The marriage ceremonies of the Pipiles were simple and unique; matches were made by the cacique and carried into effect under his direction. At the appointed time the kinsfolk of the bride proceeded to the house of the bridegroom, whence he was borne to the river and washed. The relatives of the bride performed the same act of cleansing upon the person of the bride. The two parties with their respective charges then repaired to the house of the bride. The couple were now tied together by the ends of the blankets, in which they were enfolded naked and laid away—married.[963] After the ceremony an interchange of presents took place between the relatives of the newly married couple and they all feasted together.
Among the civilized nations of Nicaragua, when a match was arranged to the satisfaction of the parents, some fowls were killed, cacao was prepared, and the neighbors were invited to be present. The father, mother, or whoever gave away the bride, was asked in presence of the assembled guests whether or not she came as a virgin; if the answer was in the affirmative, and the husband afterwards found that she had been already seduced, he had the right to return her to her parents and she was looked upon as a bad woman; but if the parents answered that she was not a virgin, and the man agreed to take her for a wife, the marriage was valid.[964]
When they were to be united the cacique took the parties with his right hand by the little fingers of their left hands and led them into the house set apart for marriages, leaving them, after some words of advice, in a small room, where there was a fire of candlewood. While the fire lasted they were expected to remain perfectly still, and not until it was burned out did they proceed to consummate the marriage. The following day if the husband made no objection in respect to the girl's virginity, the relations and friends assembled and expressed their gratification with loud cries of joy, and passed the day in feasting and pleasure.[965]
DROIT DE SEIGNEUR.
Notwithstanding the disgrace attached to a woman who had lost her virginity before marriage and concealed the fact, we are assured by Andagoya that in Nicaragua a custom similar to the European 'droit du seigneur' was practiced by a priest living in the temple, who slept with the bride during the night preceding her marriage.[966]
A widow was looked upon as the property of the family of her deceased husband, to whose brother she was invariably married, even though he might have a wife of his own at the time. If she had no brother-in-law, then she was united to the nearest living relative on her husband's side.[967] In Yucatan, the widow could not marry again until after a year from her husband's death.[968]
Monogamy seems to have been the rule among the Maya nations, and many authors assert positively that polygamy did not exist. It was only in the border state of Chiapas that the custom is mentioned by Remesal. To compensate for this, concubinage was largely indulged in by the wealthy. The punishment for bigamy was severe, and consisted, in Nicaragua, of banishment and confiscation of the entire property for the benefit of the injured wife or husband, who was at liberty to marry again, a privilege which was not, however, accorded to women who had children. Landa tells us that the Chichen Itza kings lived in a state of strict celibacy, and Diaz relates that a tower was pointed out to him on the coast of Yucatan, which was occupied by women who had dedicated themselves to a single life.[969]
With their loveless marriages it was fortunate that divorce could be obtained on very slight grounds. In Yucatan, says Landa, the father would, after a final separation, procure one wife after another to suit the tastes of his son. If the children were still of tender age at the time the parents separated, they were left with the mother; if grown up, the boys followed the father, while the girls remained with the mother. It was not unusual for the husband to return to the wife after a while, if she was free, regardless of the fact that she had belonged to another in the meantime.[970] In Guatemala the wife could leave her husband on the same slight grounds as the man, and if she refused to return to him after being requested to do so, he was allowed to marry again; she was then considered free, and held of no little consequence. In Nicaragua the husband decided whether the children were to remain with him or the divorced wife.[971]
INTERCOURSE OF THE SEXES.
The Mayas seem to have dealt more leniently with adulterers than the Nahuas. In Guatemala, the married man who committed adultery with a maiden was, upon complaint of the girl's relations, compelled to pay as a fine from sixty to one hundred rare feathers. It generally happened, however, that the friends of the woman were careful to keep the matter secret, as such a scandal would cause great injury to her future prospects. If a married man was known to sin with a married woman or a widow, both were for the first or even the second offence merely warned, and condemned to pay a fine of feathers; but if they persevered in their crime, then their hands were bound behind their backs, and they were forced to inhale the smoke of a certain herb called tabacoyay, which, although very painful, was not a fatal punishment. The single man who committed adultery with a married woman was obliged to pay to the parents of the latter the amount which her husband had paid for her; doubtless this fine was handed over to the injured husband, who, in such a case, repudiated his wife. It sometimes happened, however, that the husband did not report the matter to the authorities, but gave his unfaithful wife a bird of the kind which was used in sacrifices, and told her to offer it to the gods, and, with her companion in crime, to confess and be forgiven. Such a husband was regarded as a most virtuous and humane man.[972] A noble lady taken in adultery was reprimanded the first time, and severely punished or repudiated for the second offence. In the latter case she was free to marry again.[973] It was a capital crime to commit adultery with a lord's wife; if he who did so was a noble, they strangled him, but if he was a plebeian, they flung him down a precipice.[974]
Cogolludo says that among the Itzas the man and woman taken in adultery were put to death. The woman was taken beyond the limits of the town to a place where there were many loose stones. There she was bound to a post, and the priest who had judged her having cast the first stone, and the injured husband the second, the crowd that was never missing on such occasions joined so eagerly in the sport that the death of their target was a speedy one. The male adulterer, according to the same account, was also bound to a post, and shot to death in the same manner with arrows.[975]
ADULTERY AND FORNICATION.
