A closer look at the ancient Mayan civilization in Mexico as well as the Inca and Aztec reveals an amazing similarity with thoughts and beliefs that have flowed in India for thousands of years. Indian’s were master navigators and seafarers. They were probably the first settlers in the Americas. The word Catamaran for a boat or ship on which the India’s sailed to the Americas is the same in Spanish

The Mayan civilization which covers Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, El Salvador and the Yucatan province of Mexico has great similarities with Hindu legends and beliefs. The Mayans were the Hindu seafarers who settled in these countries. here are some of the similarities

Like Hindus in India, the Mayan people believe that Earth (Prithvi), Water (Jal), Wind (Vayu) and Fire (Agni) were the source of human life. They worship the Sun God (Surya), the Moon God (Chandra), and Rain God, (Indra) and many other gods and goddesses. Their temples also have images of elephants and other animals.The American continent never had elephants so the question remains as to how they were carved on their temples. The phallic symbol of Lord Shiva is also carved on most temples and they have also been found in many places throughout America. The Swastika has also been found in many Mayan ruins.Like the Hindus the Mayans were also primarily vegetarian.The Mexicam Tortilla is very similar to the Indian rotis or chapatis. A stone sculpture of lord Hanuman is present in Honduras and there is a belief that there is a whole city dedicated to Lord Hanuman not yet found. I have personally seen stone sculptures of which are replicas of Hindu goddesses on Mayan monuments in Mexico.

Hindu scriptures mention the legendary enmity between serpents and eagles. Known as Garuda the eagle is also a carrier of Lord Vishnu. Mexicans have a similar legend of serpents and eagles.

In the Mahabharata there is mention of a tribe called Maya Nagas who were exiled. They sailed to what was known as Patal Lok in Mahabharat. Patal Lok is in the Americas.

The word Maya is most probably of Sanskrit origin. Anthropologists have recently come to the conclusion that people from the Indian subcontinent were among the first to arrive in the continent of America thousands of years ago.
Mayans believed there were thirteen layers of heaven and nine underworlds, each with its presiding god, while the ancient Hindu texts talked about thirteen Lokas (worlds) above the earth and seven Lokas below the earth. Like Hindus, Mayans believe in reincarnation and transmigration of soul.

The Hindu Lotus and Chakra motifs adorn Mayan temples. The Maya calendar begins in 3114 BC just after the beginning of the Kali Yuga in 3102 BC. It is around this time that the Nagas from India travelled to the Americas. According to Dr. Ganapati Sthapati who travelled to South American countries the Chichen Itza is built exactly according to the scale of Indian temples. Chilambalam is the name of the sacred room in Chichen Itza. The Tamil word Chidambaram also means a sacred place within a temple. He also found that two ancient structures at Machu Picchu matched the principles and guidelines prescribed in the Hindu Vastu Shahstra. Vastu shastra (vāstu śāstra – literally “science of architecture”) is a traditional Indian system of architecture originating in India. Ephraim George Squier ( 1821-1888 ) US charge d’affaires to central America in 1849 wrote , ‘ a proper examination of these monuments would disclose the fact that in their interior as well as their exterior form and obvious purposes, these buildings ( temples in Palenque Mexico ) correspond with great exactness of Hindustan.

According to author Swarupa the Hindu story of the churning of the Ocean when Lord Vishnu appears in a tortoise form is mentioned in the Maya codex Tro-Cortesianus.It is one of the 3 surviving pre-columbian Maya books. The Maya long nosed God is regarded as a form of God Ganesha. Hindus believe in a trinity of Gods and so do Mayans. South of Mexico is Guatemala, a major centre for Mayans. Guatemala is referred to as Ketumala in the Mahabharata and Vishnu Purana. An archaeological sculpture, ‘ Panel 3 of Piedras Negra ‘ in Guatemala depicts the coronation of Lord Rama’s sons Luv and Kush.

The Mayan doctrine of the World’s Ages – the universe – is reminiscent of the Indian Yugas. Even the colors of these four ages, white,yellow,red, and black are identical with and in the same order as Indian Yugas. The duration of the first age is the same as mentioned in Hindu scriptures: 4,800 divine years. One of India’s oldest board games – the Pachisi – seems to have an almost similar counterpart in early American civilization – Parcheesi. The people of Mexico still play the game. The nomenclature has morphed to Patilli. The descendants of the Mayan people look very similar to Indian people. The physical features are very similar and those visiting Mexico will soon realize that they are mistaken for Mexicans!
Friar Diego de Landa, a Franciscan monk burned all Maya manuscripts (containing priceless information on ancient history, mythology, medicine, astronomy, science, religion, and philosophy) and idols in Yucatán. An act of great sacrilege. He wrote in his book – Relación de las cosas de Yucatán Fr: “They had a very great number of idols and temples which were magnificent in their own fashion and besides the community temples, the lords, priests and leading men also had oratories and idols in their houses where they made their prayers and offerings in private.” The Maya made idols of not only gods but also of animals and insects. They also believed in immortality of the soul and afterlife. All this sounds very similar to Hindu worship and beliefs. Like the Maya, the Hindus too have numerous gods which are considered as the manifestations of the principal gods. They also worship animals, rocks, trees and rivers which are considered holy and sacred”. The 16th century Catholicism of Spanish conquistadors resulted in millions of deaths and the wholesale destruction of the Mayan civilisation.It was an act of extreme and relentless violence. A truly dark period of history
Sir William Jones, Anglo-Welsh philogist and a scholar of ancient India particularly known for his proposition of the existence of a relationship among European and Indo-Aryan languages, found in the year 1786, the imprints of the stories of Rama and Sita in the remnants of the Mayan civilization. His quote which appeared in the Asiatic Researches, Vol 1, Page 426 reads: “Rama is represented as a descendant from the sun, He was the husband of Sita and the son of a princess named Causelya. It is very remarkable that Peruvians, whose Inces boasted the same descent, styled their greatest festival – Rama-Sitva, whence we may suppose that South America was peopled by the same race who imported into the farthest parts of Asia, the rites and the fabulous history of Ram

The Spanish author Lopez says in his book Le Races Aryans de Peru writes: “Every page of Peruvian poetry bears the imprint of Ramayana and Mahabharata.”

The word Aztec could be derived from one who ‘worships Ashtabhuja or Ashtak’ ( 8 armed ).The eight armed god found in Mexican temples. The only other place where multi armed God is worshipped is in India.

There could be an even older connection between India and the Americas. Surya Siddhanta is the oldest surviving astronomical text in the Indian tradition. It explains that earth is shaped like a ball and at the very opposite side of the planet from India there is a great city where the sun is rising at the same time as it sets in India. In this city the Surya Siddhanta claims, lives a race of Siddhas or advanced spiritual beings . If you trace round the globe to the exact opposite side from India, you will find Mexico. This means that Indian’s were aware of the Americas tens of thousands of years ago.
Looking into the present is it not a strange fate that the followers of the same beliefs are now residing in their millions in North America and they are building new temples?

Knowing what we know of the enterprising skills of the Indian community, it is quite possible that there might be some if not many moving on to Central America and eventually temples will open, not far from the ancient temples of the Maya people!


Nitin Mehta
28 August 2020

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