Everything will need to restart – “from the ground up” – so declared Air Canada after its flight attendant strike was settled after its entire system ground to a halt for three days. Flight attendants for that company had gone through an historic fight to achieve their goals, and by the last day of the last trecena they had achieved “transformational change” for their industry.

Similarly, in many parts of the world, many people had been engaged in historic fights as they battled against intense wildfires. In many places, even if there were no wildfires, the heat had been unbearable – well into the 40’s (well over 100F). But as this trecena was beginning to take its place there was a discernible shift in many areas, with some even seeing it as a shift “from crisis to comeback”. With this trecena coinciding with the latter part of August this time, there is a good chance that further cooling could set in to help the comeback efforts.

On other fronts, however, it is a matter of continuing with crisis management. Even with an easing of heatwaves, many destructive wildfires, particularly in Spain and Portugal, are still raging. And then there are the political wildfires, as in the U.S. where it has become unsafe for a young boy to take his dog for a walk or for food to be delivered without fear of being arrested by masked ICE agents. Schools are working on ways to protect their own students from being absconded by such government-sanctioned stalkers during the forthcoming months. The U.S. Capitol has been flooded with troops, as the wannabee dictator wages war against his own citizens. Daily push-back protests have become a necessity across the country.

After another dumpian debacle, this time involving a waltz-around with international war criminal Vlad the Bad in Alaska, prospects to end the Russia-Ukraine war remain on thin ice. Although the EU maintains its support for Ukraine, the U.S. continues to waffle, and Russia continues to launch missile attacks even after the meeting in Washington with President Zelenskyy and EU leaders. Similarly, even with nationwide protests taking place across Israel to pressure the Israeli government to halt the military campaign in Gaza, is there really any hope that Israel may agree to Hamas’ proposal for a ceasefire and hostage release?

In the midst of all these uncertainties, the Maya calendar indicates that significant change may be in the works, beginning with the energy of One Chikchan, seen traditionally as an important shift-point within the overall 260-day cycle. This is an “initiating” energy associated with the great Feathered Serpent, aligned with Liberation, Awakening, Cyclical Renewal (like a phoenix), and Justice, marking the start of the third 52-day period within that cycle. One Chikchan often brings that sense of change, the turning of a tide, along with a sense of new possibilities. Sometimes it can feel like an emergence; sometimes it can feel like an energy surge; sometimes it can feel like a celebration; and sometimes it can even spin into intense weather events or into some significant change in direction.

Often the energies at the start of this period can be felt as an infusion of vitality, possibly a renewal of determination to pursue particular goals. As this is a time frame that can push people into action in significant ways, great passion, and even bravery, often comes into play at this time, particularly if people are in pursuit of justice. And at this time it seems that the people of Israel have really had enough, as the protests in recent days have become so large that they have become general strikes.

Let’s not forget that Netanyahu has been indicted for corruption in Israel and has been charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. And certainly the pushbacks in the U.S. are gaining more and more strength as governmental atrocities continue to escalate.

With regard to the trecena energies, the Aztec saw the principal “patron” of this time frame as a deity known as Xiuhtecuhtli, the Lord of Fire and Time, who often “kicks things up a notch” in order to foment change. His companion in this effort is a deity representative of Venus as the Morning Star, who serves as a herald – signalling that this is a time to really “pay attention”.

In early December of 2019 this was the trecena in place when “a new viral outbreak” (later called Covid-19) was first detected in China. At first this outbreak was downplayed, but near the end of the trecena it was learned that a “cluster” of patients with “pneumonia of an unknown cause” had been identified, and then a huge planetary change took place – at lightning speed!

Two cycles later, towards the end of the third Covid wave, things began changing in the opposite direction, as mask mandates began to be lifted in some areas, theatres began reopening, case numbers were trending downwards, and people began to slowly emerge, feeling a new sense of freedom as they began to interact and reconstruct their lives post-pandemic.

Historically, the beginning of this trecena had brought many radical changes, as seen in 1914 when Germany declared war against France, and in 1918 when the German Weimar Republic was founded just as World War I was coming to an end. In 1990 Germany became unified at the start of this trecena. In 1521 this had been in place when the Aztecs surrendered to the Spaniards, sealing the fate and future direction of Mexico.

