To the Maya people, the Jaguar was a symbol of power, and they also had Jaguar gods.The altar on which the jaguar stands is taken from a Maya altar in Copan, Honduras. The seated figures represent Mayan kings. In some instances, Jaguars were sacrificed. Although it is hard for us today to understand this horrible practice,the Maya saw it as giving the gods the greatest gift, the gift of life. They believed that their gods had given their blood to create people and they wanted to give blood back to their gods to continue the cycle of life. Life was sacred and it had to be continued.