JAGUAR OLMECA

Jaguar Olmeca, originalmente cargada por ¡villalobos!.

The most well-known aspect of shamanism in Mesoamerican religion, and in the whole of Native American shamanism, is the ability to assume the powers of animals associated with the shaman. Such animals are called nahuales, and in Olmec art the most common of these is the jaguar. In a sense, the optimal spirit would have the spirituality and intellect of man and the ferocity and strength of the jaguar, these are all combined in the shaman and his jaguar nahuale. The Jaguar Child may exemplify this combination. This is a very common representation in Olmec art, and it often includes the slitted eyes and curved mouth pronounced in this close-up.

http://www.crystalinks.com/olmec.html

http://synnabar.critter.net/Pages..../ArtPages..../MythArtPages..../mythmain.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maya_jaguar_gods

JAGUAR OLMECA