Hello One and All!
The Popol Vuh is a Mayan narrative from the K'iche' people, in which the hero twins - Hunahpu and Xbalanque - feature prominently. Although not gods themselves, the pair of heroes were said to be related to the gods, and used their intelligence to overcome the challenges they faced.
The Hero Twins: Hunahpu and Xbalanque
Hunahpu and Xbalanque were great athletes and they excelled in the Maya Ballgame. They defeated every foe that were put before them, until their prowess drew the attention of the gods of Xibalba, the underworld. They wanted to see the twins in action and summoned them to their realm.
When Hunahpu and Xbalanque received the invitation, they were filled with equal parts excitement and dread, because their uncle and father had also visited the underworld on a similar errand but they never returned. They started their descent to Xibalba, deep into the earth, and crossed a boiling water source, then came to a river filled with blood. After they had crossed four rivers in total, they met a fork in the road: it split into a red, white, black and white road.
The ebony road intoned, "I am the way of the king."
Neither of the twins were fools though, and they remembered their mother and grandmother had told them how the Lords of Xibalba had deceived their uncle and father. Thus, Hunahpu and Xbalanque sent a mosquito, named Xan, ahead of them. This small insect flew ahead, coming upon figures seated on thrones; it bit each of them, to differentiate the lords from the mannequins that were intended to fool the heroes.
Xan's report to the twins allowed them to know the identities of all of the Lords of Xibalba. Hunahpu and Xbalanque entered the chambers and saluted each of the Lords of Xibalba by name, which alarmed the gods. The Lords motioned towards two stone benches and indicated for the heroes to be seated.
Hunahpu and Xbalanque said, "These are not our seats."
They were correct; the benches were in fact cooking stones.
The twins started to play a ballgame against the Lords but night fell before the game could be finished. The mortals were escorted to the House of Gloom, given torches, and instructed to survive the night in the darkness without blackening the tips of their light sources. The next day, after they had slept in the House of Gloom, they retrieved their torches and painted the tips red. That morning they appeared before the gods of the underworld and the deities were astounded.
The brothers were sent to the House of Cold and House of the Jaguars, but defeated each of the tests contained within. The Lords of Xibalba begun to grow desperate and sent them to the most terrifying place of all - the House of the Bats. Once they entered the enclosure, a great swarm of bats descended upon them; the heroes had to fall to the ground to dodge the attack. Hunahpu became curious and lifted his head, then a giant bat swept down and decapitated the hero. A kind tortoise noticed the wounded man and staunched the bleeding. Xbalanque spotted his brother's head on a ledge and retrieved it. He thanked the tortoise for its help, affixed the head back onto his brother's body, and both of them went back to the Lords of Xibalba to play one final ballgame.
The heroes won the match and proclaimed to the gods that they would show them a miracle. In front of the Lords of Xibalba, they killed each other and resurrected themselves.
The rulers of the underworld said, "Do the same with us. We want to know what it is like to experience life after death!"
Hunahpu and Xbalanque killed all of the gods but did not revive them. They had succeeded in avenging the deaths of their uncle and father. They retrieved the remains of Vucub Hunahpu, their father, and they rose into the sky; Xbalanque became the moon, whilst Hunahpu became the sun. The tale of the Hero Twins can as a result be seen as a metaphor for the sun and moon cycles.
Thank you for reading!
The Popol Vuh is a Mayan narrative from the K'iche' people, in which the hero twins - Hunahpu and Xbalanque - feature prominently. Although not gods themselves, the pair of heroes were said to be related to the gods, and used their intelligence to overcome the challenges they faced.
The Hero Twins: Hunahpu and Xbalanque
Hunahpu and Xbalanque were great athletes and they excelled in the Maya Ballgame. They defeated every foe that were put before them, until their prowess drew the attention of the gods of Xibalba, the underworld. They wanted to see the twins in action and summoned them to their realm.
When Hunahpu and Xbalanque received the invitation, they were filled with equal parts excitement and dread, because their uncle and father had also visited the underworld on a similar errand but they never returned. They started their descent to Xibalba, deep into the earth, and crossed a boiling water source, then came to a river filled with blood. After they had crossed four rivers in total, they met a fork in the road: it split into a red, white, black and white road.
The ebony road intoned, "I am the way of the king."
Neither of the twins were fools though, and they remembered their mother and grandmother had told them how the Lords of Xibalba had deceived their uncle and father. Thus, Hunahpu and Xbalanque sent a mosquito, named Xan, ahead of them. This small insect flew ahead, coming upon figures seated on thrones; it bit each of them, to differentiate the lords from the mannequins that were intended to fool the heroes.
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| Maya Hero Twins. Painted by Lacambalam. |
Xan's report to the twins allowed them to know the identities of all of the Lords of Xibalba. Hunahpu and Xbalanque entered the chambers and saluted each of the Lords of Xibalba by name, which alarmed the gods. The Lords motioned towards two stone benches and indicated for the heroes to be seated.
Hunahpu and Xbalanque said, "These are not our seats."
They were correct; the benches were in fact cooking stones.
The twins started to play a ballgame against the Lords but night fell before the game could be finished. The mortals were escorted to the House of Gloom, given torches, and instructed to survive the night in the darkness without blackening the tips of their light sources. The next day, after they had slept in the House of Gloom, they retrieved their torches and painted the tips red. That morning they appeared before the gods of the underworld and the deities were astounded.
 |
| The Hero Twins shooting a perched bird demon with a blowgun. Izapa Stela 25. |
The brothers were sent to the House of Cold and House of the Jaguars, but defeated each of the tests contained within. The Lords of Xibalba begun to grow desperate and sent them to the most terrifying place of all - the House of the Bats. Once they entered the enclosure, a great swarm of bats descended upon them; the heroes had to fall to the ground to dodge the attack. Hunahpu became curious and lifted his head, then a giant bat swept down and decapitated the hero. A kind tortoise noticed the wounded man and staunched the bleeding. Xbalanque spotted his brother's head on a ledge and retrieved it. He thanked the tortoise for its help, affixed the head back onto his brother's body, and both of them went back to the Lords of Xibalba to play one final ballgame.
The heroes won the match and proclaimed to the gods that they would show them a miracle. In front of the Lords of Xibalba, they killed each other and resurrected themselves.
The rulers of the underworld said, "Do the same with us. We want to know what it is like to experience life after death!"
Hunahpu and Xbalanque killed all of the gods but did not revive them. They had succeeded in avenging the deaths of their uncle and father. They retrieved the remains of Vucub Hunahpu, their father, and they rose into the sky; Xbalanque became the moon, whilst Hunahpu became the sun. The tale of the Hero Twins can as a result be seen as a metaphor for the sun and moon cycles.
Thank you for reading!
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