In Vera Paz, incorrigible adulterers were enslaved.[976] In Nicaragua, the faithless wife was repudiated by her husband, and not allowed to marry again, but she had the right of retaining her dowry and effects. The adulterer was severely beaten with sticks, by the relations of the woman he had led astray. The husband appears to have taken no part in the matter.[977] In Yucatan, adultery was punished with death. According to Cogolludo, offenders of both sexes were shot to death with arrows; Landa tells us that the man was killed with a stone by the husband of his paramour, but the woman was punished with disgrace only. It is said that in more ancient times adulterers were impaled or disemboweled. But so great was the horror in which the Yucatecs held this crime, that they did not always wait for conviction, but sometimes punished a suspected person by binding him, stripping him naked, shaving off his hair, and thus leaving him for a time.[978] Among the Pipiles of Salvador he who made advances to a married woman, and did nothing worse, was banished, and his property was confiscated. The adulterer, if we may believe Palacio,[979] was put to death; Squier says he became the slave of the dishonored husband.[980]
Simple fornication was punished with a fine, to be paid in feathers of a certain rare bird, which, by the laws of Vera Paz at least, it was death to kill without express permission, as its plumage formed a most valuable article of trade with the neighboring provinces.[981] But if any complaint was raised, such as by a father in behalf of his daughter, or by a brother for his sister, the seducer was put to death, or at least made a slave.[982] In Yucatan, death seems to have been the inevitable fate of the seducer.[983]
In Guatemala and Salvador, consummated rape was punished with death. He who merely attempted rape was enslaved.[984] In Nicaragua, the penalty for this crime was not so severe, since he who committed it was only obliged to compensate pecuniarily the parents of his victim; though if he could not do this he became their slave. He who ravished the daughter of his employer or lord was, however, always put to death.[985] Incest is said to have been an unknown crime.[986]
Public prostitution was tolerated, if not encouraged, among all the Maya nations. In every Nicaraguan town there were establishments kept by public women, who sold their favors for ten cocoa-nibs, and maintained professional bullies to protect and accompany them at home and abroad. Parents could prostitute their daughters without shame; and it is said, further, that during a certain annual festival, women, of whatever condition, could abandon themselves to the embrace of whomever they pleased, without incurring any disgrace.[987] It was no unusual thing for parents of the lower orders to send their daughters on a tour through the land, that they might earn their marriage portion by prostitution.[988]
UNNATURAL VICES.
All the old writers appear anxious to clear the civilized aborigines from the charge of sodomy, yet the fact that no nation was without strict laws regarding this unnatural vice, combined with the admissions reluctantly made by the reverend fathers themselves, seems to show that pederasty certainly was not unknown. Thus, Las Casas says that sodomy was looked upon as a great and abominable sin in Vera Paz, and was not known until a god,[989] called by some Chin, by others Cavil, and again by others Maran, instructed them by committing the act with another deity. Hence it was held by many to be no sin, inasmuch as a god had introduced it among them. And thus it happened that some fathers gave their sons a boy to use as a woman; and if any other approached this boy he was treated as an adulterer. Nevertheless, if a man committed a rape upon a boy, he was punished in the same manner as if he had ravished a woman. And, adds the same writer, there were always some who reprehended this abominable custom.[990] In Yucatan certain images were found by Bernal Diaz which would lead us to suppose that the natives were at least acquainted with sodomy,[991] but here again the good father[992] takes up the cudgels in behalf of his favorites. In Nicaragua sodomites were stoned to death.[993]
The desire to possess children seems to have been very general, and many were the prayers and offerings made by disappointed parents to propitiate the god whose anger was supposed to have deferred their hopes. To further promote the efficacy of their prayers, the priest enjoined upon man and wife to separate for a month or two, to adhere to a simple diet, and abstain from salt.[994] Several superstitious observances were also regarded; thus, among the Pipiles, a husband should avoid meeting his father-in-law, or a wife her mother-in-law, lest issue fail them.[995] These observances tend the more to illustrate their longing to become parents, since the women are said to have been very prolific. The women were delivered with little difficulty or pain,[996] yet a midwife was called in, who attended to the mother's wants, and facilitated parturition by placing a heated stone upon the abdomen. In Yucatan an image of Ixchel, the goddess of childbirth, was placed beneath the bed. Among the Pipiles and in Guatemala, the woman was confessed when any difficulty arose, and it not unfrequently happened that an officer of justice took advantage of such opportunities to obtain criminating evidence. If the wife's confession alone did not have the desired effect, the husband was called upon to avow his sins; his maxtli was besides laid over the wife, and sometimes blood was drawn from his tongue and ears, to be scattered towards the four quarters with various invocations.[997] After delivery a turkey hen was immolated, and thanks rendered to the deity for the happy issue. The midwife thereupon washed the child, placed a bow and arrow in its hands, if a boy, a spindle, if a girl, and drew a mark upon its right foot, so that it might become a good mountaineer.
CHILDBIRTH AND CIRCUMCISION.
The birth of a son was celebrated with especial rejoicings, and extensive invitations issued for the feasts that took place on or about the day when the umbilical cord was to be cut,[998] a ceremony which seems to have borne the same festive character as baptism among the Nahuas and other nations. The ahgih, astrologer, was asked to name a favorable day for the rite. The cord was then laid upon an ear of maize to be cut off with a new knife and burned. The grains were removed from the cob and sown at the proper season; one half of the yield to be made into gruel and form the first food of the child aside from the mother's milk, the other half to be sent to the ahgih, after reserving a few grains for the child to sow with his own hands when he grew up, and make an offering thereof to his god. At the same time a kind of circumcision may have been performed, a rite which could not, however, have been very general, if indeed it ever existed, for Cogolludo positively asserts that it never was practiced in Yucatan, and Landa thinks that the custom of slitting the foreskin, which the devout performed before the idol, may have given rise to the report. Palacio asserts that certain Indians in Salvador are known to have scarified themselves as well as some boys in the same manner.[999]
NAMING THE CHILDREN.
