1 - Histomesoamericana

36 THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
of Emal was killed by the priest
of the east. It was a rain of fire
over the Maya and the Christians
alike. (624)
Then the sky calmed. The
sacrificial priest of Emal was
sacrificed by the eastern one. In
13 Ahau, it being the end of the
Itza cycle, they decorated
Chichen Itza and built a bonfire,
and the priests assembled
and conferred. And also on the
day of baptism the unbaptized
and the sun priests were told
about Christianity—the God
from the east and the Garden of
Eden. And they destroyed
Emal. (648)
T u men Lahun Chaan*
Paaxnom Chac Tenel Ahau
Kaxbom kak
T u tel chacil yooc 620
Ti tal i
Chac kit-hom u kab yax che*
Chac-hom u kab nicte
Chac-hom u xik mucuy*
T u kin 625
Ix lelem caan
Auatnom Chac Tenel Ah Ya
Paaxnom Sac Tenel Ahau*
T u kinil
Ox lahun Ahau ual e 630
He Chi Ch'en Itza e
Ox lahun te u cuch
Mis bom u petenil Chi Ch'en
Hopom kak tan chumuc cah
Ti uchom u than tamba ah kinob 635
Lai u ual ah bobatob e
Y etel y ubal
Tut
He le ix u kin ha
T u than ob e 640
Ah kinob e
Ti ma ix kaxom ha i
Lay ubah ob u pec
U xik mucuy
Ti te ku likin e 645
Pec u cah u kab nicte
Pax u cah
Sac Tenel Ahau
Because Lahun Chan
Was destroyed by the East sacrificial
priest.
It dropped fire
And poured down steam,
Which came
And poured rain on the ceiba
branches.
It rained on the flowering branches;
It rained on the doves' wings;
And at that time
The sky quieted.
Screamed the East sacrificial priest
And destroyed the North sacrificial
priest
At the time
Of 13 Ahau's return.
Then Chichen Itza,
On the thirteenth of its burdens,
Swept and painted the country at
Chichen,
And burned the fire before the
middle of the city.
Then the sun priests talked to each
other.
That was the return of the prophets.
And they listened
And visited.
Likewise on the day of water
They spoke to
The sun priests
And those who had not dropped
water.
That was how they heard the message
Of the dove wing:
That there was a God in the east:
The awareness of the place of the
flowering branch.
And they destroyed the city
Of the North sacrificial priest,
617.10 Chaan 'molar', the pro-Christian leader, was sacrificed by fire. See also
line 607.
622. 'Ceiba branches' is a metaphor for the pagan Maya, faithful to the sacred
ceiba tree.
624. 'Flowering branches' and 'doves' wings' are metaphors for the Christians,
who brought war (flowers) and peace (doves). Mucuy is identified by Tozzer 1941:
20 as belonging to the genus Columbina.
628. Chac Tenel Ahau [sic) and Sac Tenel Ahau, the 'red and white death
lords', were the sacrificial priests of the east (red) and the north (white). The
former sacrificed the latter, 10 Chaan. The eastern priest may have been 7 Sat Ay.
See also lines 525 ff.
•.