noun Hinduism.
- the power, as of a god, to produce illusions.
- the production of an illusion.
- (in Vedantic philosophy) the illusion of the reality of sensory experience and of the experienced qualities and attributes of oneself.
- (initial capital letter) Also called Mahamaya. a goddess personifying the power that creates phenomena.
noun, plural Ma·yas, (especially collectively) Ma·ya.
- a member of a major pre-Columbian civilization of the Yucatán Peninsula that reached its peak in the 9th century a.d. and produced magnificent ceremonial cities with pyramids, a sophisticated mathematical and calendar system, hieroglyphic writing, and fine sculpture, painting, and ceramics.
- a member of a modern American Indian people of southern Mexico, Guatemala, and parts of Honduras who are the descendants of this ancient civilization.
- any of the Mayan languages; the historical and modern languages of the Mayas.
adjective
- Mayan.
noun
- Hinduism illusion, esp the material world of the senses regarded as illusory
noun
- the Hindu goddess of illusion, the personification of the idea that the material world is illusory
noun
- Also called: Mayan plural -ya or -yas a member of an American Indian people of Yucatan, Belize, and N Guatemala, having an ancient culture once characterized by outstanding achievements in architecture, astronomy, chronology, painting, and pottery
- the language of this peopleSee also Mayan
1822, from the native name. Related: Mayan (1831).