GODS, SUPERNATURAL BEINGS, AND WORSHIP.
REVENUES OF THE MEXICAN TEMPLES -- VAST NUMBER OF THE PRIESTS
-- MEXICAN SACERDOTAL SYSTEM -- PRIESTESSES -- THE ORDERS OF
TLAMAXCACAYOTL AND TELPOCHTILIZTLI -- RELIGIOUS DEVOTEES --
BAPTISM -- CIRCUMCISION -- COMMUNION -- FASTS AND PENANCE --
BLOOD-DRAWING -- HUMAN SACRIFICES -- THE GODS OF THE TARASCOS
-- PRIESTS AND TEMPLE SERVICE OF MICHOACAN -- WORSHIP IN
JALISCO AND OAJACA -- VOTAN AND QUETZALCOATL -- TRAVELS OF
VOTAN -- THE APOSTLE WIXEPECOCHA -- CAVE NEAR XUSTLAHUACA --
THE PRINCESS PINOPIAA -- WORSHIP OF COSTAHUNTOX -- TREE
WORSHIP.
We have seen in the preceding volume that the number of religious
edifices was very great; that in addition to the temples in the
cities--and Mexico alone is said to have contained two thousand sacred
buildings--there were "on every isolated hill, along the roads, and in
the fields, substantial structures consecrated to some deity."
Torquemada estimates the whole number at eighty thousand.
[Sidenote: TEMPLE REVENUES.]
The vast revenues needed for the support and repair of the temples,
and for the maintenance of the immense army of priests that officiated
in them, were derived from various sources. The greatest part was
supplied from large tracts of land which were the property of the
church, and were held by vassals under certain conditions, or worked
by slaves. Besides this, taxes of wine and grain, especially first
fruits, were levied upon communities, and stored in granaries
attached to the temples. The voluntary contributions, from a cake,
feather, or robe to slaves or priceless gems, given in performance of
a vow, or at the numerous festivals, formed no unimportant item.
Quantities of food were provided by the parents of the children
attending the schools, and there were never wanting devout women eager
to prepare it. In the kingdom of Tezcuco, thirty towns were required
to provide firewood for the temples and palaces;[X-1] in Meztitlan,
says Chaves, every man gave four pieces of wood every five days; it is
easy to believe that the supply of fuel must have been immense, when
we consider that six hundred fires were kept continually blazing in
the great temple of Mexico alone.[X-2] Whatever surplus remained of
the revenues after all expenses had been defrayed, is said to have
been devoted to the support of charitable institutions and the relief
of the poor;[X-3] in this respect, at least the Holy Mother Church of
contemporary Europe might have taken a lesson from her pagan sister in
the New World.
Each temple had its complement of ministers to conduct and take part
in the daily services, and of servants to attend to the cleansing,
firing, and other menial offices. In the great temple at Mexico there
were five thousand priests and attendants,[X-4] the total number of
the ecclesiastical host must therefore have been immense; Clavigero
places it at a million, which does not appear improbable if we accept
Torquemada's statement that there were forty thousand temples as a
basis for the computation. It should be remembered, however, that the
sacerdotal body was not composed entirely of permanent members; some
were merely engaged for a certain number of years, in fulfillment of a
vow made by themselves or their parents; others were obliged to attend
at intervals only, or at certain festivals, the rest of their time
being passed in the pursuit of some profession, usually that of
arms.[X-5]
The vast number of the priests, their enormous wealth, and the blind
zeal of the people, all combined to render the sacerdotal power
extremely formidable. The king himself performed the functions of
high-priest on certain occasions, and frequently held some sacred
office before succeeding to the throne. The heads of Church and State
seem to have worked amicably together, and to have united their power
to keep the masses in subjection. The sovereign took no step of
importance without first consulting the high-priests to learn whether
the gods were favorable to the project. The people were guided in the
same manner by the inferior ministers, and this influence was not
likely to decrease, for the priests as the possessors of all learning,
the historians and poets of the nation, were intrusted with the
education of the youth, whom they took care to mold to their purposes.
At the head of the Mexican priesthood were two supreme ministers; the
Teotecuhtli or 'divine lord,' who seems to have attended more
particularly to secular matters, and the Hueiteopixqui, who chiefly
superintended religious affairs. These ministers were elected,
ostensibly from among the priests most distinguished in point of
birth, piety, and learning; but as the king and principal nobles were
the electors, the preference was doubtless given to those who were
most devoted to their interests, or to members of the royal
family.[X-6] They were distinguished by a tuft of cotton, falling
down upon the breast. Their robes of ceremony varied with the nature
of the god whose festival they celebrated. In Tezcuco and Tlacopan,
the pontifical dignity was always conferred upon the second son of the
king. The Totonacs elected their pontiff from among the six chief
priests, who seem to have risen from the ranks of the Centeotl monks;
the ointment used at his consecration was composed partly of
children's blood. High as was the high-priest's rank, he was not by
any means exempt from punishment; in Ichatlan, for instance, where he
was elected by his fellow-priests, if he violated his vow of celibacy
he was cut in pieces, and the bloody limbs were given as a warning to
his successor.[X-7]
[Sidenote: MEXICAN PRIESTHOOD.]
Next in rank to the two Mexican high-priests was the
Mexicatlteohuatzin, who was appointed by them, and seems to have been
a kind of Vicar General. His duties were to see that the worship of
the gods was properly observed throughout the kingdom, and to
supervise the priesthood, monasteries, and schools. His badge of
office was a bag of incense of peculiar shape. Two coadjutors assisted
him in the discharge of his duties; the Huitzuahuacteohuatzin, who
acted in his place when necessary, and the Tepanteohuatzin, who
attended chiefly to the schools.[X-8] Conquered provinces retained
control over their own religious affairs.[X-9] Among other dignitaries
of the church may be mentioned the Topiltzin, who held the hereditary
office of sacrificer, in which he was aided by five assistants;[X-10]
the Tlalquimiloltecuhtli, keeper of relics and ornaments; the
Ometochtli, composer of hymns; the Tlapixcatzin, musical director; the
Epcoaquacuiltzin, master of ceremonies; the treasurer; the master of
temple properties; and a number of leaders of special celebrations.
Besides these, every ward, or parish, had its rector, who performed
divine service in the temple, assisted by a number of inferior priests
and school-children. The nobles kept private chaplains to attend to
the worship of the household gods, which everyone was required to have
in his dwelling.[X-11] The statement of some writers indicate that the
body of priests attached to the service of each god, was to a certain
extent independent, and governed by its own rules. Thus in some wards
the service of Huitzilopochtli was hereditary, and held in higher
estimation than any other.
The distinguishing dress of the ordinary priests was a black cotton
cloth, from five to six feet square, which hung from the back of the
head like a veil. Their hair, which was never cut and frequently
reached to the knees, was painted black and braided with cord; during
many of their long fasts it was left unwashed, and it was a rule with
some of the more ascetic orders never to cleanse their heads.[X-12]
Reed sandals protected their feet. They frequently dyed their bodies
with a black mixture made of ocotl-root, and painted themselves with
ochre and cinnabar. They bathed every night in ponds set apart for the
purpose within the temple enclosure. When they went out into the
mountains to sacrifice, or do penance, they anointed their bodies with
a mixture called _teopatli_, which consisted of the ashes of poisonous
insects, snakes, and worms, mixed with ocotl-soot, tobacco,
ololiuhqui, and sacred water. This filthy compound was supposed to be
a safeguard against snakebites, and the attack of wild beasts.[X-13]
[Sidenote: MEXICAN PRIESTESSES.]
Sacred offices were not occupied by males only; females held positions
in the temples, though they were excluded from the sacrificial and
higher offices. The manner in which they were dedicated to the temple
school has been already described.[X-14] Like the Roman vestals, their
chief duty seems to have been to tend the sacred fires, though they
were also required to place the meat offerings upon the altar, and to
make sacerdotal vestments. The punishment inflicted upon those who
violated their vow of chastity was death. They were divided into
watches, and during the performance of their duties were required to
keep at a proper distance from the male assistants, at whom they did
not even dare to glance.[X-15]
Of the several religious orders the most renowned for its sanctity was
the Tlamaxcacayotl, which was consecrated to the service of
Quetzalcoatl. The superior of this order, who was named after the god,
never deigned to issue from his seclusion except to confer with the
king. Its members, called _tlamacaxqui_, led a very ascetic life,
living on coarse fare, dressing in simple black robes,[X-16] and
performing all manner of hard work. They bathed at midnight, and kept
watch until an hour or two before dawn, singing hymns to Quetzalcoatl;
on occasions some of them would retire into the desert to lead a life
of prayer and penance in solitude. Children dedicated to this order
were distinguished by a collar called _yanuati_, which they wore till
their fourth year, the earliest age at which they were admitted as
novices. The females who joined these orders were not necessarily
virgins, for it seems that married women were admitted.[X-17]
The order of Telpochtiliztli, 'congregation of young men,' was
composed of youths who lived with their parents, but met at sunset in
a house set apart for them, to dance and chant hymns in honor of their
patron god, Tezcatlipoca. Females also attended these meetings, and,
according to report, strict decorum was maintained, at least while the
services lasted.[X-18]
[Sidenote: RELIGIOUS DEVOTEES.]