The naming of the child was the next important affair. Among the Pipiles it was taken to the temple on the twelfth day, over a road strewn with green branches,[1000] and here the priest gave it the name of its grandfather or grandmother, after which offerings of cacao and fowl were presented to the idol, and some gifts to the minister. In Guatemala the child was named after the god to whom the day of its birth was dedicated, for it was not thought desirable to call it after the parents; other names were, however, applied afterwards, according to circumstances.[1001] Las Casas adds that the parents lost their name on the birth of the first son and daughter, the father being called 'father of Ek,' or whatever might be the name of the son, and the mother receiving the cognomen of 'mother of Can,' etc.[1002] The Itzas gave their children a name formed of the combined names of the father and mother, that of the latter standing first; thus, in Canek, can is taken from the mother's name, ek from the father's. In Yucatan, the former home of this people, the custom was almost the same, except that na was prefixed to the names of the parents; thus, Na-Chan-Chel denoted son of Chel and Chan, but as the name of the father, according to Landa, was perpetuated in the son only, not in the daughter, it follows that the girl could not have been named in the same order; it is possible that the mother's name was placed last, and served as surname in their case. In later years this name was not usually imposed until the time of baptism; but in earlier times a distinctive name was given by the priest at the time of taking the horoscope, shortly after birth. The name of the father was borne till the marriage day, the names of both parents being assumed after that event.[1003] On the conclusion of the above ceremonies, the Guatemalan or Pipile infant and mother were taken to a fountain or river, near a fall if possible, to be bathed, and during the bath incense, birds, or cacao were offered to the water, apparently with a view of gaining the good will of the god of that element. The utensils which had served at the birth, such as warming stone, cups, and knife, were thrown into the water at the same time.[1004]
The mothers were good and patient nurses, suckling their infants for over three years, for the habit of taking warm morning drinks, the exercise of grinding maize, and the uncovered bosom, all tended to produce large breasts and an abundant supply of milk. Otherwise the children received a hardy training, clothing being dispensed with, and the bare ground serving for a couch. When working, the mother carried them on her back; in Yucatan, however, they were usually borne across the hip, and for this reason a large number became bow-legged. Landa also mentions another deformity, that produced by head-flattening, which is to be noticed on the sculptures of the Maya ruins.[1005]
BAPTISMAL CEREMONIES.
It is related by all the old Spanish historians, that when the Spaniards first visited the kingdom of Yucatan they found there traces of a baptismal rite; and, strangely enough, the name given to this rite in the language of the inhabitants, was zihil, signifying 'to be born again.' It was the duty of all to have their children baptized, for, by this ablution they believed that they received a purer nature, were protected against evil spirits and future misfortunes. I have already mentioned that no one could marry unless he had been baptised according to their customs; they held, moreover, that an unbaptised person, whether man or woman, could not lead a good life, nor do anything well. The rite was administered to children of both sexes at any time between the ages of three and twelve years. When parents desired to have a child baptised they notified the priest of their intentions. The latter then published a notice throughout the town of the day upon which the ceremony would take place, being first careful to fix upon a day of good omen. This done, the fathers of the children who were to be baptised, selected five of the most honored men of the town to assist the priest during the ceremony. These were called chacs.[1006] During the three days preceding the ceremony the fathers and assistants fasted and abstained from women. When the appointed day arrived, all assembled with the children who were to be baptised, in the house of the giver of the feast, who was usually one of the wealthiest of the parents. In the courtyard fresh leaves were strewn, and there the boys were ranged in a row in charge of their godfathers, while in another row were the girls with their godmothers. The priest now proceeded to purify the house with the object of casting out the devil. For this purpose four benches were placed one in each of the four corners of the courtyard, upon which were seated four of the assistants holding a long cord that passed from one to the other, thus enclosing part of the yard; within this enclosure were the children and those fathers and officials who had fasted. A bench was placed in the centre, upon which the priest was seated with a brazier, some ground corn, and incense. The children were directed to approach one by one, and the priest gave to each a little of the ground corn and incense, which, as they received it, they cast into the brazier. When this had been done by all, they took the cord and brazier, with a vessel of wine, and gave them to a man to carry outside the town, with injunctions not to drink any of the wine, and not to look behind him; with such ceremony the devil was expelled.[1007] The yard was then swept clean, and some leaves of a tree called cihom, and of another called copo, were scattered over it. The priest now clothed himself in long gaudy-looking robes, consisting, according to Landa, of a jacket of red feathers with flowers of various colors embroidered thereon; hanging from the ends were other long feathers, and on his head a coronet of plumes. From beneath the jacket long bands of cotton hung down to the ground. In his hand he held some hyssop fastened to a short stick. The chacs then put white cloths upon the children's heads and asked the elder if they had committed any sins; such as confessed that they had, were then placed apart. The priest then ordered the people to sit down and be silent; he next blessed the boys, and offering up some prayers, purified them with the hyssop with much solemnity. The principal officer who had been elected by the fathers, now took a bone, and having dipped it in a certain water, moistened their foreheads, their features, and their fingers and toes.[1008] After they had been thus sprinkled with water the priest arose and removed the cloths from the heads of the children, and then cut off with a stone knife a certain bead that was attached to the head from childhood; they were then given by one of the assistants some flowers to smell, and a pipe through which they drew some smoke, after which they were each presented with a little food, and a vessel full of wine was brought as an offering to the gods, who were entreated to receive it as a thanksgiving from the boys; it was then handed to one of the officials, who had to drink it at one draught. A similar ceremony took place with the female children, at the conclusion of which their mothers divested them of a cord, which was worn during their childhood, fastened round the loins, having a small shell that hung in front. The removal of this signified that they could marry as soon as their parents permitted.[1009] The children were then dismissed, and their fathers distributed presents among those who had assisted at the ceremony. A grand banquet called emku, or 'the descent of god,' was then held, and during the nine succeeding days the fathers of the children fasted, and were not to approach their wives.[1010]
DOMESTIC DISCIPLINE.
The Nicaraguan husbands are said to have been so much under the control of their wives that they were obliged to do the housework while the women attended to the trading. The latter were, moreover, great shrews, and would on the slightest provocation drive their offending husbands out of the house; we are told that it was no unusual occurrence for the neighbors to be suddenly called in to appease some unfortunate man's Xanthippe.[1011] The women of Yucatan were renowned for their modesty and conjugal faithfulness. Landa, one of the first bishops of Yucatan, relates an anecdote illustrating this trait. Alonso Lopez de Avila, during the war against Bacalar, took prisoner a very beautiful Indian girl. Struck by her beauty the captor endeavored by all means to induce her to gratify his desires, but in vain. She had promised her warrior-husband, who during those perilous times was constantly face to face with death, that none but he should ever call her wife; how then, while perhaps he yet lived, could she become another's mistress. But such arguments did not quench the Spaniard's lust, and as she remained steadfast, he ordered her to be cast among the bloodhounds, who devoured her—a martyr at the hands of the men who pretended to preach Jesus Christ, and him crucified.[1012]
Special Observances—Fixed Feasts—Sacrifice of Slaves—Monthly Feasts of the Yucatecs—Renewal of the Idols—Feast of the Chacs—Hunting Festival—The Tuppkak—Feast of the Cacao-Planters—War Feast—The Maya New Year's Day—Feasts of the Hunters, Fishers, and Apiarists—Ceremonies in honor of Cukulcan—Feast of the Month of Mol—Feast of the Years Kan, Muluc, Ix, and Cauac—Yucatec Sacrifices—The Pit of Chichen—Sacrifices of the Pipiles—Feast of Victory—Feasts and Sacrifices in Nicaragua—Banquets—Dances—Musical Instruments—Games.
