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Hunab Ku
- 77 Sacred Symbols for Balancing Body and Spirit
by Karen &
Joel Speerstra
“In Hunab Ku, you’ll find seventy-seven images of
home—multiple ways to view or earth and ourselves. These
images, like the Hunab Ku itself, measure and move us and
encourage us to embark upon our own sacred journey. The
Hunab Ku lies at the very center of these images, reminding
us to balance our intentions, to center our understandings,
and to become more conscious of what ancient wisdom
continues to teach all of us today.” – From the book
Hunab Ku is an ancient Mayan symbol that represents the
joining of opposites. Hunab means “one state of being” and
Ku means “God”. Masculine and feminine, analytical and
intuitive, objective and subjective, yang and yin, conscious
and unconscious, external and internal—the Hunab Ku speaks
to the abyss between opposing forces and, in fact, serves as
a bridge between them. The archetype of the Hunab Ku is the
“space between” that reflects oneness with God and the unity
of all things.
The Mayans constructed several detailed calendars and these
calendars reflected cycles of the Earth and humanity itself.
After each cycle of 5,125 years, the “universe takes a deep
breath and begins again”, and according to the Maya Long
Count Calendar, humanity is posed on the edge of a great
unfolding of balance and understanding. Many have called
this the Age of Aquarius, but the Mayans called it the Age
of Itza—Age of Consciousness. Some interpretations have set
the winter solstice of 2012 as the time marking a gateway to
the galaxies where Hunab Ku—the great mover—will pulse and
fill us all with intelligent energy.
To help prepare humanity for this cosmic awakening, authors
Karen Speerstra and Joel Speerstra have presented 77 sacred
symbols that create an interactive system for learning,
healing, and meditation. These 77 symbols are archetypes
that are universal, arising from the collective unconscious.
As visual metaphors, the symbols reflect, like mirrors, the
patterns that are deeply imbedded in each one of us. These
archetypes bypass the rational mind, arrive on the wings of
synchronicity, and invite us to journey inward. Archetypal
symbols like those presented in Hunab Ku can explode us into
different dimensions of understanding, restoring balance,
energizing creativity, and promoting healing if we but allow
them entrance.
The 77 archetypal images are organized into groups of seven
color palettes, each reflecting the
seven chakras. Eleven
archetypal symbols are associated with each chakra,
depicting the energetic pattern of the image as it relates
to the seven energy vortices and their corresponding issues,
gifts, and challenges. The lower chakras--represented by
red, orange, and yellow—connect to the physical side of
life. The upper chakras—represented by blue, indigo, and
violet—connect us to the spiritual side of life. In the
center likes a field of green which connects to both the
heart chakra and the Hunab Ku. This area marks our central
union with one another and joins the images of the body and
the spirit.
There are several ways Hunab Ku can be read:
•Conventionally, from beginning to end, as a mini ancient
art history tour
•One color group of eleven images at a time
•As an oracle where you ask a powerful open-ended question
and then turn to a random page
•Roll dice and generate random numbers for different types
of intuitive readings
•Use a pendulum to dowse the Hunab Ku symbol for
numbers/images that speak to your questions
Hunab Ku is an unconventional book that serves as a
spiraling labyrinth of archetypal consciousness. The
physical images span from Red 1 Great Bear (Solitude) to
Green 39 Hunab Ku (Lover). The spiritual images span from
Green 39 Hunab Ku (Relationships) to Violet 1 Unicorn
(Unity). So one could move down a path towards the center
(39) and then move back out towards the world again by
passing through numbers 38 through 1.
Here are a few symbols from the book:
RED
Scorpion (Conflict)
Womb (Gestation)
Ouroboros (Unconsciousness)
ORANGE
Mother (Intuition)
Water (Movement)
Giant (Control)
YELLOW
Star (Inspiration)
Twins (Androgyny)
Wheel (Change)
GREEN
Dolphin (Addiction)
Healer (Wholeness)
Phoenix (Hope)
BLUE
Teacher (Knowledge)
Sound (Vibration)
Magician (Journey)
INDIGO
Moon (Dreams)
Wise Old One (Rest)
Chalice (Quest)
VIOLET
Scarab (Manifestation)
Double Spiral (Infinity)
Crown (Reward)
For each symbol there is a re-drawn color plate of a
petroglyph, artifact, figurine, carving, wall mural, etc.
These archetypes are from diverse areas such as the
Americas, Africa, British Isles, Babylon, India and beyond.
For example, Under Mystic (Violet 8), there is a picture of
a stone labyrinth (1200 CE) from Chartres, France. For the
Serpent (Red 7), there is a picture of the Great Serpent
Mound (c. 1000 BCE) from Ohio, U.S.A.
For me, one of the most fascinating elements of this
330-page book is the symbol readings in the back of the
book. Each of these readings is comprehensive, combining a
series of archetypes for an incredibly accurate and
insightful reading. There’s an Insight Reading, Work
Reading, Rainbow Reading, Courage Reading, and The Bard:
Telling Your Story. The authors provide easy to read charts
if you want to generate numbers by throwing dice or by
assigning number values to the letters of your name, for
example.
Frankly, I am amazed at the depth of this book. It “speaks”
profoundly on so many levels. I was experiencing physical
discomfort that left me feeling nauseous, discouraged and
weak. Tarot didn’t appeal to me at the time nor did any of
my oracle decks. I remembered this book and randomly turn to
a page. The symbol I was given, The Phoenix, directly spoke
to my situation. Its keyword was “Hope” and offered insight
into the renewing of youthfulness and the promise of future
lives. (And, as synchronicity would have it, the book
mentioned how the Phoenix was featured in the Harry Potter
books—and I had just been reading the latest installment of
the series!) I felt as through a burden was lifted from my
spirit. I kept meditating on it as I went to bed. Whenever I
woke up through the night, I kept seeing the Phoenix.
Amazingly, I woke up the next day with the troubling symptom
entirely gone. It’s been almost 24 hours and I still haven’t
seen a recurrence of this symptom. I feel more energy and
clarity and I believe it has something to do with the symbol
of the Phoenix featured in the powerful book Hunab Ku.
If you’re fascinated by the world of symbols and
archetypes—as well as chakras, energy, mythology, art,
sacred geometry, oracles, anthropology, and spiritual
evolution—this beautifully illustrated and exhaustively
researched book will take you on an amazing journey through
both outer and inner worlds. In the center of these worlds
lies the Hunab Ku, the threshold between our present age and
the coming age of enlightenment—the heart of Oneness and All
That Is.
Hunab Ku
- 77 Sacred Symbols for Balancing Body and Spirit
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