The last time this was in place (last December) this trecena brought a very rapid ousting of the Assad regime in Syria, as rebels reclaimed city after city, releasing long-held prisoners as they swept through the country. At that time Ukraine was expressing gratitude for German chancellor Olaf Scholz’s visit to Kyiv, on the eve of One Chikchan, with his announcement of €650m in military aid for Ukraine, speedy arms deliveries, and his pledge to “remain the strongest supporter of Ukraine in Europe”. Given the waffling of the US government at this time, and Russia’s clear dismissal of a ceasefire agreement, it is highly likely that EU leaders will be strongly rethinking their options at this point, in terms of how to protect Ukraine and the EU as a whole.

Keep in mind that Justice is one of the major themes that tend to play out during this period. Indeed, many significant developments related to this theme have played out over the past few years, as seen four cycles ago when the January 6th committee in the U.S. was uncovering considerable evidence regarding the plotting that went into the fomenting of the Capitol riot. At that time this trecena brought the beginning of the New York trial relating to the Trump Organization’s felony tax evasions, which resulted prison time for its ex-CFO Allen Weisselberg. Three cycles before that the dumpster was impeached for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, two of the most serious abuses of power ever alleged against a sitting president. Note, as well, that the impeachment action took place two cycles after that infamous meeting between the dumpster and President Putin in Helsinki in 2018 when Putin blatantly admitted to directing his officials to help Trump win the 2016 election. Hard to believe that 7 years later that same Putin-Trump two-step is still playing out.

It was this trecena that was in place last December when Netanyahu began testifying in his long-running corruption trial, becoming the first sitting Israeli leader to take the stand as a criminal defendant. Even as recently as the end of June this year, the dumpster again attempted to interfere with Israel’s justice system, pushing to get those charges dropped by suggesting that the trial could interfere with Netanyahu’s ability to deal with negotiations related to the Israel-Gaza war and Palestinian militant groups.

But hold the thought that over the past few cycles this trecena has carried a great deal of weight with regard to the push for accountability, so it is possible that a number of new tactics or new directions could open up during this period, even though the U.S. justice system has been under considerable duress under this regime.

Most astonishing of all is the fact that even though the Trumpian “wizard of oz” has been exposed, again and again, as a gross fraudster, convicted criminal, and even an insurrectionist, his “teflon” nature has continued to protect him from being held accountable for some of his most horrendous actions. But can it continue to hold? Unfathomably, it held all through the process of selecting and confirming some of the most blatantly unfit and incompetent candidates for cabinet positions ever seen in America politics. But the people are now seeing through all the charades, and pushbacks are getting stronger and stronger. During this period questions around his involvement with a particularly heinous villain (Epstein) will loom large as more and more information comes out pertaining to that case. While a whole cadre of cover-up agents has been trying to suppress information in this regard, it is possible that much will be revealed during this period. Without doubt this trecena will surely be a testing period once again as the battle for truth, accountability, and justice continues.

As always, this trecena serves as a pivotal energy sequence within the overall 260 day Tzolk’in cycle, beginning with an often transformative force that is oriented around justice, freedom, higher knowledge, world-shifting actions, and cyclical renewal. This is the energy field of the Plumed Serpent, a metaphor for “reaching for the sky”, towards Life and Light and Liberation, and the realm of new possibilities. With the “Lord of Fire and Time” as the patron energy, this provides a reminder that great shifts can happen during this period. Let’s hope they are positive ones. Here are the energies that are coming into play:

1 Chikchan (Aug. 20th) – the “initiation” of Lifeforce/Higher Wisdom at the start of the third 52-day period within the 260-day cycle, an intense and highly influential position within the cycle as a whole, which can often signal the beginning of a major change in direction.

When this energy was in place last November South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, faced calls to quit immediately or face impeachment after his short-lived attempt to bring in martial law triggered protests and political condemnation. At the same time there was a huge energy surge in Syria as rebels were using a “lightning offensive” to push against government forces, to bring down the notorious Assad regime. In the US that was the start of a four-trecena “testing period” during which Congress had to decide on whether to confirm or deny the dumpster’s highly problematic choices for key positions in his forthcoming cabinet.

