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The Popul Vuh of the K'iche' Maya tells the following story of two generations of heroic twins:
In the darkness before creation was complete, the gods sent a great flood that wiped out humanity. The sky had been formed by the Maker, mother and father of all, the great Feathered Serpent. The gods had raised the mountains of the earth from the face of the murmuring sea. But the creation of humanity had been a dismal failure. Humans made of wood babbled senselessly before crumbing away. So the gods made puppets without strings, carved as humans. But their wooden heads were empty. They couldn't remember their makers with praise, so the gods sent the flood. In this time of darkness were born twins named One and Seven Hunahpu.
These boys were great ball players. They were working out in their ballcourt when messengers arrived from the Lords of Death. These messengers were owls. "The Lords of Death want you to come play ball with them in Xibalba," said the owl messengers. "They think it will be a lot of fun. You're supposed to bring your rubber ball, your arm guards and hip protectors."
The twins asked if they could say goodbye to their mother first. "The Lords have sent for us," they told her. "They want us to bring our gear, but we're going to hide it instead. We'll be back for it later."
So they tied up their ball and their equipment and hid it up under the roof of their mother's house. Then they set out for Xibalba, the kingdom of the Lords of Death. At the bottom of a cliff, they crossed a river of spikes, then a river of blood and a river of pus. They came to the Crossroads, where they made their first mistake. They took the black road, the road of the Lords of Death. And when they came to Xibalba, they made their second mistake. Approaching the throne room of the Lords of Death, they greeted them cheerfully by name. Only these weren't the Lords of Death at all, but just carved wooden replicas.
"Got you!" shouted the real Lords of Death, laughing hysterically. "Really, it's great to have you here. Tomorrow we play ball, but for now relax, have a seat." They gestured at a bench nearby, and the twins sat down. Only the bench was scorching hot. The twins shot up again, clutching their behinds. The Lords convulsed in laughter once more. "Why don't you go to your room and rest," said the Lords of Death when they had composed themselves. "We'll send you cigars and a torch."
So when they went to their bedroom, the torch and cigars were brought. "You'll have to give these back in the morning," the twins were told. But the cigars were already lit, so they smoked them. And in the morning the Lords of Death weren't pleased. "You've failed the test," they said. "The penalty is death."
And so the twins were sacrificed. Their bodies were buried under the ballcourt, there in Xibalba. But the head of One Hunahpu was placed in the fork of a calabash tree. The tree bore fruit, and it was impossible to distinguish the head of One Hunahpu from the calabashes.
The tree was put off limits by the Lords of Death, but a maiden named Blood Woman heard that its fruit was sweet. She couldn't see why it should wither and die untasted. So she approached the tree, and the head of One Hunahpu spoke to her. "What do you want with a skull in a tree?" he asked. "You don't want an old hunk of bone."
"Oh but I do," she replied.
"Very well then," said One Hunahpu. "Hold out your hand." And he spat into her palm. "I'm just a skull," he said, "but even the greatest lord wastes away to the bone when he dies. But his seed, his spit, lives on in his sons and daughters. Leave Xibalba, return to the land of the living. You will see."
And the saliva of One Hunahpu grew into twin babies in the womb of the maiden Blood Woman. And her father, seeing she was with child, betrayed her to the Lords of Death. "Ask her who is the father," demanded the Lords of Death.
"I have been with no man," said Blood Woman.
"Very well then," said her father, disbelieving. "You will be sacrificed. Take her away!" he instructed the owls, messengers and minions of the Lords of Death. "Bring back her heart to the Lords in this bowl."
The owls carried off the bowl and the maiden and went to do the deed. But Blood Woman spoke to them, saying, "Think before you do this. What's in my belly grew all by itself when I spoke to the head of One Hunahpu."
"But we were told to bring back your heart," said the owls.
"Take them the sap of this tree instead," suggested Blood Woman, pointing at a nearby trunk oozing a sticky, blood-red liquid. She showed them how to roll it in the bowl until it took the shape of a human heart.
"This is a more fitting sacrifice for the Lords of Death," she said. And the owls took the bowl and brought it to the throneroom of Xibalba. And the Lords of Death touched the ball of sap and came away with blood-red fingers. They put it on the fire, and it flared up with a sweet fragrance that was pleasing to the Lords of Xibalba.