Though the information concerning the feasts, religious and otherwise, of the Maya nations, is not so full as that touching the Nahuas, yet there is no doubt that the former people were quite as fond of such matters as the latter.
The Quichés had many festivals and special observances, in some of which the whole people took part, while others were performed by private persons through excess of piety. They always made a sacrifice before commencing any work of importance. There were four special things for which they besought the gods; namely, long life, health, progeny, and the necessaries of life. They had particular oratories where they went upon occasions of great distress, and drew blood from several parts of their body. When they desired to have sons they sacrificed at fountains. They had oratories in thick groves, and if they found a spot where a large tree grew over a spring, they held the place to be divine, because two divinities met in the tree and in the pool.[1013]
SACRIFICIAL FESTIVALS.
The religious feasts in which all the people took part were held on certain fixed days of the calendar. One of their most notable and solemn festivals was more a time of penance and vigil than of feasting. When the season of its celebration approached, the lord of a province with the principal men held a council and sent for a diviner, and advised with him concerning the day upon which the sacrifice should take place. The wise man at once began his sorceries, and cast lots in order to ascertain what day would be the most propitious. When the day was fixed, all men had from that time to sleep in houses apart from their wives during a period of sixty or eighty days, or even longer, according to the severity demanded. Upon each of these days every one had to offer sacrifice by drawing blood from his arms, thighs, tongue, and other parts of his body. This they did at certain hours of the day and night, and also burned incense. They could not bathe while the observances lasted. From the day when this lent began, the slaves who were to be sacrificed were allowed a certain freedom, and permitted to go about the town wheresoever they pleased. On the neck of each, however, was fastened a ring of gold, silver, or copper, through which a stick was passed, and as a further precaution against escape each was accompanied by a guard of three or four men. They were at liberty to enter any house, whether it was that of the supreme lord or of the poorest man, and wherever they applied for food or drink it was given them. The same liberty was accorded to the guard. When the day of sacrifice arrived, the high-priest attired himself in his finest vestments. These consisted of certain cloaks, with crowns of gold, silver, or other metal, adorned with precious stones. The idols were placed upon a frame ornamented with gold, silver, and gems, and decked with roses and other flowers. The slaves were then brought in procession to the temple yard amid songs, music, and dancing; and the idols were set upon altars, before which were the sacrificial stones. As the hour of sacrifice drew near, the supreme lord, and principal men with him, repaired to the room where the slaves were waiting; each then seized his slave by the hair and carried him before the god, crying with a loud voice: O God our Lord, remember thy servants, grant them health, offspring, and prosperity, so that they may increase and serve thee. Give us rain, O Lord, and seasonable weather to support us, that we may live, hearken to our prayers, aid us against our enemies, give us comfort and rest. On reaching the altar the sacrificing priest stood ready, and the lord placed the victim in his hands. He then, with his ministers, opened the breast with the sacrificial knife, tore out the heart and offered it to the idol, at the same time anointing it with the blood. Each idol had its holy table; the Sun, the Moon, the East, the West, the North, and the South had each one. The heads of the sacrificed were put on stakes. The flesh was seasoned, cooked, and partaken of as a holy thing. The high-priest and supreme lord were given the hands and feet, as the most delicate morsels, and the body was distributed among the other priests. All through the days of the sacrificing great liberty was permitted to the people, grand banquets were held, and drunken revels ensued.[1014]
Concerning the religious feasts and observances of the Yucatecs, Landa is the best and most complete authority, and I will therefore take from his work such scattered notices as he gives.
In the month of Chen they worked in fear and trembling, making new idols. And when these were finished, those for whom they were made gave presents of the best they had to those who had modeled and carved them. The idols were then carried from the building in which they had been made to a cabin made of leaves, where the priest blessed them with much solemnity and many fervent prayers, the artists having previously cleansed themselves from the grease with which they had been besmeared, as a sign of fasting, during the entire time that they remained at work. Having then driven out the evil spirit, and burned the sacred incense, the newly made images were placed in a basket, enveloped in a linen cloth, and delivered to their owners, who received them with every mark of respect and devotion. The priest then addressed the idol-makers for a few moments on the excellence and importance of their profession, and on the danger they would incur by neglecting the rules of abstinence while doing such sacred work. Finally, all partook of an abundant repast, and made amends for their long fast by indulging freely in wine.
In one of the two months called Chen and Yax, on a day determined by the priest, they celebrated a feast called ocna, which means the renovation of the temple in honor of the Chacs, whom they regarded as the gods of the fields. During this festival, they consulted the oracle of the Bacabs.[1015] This feast was celebrated every year. Besides this, the idols of baked clay and the braziers were renewed at this season, because it was customary for each idol to have its own little brazier, in which incense was burned before it; and, if it was necessary, they built the god a new dwelling, or renovated the old one, taking care to place on the walls an inscription commemorating these things, in the characters peculiar to them.
FESTIVALS OF ZAC AND MAC.
In the month of Zac, on a day appointed by the priest, the hunters held a feast similar to that which, as we shall presently see, took place in the month of Zip. This was for the purpose of averting the anger of the gods from them and the seed they had sown, because of the blood which had been shed in the chase; for they regarded as abominable all spilling of blood, except in sacrifice.[1016] They never went out to hunt without first invoking their gods and burning incense before them; and on their return from a successful hunt they always anointed the grim visages of the idols with the blood of the game. On another day of this month a great feast was held, which lasted for three days, attended with incense-burning, sacrifices, and general orgies. But as this was a movable feast, the priests took care to give notice of it in advance, in order that all might observe a becoming fast.