Acosta makes mention of certain ascetics who dedicated themselves for
a year to the most austere life; they assisted the priests at the
hours of incensing, and drew much blood from their bodies in
sacrifice. They dressed in white robes and lived by begging.[X-19]
Camargo refers to a similar class of penitents in Tlascala, who called
themselves _tlamaceuhque_, and sought to obtain divine favor by
passing from temple to temple at night, carrying pans of fire upon
their heads; this they kept up for a year or two, during which time
they led a very strict life.[X-20] The Totonacs had a very strict sect,
limited in number, devoted to Centeotl, to which none were admitted
but widowers of irreproachable character, who had passed the age of
sixty. It was they who made the historical and other paintings from
which the high-priest drew his discourses. They were much respected by
the people, and were applied to by all classes for advice, which they
gave gravely, squatted upon their haunches and with lowered eyes. They
dressed in skins, and ate no meat.[X-21]
The children, who were all required, says Las Casas, to attend school
between the ages of six and nine, rendered valuable assistance to the
priests by performing the minor duties about the temple. Those of the
lower school performed much of the outside labor, such as carrying
wood and drawing water, while the sons of the nobility were assigned
higher tasks in the interior of the building.[X-22]
The daily routine of temple duties was performed by bodies of priests,
who relieved each other at intervals of a few hours or days. The
service, which chiefly consisted of hymn-chanting and incense-burning,
was performed four times each day, at dawn, noon, sunset, and
midnight. At the midnight service the priests drew blood from their
bodies and bathed themselves. The sun received offerings of quails
four times during the day, and five times during the night.[X-23] The
priests of Quetzalcoatl sounded the hours of these watches with
shell-trumpets and drums. Thrice every morning the Totonac pontiff
wafted incense toward the sun; after which the elder priests, who
followed him in a file, according to rank, waved their censers three
times before the principal idols, and once before the others; finally,
incense was burned in honor of the pontiff himself. The copal that
remained was distributed in heaps upon the various altars. Later in
the day, the high-priest delivered a lecture before the priests
and nobles.[X-24] Their prayers were standard compositions, learned by
rote at school;[X-25] while reciting them, they assumed a squatting
posture,[X-26] usually with the face toward the east; on occasions of
great solemnity they prostrated themselves. A test was sometimes
applied to ascertain whether the deity was disposed to respond to the
prayers of the nation, when offered for a particular purpose. This was
done by sprinkling snuff upon the altar, and if, shortly afterwards,
the foot-print of an animal, particularly that of an eagle, was found
impressed in the snuff, it was regarded as a mark of divine favor, and
great was the shouting when the priest announced the augury.[X-27]
Many rites and ceremonies were found to exist among the civilized
nations of America that were very similar to certain others observed
by Jews and Christians in the old world. The innumerable speculators
on the origin of the aboriginal inhabitants of the new world, or at
least on the origin of their civilization, have not neglected to bring
forward these coincidences--there is no good reason to suppose them
anything else--in support of their various theories.
[Sidenote: BAPTISM AND CIRCUMCISION.]
The cleansing virtue of water would naturally suggest its adaptability
to the purification of spiritual stains; the priests and ascetics,
plunging at midnight, with their self-inflicted wounds unclosed, into
the icy pool within the temple inclosure, had this end in view; there
is therefore no cause to wonder that baptism developed into an
established rite. The fact that infants were baptized immediately
after birth, proves that these people believed, with the Christians
and Jews, that sin is inherited; but this, to my thinking at least,
does not necessarily show that any communication or connection of any
kind ever took place or existed between the inhabitants of the old
world and those of the new. They saw that life was not all happiness;
they saw that a man's suffering begins at his birth; they were
peculiarly apt to regard every misfortune as a direct visitation of
the offended gods, whose anger they continually deprecated by prayer
and sacrifice; how, then, could they help but believe in the inherency
of sin--in the visiting of the sins of the fathers upon the
children--while the suffering entailed upon irresponsible infancy was
continually before them?
The rite of circumcision has been the main-stay of the numerous
theorists who have attempted to prove that the native Americans are
descended from the Jews; but with the same evidence they may be proved
to be descended from the Caffirs, the South Sea Islanders, the
Ethiopians, the Egyptians, or from any Mohammedan people, who all
either have practiced, or do now practice circumcision.[X-28] Brinton
thinks that the rite was probably a symbolic renunciation of the
lusts of the flesh;[X-29] but, as it would be difficult to find a more
licentious race than the American, this supposition is unsatisfactory.
After all, why need we grope among the recesses of an obscure cult for
the meaning and origin of a custom which may have had no religious
ideas connected with it? We know that several of the nations of the
old world practiced circumcision merely for purposes of cleanliness
and convenience, why not also the Americans?
A rite, analogous in some aspects to the Christian communion, was
observed on certain occasions. Thus, in the fifteenth month, a dough
statue of Huitzilopochtli was broken up and distributed among the men;
this ceremony was called _teoqualo_, meaning 'the god is eaten.' At
other times, sacred cakes of amaranth-seeds and honey, were stuck upon
maguey-thorns and distributed. Mendieta states that tobacco was eaten
in honor of Cihuacoatl. The Totonacs made a dough of first-fruits from
the temple garden, _ulli_, and the blood of three infants sacrificed
at a certain festival; of this the men above twenty-five years of age,
and the women above sixteen, partook every six months; as the dough
became stale, it was moistened with the heart's blood of ordinary
victims.[X-30] The rite of confession has been already described.[X-31]
[Sidenote: FASTS AND PENANCE.]
Fasting was observed as an atonement for sin, as well as a preparation
for solemn festivals. An ordinary fast consisted in abstaining from
meat for a period of from one to ten days, and taking but one meal a
day, at noon; at no other hour might so much as a drop of water be
touched. In the 'divine year' a fast of eighty days was observed. Some
of the fasts held by the priests lasted one hundred and sixty days,
and, owing to the insufficient food allowed and terrible mutilations
practiced, these long feasts not unfrequently resulted fatally to the
devotees. The high-priest sometimes set a shining example to his
subordinates by going into the mountains and there passing several
months, in perfect solitude, praying, burning incense, drawing blood
from his body, and supporting life upon uncooked maize.[X-32]
In Teotihuacan, four priests undertook a four years' penance, which,
if strictly observed, entitled them to be regarded as saints forever
after. A thin mantle and a breech-clout were all the dress allowed
them, no matter what the weather might be; the bare ground was their
only bed, a stone their softest pillow; their noonday and only meal
was a two-ounce cake, and a small bowl of porridge made of meal and
honey, except on the first of each month, when they were allowed to
take part in the general banquets. Two of them watched every alternate
night, drawing blood and praying. Every twentieth day they passed
twenty sticks through the upper part of the ear; and these, Gomara
solemnly assures us, were allowed to accumulate from month to month,
so that at the end of the four years, the ear held four thousand three
hundred and twenty sticks, which were burned in honor of the gods at
the expiration of the time of penance.[X-33]
Blood-drawing was the favorite and most common mode of expiating sin
and showing devotion. Chaves says that the people of Meztitlan drew
blood every five days, staining pieces of paper with it, and offering
them to the god.[X-34] The instruments used in ordinary scarification
were maguey-thorns, which were offered to the idol, and afterwards
burned, but for more severe discipline iztli knives were used, and
cords or sticks were passed through the tongue, ears, or genitals.
[Sidenote: HUMAN SACRIFICES.]
