Abstract

BOREMANSE, Didier. The Song of the Soul of the Deceased Person: Beliefs of the Southern Lacandones about the Body, Soul, and Death. Estud. cult. maya [online]. 2024, vol.63, pp.303-330.  Epub Aug 26, 2024. ISSN 0185-2574.  https://doi.org/10.19130/iifl.ecm.63.2024/00171s0xw41.

A summary of the historical background of the present-day Lacandon Maya is followed by an account of their worldview, with respect to the archaeological remains which are found all over their territory, and about the deities who inhabited them. Southern Lacandon beliefs about the soul and death are outlined in order to grasp the meaning of “the song of the dead person’s soul”, which tells of the different phases through which the soul passes during the process of dying, in its transition between the human world and the world of the deities. A description of Lacandon funerary rites is provided, as well as an explanation of the term used in the song to signify the body. Finally, this song is compared to “the song to a dead person”, which belongs to Northern Lacandon oral tradition.

Keywords : Soul; Death; Funeral; Body; Myths; Gods; Archaeological Remains.

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