The Thousand Secrets

The first thing to strike the visitor, of course, is the size and majesty of the pyramid itself, rising out of dense jungle as it does, and built by a people who were at the peak of advanced culture and civilization while Europe was muddling through the Dark Ages.  But on that special day of the vernal equinox, we were there for more than mere admiration of a pyramid.  We were there to see magic happen.

At the precise moment of the spring equinox, at 1.31pm GMT, a giant serpent appeared magically on the steps of the pyramid and slithered its way down to the bottom where it appeared, people say, to be heading for the famous Well of Sacrifice.  Our modern and scientific minds told us that the illusion was caused by the sun's rays hitting a corner of the pyramid, thereby casting seven golden triangles along the edge of the stairway.  As the sun moved, so did the triangles, riding on six points of shadow, so that our eyes were tricking into seeing a giant snake descending the pyramid, with the final sunlight falling upon the giant serpent's head at the foot of the stairs.  

An illusion, we told ourselves.  And yet another part of us - there were thousands of celebrants there that day - believed that something more than modern science could explain was afoot.  We were in the presence of the Supernatural.  At first there was silence and awe in the crowd, but when the serpent appeared and began his descent down the pyramid, people began to chant and sing, they raised their arms heavenward.  Many wept openly with joy and religious awe.
 
And then the most amazing thing happened.  At the precise moment the serpent reached the bottom step and his giant snake head was illuminated, the moon became visible in the eastern sky, hanging in balance with the sun in the west.  Cheers erupted then as those seven golden triangles riding on six points of shadow - producing the sacred Mayan number of thirteen - heralded the moment of the god Kukulcan arriving to bless the world with cosmic energy.

I was awestruck.

And I was dizzy with questions.  How had they done it?  How could an ancient people, who did not have metal tools, or the wheel or beasts of burden, build such a monumental structure, and do it so precisely that on only two days of the year - very significant days - a golden serpent appears on its steps?  And why did they do it, what was the purpose of the serpent-illusion?  What did it mean?  Who were the Maya?  Where did they come from?  Where did they go?  Why did they build such vast and fabulous cities only to abandon them in what seems to be abrupt exoduses?

My questions led me to exploration and research, and the answers then led me to the story that I ultimately had to tell - of the incredible civilization that archaeologists and historians have only recently begun to explain and shed light upon.  Woman Of A Thousand Secrets, my 23rd novel and officially published today (available now at Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, and booksellers everywhere) is the result of my personal odyssey into the rich culture and mysteries of the ancient Maya.

It is indeed a book about a thousand secrets.