The offering most acceptable to the Nahua divinities was human life,
and without this no festival of any importance was complete. The
origin of the rite of human sacrifice, as connected with sun-worship
at least, dates back to the earliest times. It is mentioned in the
story of the first appearance of the sun to the Mexicans, which
relates how that luminary refused to proceed upon its daily circuit
until appeased by the sacrifice of certain heroes who had offended
it.[X-35] Some affirm that human sacrifice was first introduced by
Tezcatlipoca; others again say that it was practiced before
Quetzalcoatl's time, which is likely enough, if, as we are told, that
prophet not only preached against it as an abomination, but shut his
ears with both hands when it was even mentioned. Written, or painted,
records show its existence in 1091, though some native writers assert
that it was not practiced until after this date. The nations that
encompass the Aztecs ascribe the introduction of human sacrifice to
the latter people; a statement accepted by most of the early
historians, who relate that the first human victims were four
Xochimilcos, with whose blood the newly erected altar of
Huitzilopochtli was consecrated.[X-36]
The number of human victims sacrificed annually in Mexico is not
exactly known. Las Casas, the champion of the natives, places it at an
insignificantly low figure, while Zumárraga states that twenty
thousand were sacrificed in the capital alone every year. That the
number was immense we can readily believe, when we read in Torquemada,
Ixtlilxochitl, Boturini, and Acosta, that from seventy to eighty
thousand human beings were slaughtered at the inauguration of the
temple of Huitzilopochtli, and a proportionately large number at the
other celebrations of the kind.[X-37]
The victims were mostly captives of war, and for the sole purpose of
obtaining these wars were often made; a large proportion of the
sacrificed, however, were of slaves and children, either bought or
presented for the purpose, and condemned criminals. Moreover,
instances are not wanting of devout people offering themselves
voluntarily for the good of the people and the honor of the god.[X-38]
The greater part of the victims died under the knife, in the manner so
often described;[X-39] some, however, were, as we have seen in the
preceding volume, burned alive; children were often buried, or immured
alive, or drowned; in some cases criminals were crushed between
stones. The Tlascaltecs frequently bound the doomed one to a pole and
made his body a target for their spears and arrows.
It is difficult to determine what religious ideas were connected with
the almost universal practice of anthropophagy. We have seen that
several of the savage tribes ate portions of slain heroes, thinking
thereby to inherit a portion of the dead man's good qualities; the
same reason might be assigned for the cannibalism of the Aztecs, were
it not for the fact that they ate the flesh of sacrificed slaves and
children as well as that of warriors and notable persons. Whatever
may have been the original significance of the rite, it is most
probable that finally the body, the essence of which served to regale
the god, was regarded merely as the remains of a divine feast, and,
therefore, as sacred food. It is quite possible, however, that
religious anthropophagy gradually degenerated into an unnatural
appetite for human flesh and nothing more.
* * * * *
I here close the review of the Aztec gods. Like most of its branches,
this great centre of North American mythology rests on natural
phenomena and anthropomorphic creations, with an occasional
euhemeristic development or apotheosis, but is attended by a worship
so sanguinary and monstrous that it stands out an isolated spectacle
of the extreme to which fanatical zeal and blind superstition can go.
A glance at the Greek and Roman mythology is sufficient to show how
much purer was the Nahua conception of divine character. The Nahua
gods did not, like those of Greece, play with vice, but rather
abhorred it. Tezcatlipoca is the only deity that can be fairly
compared with the fitful Zeus of Homer--now moved with extreme
passion, now governed by a noble impulse, now swayed by brutal lust,
now drawn on by a vein of humor. But the polished Greek, poetic,
refined, full of ideas, exulting in his strong, beautiful, immoral
gods, and making his art immortal by his sublime representations of
them, presents a picture very different from the Aztec, phlegmatic,
bloody-minded, ferocious, broken in body and in spirit by the excesses
of his worship, overshadowed by countless terrors of the imagination,
quaking continually before gods who feast on his flesh and blood.
Nevertheless there was one bright spot, set afar off on the horizon,
upon which the Aztec might look and hope. Like the Brahmans, the
Buddhists, and the Jews, he looked forward to a new era under a great
leader, even Quetzalcoatl, who had promised to return from the glowing
east, bringing with him all the prosperity, peace, and happiness of
his former reign. The Totonacs, also, knew of one in heaven who
pleaded unceasingly for them with the great god, and who was
ultimately to bring about a gentler era.
* * * * *
[Sidenote: WORSHIP IN MICHOACAN.]
Worship in Michoacan, though on a smaller scale, was very similar to
that in Mexico. The misty form of a Supreme Being that hovers through
the latter, here assumes a more distinct outline, however. A First
Cause, a Creator of All, a Ruler of the World, who bestows existence,
and regulates the seasons, is recognized in the god Tucapacha; an
invisible being whose abode is in the heaven above, an inconceivable
being whom no image can represent, a merciful being to whom the people
may hopefully pray.[X-40] But the very beauty and simplicity of the
conception of this god seem to have operated against the popularity of
his worship. The people needed a less shadowy personification of their
ideas, and this they found in Curicaneri, originally the patron
divinity of the Chichimec rulers of the country, and by them exalted
over Xaratanga, the former head god of the Tarascos. Brasseur de
Bourbourg thinks Curicaneri to be identical with the sun, and gives as
his reason that the Chichimecs presented their offerings first to that
luminary and then to the inferior deities. There is another point that
seems to favor this view. The insignia of Curicaneri and Xaratanga
were carried by the priests in the van of the army to inspire courage
and confidence of victory. Before setting out on the march a fire was
lighted before the idol, and as the incense rose to heaven, the priest
addressed the god of fire, imploring him to accept the offering and
favor the expedition.[X-41] The image of Curicaneri was profusely
adorned with jewels, each one of which represented a human sacrifice
made in honor of the god.
The goddess Xaratanga, though second in rank, seems to have occupied
the first place in the affections of the Tarascos, in spite of the
myth which associates her name with the downfall of the native
dynasty, saying that she transformed their princes into snakes,
because they appeared drunk at her festivals, and thus afforded the
Chichimecs an opportunity to seize the sceptre. The priests did their
utmost, besides, to maintain her prestige, and they were successful,
as we have seen from the position of the goddess by the side of
Curicaneri, in the van of the army.
Among the inferior gods were Manovapa, son of Xaratanga, and Taras,
from whom, says Sahagun, the Tarascos took their name, and who
corresponded to the Mexican Mixcoatl. The Matlaltzincas worshiped
Coltzin, suffocating before his image the few human beings offered to
him. They reverenced very highly, also, a great reformer, Surites, a
high-priest, who preached morality, and, inspired by a prophetic
spirit, is said to have prepared the people for a better faith, which
was to come from the direction of the rising sun. The festivals of the
Peranscuaro, which corresponded to our Christmas, and the
Zitacuarencuaro, or 'resurrection,' were instituted by Surites. These
ideas, however, bear traces of having been 'improved' by the padres.
The priests of Michoacan exercised even a greater influence over the
people than those of Mexico. In order to retain this power they
appealed to the religious side of the people's character by thundering
sermons and solemn rites, and to their affections by practicing
charity at every opportunity. The king himself, when he paid his
annual visit to the high-priest to inaugurate the offering of
first-fruits, set an example of humility by kneeling before the
pontiff and reverently kissing his hand. The priests of Michoacan
formed a distinct class, composed of three orders, at the head of
which stood the high priest of Curicaneri.[X-42] Those who served the
goddess Xaratanga were called _watarecha_, and were distinguished by
their shaven crowns, long black hair, and tunics bordered with red
fringe.[X-43] Marriage was one of their privileges.
The temple-service of Michoacan was much the same as in Mexico. Human
sacrifices, which seem to have been introduced at a late period, were
probably very numerous, since hundreds of human victims were immolated
at the funeral of a monarch. The hearts of the sacrificed were eaten
by the priests, says Beaumont, and this is not unlikely since the
Otomí population of Michoacan sold flesh in the public market. During
seasons of drought the Otomís sought to propitiate the rain gods by
sacrificing a virgin on the top of a hill.[X-44]
[Sidenote: WORSHIP IN JALISCO.]
In Jalisco, several forms of worship appear, each with its special
divinities. These were mostly genii of natural features. Thus, the
towns about Chapala paid divine honors to the spirit of the lake, who
was represented by a misshapen image with a miniature lake before it.
The people of other places had idols mounted on rocks, or represented
in the act of fighting with a wild animal or monster. In Zentipac and
Acaponeta the stars were honored with offerings of the choicest fruit
and flowers. Equally innocent were the offerings brought to
Piltzinteolli, the 'child god,' whose youthful form was reared in
several places. An instance of apotheosis occurred in Nayarit, where
the skeleton of a king, enthroned in a cave, received divine honors.