Meanwhile the owls escaped Xibalba, never to return. And they showed the way to the maiden, Blood Woman, and she too escaped Xibalba. And in time she gave birth to twins in the house of her mother-in-law. These two, Hunahpu and Xbalanque, were special from the start. So noisy were they that their older cousins had them thrown out of the house. They slept soundly on an anthill. Then the jealous cousins tormented Hunahpu and Xbalanque, but the twins turned the tables on them. Tricking them into climbing a tree, they turned them into monkeys. So silly were they that even their own mother laughed at them.
Now, this was in the time when the flood had washed away the humans made of wood. (But if there were no humans, you might ask, who are Xbalanque and Hunahpu? Well, they are heroes, which is to say on their way to becoming gods.) So all was darkness. There wasn't any sun, just a faint glow in the east.
At this point a braggart of a bird named Seven Macaw appointed himself both sun and moon. "Look at me!" he crowed. "I'm so bright I light up the world. My teeth are covered with glittering jewels, my nose is like a beacon and my very nest is made of flashing metal." In truth his brightness did not extend much beyond the tree in which he perched, but the audacity of this minor deity was an affront to the proper order of creation.
"The earth will never be peopled at this rate," said Xbalanque and Hunahpu. "As long as that bird carries on like this, there will never be a true sun. We'd better bring him down." So they took their blowgun and knocked Seven Macaw right off his perch. The dart hit him in the jaw and he fell to the ground, and Hunahpu ran to grab him. But it was Hunahpu who got grabbed. Seven Macaw yanked his arm right out of the socket. Clutching the severed limb and also rubbing his jaw which ached from the blowgun dart, Seven Macaw limped home.
"Those lowdown tricksters have broken my jaw," he moaned. "They've knocked my teeth loose. But let's see how they like it when I've got this arm roasting over an open fire."
But the tricksters weren't done yet. They materialized an old man and an old woman and told them to act like grandparents. "We'll be following along behind you, acting like kids," they said. "But we'll be in charge." When Seven Macaw saw them coming, he asked the old man and woman if those bumptious boys at their heels were their children. "No, they're our grandchildren," they said, tricking Seven Macaw. "They survive on whatever we can scrape together practicing cures."
"What sort of cures do you do?" asked Seven Macaw. "Can you do something about my teeth? They're killing me."
"Our speciality is pulling worms from teeth," said the aged two. "And that's your problem, no doubt — tooth worms. We recommend a nice set of false teeth."
"But my teeth are my pride and joy," said Seven Macaw. "It's because of my fine teeth that everyone knows I am a great lord."
"Well, the fake ones will be very nice," they told him. "We'll make them out of ground-up bones."
So Seven Macaw allowed them to pull his teeth, and in their place they put corn, not the promised bone. And the corn was soft and Seven Macaw's face became misshapen. And the light died out of his eyes. Hunahpu got his arm back.
Now the twins decided to make a garden. But every time they cleared away the underbrush, the forest animals put it back again. They tried to snare the animals but had no success until at last they caught a rat. They held his tail over the fire (which is why rats have no hair back there). They choked him (which is why rats' eyes bulge out). They were starting to kill him when the rat protested, talking fast to save his hide. "Look, you two aren't cut out to be gardeners anyway," he squealed. "There's something you'd be better at."
"Like what?"
"I know a secret," said the rat. "And I'll tell it for some food."
"Very well," said the twins.
"It's about your heritage," said the rat. "Your fathers were great ball players, and you two are cut out to be great yourselves. You just need the proper gear. And I happen to know where your fathers hid it — up under the rafters there."
"Well, go get it for us," said the boys.
"I can't," said the rat. "Your grandmother and your mother are in there."
They were standing out in the yard, and the rat didn't want to get caught in the house by the twins' grandmother and her daughter-in-law. "We'll see to that," said the boys, and they gave it some thought. The next day at lunch time, they met outside the house. One went inside while the other went around back and let the rat loose in the wall. Then they told their grandmother that they were hungry, and she made them some stew. They asked her to grind some chiles on top, and when they had eaten a little they asked for water. "Those chiles are hot," they gasped.
Their grandmother saw that the water jar needed filling, because they had secretly emptied it. So she went out to the well. The boys ate some more, leaning greedily over their bowls. What they were really doing was watching the rat's reflection as he scaled the rafters and located the ball gear. Now they let loose a mosquito, which buzzed out to the well and punctured the grandmother's water jug so that all the water leaked out every time she filled it.
