A Poseidon statue off the beach in Progreso, Yucatan, in Mexico is stirring up faith-related conflict, per Religion News Service.
After becoming a unique tourist attraction, the statue was challenged in court by local Indigenous groups, who said that the statue was put in place before the proper environmental permits were secured, the article said.
The statue was symbolically “closed” on Thursday, July 11, and may soon be removed altogether.
Where did the Poseidon statue come from?
The 10-foot statue, which cost about 2.4 million pesos to construct, came as a “surprise” to the community in and around Progreso, per The Yucatan Times. The statue sits in the ocean near a community basketball court.
Julián Zacarías, who was mayor when the court was installed, indicated that the name of the court referred to Poseidon’s trident, which controls the ocean. “We want to show that in Progreso we can always have the waters calm,” he said, according to The Yucatan Times.
The statue quickly became a successful tourist attraction after it was installed, with many gathering to snap selfies in front of it. Some in the community were pleased by the interest generated by the statue.
“It’s an attraction for our town and it draws attention,” said Lizeth Alvarado Juárez, who works at a hotel in Progreso, to Religion News Service. “There are people who come from Merida (the state capital) just to see the Poseidon.”
But the statue was not embraced by Maya Indigenous groups in the area, who follow a local god of the water known as Chaac, the article said.
Among other legal arguments made against the Poseidon statue, the local groups said it violated their culture.
“Poseidon is a Greek god who is alien to our Maya culture,” the legal complaint said, according to Religion News Service. “I have a human right for my Maya culture to be preserved.”
Why was the statue closed?
Critics of the Poseidon statue have also argued that recent stormy weather, including the massive Hurricane Beryl, which devastated communities from the Caribbean to the United States, can be blamed on Poseidon, per The Yucatan Times. Some believe that Poseidon’s presence triggered the fury of Chaac.
According to The Yucatan Times, some groups want to destroy the Poseidon statue, while others want to perform ancient Mayan rituals to appease Chaac.
Progreso’s government has not offered an opinion on the religious elements of the controversy, per Religion News Service. They have attributed the statue’s closure to a lack of the proper permits.
In celebration, some Mexicans have taken to social media to share their thoughts on the decision — one user wrote “Chaac 1, Poseidon 0,” Religion News Service reported.