Among the temples consecrated to the various idols, may be mentioned
one in Jalisco, which was a square pyramid, decorated with breast-work
and turrets, to which access was had by a staircase sixty feet in
height. At each of the four corners was a hearth so arranged that the
smoke from the sacred fire spread in a dense cloud over the temple.
Another, at Teul, consisted of a stone building, five fathoms in
length, by three in breadth, and gradually widening towards the top.
Two entrances, one at the north corner, the other at the south, each
with five steps, gave admission to the interior; close by were several
piles, formed of the bones of the sacrificed.
The festivals which took place seem to have been disgraced not only by
excesses of the most infamous character, but by the most horrible
cruelties, if we are to believe Oviedo, who writes of furnaces filled
with charred human remains. These sacrifices, however, if sacrifices
they were, which were common in the north-eastern parts, where
intercourse with Mexico had produced many changes, do not appear as we
advance southward. Not only do they entirely vanish, but the
chroniclers state that in Colima, which was reputed to have been at
one time governed by a very wise prince, no outward worship of any
kind could be found; moreover, they hint at an atheism having existed
there, restricted only by moral precepts. But the reality of an oasis
of this character, in the midst of the most degraded superstitions and
the wildest fanaticism, is at the least, doubtful, and the work of the
Fathers seems to be once more apparent.[X-45]
[Sidenote: WORSHIP IN OAJACA.]
The worship of Oajaca bore even a stronger resemblance to that of
Mexico than did that of Michoacan, and the assertion of some modern
writers that both nations have a common origin seems fully borne out
by the records of the old chroniclers. The array of gods was, if
possible, greater, for almost every feature of the grand, wild
scenery, every want, every virtue, even every vice, says Burgoa, had
one or more patron deities, to whom offerings were made on the
household altars. This was especially the case in the upper district
of Mizteca and Zapoteca, where the rugged, cloud-capped peaks, dense
forests, boiling cataracts, and stealthy streams, all tended to fill
the crude mind of the native with a superstitious awe that must have
vent. Through all this may be discerned the vague shape of a Supreme
Being, bearing many titles, such as Piyetao Piyexoo, 'one without
being,' Pitao Cozaana, 'creator of beings,' Wichaana, 'creator of men
and fishes,' Coquiza-Chibataya Cozaanatao, 'the sustainer and governor
of all,' and a multitude of other titles, which merely serve to show
how indefinite was the position this Invisible One occupied in the
minds of a people unable to rise to a definite conception of his
eminence, and groveling before the hideous gnomes bred of their own
imagination.[X-46]
When the disciples of Quetzalcoatl, the Toltec god and lawgiver, went
forth at the command of their master to preach his doctrines, some are
said to have wended their way to Oajaca, where they founded several
centres of worship,[X-47] and among them Achiuhtla, the headquarters of
the Miztec religion, situated in the most rugged part of the
mountains. Here, in a cave the interior of which was filled with
idols, set up in niches upon stones dyed with human blood and smoke of
incense, was a large transparent chalchiuite,[X-48] entwined by a snake
whose head pointed toward a little bird perched on the apex. This
relic, worshiped since time immemorial under the name of the 'heart of
the people,' has all the chief attributes of Quetzalcoatl; the stone,
the emblem of the air god, the snake and the bird; yet how mutilated
the original myth, how much of its beautiful significance gone! Burgoa
invests the relic with another attribute in making it the supporter of
the earth, another Atlas in fact, whose movements produce earthquakes.
This also accords with the character of Quetzalcoatl, who, under the
name of Huemac, was supposed to produce earthquakes. The Zapotecs,
besides, prayed to it for victory and wealth, and Quetzalcoatl as the
'peace god,' could doubtless influence the former, while the latter
gift was always in his power.[X-49] In several other places were idols
with the same name, as at Yangüistlan, Chalcatongo, and Coatlan, where
the temples were caves, a fact worthy of note when we consider that
Quetzalcoatl is stated by the myth to have erected temples to
Mictlantecutli, the Mexican Pluto.[X-50]
[Sidenote: VOTAN AND QUETZALCOATL.]
The few authors, however, who have referred to this relic, nearly all
hold it to represent Votan; the old writers doubtless because the name
signifies 'heart'[X-51] in the Tzendal dialect of Chiapas, where he was
the most prominent deity, the modern, because its attributes accord
with those of this god. But Votan has so much in common with
Quetzalcoatl that some writers are inclined to consider them
identical, or at least related. Müller, however, declares him to be an
original Maya snake-god, one of the thirteen chief snakes, to whom the
bird attribute was given at a late period, borrowed, perhaps, from
Quetzalcoatl. He is gradually anthropomorphized into one of the many
leaders whose names have been given to the days of the month, Votan
taking the third of the four names that designated days as well as
years. Yet Professor Müller concedes that the god was brought from
Cholula, and that certain special attributes of Quetzalcoatl may be
recognized in the figures on the Palenque ruins, which probably refer
to Votan; and further, that a phase of the myth seems to point to him
as the grandson of Quetzalcoatl.[X-52] Brasseur de Bourbourg, while
accepting his identity with the 'heart of the people,' considers that
the double aspect of the tradition allows us to suppose that there
were several Votans, or that this name was accorded to deserving men
who came after him. At times he seems to be a mythic creation, the
mediator between man and God, the representation of wisdom and power;
at times a prince and legislator who introduced a higher culture among
his people. The analogy presented by traditions between Votan,
Gucumatz, Cukulcan, and Quetzalcoatl, would lead us to believe that
one individual united in his person all these appellations.
Nevertheless, a comparison of the different traditions admits of two,
Votan and Quetzalcoatl, the other names having the same signification
as the latter.
It is certain, however, that from them, whether heroes, priests,
rulers, or warriors, Central America received the culture which their
successors brought to such perfection. The knowledge of one supreme
being appears to have been among the first dogmas instilled into the
minds of their people; but in the tradition presented to us, the
hero's name is often confounded with that of the divinities.[X-53] Like
Quetzalcoatl, Votan was the first historian of his people, and wrote a
book on the origin of the race, in which he declares himself a snake,
a descendant of Imos, of the line of Chan, of the race of
Chivim.[X-54] One of his titles was 'lord of the hollow tree,' the
tepahuaste, or teponaztli.[X-55]
From the confused tradition of the Tzendals, as rendered by Nuñez de
la Vega and Ordoñez y Aguiar, it seems that Votan, proceeded by divine
command to America and there portioned out the land.[X-56] He
accordingly departed from Valum Chivim, passed by the 'dwelling of the
thirteen snakes,' and arrived in Valum Votan,[X-57] where he took with
him several of his family to form the nucleus of the settlement. With
them he passed through the island-strewn Laguna de Terminos, ascended
the Usumacinta, and here, on one of its tributaries founded
Nachan,[X-58] or Palenque, the future metropolis of a mighty kingdom,
and one of the reputed cradles of American civilization. The Tzendal
inhabitants bestowed upon the strange-looking new-comers the name
Tzequiles, 'men with petticoats,' on account of their long robes, but
soon exchanged ideas and customs with them, submitted to their rule,
and gave them their daughters in marriage. This event is laid a
thousand years before Christ.[X-59]
[Sidenote: TRAVELS OF VOTAN.]
Ordoñez proceeds to say that Votan, after the establishment of his
government, made four or more visits to his former home. On his first
voyage he came to a great city, wherein a magnificent temple was in
course of erection; this city Ordoñez supposed to be Jerusalem; he
next visited an edifice which had been originally intended to reach
heaven, an object defeated by a confusion of tongues; finally he was
allowed to penetrate by a subterranean passage to the root of
heaven.[X-60] On returning to Palenque, Votan found that several more
of his nations had arrived; these he recognized as snakes, and showed
them many favors, in return for which his supremacy was made secure,
and he was at last apotheosized.[X-61] Among the monuments left by the
hero was a temple on the Huehuetan River, called 'house of darkness,'
from its subterranean chambers, where the records of the nation were
deposited under the charge of a fixed number of old men, termed
_tlapianes_, or guardians, and an order of priestesses, whose superior
was likewise the head of the male members. Here were also kept a
number of tapirs, a sacred animal among the people.[X-62]
The claims of Votan to be considered as the 'heart of the people,' are
supported, according to the above accounts, chiefly by his name, which
means 'heart,' and by the fact that a chalchiuite, of which stone the
relic was made, was placed by the Mexicans and other peoples between
the lips of deceased. The other attributes accord more with the
character of Quetzalcoatl, as we have seen, and the tradition is very
similar; its confusion goes to show that it is a mutilated version of
the Toltec myth. If we accept Votan as a grandson of Quetzalcoatl we
may also suppose that he was one of the disciples sent out by the
prophet to spread his doctrines, and that his own name has been
substituted for that of his master. This view is favored by the fact
that Quetzalcoatl is identified with the snake-heroes of Yucatan and
Guatemala, countries that lie beside and beyond Chiapas. Then, again,
we find that Votan's worship was known in Cholula, and that he landed
in the very region where the former hero disappeared. However doubtful
the preceding tradition may be, there is one among the Oajacans, which
to me has all the appearance of a mutilated version of the myth of
Quetzalcoatl, deformed still more by the orthodox Fathers. In very
remote times, about the era of the apostles, according to the padres,
an old white man, with long hair and beard, appeared suddenly at
Huatulco, coming from the south-west by sea, and preached to the
natives in their own tongue, but of things beyond their understanding.