"Where can grandmother be with that water?" they asked their mother. She said she would go look. And when she was gone, the rat bit the twine that held the ball gear to the ceiling, and down it fell. They hid it near the ballcourt their fathers had built, and then went to help their grandmother fix the water jar.
And the next day they were playing ball like their fathers before them. They had a boisterous time of it. Their gleeful shouts and the thud of the hard rubber ball on their pads and wickets was heard down below in Xibalba. "Not again!" said the Lords of Death. "They're no more humble than their fathers. It's not right that they should show such prowess. Bring them here, we'll give them a game."
And so messengers were dispatched, only when they came to the house in the clearing the boys weren't there. They were still off playing ball. So the messengers spoke to the grandmother, giving her the summons to be relayed. It broke her heart to think that she would lose her grandsons to the Lords of Death, just as she had lost her sons before them.
But Xbalanque and Hunahpu did not hesitate when they heard the call. Down they went to Xibalba. Scaling the cliff, they came to the rivers of blood and pus. They didn't just wade in. Instead they used their blowgun like a canoe. When they came to the Crossroads, they knew which road to take. But they also knew that the Lords of Death expected to be greeted by name. Indeed, this was a test, a trial.
So Hunahpu plucked a hair from his shin, and it turned into a mosquito. And the mosquito went on ahead and bit the first Lord of Death. Only there was no reaction, no "Ouch!" For this was no real Lord, but a wooden replica. So now the twins wouldn't fall for that trick. And the mosquito bit the next Lord. Still no reaction. But when it bit the next in line, he let out a cry. "What's the matter, Pus Master" asked the one seated next to him.
"Something bit me," said Pus Master, and now the twins knew his name. And when the mosquito bit the others Lords and each cried out in turn, the twins learned all the names. Then up they strode and entered the throne room of Xibalba. "We're not saying good morning to wooden dummies," they said. But the real Lords of Death they greeted properly, and they greeted them by name. They had passed the first test. "Have a seat," said the Lords of Death, gritting their teeth in frustration.
"Not on that cooking griddle," said the boys. And thus they saved their behinds. The Lords of Death did not argue. These were just the first tests. There were many others in store, starting with the cigars and torch gag. "Return these in the morning just like you got them," the twins were told when they were escorted to their chamber and handed the burning torch and the prelit cigars. But Xbalanque and Hunahpu knew better than to let the torch burn out. Instead they swapped a macaw's scarlet tail feathers for the flame. And they stuck fireflies on the ends of their cigars.
"Who are these two?" demanded the Lords of Death when the items were returned next morning. "They look just like those other twins, but they're getting the better of us. Not to worry, though, when we play ball it's our ballcourt and our ball." And this ball wasn't a ball at all, but a dagger shaped like a sphere.
"Here's the ball," said the Lords of Death.
"We brought our own," said the twins.
"Let's use ours," said the Lords of Death.
"Whatever you say," said the twins.
"Ours is just a normal ball. It just looks fancy," said the Lords of Death.
"Right," said the twins.
The Lords made a shot, but Hunahpu blocked it. The dagger was exposed from inside the ball.
"We see what you have in mind," said the boys. "Either stop trying to kill us, or we're leaving."
"Very well then, change balls if you must."
Now they played with the plain rubber ball supplied by the boys. It was a close match. The teams were about equal in strength and skill, but the twins had the advantage of thinking pure thoughts. In the end, though, they allowed themselves to be defeated.
"What shall be our prize?" asked the Lords of Death.
"Name it," said the twins.
"We'd like flowers," said the Lords of Death. "Many-colored flowers."
And knowing that the only flowers in Xibalba were in their own garden, the Lords of Death warned their guardians, "Keep a good eye out tonight. Those boys will surely make a raid." But those guardian birds were singularly oblivious.
The boys were sent first to the Razor House, where sharp blades were to cut them to pieces. But they convinced the blades that their job was to cut up animals, not hero twins, and the blades let them be. Now they called all the ants of Xibalba to do them a favor.
"Go to the garden and cut us some flowers," they said.
And the ants did as they were told. They cut the flowers right under the noses of the guardian birds. The Lords of Death didn't look too happy when they received their prize.