During the month of Mac, the old people celebrated a feast in honor of the Chacs, gods of the cornfields, and of another deity named Yzamna. Some days before this the following ceremony, called in their language tuppkak,[1017] was observed. Having brought together all the reptiles and beasts of the field that could be procured in the country, they assembled with them in the court of the temple, in the corners of which were the chacs and the priests, to drive away the evil spirit, each having by his side a jug filled with water. Standing on end, in the centre, was an enormous bundle of dry and fine wood, which was set on fire after some incense had been burned. As the wood burned, the assembled crowd vied with each other in tearing out the hearts of the victims they had brought with them and casting them into the flames. If it had been impossible to procure such large game as jaguars, pumas, or alligators, they typified the hearts of these animals by incense, which they threw into the fire; but if they had them, they were immolated like the rest. As soon as all the hearts were consumed, the chacs[1018] put out the fire with the water contained in their pitchers. The object of this feast and of that which followed was to obtain an abundance of water for their cornfields during the year. This feast was celebrated in a different manner from others, because no one fasted before it, with the exception of the beadle (muñidor) of the occasion. On the day of the feast called tuppkak, the people and the priests met once more in the courtyard of the temple, where was erected a platform of stone, with steps leading up to it, the whole tastefully decorated with foliage. The priest gave some incense to the beadle, who burned in a brazier enough to exorcise the evil spirit. This done, the first step of the platform was with great solemnity smeared with mud taken from a well or cistern; the other steps were stained a blue color. As usual, they ended these ceremonies by eating and drinking and making merry, full of confidence in the efficacy of their rites and ceremonies for this year.
In the month of Muan the cacao-planters held a festival in honor of the gods Ekchuah, Chac, and Hobnil, who were their patron deities.[1019] To solemnize it, they all went to the plantation of one of their number, where they sacrificed a dog having a spot on its skin of the color of cacao. They burned incense to their idols, and made offerings of blue iguanas, feathers of a particular kind of bird, and game. After this they gave to each of the officials[1020] a branch of the cacao-plant. The sacrifice being ended, they all sat down to a repast, at which, it is said, no one was allowed to drink more than three glasses of wine. All then went into the house of him who had given the feast, and passed the time pleasantly together.
WAR-FEAST IN THE MONTH OF PAX.
In the month of Pax, a feast was held, called Pacumchac, which was celebrated by the nobles and priests of the villages, together with those of the great towns. Having assembled, they passed five nights in the temple of Cit Chac Coh,[1021] praying and offering incense. At the beginning of these five days, they went all together to the house of the general of their armies, whose title was Nacon, and carried him in state to the temple, where, having placed him on a seat, they burned incense before him as though he had been a god. But though they prayed during these five nights, they did not by any means fast in the day-time, but ate and drank plentifully, and executed a kind of grand war-dance, which they called holkan okot, which is to say, 'dance of the warriors.' The five days being passed, the real business of the feast began, which, as it concerned matters of war and victory, was a very solemn affair. It was commenced with ceremonies and sacrifices similar to those already described as taking place in the month of Mac. Then the evil spirit was expelled in the usual manner, after which were more prayers, offerings, and incensing. While all this was going on, the nobles once more took the Nacon upon their shoulders, and carried him in procession round the temple. On their return a dog was sacrificed, its heart being torn out and presented to the idol between two dishes. Every one present then shattered a large jug filled with some beverage, which completed this part of the festival. The usual banquet followed, after which the Nacon was again placed upon the shoulders of the nobles and carried to his house.
There, the nobles and priests partook of a grand banquet, at which all got drunk, except the Nacon; the people, meanwhile, returning to their homes. On the morrow, having slept off the effects of the wine, the guests of the Nacon received from him large presents of incense which had been previously blessed. He also took advantage of this opportunity to deliver a long discourse, in which he recommended his hearers to observe scrupulously in both town and country the feasts of the gods, in order to obtain a prosperous and abundant year. As soon as the Nacon had finished speaking, there was a general and noisy leave-taking, and the guests separated, and set out for their respective homes. There they occupied themselves in celebrating the festivals proper to the season, keeping them up sometimes until the month of Pop. These feasts were called Zabacilthan, and were observed as follows. The people of each place or district sought among the richest of their number for some who were willing to defray the expenses of the celebration, and recommended them to take the matter into consideration, because it was customary to make merry during the three last months of the year. This having been settled, all met in the house of one of these prominent men, after having driven away the evil spirit as usual. Copal was burned, offerings were made, and the wine-cup, which seems to have been the chief attraction on these occasions, was not neglected. And all through these three months, the excesses in which the people indulged were pitiful to see; cuts, bruises, and eyes inflamed with drink were plentiful amongst them; to gratify their passion for drink they cast themselves away.
THE MAYA NEW YEAR'S DAY.
During the last five days of the month of Cumhu, which were the last days of the year, the people seldom went out of their houses, except to place offerings in the temples, with which the priests bought incense to be burned in honor of the gods. They neither combed their hair nor washed themselves during these five days; neither men nor women cleansed themselves; they did no work of any kind lest some misfortune should befall them.
FESTIVITIES IN YUCATAN.
The first day of the month of Pop, the Maya New Year's Day, was a season of rejoicing, in which all the nation took part. To give more importance to the event, they renewed at this time all the articles which they used, such as plates, cups, baskets, clothes, and the dresses of the idols; they swept their houses and cast everything into the place where they put their rubbish; and no one dared to touch what was cast away, even though greatly in need of it. To prepare for this feast, princes, priests, and nobles, and all who wished to show their devotion, fasted and abstained from their wives for a longer or shorter period, some for three months preceding it, some for two, according to their ideas of propriety, but none for less than thirteen days. During this season of abstinence, they ate their meat unseasoned, which was considered severe discipline. At this time, also, they elected the officers who were to assist the priest at the ceremony. The priest prepared a number of little balls of fresh incense on small boards made for the purpose, for those who fasted to burn before the idols. Great care was taken not to break the fast after it had been once commenced; for if this were done it was thought that misfortune must inevitably ensue.