He lived a strict life, passing the greater part of the night in a
kneeling posture, and eating but little. He disappeared shortly after
as mysteriously as he had come, but left as a memento of his visit a
cross, which he planted with his own hand, and admonished the people
to preserve it sacredly, for one day they would be taught its
significance.[X-63] Some authors describe a personage of the same
appearance and character, coming from the same quarter, and appearing
in the country shortly after, but it is doubtless the same old man,
who, on leaving Huatulco, may have turned his steps to the interior.
His voice is next heard in Mictlan,[X-64] inveighing in gentle but firm
accents against the pleasures of this world, and enjoining repentance
and expiation. His life was in strict accordance with his doctrines,
and never, except at confession, did he approach a woman. But the lot
of Wixepecocha, as the Zapotecs call him, was that of most reformers.
Persecuted by those whose vice and superstitions he attacked, he was
driven from one province to another, and at last took refuge on Mount
Cempoaltepec. Even here his pursuers followed him, climbing its craggy
sides to lay hands upon the prophet. Just as they reached the summit,
he vanished like a shadow, leaving only the print of his feet upon the
rock.[X-65]
[Sidenote: THE APOSTLE WIXEPECOCHA.]
Among the points in this myth that correspond to the character of
Quetzalcoatl may be noticed the appearance of the prophet from the
south-west, which agrees with the direction of the moisture-bearing
winds, the chief attribute of the Toltec god; the cross, which
indicates not only the four winds, but the rain of which they are the
bearers, attributes recognized by the Mexicans who decorated the
mantle of the god with crosses; the long beard, the white face, and
the dress, which all accord with the Toltec Quetzalcoatl. Like him
Wixepecocha taught gentle doctrines of reform, like him he was
persecuted and forced to wander from place to place, and at last
disappeared, leaving his followers the hope of a better future. The
doctrine of Wixepecocha, took root and flourished in the land he had
consecrated with his toils and prayers, and, according to Brasseur de
Bourbourg, Wiyatao, the pontiff of Zapotecapan, was vicar and
successor of the 'prophet of Monapostiac.'[X-66]
The early padres saw in this personage none other than St. Thomas, the
apostle, who had walked across to plant the cross and prepare the way
for christianity. There is, or was until recently, a statue of him in
the village of Magdalena, four leagues from Tehuantepec, which
represented him with long white beard, and muffled up in a long robe
with a hood, secured by a cord round the waist; he was seated in a
reflective attitude, listening to the confession of a woman kneeling
by his side.[X-67] A similar statue is mentioned by Burgoa, as having
existed in a cave not far from Xustlahuaca, in Mistecapan,[X-68] where
it stood near the entrance, on a marble monolith eleven feet in
height. The approach to the cavern appears to have formerly led
through a beautiful garden; within were masses of stalactite of the
most fantastic and varied forms, many of which the people had
fashioned into images of different kinds, and of the most artistic
execution, says the padre, whose fancy was doubtless aided by the
twilight within. Here lay the embalmed bodies of kings and pontiffs,
surrounded by treasures, for this was a supposed entrance to the
flowered fields of heaven. The temple cave at Mictlan bore a similar
reputation, and served as a sepulchre for the Zapotec grandees. It
consisted of four chief divisions, the largest forming the sanctuary
proper, the second and third the tombs of kings and pontiffs, and the
fourth a vestibule to an immense labyrinthine grotto, in which brave
warriors were occasionally buried. Into this, the very ante-room of
paradise, frenzied devotees would at times enter, and seek in its dark
mazes for the abode of the gods; none ever returned from this dread
quest, for the entrance was closed with a great stone, and doubtless
many a poor wretch as he touched in his last feeble gropings the bones
of those who had preceded him, felt the light come in upon his soul in
spite of the thick darkness, and knew he had been deluded; but the
mighty stone at the mouth of the cave told no secrets.[X-69]
[Sidenote: GODS OF OAJACA.]
The prominence of the Plutonic element in the worship of Oajaca is
shown by the fact that Pezelao, whose character corresponded to that
of the Mexican Mictlantecutli, received high honors. The other
conspicuous gods, as enumerated by Brasseur de Bourbourg, were
Pitao-Cocobi, god of abundance, or of the harvest; Cociyo, the rain
god; Cozaana, patron of hunters and fishermen; and Pitao-Xoo, god of
earthquakes. Other deities controlled riches, misfortunes, auguries,
poetic inspiration--even the hens had their patron divinity. As might
be expected of a people who regarded even living kings and priests
with adoration, apotheosis was common. Thus, Petela, an ancient
Zapotec cacique whose name signified dog, was worshiped in the cavern
of Coatlan. At one end of this subterranean temple a yawning abyss
received the foaming waters of a mountain torrent, and into this
slaves and captives, gaily dressed and adorned with flowers, were cast
on certain occasions.[X-70]
At another place was a white stone shaped like a nine-pin, supposed to
be the embodiment of Pinopiaa, a saintly princess of Zapotecapan,
whose corpse had been miraculously conveyed to heaven and returned in
this form for the benefit of the devout.[X-71]
In Chiapas they worshiped Costahuntox, who was represented with ram's
horns on his head, and sat on a throne surrounded by thirteen
grandees. In the district of Llanos, Yabalan, or Yahalan, and Canamlum
were the chief gods. Even living beings held the position of deities,
according to Diaz, who states that a fat old woman, dressed in richly
decorated robes, whom the natives venerated as a goddess, led them
against the Spanish invaders, but was killed.[X-72] Among the Mijes a
green flat stone, with blood-red, lustrous rays, was held in much
veneration. Although this is the only reference made by the
chroniclers that may be connected with sun worship--which, by the
way, could scarcely have claimed a very high position here, since the
founder of the Miztec royal family is stated to have been victorious
in a contest with the sun--it is worthy of note that the Zapotec word
_nuhu_, fire, also denotes divinity, idol, everything sacred, the
earth itself.[X-73] The household idols had their names, history, and
worship depicted on bark, and smoked or painted hides, in order to
keep them always before the people, and insure to the youth a
knowledge of their god. How firmly rooted idolatry was, and how slow
the work of eradicating it must have been, to the padres,
notwithstanding they destroyed every idol they could lay hands on, is
shown by the fact that among the Guechecoros a statue of Cortés served
as an object of worship.[X-74] Nagualism is one of the ancient forms of
worship which still flourish, and consists in choosing an animal as
the tulelary divinity of child, whose existence will be so closely
connected with it, that the life of one depends on that of the other.
Burgoa states that the priest selected the animal by divination; when
the boy grew up he was directed to proceed to a mountain to offer
sacrifice, and there the animal would appear to him. Others say that
at the hour of the mother's confinement, the father and friends drew
on the floor of the hut the outline of various animals, effacing each
figure as soon as they began the next, and the figure that remained at
the moment of delivery represented the guardian of the infant; or,
that the bird or beast first seen by the watchers after the
confinement was accepted as the nagual. The bestowal of the sign of
the day upon the infant as its name may perhaps be considered as a
species of nagualism, since the name of animals often formed these
signs.[X-75]
[Sidenote: TREE WORSHIP.]
