Maximón: Guatemala’s Chain-Smoking Savior | TheExpeditioner Travel Site
Floating mosaics of water lilies hug the sunken interiors of old buildings that line both sides of the dock. I sigh while staring at the jagged cement tops that barely pop above the surface. Water levels here have been rising steadily over the past 50 years.
“There used to be a huge park here . . .” the boat driver laments.
In many ways, Maximón — the vice-laden trickster deity of the Guatemalan highlands — is like these buildings. His foundations are visible yet submerged, planted below the surface yet reaching above. Like much in Latin America, he’s a mix of Spanish and Indigenous influences; a combination of San Simon from the Catholic tradition and earlier Mayan deities. To many of the Maya in Guatemala he’s known as Rilaj Maam.
Although his origins lie in the murky depths, legend states that Maximón was quite a Casanova back in the mythopoetic day. One day, while the men were off farming, he seduced all their wives. Upon…
Categories: The Expeditioner