During this summer of 1521 this energy triggered a dramatic change in direction as this was in place at the time of the Fall of Tenochtitlán, the Aztec capital now known as Mexico City, when the Aztecs surrendered to Hernán Cortés and his hundreds of Spaniards, after a 2 1/2 month battle during which the conquistadoes were aided by thousands of Indigenous allies, who were enemies of the Aztec. That surrender, which took place just two years after the Spaniards’ arrival in the Yucatan, sealed the fate and future direction of Mexico.

One Chikchan was also in place in 1914 at the time of Germany’s declaration of war against France. Then, in 1918, six cycles later, it came in on the eve of the armistice ceasefire at the conclusion of World War I. In 1960 this was in force at the time of John F. Kennedy’s victory speech, after he narrowly won the US presidential election the day before.

Eight cycles ago (in December 2019) this energy was in place when Democrats unveiled two articles of impeachment against the dumpster – for abuse of power (by putting his own personal interests above the interests and security of the US) and for obstruction of Congress, the most serious abuses of power ever alleged against a sitting president. Between his first and second (gasp!) presidential terms, 91 felony charges (both state and federal) were brought against him, including many relating to fraud, obstruction of justice, and for violations of the Espionage Act. He was also found guilty of massive fraud, sexual abuse, and defamation, and ordered to pay more than $500 million. And even now the Epstein case is haunting him like a plague, as the dumpster was a close friend of that vile sex offender who was convicted of heinous crimes against young girls. Since the start of his 2.0 term, millions have suffered or had their lived destroyed because of Trump’s tyrannical actions and policies, and questions relating to ethics, morality, justice and accountability, and even sanity, continue to loom large in this regard.

2 Kimi (Aug. 21st) – a dynamic type of energy aligned with the “return to source”, coinciding with the 116th birthday of British supercentenarian Ethel May Caterham, who is officially the oldest person on Earth. Her Maya birthday is on the final day of this trecena. Happy birthday Ethel!

This energy often manifests as a push-pull type of force that can shake things up and set new foundations for action, as it did in 1914 when Germany invaded Belgium and the UK declared war on Germany. But keep in mind that on Nov. 11, 1918, this was also in place as World War I came to an end.

3 Manik’ (Aug. 22nd) – the “activation” of reciprocity, symbolized by a deer that “embodies” the sun on Earth, a kind of harmonizing, “hands-on” type of energy connected with the natural world, coinciding at this time with the New Moon. Clearly Pope Leo will be working with this energy at this time as he has invited the world to join in a call for a “disarmed and disarming” peace in all places torn by armed conflict.  Will Russia listen or will they be too busy waving flags on their National Flag Day – likely to celebrate Putin’s “victories” during his visit to Alaska a few days ago.

One cycle ago, when President Biden was still in office, the U.S. offered to assist Ukraine by training new troops at sites outside Ukrainian territory. This was in addition to nearly $20bn in loans, which would be backed by profits from immobilized Russian sovereign assets. A number of new sanctions against Russia were also in the works.

Currently this is the day when (supposedly) the Epstein files will start to be released to the House Oversight Committee in the US, even though the due date for the DoJ to hand over the files was two days earlier. This day also marks seven cycles since that huge “Get Your Knee Off Our Necks” Commitment March (in August 2020) that called for police reform, criminal justice reform, and racial equality in the U.S.. In 1913 a massive Woman’s Suffrage parade was held under this same 3 Manik’ influence.

4 Lamat (Aug. 23rd) – a “defining” energy associated with Venus, with 4 Lamat representing the sun and Venus working together, often serving as a beacon or herald. This energy is coinciding at this time with UNESCO’s International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, in remembrance of the uprising in Haiti in 1791 that played a crucial role in the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

One cycle ago as of the first day of this trecena (One Chikchan) President Biden addressed America’s history of enslavement in a speech at Angola’s National Museum of Slavery, when he called slavery “our nation’s original sin”. During that speech he noted that the United States was founded on an idea, embedded in the Declaration of Independence, that all men and women are created equal. But he also pointed out that it was abundantly clear that they had not lived up to that idea.