A form of worship particularly marked in this country was the
veneration accorded to trees, as may be judged from the myth which
attributes the origin of the Miztec, as well as a portion at least of
the Zapotec people to two trees. This cult existed also in other parts
of Mexico and Central America, where cypresses and palms growing near
the temples, generally in groups of three, were tended with great
care, and often received offerings of incense and other gifts. They do
not, however, seem to have been dedicated to any particular god, as
among the Romans, where Pluto claimed the cypress, and Victory the
palm. One of the most sacred of these relics is a cypress standing at
Santa María de Tule, the venerable trunk of which measures ninety feet
in circumference, at a height of six feet from the ground.[X-76]
One of the chief offerings of the Zapotecs was the blood of the, to
them sacred, turkey; straws and feathers smeared with blood from the
back of the ear, and from beneath the tongue of persons, also
constituted a large portion of the sacred offerings, and were
presented in special grass vessels. Human sacrifices were not common
with the Oajacan people, but in case of emergency, captives and slaves
were generally the victims. The usual mode of offering them was to
tear out the heart, but in some places, as at Coatlan, they were cast
into an abyss. Herrera states that men were offered to the gods, women
to goddesses, and children to inferior deities, and that their bodies
were eaten, but the latter statement is doubtful.[X-77]
FOOTNOTES:
[X-1] 'Los Pueblos, que à los Templos de la Ciudad de Tetzcuco
servian, con Leña, Carbon, y corteça de Roble, eran quince ... y otros
quince Pueblos ... servian los otros seis meses del Año, con lo mismo,
à las Casas Reales, y Templo Maior.' _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._,
tom. ii., p. 164.
[X-2] _Rapport_, in _Ternaux-Compans_, _Voy._, série ii., tom. v., p.
305.
[X-3] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 164-6; _Las Casas_,
_Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. cxxxix., cxli. 'È da credersi, che
quel tratto di paese, che avea il nome di _Teotlalpan_, (Terra degli
Dei,) fosse così appellata, per esservi delle possesioni de' Tempj.'
_Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 36.
[X-4] _Gomara_, _Conq. Mex._, fol. 120.
[X-5] _Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. i., lib. ii., p. 112; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., pp. 36-7.
[X-6] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 175-7; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 37. Sahagun calls them
Quetzalcoatl Teoteztlamacazqui, who was also high-priest of
Huitzilopochtli, and Tlaloctlamacazqui, who was Tlaloc's chief priest;
they were equals, and elected from the most perfect, without reference
to birth. _Hist. Gen._, tom. i., lib. iii., pp. 276-7. There are two
inconsistencies in this, the only strong contradiction of the
statement of the above, as well as several other authors, who form the
authority of my text: first, Sahagun calls the first high-priest
Quetzalcoatl Teotectlamacazqui, a name which scarcely accords with the
title of Huitzilopochtli's high-priest; secondly, he ignores the
almost unanimous evidence of old writers, who state that the latter
office was hereditary in a certain district. 'Al Summo Pontìfice
llamaban en la lengua mexicana Tehuatecolt.' _Las Casas_, _Hist.
Apologética_, MS., cap. cxxxiii. 'El mayor de todos que es superlado,
Achcauhtli.' _Gomara_, _Conq. Mex._, fol. 323. But this was the title
of the Tlascaltec high-priest. 'A los supremos Sacerdotes ... llamauan
en su antigua lengua Papas.' _Acosta_, _Hist. de las Ynd._, p. 336.
See also _Chaves_, _Rapport_, in _Ternaux-Compans_, _Voy._, série ii.,
tom. v., pp. 303-4.
[X-7] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 177, 180;
_Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 41; _Herrera_,
_Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. xv.; _Las Casas_, _Hist.
Apologética_, MS., cap. cxxxiii.
[X-8] _Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. i., lib. ii., pp. 218-19. Brasseur
de Bourbourg, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., pp. 549-51, whose chief
authority is Hernandez, and who is not very clear in his description,
holds that the Mexicatlteohuatzin was the supreme priest, and that he
also bore the title of Teotecuhtli, the rank of chief priest of
Huitzilopochtli, and was the right hand minister of the king.
Quetzalcoatl's high-priest he places next in rank, but outside of the
political sphere. On one page he states that the high-priest was
elected by the two chief men in the hierarchy, and on another he
distinctly implies that the king made the higher appointments in order
to control the church. The sacrificing priest, whom he evidently holds
to be the same as the high-priest, he invests with the rank of
generalissimo, and heir to the throne.
[X-9] Carbajal states that a temple bearing the name of the people, or
their chief town, was erected in the metropolis, and attended by a
body of priests brought from the province. _Discurso_, p. 110. This
may, however, be a misinterpretation of Torquemada, who gives a
description of a building attached to the chief temple at Mexico, in
which the idols of subjugated people were kept imprisoned, to prevent
them from aiding their worshipers to regain their liberty.
[X-10] Some authors seem to associate this office with that of the
pontiff, but it appears that the high-priest merely inaugurated the
sacrifices on special occasions. 'Era esta vna dignidad suprema, y
entre ellos tenida en mucho, la qual se heredaua como cosa de
mayorazgo. El ministro que tenia oficio de matar ... era tenido y
reuerenciado como supreme Sacerdote, o Pontifice.' _Acosta_, _Hist. de
las Ynd._, p. 352. 'Era como decir, el Sumo Sacerdote, al qual, y no à
otro, era dado este oficio de abrir los Hombres por los pechos, ...
siendo comunmente los herederos, de este Patrimonio, y suerte
Eclesiastica, los primogenitos.' _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom.
ii., p. 117. It is difficult to decide upon the interpretation of
these sentences. The expression of his being 'held or reverenced as
pontiff' certainly indicates that another priest held the office, so
does the sentence, 'it was inherited by the first-born' of certain
families. But the phrase, 'el Sumo Sacerdote, al qual y no à otro, era
dado este oficio,' points very directly to the high-priest as the
holder of the post.
[X-11] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 178-9; _Clavigero_,
_Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., pp. 37-9; _Sahagun_, _Hist.
Gen._, tom. i., lib. ii., pp. 218-26; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., p. 551.
[X-12] _Gomara_, _Conq. Mex._, fol. 323-4. He describes the dress as
'vna ropa de algodon blanca estrecha, y larga, y encima vna manta por
capa añudada al hombro.... Tiznaunse los dios festiuales, y quando su
regla mandaua de negro las piernas,' etc.
[X-13] _Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., pp. 39-40;
_Acosta_, _Hist. de las Ynd._, pp. 369-71. Brasseur de Bourbourg
thinks that the teopatli was the ointment used at the consecration of
the high-priest, but it is not likely that a preparation which served
monks and invalids as body paint, would be applied to the heads of
high-priests and kings. _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., p. 558. Every
priestly adornment had, doubtless, its mystic meaning. The custom of
painting the body black was first done in honor of the god of Hades.
_Boturini_, _Idea_, p. 117.
[X-14] See vol. ii., pp. 242, et seq.
[X-15] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 189-91; _Sahagun_,
_Hist. Gen._, tom. ii., lib. vi., pp. 223-31; _Motolinia_, _Hist.
Indios_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. de Doc._, tom. i., pp. 53-4.
'Sustentábanse del trabajo de sus manos ó por sus padres y parientes.'
_Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, p. 107.
[X-16] 'Trahian en las cabeças coronas como frayles, poco cabello,
aunque crezido hasta media oreja, y mas largo por el colodrillo hasta
las espaldas, y a manera de trençado le atauan.' _Herrera_, _Hist.
Gen._, dec. iii., lib. ii., cap. xvi.
[X-17] Clavigero asserts that at the age of two the boy was consecrated
to the order of _tlamacazcayotl_ by a cut in the breast, and at seven
he was admitted. _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 44;
_Motolinia_, _Hist. Indios_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. de Doc._, tom.
i., p. 53.
[X-18] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 220-4. Whether this
decorum was preserved after the adjournment of the meeting, is a point
which some writers are inclined to doubt.
[X-19] _Hist. de las Ynd._, pp. 341-2.
[X-20] _Hist. Tlax._, in _Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom.
xcix., pp. 134-5.
[X-21] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. cxxxii.; _Mendieta_,
_Hist. Ecles._, p. 90.
[X-22] _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. cxxxix.;
_Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 185-6.
[X-23] _Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 39.
According to Torquemada, the night service was partly devoted to the
god of night. _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 227.
[X-24] _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap. clxxv.; _Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._,
tom. i., lib. ii., pp. 224-5, 275; _Acosta_, _Hist. de las Ynd._, pp.
336, 343; _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. ii., cap. xv.
[X-25] This was the answer given by Juan de Tovar, in his _Hist. Ind._,
MS., to the doubts expressed by Acosta as to the authenticity of the
long-winded prayers of the Mexicans, whose imperfect writing was not
well adapted to reproduce orations. _Helps' Span. Conq._, vol. i., p.
282.
