoamerican sites in which you find large stone constructs, namely pyramids, Cahokia is almost entirely natural. The mounds themselves bear the marks of careful planning, craftsmanship and skill as seen with the pyramids and other megalithic sites of Mesoamerica, as well as the entire world. However, the absence of stone is a significant aspect of the nature of Cahokia. While ancient pyramids are remarkable achievements in engineering and provide for spiritual advancement and exercise, they seem to me to be precursors of the vast metropolitan cities of the world today, in which skyscrapers and structures of steel and concrete serve as examples of the power and brilliance of humanity. In these cities, you have to go to a park to get any idea of what the land was like before it was overrun by overzealous humans. Personally, I love cities, the bigger the better. However, to me, Cahokia serves as an example of the possibility of humans creating and nurturing large groups of people while maintaining a close relationship with the Earth. To me, the Mounds of Cahokia have made the land even more beautiful than it would’ve been before, and created a space for people to gather and prosper.

On a side note-

While attending a teach-in by Humbatz and the others before the ceremony, I received interesting information from a skull bearer regarding…current events… I have no way of confirming this information; however, it seemed important enough to pass on. As Jean would say, use discernment.

Basically, I was told that on a legal level, there is a process in place that would (un)officially return the American continents to the Maya and other indigenous people who inhabited it long ago. In essence, the “deeds” to the continents will no longer be in the hands of the Vatican and will be returned to the true caretakers of the land. The UN is supposedly involved on some level. And although this would be a momentous event in itself, after the land is returned, the elders plan to immediately transfer responsibility and ownership to “us” …that is, perhaps, the people who have remembered and carried out the legacy of these ancient people and more importantly the earth. “We” are to be a transition point for the future generations to come, and are responsible for establishing the precedents and values of the New World so that they can be passed on and upheld.