New Year's Day having arrived, all the men assembled in the courtyard of the temple. Women could assist at no feast which was celebrated within the temple, except those who went to take part in particular dances; on other occasions, however, the women were allowed to be present. On the day in question the men came alone, adorned with paint, and cleansed from the grease with which they had been bedaubed during the days of penance. When all were assembled, with offerings of food and newly fermented wine, the priest purified the temple and seated himself in the centre of the court, clothed in his robes of office, and having by his side a brazier and the balls of incense before mentioned. After the evil spirit had been expelled, all present offered up prayers, while the assistants kindled the new fire for the year. The priest now cast one of the balls of incense into the brazier, and then distributed the remainder among the assembled worshipers. The nobles came first in the order of their rank, and as each received a ball from the priest, who gave it with great solemnity, he dropped it gently into the brazier and stood still until it was consumed. The inevitable banquet and orgies terminated the ceremonies. This was the manner in which they celebrated the birth of the new year. During the month, some of the most devout among them repeated the feast in their own homes, and this was particularly done by the nobles and priests, who were ever foremost in religious observances.
During the month of Uo the priests and sorcerers began to prepare for a festival called pocam, which was solemnized by the hunters and fishers on the seventh day of the next month, which was Zip. Having assembled, clothed in their ornaments, at the house of the prince, they expelled the evil spirit, and then uncovered their books and exposed them upon a carpet of green leaves and branches, which had been prepared for this purpose. They next invoked with reverence a deity named Cinchau Yzamna, who had been, they said, the first priest.[1022] To him they offered various gifts, and burned balls of incense in his honor. In the meantime others took a vessel and a little verdigris with some pure water, which had to be procured from a wood into whose recesses no woman had ever penetrated. They now cleaned the leaves of their books by moistening them; this done, the wisest among them opened a volume and examined the prospects of the coming year, which he declared aloud to all present. He concluded with a brief discourse, in which he advised them how to avoid coming evils. Jollity now reigned and the wine flowed freely—a consummation which many of the old priest's hearers had doubtless been long looking forward to impatiently. The solemnities on this occasion were varied at times by performing a dance called okot uil.
On the following day the doctors and sorcerers with their wives came together in the house of one of their number. The priests, having driven away the evil spirit, brought to view their medicine-bags, in which they kept a number of charms, some little images of Ixchel, goddess of medicine, from whom the feast was named ihcil ixchel, and some small stones called am, which they used in their sorceries. Then with great devotion the doctors and sorcerers invoked the gods of medicine, Yzamna, Citbolontum, and Ahau Chamahez, while the priests burned incense, and the assistants painted themselves blue, the color of the books used by the priests. Bearing their medicine bags in their hands, they then joined in a dance called chantunyab, after which the men seated themselves in a row on one side, and the women on the other; a day was appointed for holding the feast during the ensuing year, and then the usual drunken orgies commenced. It is said that the priests abstained from wine on this occasion, perhaps because the women were present; but they took their share, nevertheless, and reserved it for a more private opportunity.
On another occasion the hunters, with their wives, assembled in the house of one of their number, and performed there certain ceremonies. The first proceeding was, of course, to expel the evil influence; then the priests, who were never absent from these meetings, placed in the middle of the room some incense, a brazier, and some blue coloring material. Next, the huntsmen prayed with great devotion to the gods of the chase, Acanum, Zuhuy Zipi, Tabai, and others, and cast incense into the brazier. While this was burning, each took an arrow and a deer's head, which the priest's assistants had painted blue; thus equipped, some danced, holding hands; others pierced their ears or their tongue, and passed through the holes which they made seven leaves of an herb called ac. Then priests and their assistants made offerings to the gods and joined in the dance. Finally, the festivities closed by all present becoming, to quote the words of Bishop Landa, 'as drunk as baskets.'
The next day it was the turn of the fishermen to celebrate a feast, which they did in the same manner as the hunters, except that instead of a deer's head, they smeared their fishing implements with color; neither did they pierce their ears, but cut round about them, and after doing this they executed a dance called chohom. Then they consecrated a large tree, which they left standing. After the feast had been duly celebrated in the towns, it was customary for the nobles and many of the people to go down to the coast on a grand fishing expedition. The patron divinities of the fishermen were Ahkak Nexoi, Ahpua, Ahcitz, and Amalcum.[1023]
FEAST OF THE APIARISTS.
In the month of Tzoz, the apiarists prepared for a feast which was to take place in the next month, called Tzec, by a fast, which was, however, optional with all except the priests who were to officiate, and their assistants. The day of celebration having arrived, the participants came together in the house of him who gave the feast, and performed nearly the same ceremonies as the hunters and fishermen, except that they drew no blood from their bodies. The apiarists had for their patron deities the Bacabs, and particularly Hobnil. They made many propitiatory offerings at this time, especially to the four gods of abundance, to whom they presented four dishes adorned with figures of honey. The usual drunken bout was not omitted.
After the mysterious departure of Cukulcan,[1024] the Maya Quetzalcoatl, from Yucatan, the people, convinced that he had gone to the abode of the gods, deified him, and built temples and instituted feasts in his honor. These latter were scrupulously observed throughout the entire country up to the time of the destruction of Mayapan; but after that event they were neglected by all the provinces but that of Mani.[1025] In remembrance, however, of the respect shown of old to Cukulcan, these provinces sent annually, by turn, to Mani four or five magnificent feather banners, which were used in the ceremonies there. On the sixteenth day of the month of Xul, all the nobles and priests of Mani, being prepared by fast and penance for the occasion, came together, and with them came a considerable multitude of people. In the evening all set out in procession from the house of the lord, and, accompanied by a large number of professional actors, proceeded slowly towards the temple of Cukulcan, which had already been decorated in a suitable manner. Upon arriving they placed the banners on high in the temple, offered prayers, and going into the courtyard spread out their idols upon green leaves and branches; then they burned incense in many places, and made offerings of meat cooked without pepper or salt, bean-soup, and calabashes. After this, those who had observed the fast did not go home, but passed five days and five nights in the temple, praying, burning copal, and executing sacred dances. During this time the actors went from one house to another, representing their plays and receiving gifts from those whom they entertained. At the end of the five days they carried all their earnings to the temple and distributed them among the watchers there. Afterwards all returned to the prince's palace, taking with them the banners and the idols. Thence each betook himself to his home. They said, and confidently believed, that Cukulcan descended from heaven on the last day of the feast and received personally the gifts which were presented to him. This festival was called chic kaban.
