In Chapter 21, you learned about the Mayan civilization. This great
civilization lasted nearly 4,000 years from about 2500
b.c.e..
to 1500
c.e. The
Popul Vuh is a Mayan
document that is part mythology and part history. It includes the Mayan legend
of creation and stories about the gods, including many about the Hero Twins.
They are twin boys who avenge the death of their father after he is beheaded by
an underworld demon. The
Popul Vuh also includes the history of the
Mayan people and their kings to 1550 c.e.
The words
Popol Vuh mean “record of the community.” The literal
translation is “book of the mat,” from the words
popol, a mat or rug
of woven rushes on which an entire family sat, and
vuh, paper or book.
So, the
Popul Vuh is the record, on paper, of the community of
families who sat on popul mats.
Europeans learned about the original document at the beginning of the 18th
century. A Spanish priest called Francisco Jimenez discovered the document in
what is now Guatemala. He copied the original document, which was written in
the Mayan language
Quiche (and is now lost), and translated it into
Spanish.
Below is an excerpt from the
Popul Vuh. In this part, the Hero Twins
play the ball game pok-a-tok against the gods of the underworld (called
lords
or
Xibalbans). Do the lords of the underworld act more like gods or
people? Why might they be shown this way?
When all the lords were gathered, One and Seven Deaths [one of the
lords] asked them [the boys], “Where might you have come from?”
“ We don’t know,” said the boys.
“ Let us play ball then,” said the lords.
“ Good,” said the boys.
“ Here is our ball,” said the lords.
“ No thanks, here is ours,” replied the boys.
“ No, we must use ours,” said the Xibalbans [lords].
“ Fine,” said the boys.
“ It is a decorated ball.”
“ No, it is a skull,” said the boys.
“ No it is not,” said the Xibalbans.
The Xibalba [lord] sent the ball towards the boys, who stopped it with a yoke
[a farming tool]. Then while everyone watched, the White Dagger came out of the
ball, and twisted and clattering all over the floor of the court.
“ What is this?” said the boys. “Death is the only thing you want of us. You
summoned us, and you try now to kill us. Play fair or we will just leave. You
are bad hosts.”
“ All right. Don’t go. We can still play ball but we will use yours in the
play.”
“ Very well,” they said and this time their rubber ball was dropped into play.
“ What shall the prize be?” asked the Xibalbans.
“ It is yours for the asking,” was all the boys said.
“ We will take four bowls of flowers when we win,” said the Xibalbans.
“ What kind of flowers?” asked the boys.
“ One bowl of red petals, one bowl of white petals, one bowl of yellow petals,
and one bowl of whole flowers,” said the Xibalbans.
The boys were equal to the Xibalbans in their strength and made many plays,
since they only had very good thoughts. Then the boys gave themselves up in
defeat, and the Xibalbans were glad when they were defeated.
“ We have done well. We have beaten them on the first try,” said the Xibalbans.
Sources
Florida International University, “Popul Vuh: The Text,”
http://www.fiu.edu/~northupl/populvuh.html.
Internet Sacred Text Archive, “Excerpt from The Popol Vuh: The Mythic
and Heroic Sagas of the Kichés of Central America, by Lewis Spence,”
http://www.sacred-texts.com/nam/pvuheng.htm.
Investigating Primary Sources
Create an illustrated encyclopedia entry for the
Popul Vuh. Your entry should include:
| • |
a brief description of the Popul Vuh. |
| • |
an appropriate illustration to help explain your entry. |
| • |
have correct grammar and spelling. |
History Alive! The Medieval World and Beyond, Investigating Primary Sources