[X-26] _Mendieta_, _Hist. Ecles._, p. 93. Clavigero, _Storia Ant. del
Messico_, tom. ii., p. 24, certainly says: 'Taceano le loro preghiere
comunemente inginocchione,' but we are told by Sahagun and others,
that when they approached the deity with most humility, namely, at the
confession, a squatting position was assumed; the same was done when
they delivered orations. The greatest sign of adoration, according to
Camargo, was to take a handful of earth and grass and eat it; very
similar to the manner of taking an oath or greeting a superior, which
consisted in touching the hand to the ground and then putting it to
the lips. _Hist. Tlax._, in _Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom.
xcix., p. 168.
[X-27] _Ib._
[X-28] At the present day the rite of circumcision may be traced almost
in an unbroken line from China to the Cape of Good Hope.
[X-29] _Myths_, p. 147.
[X-30] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., p. 83; _Mendieta_,
_Hist. Ecles._, pp. 108-9; _Las Casas_, _Hist. Apologética_, MS., cap.
clxxv.; _Explicacion del Codex Telleriano-Remensis_, in
_Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. v., p. 133.
[X-31] See this volume, pp. 380-4.
[X-32] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 212-13; _Acosta_,
_Hist. de las Ynd._, p. 343; _Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. i., lib.
iii., pp. 275-6.
[X-33] _Conq. Mex._, fol. 336. Some of these sticks were thicker than a
finger, 'y largos, como el tamaño de vn braço.' 'Eran en numero de
quatrocientas.' _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii., pp. 102-3;
_Motolinia_, _Hist. Indios_, in _Icazbalceta_, _Col. de Doc._, tom.
i., pp. 51-2.
[X-34] _Rapport_, in _Ternaux-Compans_, _Voy._, série ii., tom. v., p.
305. The Mexican priests performed this sacrifice every five days.
_Explanation of the Codex Vaticanus_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._,
vol. vi., p. 225, 'De la sangre que sacaban de las partes del Cuerpo
en cada provincia tenian diferente costumbre.' _Las Casas_, _Hist.
Apologética_, MS., cap. clxx.
[X-35] See this volume, p. 61.
[X-36] _Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. i., pp. 165-7.
Torquemada, however, mentions one earlier sacrifice of some refractory
Mexicans, who desired to leave their wandering countrymen and settle
at Tula, contrary to the command of the god. _Monarq. Ind._, tom. ii.,
pp. 115-16, 50. 'On prétend que cet usage vint de la province de
Chalco dans celle de Tlaxcallan.' _Camargo_, _Hist. Tlax._, in
_Nouvelles Annales des Voy._, 1843, tom. xcviii., p. 199; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Quatre Lettres_, p. 343. 'Quetzalcoatle was the first
inventor of sacrifices of human blood.' _Explanation of the Codex
Vaticanus_, in _Kingsborough's Mex. Antiq._, vol. vi., p. 201. It is
conceded, however, by other writers, that Quetzalcoatl was opposed to
all bloodshed. See this volume, p. 278. Müller, _Amerikanische
Urreligionen_, p. 628, thinks that the Aztecs introduced certain rites
of human sacrifice, which they connected with others already existing
in Mexico.
[X-37] _Torquemada_, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. i., p. 186. 'Eran cada año
estos Niños sacrificados mas de veinte mil por cuenta.' _Id._, tom.
ii., p. 120. A misconstruction of Zumárraga, who does not specify them
as children. _Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. ii., p. 49,
tom. i., p. 257; _Ixtlilxochitl_, _Hist. Chich._, in _Kingsborough's
Mex. Antiq._, vol. ix., p. 268; _Boturini_, _Idea_, p. 28. 'Afirman
que auia vez que passauan de cinco mil, y dia vuo que en diuersas
partes fueron assi sacrificados mas de veynta mil.' _Acosta_, _Hist.
de las Ynd._, p. 356. Gomara states that the conquerors counted
136,000 skulls in one skull-yard alone. _Conq. Mex._, fol. 122.
[X-38] 'Non furono mai veduti i Messicani sacriücare i propj lor
Nazionali, se non coloro, che per li loro delitti erano rei di morte.'
_Clavigero_, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. iv., p. 299. A rather
hasty assertion.
[X-39] See vol. ii., p. 307.
[X-40] _Salazar y Olarte_, _Hist. Conq. Mex._, p. 71; _Herrera_, _Hist.
Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. x.
[X-41] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., pp.
79-82. This author gives the name as Curicaweri.
[X-42] 'El Sumo Sacerdote Curinacanery.' _Beaumont_, _Crón. Mechoacan_,
MS., p. 52.
[X-43] 'Guirnaldas de fluecos colorados,' says Herrera, _Hist. Gen._,
dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. x.
[X-44] _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. x.;
_Beaumont_, _Crón. Mechoacan_, MS., pp. 52-3, 75; _Alegre_, _Hist.
Comp. de Jesus_, tom. i., pp. 91-2; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., pp. 59, 64-5, 79-82; _Torquemada_, _Monarq.
Ind._, tom. ii., p. 525; Carbajal Espinosa, _Hist. Mex._, tom. i.,
pp. 291-2, thinks that the sacrifices were introduced by surrounding
tribes, and that cannibalism was unknown to the Tarascos.
'Sacrificaban culebras, aves y conejos, y no los hombres, aunque
fuesen cautivos, porque se servian de ellos, como de esclavos.'
_Sahagun_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iii., lib. x., p. 138. See also vol.
ii., pp. 620-1, of this work.
[X-45] Beaumont, _Crón. Mechoacan_, MS., p. 232, tells of a Supreme
Being in heaven, and with him an ever young virgin from whom all men
descend; a belief which the child-god is said to have promulgated; but
the account seems somewhat confused both as to place and authority.
Alegre, _Hist. Comp. de Jesus_, tom. iii., p. 197, and Padilla, _Conq.
N. Galicia_, MS., p. 8, mention additional gods, but give no
description. _Villa-Señor y Sanchez_, _Theatro_, tom. ii., pp. 269-70;
_Alcedo_, _Diccionario_, tom. iii., p. 299; _Tello_, in _Icazbalceta_,
_Col. de Doc._, tom. ii., p. 363; _Oviedo_, _Hist. Gen._, tom. iii.,
p. 566; _Gil_, in _Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. viii., pp. 496-8.
[X-46] 'Les dieux, de quelque nature qu'ils fussent, avaient dans la
langue zapotèque le nom de "Pitao," qui correspond à l'idée du
grand-esprit, d'un esprit étendu.' _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., pp. 26-7.
[X-47] Torquemada, _Monarq. Ind._, tom. i., pp. 255-6, also refers to
emigration of Toltec chiefs to found new states.
[X-48] 'Vna esmeralda tan grande como vn gruesso pimiento de esta
tierra, tenia labrado encima vna auesita, ò pajarillo con grandissimo
primor, y de arriba à baxo enroscada vna culebrilla con el mesmo arte,
la piedra era tan transparente, que brillaba desde el fondo.'
_Burgoa_, _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt i., fol. 156.
[X-49] Burgoa gives the relic in this instance a title which varies
somewhat in the wording, although the former sense remains: 'El Alma,
y coraçon del Reyno.' _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol. 396.
Dávila Padilla, _Hist. Fvnd. Mex._, p. 639, mentions an idol among the
Zapotecs in shape of a hand, which may have represented Huemac.
[X-50] The Zapotecs had other temples also, fashioned like those of
Mexico in superimposed terraces of stone-cased earth. Burgoa describes
one which measured 2000 paces in circumference, and rose to a height
of 88-90 feet; on each terrace stood an adobe chapel with a well
attached for the storage of water. On the occasion of a great victory
another terrace was added to the pile. _Geog. Descrip._, tom. i., pt
ii., fol. 198.
[X-51] _Cabrera_, _Teatro_, in _Rio's Description_, p. 37.
[X-52] He also calls him the Miztec Cultur god. _Amerikanische
Urreligionen_, pp. 486-90.
[X-53] _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. i., pp. 44-5.
[X-54] Chan, 'snake,' was the name of a tribe of Lacandones, near
Palenque, known also as Colhuas, Chanes, or Quinames. _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Popol Vuh_, p. 109. The book referred to or a copy of it,
written in the Tzendal or Quiché language, was in the possession of
Nuñez de la Vega, Bishop of Chiapas, who published short extracts of
it in his _Constitut. Diœces_, but seems to have had it burned,
together with other native relics, in 1691, at Huehuetan. Previous to
this, however, Ordoñez y Aguiar had obtained a copy of it, written in
Latin characters, and gave a résumé of the contents in his _Hist. del
Cielo_, MS. This author contradicts himself by stating, in one part of
his MS., that the original was written by a descendant of Votan.
