The origins of Maximon date back to Mayan mythology at the time of the Conquista, in which there was a character named Rilaj Maam who was revered as the guardian protector of the Tz'utujil people. Rilaj Maam means The Great Grandfather. Other names that are often used are Don Ximon and San Simón. Maximon usually takes patronage over persons health, crops, marriage, business, revenge and even death.
People who venerate Maximón believe that he has the faculties to know the past, see the present and predict the future because he has knowledge of the worldview, spirituality, culture, and energy that govern human beings and the universe. In the oral tradition it is affirmed that after Maximón offered his knowledge to the population, he went to a mountain, burned pom, made ceremonial invocations, took fermented honey and vanished in timelessness. He did not die like ordinary beings but spread out in space and time.
The figure is often carved of the special kind of wood. That is Erythrina berteroana or in the Spanish language “arbol de pitos”. In English, it is known as Coral Tree and has big red seeds that were used to make whistles.
In some areas of Guatemala, you can encounter churches dedicated to Maximon, San Simon. In other cities and villages, a deity is hosted by a local family in their house, where they dedicate one room to this cult and their neighbors can come and make a sacrifice. Then, after some period, other family takes Maximon and settles him in their house with a combination of fear and respect. The depiction is mostly the same: a hat, sunglasses, bandana, colorful dress (in many places you can find a US flag used). Visitors then gift Maximon with rum, food, candles, and cigarettes.
This brings us to the depiction of the character of Maximon: he is a symbol of the good and the bad in the same personality. While he can cure you, he can also seduce your wife. While he has great powers and even can see the future, he is a drinker, a person of basic bodily urges. Those who worship in fact hate and love Maximon at the same time. There is a sense of fear. Those that have a higher knowledge of Maximon always warn people to be very careful because you never know what he will decide and do to you.
Some Guatemalan authors that view this phenomenon mainly as psychological one claim that Maximon is in fact depiction of the human nature. Maximon is that strong life paradigm where the good and the bad have a lifetime fight inside a human being. He is our weakness and our strength. He is our Great Grandfather.
