Jaguar - Ninth Lord of the Night


The Mayans believed that each god, as well as every person, had an animal counterpart. The jaguar was the counterpart of Itzamna, the god who gave the Mayan people the gift of writing.

Each hour of the night was ruled by a different god, and the final hour of the night - the ninth hour, which is just before dawn, was ruled by Itzamna.

The title of the book, Ninth Lord of the Night comes from this belief.
The jaguar represents Itzamna, the creator god who gave writing and books to the Mayan People.

The Maya also believed in shape-shifting - that each person had an animal counterpart (nahual) and that one could see through the eyes of their nahual.

This idea of human to animal transformation is a prominent aspect in the novel, Ninth Lord of the Night.