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Popol Vuh_, pp. lxxxvii., cviii.; _Tschudi's
Peruvian Antiq._, p. 12; _Cabrera_, _Teatro_, in _Rio's Descrip._, pp.
33-4. Cabrera, who bases his account of the myth on Ordoñez'
rendering, which he at times seems to have misunderstood and
mutilated, thinks that Chivim refers to Tripoli, and it is the same as
Hivim or Givim, the Phœnician word for snake, which, again, refers
to Hivites, the descendants of Heth, son of Canaan. Votan's
expression, as given in his book, 'I am a snake, a Chivim,' signifies
'I am a Hivite from Tripoli.' _Teatro_, in _Rio's Descrip._, p. 34, et
seq.
[X-55] _Boturini_, _Idea_, p. 115. It may be of interest to compare his
name with Odon in the Michoacan calendar, and Oton, the Otomí god and
chief. Humboldt was particularly struck with its resemblance to Odin,
the Scandinavian god-hero. _Vues_, tom. i., p. 208; _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Popol Vuh_, p. lxxvi.
[X-56] Equivalent to laying the foundation for civilization. According
to Ordoñez he was sent to people the continent; a view also taken by
Clavigero, _Storia Ant. del Messico_, tom. i., pp. 150-1. Torquemada's
account of the spreading of the Toltecs southward, may throw some
light on this subject. _Monarq. Ind._, tom. i., p. 256, et seq.
[X-57] Valum Chivim, Valum Votan, land of Chivim and Votan. See note
15. Cabrera considers two marble columns found at Tangier, with
Phœnician inscriptions, a trace of his route; the dwellings of the
thirteen snakes are thirteen islands of the Canary group, and Valum
Votan, the Island of Santo Domingo. _Teatro_, in _Rio's Descrip._, p.
34, et seq. Müller, _Amerikanische Urreligionen_, p. 489, hints
significantly at the worship of the snake-god Votan, on Santo Domingo
Island, under the name of Vaudoux. Brasseur de Bourbourg's ideas on
this point have already been made pretty evident in the account of
Quetzalcoatl's myth. The thirteen snakes may mean thirteen chiefs of
Xibalba. There is a ruin bearing the name of Valum Votan about nine
leagues from Ciudad Real, Chiapas. _Popol Vuh_, p. lxxxviii. Ordoñez
holds Valum Votan to be Cuba, whence he takes seven families with him.
_Cabrera_, ubi sup.
[X-58] Ordoñez says the original Na-chan means 'place of snakes.'
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. i., p. 69.
[X-59] A date which is confirmed by the Chimalpopoca MS. _Brasseur de
Bourbourg_, _Popol Vuh_, p. lxxxviii. One tradition makes the
Tzequiles speak a Nahua dialect, but it is possible that Ordoñez
confounds two epochs. _Id._, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. i., p. 70.
[X-60] In the traditions presented on pp. 67-8, 50, of this volume,
will be found reference to Cholula as the place where the tower of
Babel was built, and to the confusion of tongues, which tends to
connect this myth with those of the neighboring country. Ordoñez'
orthodox ideas have probably added much to the native MS. from which
he took his account, yet Nuñez de la Vega agrees with him in most
respects. Cabrera, _Teatro_, in _Rio's Descrip._, p. 84, considers the
great city to be Rome, but agrees with his authorities that the latter
edifice is the tower of Babel. A Tzendal legend relates that a
subterranean passage, leading from Palenque to Tulhá, near Ococingo,
was constructed in commemoration of the celestial passage, or 'serpent
hole,' into which Votan in his quality of snake, was admitted.
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. i., pp. 72-3.
[X-61] Cabrera has it that the new-comers are seven Tzequiles, or
shipwrecked countrymen of Votan. The voyages and other incidents he
considers confirmed by the sculptures on the Palenque ruins, which
shows Votan surrounded by symbols of travel, indications of the places
visited in the old and new world; he recognizes the attributes of
Osiris in the idol brought over by Votan, with the intention of
establishing its worship in the new world. Lastly, Votan and his
families are Carthaginians. _Teatro_, in _Rio's Description_, pp. 95,
34.
[X-62] The ruins of Huehuetan, 'city of old men,' are still to be seen.
_Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. i., pp. 73-4;
_Tschudi's Peruvian Antiq._, pp. 11-15; _Domenech's Deserts_, vol. i.,
pp. 10-21. Vega mentions that at Teopixca in Chiapas he found several
families who bore the hero's name and claimed to be descendants of
his. This has little value, however, for we know that priests assumed
the name of their god, and nearly all mythical heroes have had
descendants, as Zeus, Herakles, and others. _Boturini_, _Idea_, p.
115.
[X-63] A portion of this relic was sent to Pope Paul V., in 1613; the
remainder was deposited in the cathedral for safe keeping. _Burgoa_,
_Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol. 350-2.
[X-64] The place of the dead, or hades, also called Yopaa, land of
tombs. _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., p. 9.
[X-65] Fray Juan de Ojedo saw and felt the indentation of two feet upon
the rook, the muscles and toes as distinctly marked as if they had
been pressed upon soft wax. The Mijes had this tradition written in
characters on skin. _Burgoa_, _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol.
299.
[X-66] A name given to Wixepecocha by the tradition, which adds that he
was seen on the island of Monapostiac, near Tehuantepec, previous to
his final disappearance. _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._,
tom. iii., p. 411. Quetzalcoatl also disappeared seaward.
[X-67] He debarked near Tehuantepec, bearing a cross in his hand;
_Gondra_, _Rasgos y señales de la primera predicacion en el
Nuevo-Mundo_, MS.; _Carriedo_, _Estudios, Hist. del Estado Oaxaqueño_,
tom. i., cap. i.; _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom.
iii., pp. 9-10.
[X-68] Brasseur de Bourbourg seems to place it at Chalcatongo. _Hist.
Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., p. 19; _Burgoa_, _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt
i., fol. 170.
[X-69] _Escalera and Llana_, _Mej. Hist. Descrip._, p. 330.
[X-70] 'Le tenian enterrado, seco, y embalsamado en su proporcion.' The
cave was supposed to connect with the city of Chiapas, 200 leagues
distant. _Herrera_, _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. xiv.
[X-71] 'Piedra blanca, labrada al modo de vn acho de bolos ... vn
gruesso taladro.' _Burgoa_, _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol.
362.
[X-72] _Bernal Diaz_, _Hist. Conq._, fol. 179; _Salazar y Olarte_,
_Hist. Conq. Mex._, p. 137. There were many among the padres who held
Yabalan to have been an immediate descendant of Noah's son Ham,
because the name signified 'chief black man, or negro.' _Piñeda_, in
_Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., p. 419.
[X-73] _Brasseur de Bourbourg_, _Hist. Nat. Civ._, tom. iii., p. 17;
_Dávila Padilla_, _Hist. Fvnd. Mex._, pp. 638-9. In Chiapas are found
a number of representations of heavenly bodies, sculptured, or drawn,
and at Palenque a sun temple is supposed to have existed. _Piñeda_, in
_Soc. Mex. Geog., Boletin_, tom. iii., p. 419.
[X-74] They 'worship his image in their own peculiar way, sometimes by
cutting off a turkey's head.' 'The natives are about as far advanced
in christianity as they were at the time of the conquest.' _Hutchings'
Cal. Mag._, vol. ii., p. 542.
[X-75] _Burgoa_, _Geog. Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol. 395; _Ferry_,
_Costal L'Indien_, pp. 6-7.
[X-76] Some consider it to be composed of three trunks which have grown
together, and the deep indentations certainly give it that appearance;
but trees of this species generally present irregular forms. _Escalera
and Llana_, _Méj. Hist. Descrip._, pp. 224-5; _Charnay_, _Ruines
Amér._, phot. xviii.
[X-77] _Hist. Gen._, dec. iii., lib. iii., cap. xiv.; _Burgoa_, _Geog.
Descrip._, tom. ii., pt ii., fol. 282; _Mühlenpfordt_, _Mejico_, tom.
ii., p. 194. Pontelli, who claims to have paid a visit to the
forbidden retreats of the mountain Lacandones, a few years ago,
mentions, among other peculiarities, a stone of sacrifice, interlaced
by serpents, and covered with hieroglyphics, on which the heart of
human beings were torn out. _Correo de Ultramar_, Paris 1860; _Cal.
Farmer_, Nov. 7, 1862.