A night game was played. It was a tie. They agreed to play again in the morning. The boys were sent to the Cold House, but they survived this ordeal by locking out the cold. They were sent to the Jaguar House, but they distracted the jaguars by feeding them bones. The Fire House didn't burn them to ashes, but only toasted them golden brown. The Bat House they survived by hiding inside their blowgun, while the razor-like teeth of the giant bats gnashed through the night.
Now they made a mistake, but they did it on purpose. Hunahpu decided to peek outside the blowgun and see if it was morning yet. When he did so, a bat sliced off his head and it went rolling out onto the ballcourt.
Xbalanque cried out as if he had given up hope. But he called all the animals together, asking each to bring its favorite food. The coati brought a squash, and with the help of the gods this became a new head for Hunahpu.
"Okay, what's the plan?" asked Hunahpu, trying out his new mouth and finding that it worked quite well.
"You'd better not play ball yourself," said Xbalanque. "Leave that to me. You just stand there cussing out the Lords of Death." Meanwhile Xbalanque told a rabbit to hide outside the ballcourt and wait for the ball.
So the Lords of Death started the game, using Hunahpu's head for the ball. As far as they were concerned, this made them victors automatically. But Hunahpu dared them to kick the ball and they took the dare. Xbalanque deflected the shot, then sent Hunahpu's head flying toward the rabbit's hiding place. The rabbit hopped off, the Lord of Death thought it was the bouncing ball and they raced off in pursuit, baying like hounds.
The boys got Hunahpu's head back and put the squash in its place. "It's right here!" they shouted to the Lords of Death.
"How did we miss it? they asked, looking foolish. "Who cares? Play ball!"
Now the game was played in earnest, only the ball wasn't up to it. When Xbalanque gave it a particularly energetic boot, it split open and all its seeds came spilling out. The hero twins had defeated the Lords of Xibalba.
So the Lords of Death, with all their tricks and all their tests couldn't kill the hero twins. But still the boys knew that they would have to die for their quest to be complete. They even knew how the Lords of Death would kill them. So when they were called before the Lords of Xibalba and challenged to a new and different game, they knew it was a trick. "See this oven?" said the Lords of Death. "Bet you can't jump over it four times."
"We're not falling for that one," said the boys, and without any further ado they jumped right into the flames. The Lords of Death were beside themselves with exultation. At this point they made a big mistake. Instead of throwing Xbalanque and Hunahpu over a cliff or hanging their bodies in a tree, they ground their bones on a grinding stone and sprinkled them in the river. This was the only way that the twins could come back to life. And come back they did, first as catfish and then as their normal selves.
Only now their outward appearance was different. Thy looked like tattered beggars, the kind who go about dancing and performing tricks for a living. And their tricks were quite amazing. They'd burn a house down and then make it like new. They'd even sacrifice each other, laying down under the blade then springing up again. Word of their renown reached the Lords of Death, and they were summoned for a command performance.
"Oh no, really, we couldn't," they told the messengers of the Lords of Death. "We wouldn't know how to behave in a royal house." But the messengers insisted, and they were brought before the Lords of Xibalba. They acted scared. They acted amazed. With false humility, they bowed down to the ground.
The Lords of Death asked that a dog be sacrificed and then brought back to life. And when this was done, they asked that it be repeated with a human. And when this too was accomplished, they asked the Twins to sacrifice each other. So Xbalanque dismembered his twin and cut out his heart. Then he started dancing and commanded Hunahpu to get up and join him. And when Hunahpu got up as good as new, the Lords of Death were caught up in a frenzy of delight.
"Now do us!" they cried. And so the Twins sacrificed the two foremost of the Lords of Death. Only they didn't bring them back to life. And the other Lords knew that they had been defeated, and from that day forth Xibalba had lost its glory.
The Twins took the head of One Hunahpu from the tree in which it hung, and they put him back together and restored him to life. They left him there in a place of honor beside the ballcourt in Xibalba. And so it came about that life-giving maize is born and reborn each year through the agency of One Hunahpu, who is also known as the Maize God.
And then the Hero Twins, Xbalanque and Hunahpu, their heroic quest complete, ascended into the sky and became the sun and the moon.
The foregoing is based on Dennis Tedlock's Popol Vuh: The Mayan Book of the Dawn of Life (Simon and Schuster, New York, 1985)..
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