Note that 4 Lamat is a “heralding” type of energy, so often there is some kind of significant announcement at this time, as occurred in 2017 when President Xi Jinping was declared “all powerful” in China, after a new body of political thought carrying his name was added to the Communist party’s constitution.

One cycle ago thousands of people in Syria were fleeing from the central Syrian city of Homs as rebel forces were dealing successive devastating blows against Assad’s government, nearly 14 years after protests against him erupted across Syria in the summer of 2011. Tens of thousands of political prisoners were being released from government prisons in various cities, and many who had been kept away from their families for years were finally being reunited.

Currently this is the start of Ghost month in China, Taiwan, and many other places, with this day being Ghost Gate Opens day. Traditionally it is believed that this is the day when departed spirits are free to return to this realm and wander about for a month. Food and offerings are provided during this time, to please the ghosts. (The Hungry Ghost festival takes place on Sept. 6th)

This is the Maya birth energy of Dr. Li Wenliang, the doctor in Wuhan who issued the first warning to colleagues that there were seven confirmed cases of coronavirus, in December of 2019, despite the fact that Chinese officials were trying to downplay it.

5 Muluk (Aug. 24th) – a “precision” (or “blessing”) type of energy associated with the shape-shifting energy of water, perfectly in synch with the start of the World Water Week conference, with this year’s theme being “Water for Climate Action” – to Aug. 28th.

This is also marking the 34th Gregorian anniversary of Ukraine’s Declaration of Independence (from the USSR).

This is the opening day for the Burning Man festival in Nevada’s Black Rock desert  with this year’s theme being “Tomorrow Today” – a “call to envision the future”. This is a festival that “celebrates puzzles without answers, embraces the irrational and the absurd, and invites the unknown over for tea”. It has now been two years since the flooding at the site when Storm Hilary hit, when the site became a muddy quagmire that stranded thousands.

This is also the first day of the two-day Notting Hill Carnival, in London, an annual celebration of Caribbean culture, and known as one of the biggest street parties in the world.

6 Ok (Aug. 25th) – a “shine the light in the darkness, everywhere” type of force, marking one cycle since Syrian rebels declared Damascus FREE. The rebels said they entered the capital Damascus without any sign of army deployments, arriving at the doorstep of President Bashar-al Assad after their lightning offensive that swept across the country in just over a week. The military defences had collapsed and Assad had left the country.

Currently this is coinciding with the Day of Songun, a national holiday in North Korea. The Songun (meaning ‘military-first’) system was devised by Kim Jong-il to assign a classification to every citizen based on socioeconomic background at the time of liberation in 1945. Songun, officially ‘Songun Politics’, prioritises the military in all aspects of North Korean society and has boosted the importance of the Korean People’s Army in politics, society and culture.

It has now been six cycles since the New York Attorney-General’s office announced that it had opened an investigation into the dumpster’s company, an investigation that resulted in a finding of massive fraud and a fine of close to half a billion dollars.

7 Chuwen (Aug. 26th) –“self-generating play”, a highly creative “time weaving” (and sometimes trick playing) type of energy that can sometimes conjure up things of an unusual nature. This is coinciding with Women’s Equality Day, celebrating the 105th Gregorian anniversary of the adoption of the U.S. 19th amendment, which granted all citizens, including women, the constitutional right to vote. With voting rights STILL under severe threat in the US, this will be an important Day of Action. This is the 55th Gregorian anniversary of the Women’s Strike for Peace and Equality in 1970 when massive Women’s Liberation demonstrations and marches took place in New York and in other cities across the U.S.

In India this is the start of the colourful 12-day Onam harvest festival in Kerala, where the ground in front of homes will be decorated with wonderful floral carpets called pookkalams, and people celebrate with feasting, new clothes, games, and snake boat races.

This is also International Dog Day .

This marks nine cycles since the 2019 election of Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the new president of Ukraine. Exactly one cycle later the House Judiciary Committee released a 650-page impeachment report related to the dumpster’s attempt to coerce Ukraine into helping to interfere in the 2020 US presidential election.

