Popol Vuh - Maya

Hello. My name is Hunahpu, and this is my twin brother, Xbalanque. Before there were children to play or stories to tell, the whole world was quiet and still, like a sleepy puddle. The sky-gods wanted to fill it with life. Our story of how they did it is called the Popol Vuh. Long, long ago, there was only a calm sea and a wide sky. Two creators, Tepeu and Gucumatz, floated in the water, thinking big thoughts. They decided, “Let’s make something wonderful that can praise us.”. They wanted to make something new and special.

First, the creators tried making people from wet mud. But the mud people couldn't stand up straight. They would crumble and melt in the rain. Oh no. So, they tried again with wood. The wood people were strong, and they could walk and talk. They made clomping sounds when they walked. Clomp, clomp, clomp. But they had no feelings and couldn't remember their creators. They did not have happy hearts. That wasn't right either. The creators knew they needed something special. While they thought about this puzzle, my brother Xbalanque and I played a special ball game. We were clever and tricky. We helped make the world safe and ready for the real people who were coming.

Finally, the creators found the perfect thing: corn. They found yellow corn and white corn. They ground it up to make a soft dough, and from that dough, they shaped the first people. These people could see. They could think, and they could give thanks. They had happy hearts. The K'iche' Maya people, who first told this story, loved corn because it gave them life, just like in the story. The Popol Vuh helps us remember that we are all connected to the earth. It is a story that shows us that from something small, like a single seed of corn, amazing things can begin.