During the month of Yaxkin it was the custom to prepare for a general festival, called olohzabkamyax, held in the month of Mol, in honor of all the gods. At this feast, after the usual preliminary rites, they smeared with blue coloring matter the instruments used in every profession, from the sacred implements of the priests to the distaffs of the women, and even the doors of their houses. Children of both sexes were daubed in the same manner, but instead of coloring their hands they gave them each nine gentle raps on the knuckles. The little girls were brought to the feast by an old woman, who for that reason was called ixmol, conductress. The blows were given to the children in order that they might become skilled workmen in the profession of their fathers or mothers. The usual conclusion ensued.
During the month of Mol the apiarists had another festival similar to that of the month of Tzec, in order to induce their patron gods to cause the flowers to grow, from which the bees gathered honey.
FESTIVAL TO INSURE A CROP.
The Mayas depended so much upon the produce of the soil for their sustenance that a failure of the crops was one of the heaviest misfortunes that could fall upon them. To avoid this they made four idols, named Chichac Chob, Ek Balam Chac, Ahcan Uolcab, and Ahbuluc Balam.[1026] Having placed them in the temple, and, according to custom, burned incense before them, they presented them with two pellets of a kind of resin called kik, some iguanas, some bread, a mitre, a bouquet of flowers, and a stone upon which they set great value. Besides this, they erected a great wooden arch in the court, which they filled with wood, taking care to leave openings through which to pass backwards and forwards. The greater part of the men then took each a long stick of dry wood, and while a musician mounted on the top of the pile sang and beat a drum, all danced reverently and in good order, as they did so passing in and out the wood-pile. This they kept up until evening, when, leaving their sticks behind them, they went home to eat and rest. During the night they returned, and each taking his faggot, lit it and applied it to the pile, which burned fiercely and rapidly.[1027] As soon as the heap was reduced to red-hot ashes, those who had danced gathered about it, and passed barefooted over the coals, some without injury, and some with; this they believed would avert misfortune and appease the anger of the gods.[1028]
It was customary in all the towns of Yucatan to erect at the limits of each of the four quarters, east, west, north, and south, two heaps of stones, facing each other, and intended to be used during the celebration of two solemn festivals, which were as follows. In the year of which the dominical letter was kan, the sign was hobnil, and, according to the Yucatecs, these both ruled in the south. They made this year, of baked earth, an idol which they called Kanu Uayeyab, and having made it they carried it out to the heaps of stones which lay towards the south. They then selected a principal man of the place, and in his house they celebrated the feast. For this purpose they made another image, of the god Bolon Zacab,[1029] and placed it in the chosen house, in a prominent place, so that all who arrived might see it. This done, the nobles, priests, and people came together, and set out by a road swept clean, ornamented with arches, and strewed with foliage, to the southern heaps of stones, where they gathered about the idol Kanu Uayeyab. The priest then incensed the god with forty-nine grains of maize, ground up and mixed with copal; the nobles next placed incense in the brazier, and burned it before the idol. The incense burned by the priest was called zacah, that used by the nobles, chahalté. When these rites were completed the head of a fowl was cut off and offered to the idol, which was now placed on a litter called kanté,[1030] and upon its shoulders were placed other little images, as signs of abundance of water and a good year, and these images were frightful to behold. Amid dances and general rejoicing the idol was carried towards the house where the statue of Bolon Zacab had been placed, and while the procession was on the road, the nobles and priests partook of a beverage made from four hundred and fifteen grains of roasted maize, which they called picula kakla. Arrived at their destination, they placed the image that they carried opposite the idol which they found there, and made many offerings of food and drink, which were afterwards divided among the strangers who were present, the officiating priest receiving only the leg of a deer. Some of the devotees drew blood from their bodies, scarified their ears, and anointed with the blood a stone idol named Kanal Acantun. They modeled a heart of dough of maize and of calabash-seeds, and offered it to the idol Kanu Uayeyab. And in this manner they honored both the idols during the entire time of the feast, burning before them incense of copal and ground maize, for they held it certain that misfortune would overwhelm them if they neglected these rites. Finally, the statue of Bolon Zacab was carried to the temple, and the other image to the western entrance of the town, where it remained until the next celebration of the feast.
MAYA FESTIVALS.
The ceremonies of the new year, under the sign of muluc, were very similar to those just described, though held in honor of other deities. A dance performed upon a high scaffolding, attended with sacrifices of turkeys; another executed by the old people, holding little baked-clay images of dogs in their hands; and the sacrifice of a peculiarly marked dog, were, however, additional features. The same may be said of the new year under the sign of yx, and of the new year under the sign of cauac, when the rites which were performed were sufficiently like those which have gone before to need no further description.[1031]
The gods of the Yucatecs required far fewer human lives at the hands of their worshipers than those of the Nahuas. The pages of Yucatec history are not marred by the constant blood-blots that obscure the Nahua record. An event which in Mexico would be the death-signal to a hecatomb of human victims, would in Yucatan be celebrated by the death of a spotted dog. The office of sacrificer which in Mexico was one of the highest honors to which a priest could attain, was in Yucatan regarded as unclean and degrading.[1032] Nevertheless, the Yucatec religion was not free from human sacrifice, and although captives taken in war were used for this purpose, yet it is said that such was their devotion, that should a victim be wanting they would dedicate their children to the altar rather than let the gods be deprived of their due.[1033] But it seldom happened that more than one victim was sacrificed at a time, at least in earlier days, and even then he was not butchered as by the Nahuas, but was shot through the heart with arrows before being laid upon the sacrificial stone.[1034]
SACRIFICES AT CHICHEN ITZA.