8 Eb’ (Aug. 27th) – the “resurrection” of the pathfinding energy of vitality, associated with the “dew of life”; a day which the Maya traditionally devoted to the Celebration of Personal Life. At this time this is coinciding with start of the 10-day Ganesh Chaturthi festival in honour of Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles, giver of good fortune, patron of the arts, letters, and knowledge, and Lord of New Beginnings. This is one of the most important festivals in Hinduism.

Lord Ganesha’s birth is celebrated on this first day of the festival, as people set up statues decorated with flowers, garlands, and lights to welcome Ganesh into their homes and temples.

It has now been six cycles exactly since a state ceremony (“lying in honour”) was held at the Capitol Rotunda in Washington DC. for slain police officer Sicknick, who had died as a result of injuries sustained during the Jan. 6th insurrection. After the ceremony a long procession carried his remains to Arlington National Cemetery. It has been three full cycles since the disgraced, twice-impeached, multiply-indicted, criminally convicted, “unfathomably re-elected” ex-occupant of the White House began his re-election campaign-of-vengence by delivering a violent rhetoric in Waco, Texas, on the 30th anniversary of the Waco seige, “one of the deadliest law enforcement altercations in US history”.

9 B’en (Aug. 28th) – the “outward projection” of “personal authority” (or “long lasting personal authority”), marking the 62nd Gregorian anniversary of the day when Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. led 250,000 people on an historic “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”, when he delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963. Currently on this day there will be March on Wall Street demonstration in New York, organized by the National Action Network.

It has now been ten cycles since the infamous closed door talks between Trump and Putin in Helsinki on July 16th, 2018, when the dumpster basically threw U.S. Intelligence Agencies “under a bus”, by siding with Putin rather than honouring the work done by US defence organizations. Near the end of the last trecena these two held another “it’s anyone’s guess about what actually happened” meeting, this time in Alaska, when the dumpster welcomed onto US soil, an an “honoured guest”, that international pariah who is wanted by the ICJ for international war crimes. Three days later an Oval Office meeting was held with President Zelenskyy and EU leaders as negotiations towards ending the Russia-Ukraine war continued.

This marks eight cycles exactly since the dumpster was formally impeached for the first time by the US House of Representatives. One of the key factors in this regard was his abuse of power in attempting to withhold military aid from Ukraine in exchange for political favours.

10 Ix (Aug. 29th) – a “source” based energy associated with the jaguar and the mysteries of the earth, coinciding at this time with the UN’s International Day Against Nuclear Tests (aka Anti-Nuclear Day). This was the energy that was in place in early 2017 when the dumpster met with nuclear power developers at the White House about sharing nuclear technology with countries in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, which raised grave concerns among many lawmakers.

When this energy was in place in July of 2023 NATO allies agreed to a three-part package designed to ease Ukraine’s path to membership, which included ratification of a wide-ranging security pact with Ukraine, to include defence equipment, training, and intelligence sharing. At the same time several countries agreed to train the Ukrainian air force in the use of F-16 fighter jets. On that same day tens of thousands of protestors in Israel held another major Day of Resistance against another attempt by Netanyahu to reintroduce his highly controversial judicial overhaul bill, which the people saw, rightly so, as a grave threat to democracy. Since then, over 63,000 people have been killed and millions have been displaced in the Israel-Hamas war. Gaza has not only been reduced to rubble, through relentless Israeli bombing, but has been become a zone of unthinkable famine – and the protests against Netanyahu and his cohorts continue in Israel, as the horror in Gaza continues.

This is also the 20th Gregorian anniversary of the day when Hurricane Katrina made landfall as a Cat. 4 hurricane on the Louisiana coast in 2005, triggering severe flooding that brought devastation from New Orleans to Biloxi, Mississippi. Nearly 1400 people were killed, some 25,000 homes were destroyed and the overall economic damage surpassed $200 billion as over 80% of the city plus surrounding areas were flooded.

This is the day of China’s Double Seventh Festival (aka the Qixi or Qiqiao festival), also seen as Chinese “Valentine’s Day”, or “Young Girls’ Festival”, associated with romance.

