When the creators made the world, they
wanted an intelligent, respectful and grateful being. They had tried
to do it with mud and wood, but it had not worked for them. Their
work was not finished, they had not achieved what they wanted.
"With what should we create
humans?" Asked Alom K'ajolom, Tz'aqol, Bitol, Tepew Q'ukumatz
and Uk'u'x Kaj. They thought and talked to each other until four
animals arrived: the fox, the coyote, the agouti and the crow. They
brought some corncobs of white maize and yellow maize from the
distant mountain Pan Paxil, a wonderful place full of plants and food
in the Selegua River basin. Upon seeing this new plant, the creators
decided immediately.
With maize the flesh of the human being
will be made!
Grandma Ixmukane ground the maize nine
times and immediately Alom and K'ajolom made dolls with dough. The
water they used became blood. With one word, the Creators gave life
to the first humans!
These humans were much better than
those they had previously done with mud and wood: they moved, spoke,
watched and listened. The Creators, very happy with their work, asked
them then: "How do you feel? Can you see us and hear us? Do you
know who we are?" They wanted humans to recognize them and thank
them for having received life.
Then, the first humans answered: "We
can hear you and see you. We feel very good. When we look towards the
horizon, we can see everything, we even see behind the mountains, we
know what is in the sky and in the sea, we have understood everything
that makes up the world and its mysteries. Truly, thank you for giving us
life!"
Upon hearing the response of the first
humans, the Creators asked themselves concerned: "Should humans
be equal to us? Will they continue to respect us, their Creators? No, this
is not right." Again they came together and thought about their
work one more time. "We have to modify them a bit," they decided.
And before the humans multiplied, they
made a small change to their work. They blurred their eyes a bit, in
an instant, the humans stopped seeing and hearing everything. They
stopped knowing the mysteries of the world. Since then, they can only
see what is in front of them, they can only hear what sounds close to
them. They lost deep knowledge of life and the world.
Since then, the men and women of maize
multiplied... our grandparents, our parents, us!
Four couples were created: Balam K'itze
'and his wife Kaqa Palo Ja', also Balam Aq'ab and his wife Chomi Ja
', then Majuk'utaj and his wife Tz'ununi Ja', and finally, Ik'i Balam
and his wife Kak'ixa Ja '; these were the couples of the nobility.
All were great sages, so they have also been known as "ajq'ij".
Each of the first three pairs gave rise to three important lineages
of the K'iche' people: the Kaweq, the Nija'ib and the Ajaw K'che'.
When human beings began to multiply,
the four main couples knew that they had to go on a journey in search of
their protectors: the spirits called "kabawiles".
The kabawil of each couple was their
protective spirit, but they had to take care of it. The one the first
couple received was called Tojil, he was the owner of the fire
(sparks flew from his sandals!) and, thanks to him, the four couples
never suffered from cold. The other kabawiles were Awilix, Jaqawitz
and Nik'aqaj Taq'aj.
With their kabawiles, the couples and
their children left again and found a place to settle. It was only
then, after having waited and prayed a lot, that the first true dawn
arrived: when Junajpu and Xbalamke ascended to heaven, like the Sun
and the Moon. The world was already created, humans had already
multiplied: the work of the Creators was already finished.
From that dawn, the kabawiles became
stones and neither the Creators nor the spirits manifested more
before the humans. It was up to them to follow their destiny on their
own.
*The Popol Vuh is the National Book of Guatemala.
READ more:
No hay comentarios.:
Publicar un comentario