At Chichen Itza human sacrifices were made in a peculiar manner. In the centre of the city was an immense pit, containing water, and surrounded on all sides by a dense grove, which served to render the spot silent and solitary, in spite of its position. A circular staircase, rudely cut in the rock, descended to the edge of the water from the foot of an altar which stood upon the very brink of the pit.[1035] At first, only animals and incense were offered here, as the teachings of Cukulcan forbade the sacrifice of human victims, but after the departure of the great Maya apostle the Yucatecs returned to the evil of their ways,[1036] and the pit of Chichen was once more polluted with human bodies. At first one victim sufficed, but the number gradually increased, until, during the later years of Maya independence, hundreds were immolated at a time. If some calamity threatened the country, if the crops failed or the requisite supply of rain was wanting, the people hastened to the pit of horror, to offer prayers and to appease the wrath of the gods with gifts of human life. On the day of sacrifice, the victims, who were generally young virgins, were taken to the temple, clothed in the garments appropriate to the occasion, and conducted thence to the sacred pit, accompanied by a multitude of priests and priestesses of all ranks. There, while the incense burned on the altar and in the braziers, the officiating priest explained to them the things for which they were to implore the gods into whose presence they were about to be introduced. A long cord was then fastened round the body of each victim, and the moment the smoke ceased to rise from the altar, all were hurled into the gulf. The crowd, which had gathered from every part of the country to see the sacrifice, immediately drew back from the brink of the pit and continued to pray without cessation for some time. The bodies were then drawn up and buried in the neighboring grove.[1037]
The Pipiles had two idols, one in the figure of a man, called Quetzalcoatl, the other in the shape of a woman, called Itzqueye. Certain days of their calendar were specially set apart for each of the deities, and on these the sacrifices were made. Two very solemn sacrifices were held in each year, one at the commencement of summer, the other at the beginning of winter. At these, Herrera says, only the lords were present.[1038] The sacrifice was made in the interior of the temple, and the victims were boys between the ages of six and twelve years, bastards, born among themselves. For a day and a night previous to the sacrifice, drums and trumpets were sounded and on the day following the people assembled. Four priests then came out from the temple, each bearing a small brazier with burning incense; together they turned in the direction of the sun, and kneeling down offered up incense and prayers; they then did the same toward the four cardinal points.[1039] Their prayers finished, they retired within four small chapels built at the four corners of the temple, and there rested. They next went to the house of the high-priest, and took thence the boy who was to be sacrificed and conducted him four times round the court of the temple, dancing and singing. When this ceremony was finished, the high-priest came out of his house, with the diviner and guardian of the sanctuary, and ascended the steps of the temple, with the cacique and principal men, who, however, remained at the door of the sanctuary. The four priests now seized the boy by the arms and legs, and the guardian of the temple coming out with little bells on his wrists and ankles, opened the left breast of the victim, tore out the heart, and handed it to the high-priest, who placed it in a small embroidered purse which he carried. The four priests received the blood of the victim in four jicaras, or bowls, made from the shell of a certain fruit, and descending one after the other to the courtyard, sprinkled the blood with their right hands in the direction of the cardinal points. If any blood remained over they returned it to the high-priest, who placed it with the purse containing the heart in the body of the victim through the wound that had been made, and the body was interred in the temple. This was the ceremony of sacrifice at the beginning of each of the two seasons.
PIPILE FEAST OF VICTORY.
When information was received from their war chief that he had gained a victory, the diviner ascertained to which of the gods sacrifice was to be made. If to Quetzalcoatl, the ceremony lasted fifteen days; if to Itzqueye, five days; and upon each day they sacrificed a prisoner. These sacrifices were made as follows: All those who had been in the battle returned home in procession, singing and dancing, bringing with them the captives who were to be sacrificed, their wrists and ankles decorated with feathers and chalchiuites, and their necks with strings of cacao-nibs. The high-priests and other ministers went out at the head of the populace to meet them with music and dancing, and the caciques and captains delivered over those who were to be sacrificed to the high-priest. Then they all went together to the courtyard of their teupa, or temple, where they continued dancing day and night during the time the sacrifices lasted. In the middle of the court was a stone bench on which the victim was stretched, four priests holding him by the feet and hands. The sacrificing priest then came forward, adorned with many feathers and loaded with little bells, holding in his hand a flint knife, with which he opened the breast of the victim, tore out the heart, brandished it toward the cardinal points, and finally threw it into the air with sufficient force to cause it to fall directly in the middle of the court, saying: "Receive, Oh God, this thank-offering for the victory."[1040] This sacrifice was public and beheld by all the people. The men drew blood from their private parts, and the women from their ears, tongue, and other parts of the body; as the blood flowed it was taken up with cotton and offered by the men to Quetzalcoatl, by the women to Itzqueye.
When the Pipiles were about to undertake any hunting or fishing expedition, they first made an offering to their gods. For this purpose they took a living deer,[1041] and leading it to the temple yard, they there strangled and afterwards flayed it, saving the blood in a vessel. The liver, lungs, and stomach were chopped in small pieces, which were afterwards laid aside with the heart, head, and feet. The remainder of the deer was cooked by itself, and the blood likewise, and while this was being done the people danced. The high-priest with his assistant next took the head by the ears, and each of the four priests one of the feet, while the guardian of the sanctuary put the heart into a brazier and burnt it with copal and ulli to the god who was the protector of hunting. After the dance, the head and feet were scorched in the fire before the idol and given to the high-priest to be eaten. The flesh and blood were eaten by the other ministers of the temple before the idol, and the same was done with other animals sacrificed. The entrails of fish were burned before the idol.[1042]
SACRIFICES IN NICARAGUA.
Among the civilized nations of Nicaragua, it would appear there were eighteen distinct festivals, corresponding with the eighteen months in their calendar.[1043] These were proclaimed by the priest, holding the instrument of sacrifice in his hand, from the steps leading to the sacrificial altar in the court of the temple. He made known who and how many were to be sacrificed, and whether they were to be prisoners taken in battle or individuals reared among themselves for the purpose.[1044] When the victim was stretched upon the stone, the officiating priest walked three times round him, singing in a doleful tone; he then opened the victim's breast, plucked out his heart, and daubed his face with the blood. He next dismembered the body and gave the heart to the high-priest, the feet and hands to the king, the thighs to him who had captured him, the entrails to the trumpeters, and the remainder to the people, that all might eat.[1045] The heads of those sacrificed were set as trophies on trees appointed for the purpose.[1046] If the person sacrificed had been bought, they buried the entrails, hands, and feet, in a gourd, and burned the heart and all the rest.[1047] As it was lawful for a father to sell his own children, and each person himself, they therefore did not eat the flesh of such sacrifices because they were their own countrymen and relations. When they ate the flesh of foreigners sacrificed, they held exciting dances, and passed the days in drunken revels and smoking, but had no sexual intercourse with their wives while the festival lasted.[1048] At certain feasts they offered blood drawn from their own bodies, with which they rubbed the beard and lips of the idol.