04/30/2026
✨MEET OUR 2026 MCKNIGHT CULTURE BEARER FELLOW - GINA KANBALAM MIRANDA✨
Gina Kanbalam Miranda is a distinguished Mayan Time-Keeper and spiritual guide based in Minnesota, renowned for her deep connection to ancient Meso-American wisdom and the sacred Mayan Calendar. Hailing from Meso-America, she is celebrated as a carrier of ancestral knowledge, often referred to as the keeper of the days or Ajkin.
At just 11 years old, Gina was approached by an elder named Ochee from the Chorti Maya, beginning her journey as an apprentice. Under Ochee’s guidance, she immersed herself in rediscovering lost Mayan teachings—foundations that would shape her decades-long mission to master the Mayan timekeeper.
Beyond her shamanism spiritual work, Gina is also an author, educator, and artist. She authored impactful books such as A Matter of Chulel, Journey of the First Americans, the Mayan Constellations, Finding the Chulel, the Mayan Lunar Calendar, and the Ch’aalaj Cycle. The solar haab time navigation chart. and regularly leads community conversations and educational workshops at institutions such as the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Science Museum. educational workshops at institutions like the University of Minnesota (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBJUzD5x4Do and the Minnesota Science Museum (https://www.startribune.com/rosenblum-mayan-daykeeper-a-minnesota-treasure/220960411)
Her collaborative projects include the innovative 2023 exhibition “To Order the Days / Para Ordenar Los Días,” which seamlessly blended Indigenous Maya cosmology with Western scientific perspectives at Hartford Art School.
Learn more about the McKnight Culture Bearer Fellowship at: https://iroots-mcknight-culturebearers.org