corroborate the theory that the Maya calendar marked something beyond the end of a calendar cycle. Cross References ▶ Age of Aquarius ▶ Maya ▶ Maya Religion and Spirituality ▶ Neo-Shamanism ▶ New Age and Native American Spirituality ▶ Spiritualism and New Age References Argüelles J (1987) El Factor Maya. Ediluz, México Aveni A (2010) Las profecías mayas de 2012 ¿Está escrito el fin del mundo en los mapas celestes mayas? Arqueología Mexicana 103:52–57 Bastos S, Tally E, Marcelo Z (2013) La reinterpretación del Oxlajuj B´aqtun en Guatemala: entre el new age y la reconstitución Maya. In: De la Torre R, Gutiérrez C, Juárez N (eds) Variaciones y apropiaciones latinoamericanas del New Age. Publicaciones de la Casa Chata, Ciudad de México, pp 300–321 Castellanos L (2012) Las profecías del fin del mundo. Grijalbo, México Defesche S (2008) The 2012 phenomenon. Department of Religious Studies, Subdepartment History of Hermetic, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam. http://skepsis. no/index.php?page=vis_nyhet%26NyhetID=131. Accessed 25 Feb 2015 Gilbert A, Cotterell M (1995) Las profecías mayas. Grijalbo, México Hoopes J (2011) A critical history of 2012 mythology. In: Clive L, Ruggles N (ed) Oxford IX International sym- posium on Archaeoastronomy, Proceedings IAU sym- posium No. 278, Oxford, pp 240–248 Information Network Focus on Religious Movements (INFORM) (2009) 2012 report. INFORM AC, Londres Major Jenkins J (2007) The origins of 2012 revelation. In: Simon T (ed) The mystery of 2012. Predictions, proph- ecies & possibilities. Sounds True, Canada, pp 37–66 Mission interministérielle de vigilancie et de lutte contre les dérives sectaires (MIVILUDES) (2011) Rapport au Primier ministre 2010. La documentation Française, París Padilla I (2012) La industria del fin del mundo. Taurus, México Pallán C (2012) Los calendarios mayas, una introducción general. Arqueología Mexicana 118:22–29 Pinchbeck D (2007) 2012 El Retorno de Quetzalcoátl. Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, New York Sitler RK (2006) The 2012 phenomenon. new age appro- priation of an ancient Maya calendar. Nova Relig J Altern Emerg Relig 9(3):24–38 Whitesides K (2013) From counterculture to mainstream: 2012 millennialism in your living room. In: Aston J, Walliss J (eds) Small screen revelations apocalypse in contemporary television. Sheffield Phoenix Press, Sheffield, pp 75–95 Maya Religion and Spirituality C. James MacKenzie University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada Keywords Maya · Shamanism · Calendrics · Sacrifice · Divination · Colonialism · Revitalization Definition Maya religion is practiced by many members of Maya ethnic groups who live in Southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and parts of El Salvador and Honduras. Aspects of the tradition can be traced back several millennia. Although practices vary, adherents tend to stress the impor- tance of managing relationships between human and nonhuman subjects through divination, sacri- fice, and the use of sacred calendars. While aspects of Christianity have long been assimilated (often on local terms) to Maya religion, many contemporary practitioners, influenced by broader ethnic and cultural politics, are involved in pro- jects aimed at purifying and standardizing their beliefs and practices. Introduction Maya religion is a dynamic tradition whose origins can be traced back at least three millennia. Knowledge of this religion and its development is derived from extensive and continuing archae- ological and epigraphic research in the Maya area of Mesoamerica, as well as ethnohistorical 916 Maya Religion and Spirituality