Four cycles ago this energy brought the start of jury selection in that New York civil trial against the Trump Organization and ex-CEO Allen Weisselberg. Charges included tax fraud, grand larceny, falsifying business records, and scheming to defraud the government. That was the one that concluded with the order for him to pay $354.8 million, plus interest (which is clicking along daily), after the jury found him guilty as charged.

11 Men (Aug. 30th) – “inspirational Eagle” – a Burner Day that can bring about change or a new form of Higher Vision, marking one cycle since the day when thousands of Syrians took to the streets to celebrate Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in Syria. Families with children, as well as armed and uniformed Islamist fighters, gathered to celebrate the first Friday prayers in Damascus following Assad’s overthrow.

On that same day last December Russia launched a massive aerial attack against Ukraine, using cruise missiles to target energy infrastructure across the country. Currently this 11 Men day marks three cycles exactly since the inaugural session of the NATO-Ukraine Council, a body established to upgrade relations between Kyiv and the now-32-member transatlantic military alliance. At that session NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to participate “as an equal“. Indeed, the EU’s “Coalition of the Willing” continues to work to provide Ukraine with security guarantees, through their strong commitment to various forms of support.

It has now been five 260-day cycles since it was reported that the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration had transported 15 boxes of presidential records from Mar-a-Lago to the National Archives – boxes full of documents that the dumpster had illegally taken. That was before it was discovered that even more documents (including highly sensitive top secret documents) had been hidden at that resort, in violation of the espionage act. Those were the ones seized by the FBI in August of 2023.

12 Kib’ (Aug. 31st) – a “gathering together” type of energy, associated with the ability to “survey”, clean things up, and ultimately restore order, now coinciding with International Overdose Awareness Day, when candlelight vigils will be held in many areas to bring attention to the opioid crisis and to Overdose Prevention.

This is now marking four cycles since the release of those first stunning images taken by the new James Webb Space Telescope, the largest and most complex observatory ever sent into space, launched in 2021.

This also marks eight cycles since the first cluster of patients with “pneumonia of an unknown cause” was first identified in China in December of 2019, when the world was getting a “head’s up” with regard to the pandemic that was coming.

This is the 28th Gregorian anniversary of Princess Diana’s shocking death in 1997.

13 Kab’an (Sept. 1st) – transformational movement (or earth movement), a powerful force that can bring either heavy weather conditions, or significant “movement” of a consequential nature, as it did four cycles ago when Elon Musk completed his $44bn takeover of Twitter, becoming the “Chief Twit”. Since then he has certainly shown himself to be just that!

Currently this is coinciding with Labour Day in the US and Canada, and with the final day of Burning Man 2025. This is also the 35th anniversary of the coming into force of the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child, after being adopted the previous November.

Significantly, this energy is marking the 86th Gregorian anniversary of the outbreak of WWII, and the 102nd Gregorian anniversary of the “Great Kanto Earthquake” and fire, a 7.9 earthquake (one of the worst in history) that devastated Tokyo, Yokohama, and the surrounding region in 1923, killing an estimated 105,000 people. Hundreds of thousands of homes were destroyed.

This is the first day of National Service Dog Month. Founded in 2008, the related organization was established to raise awareness and support for guide dog and service dog schools that do so much to provide assistance for people in need and for the amazing animals that help them.

This is the Maya birth energy of British supercentenarian Ethel May Caterham who celebrated her 116th birthday earlier during this trecena, on Aug. 21st. She was born on a 13 Kab’an day in 1909.

For Harry Potter fans – this is Back to Hogwarts’ Day. This is the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. If you happen to be at London’s King’s Cross Station on this day, watch out for Happy Potter fans (or Hogwarts’ students) vying to board the Hogwarts Express at Platform 9 ¾ as they return for a new term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hogwarts Express train announcements, however, have been discontinued. This special day has grown into a global celebration of all things Harry Potter. Special screening of the film version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire will be part of this year’s celebrations.

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[Please note that the brief descriptions of the days provided above are only “thumbnail sketches”. Much greater detail can be found in Manual for the Soul: A Guide to the Energies of Life.]