Popol Vuh - Maya

Hello! My name is Hunahpu. Before the sun rose for the first time, the world was quiet and dark, just a great big sea under a sky full of possibility. My twin brother Xbalanque and I were there, watching as the makers, Tepeu and Gucumatz, tried to create people who could speak, listen, and be grateful for the beautiful world. They wanted someone to say their names and remember them. This is the story of how everything came to be, a very important story that my people, the Maya, call the Popol Vuh.

The makers tried a few times to get it right. First, they shaped people from wet mud, but they were droopy and couldn't think. They dissolved in the rain. So, the makers tried again, this time carving people from wood. The wooden people looked and walked like humans, but they had no hearts, no feelings, and no memories. They couldn't praise their makers, so they were scattered and forgotten. While this was happening, my brother and I had our own challenge. The grumpy lords of the dark underworld, Xibalba, didn't like the noise we made playing our favorite ball game. They challenged us to a match in their shadowy kingdom! They set all sorts of tricky tests for us, like a house full of screeching bats and another with growling jaguars. But Xbalanque and I are very clever. We worked as a team, using our wits to pass every test and outsmart the powerful lords. By winning, we made the world safe for the real humans who were about to be created.

After our adventure, the makers finally found the perfect ingredient for creating people: maize! From yellow and white corn, they ground a dough and carefully formed the first four men and four women. These people were perfect. They could see everything, their hearts were full of gratitude, and they spoke with wisdom. They were the first of the K'iche' Maya people. The Popol Vuh, which means the 'Book of the People,' is our most sacred story. For many years, it was told aloud by grandparents and storytellers under the starry sky, passed down so no one would forget where we came from. It teaches us that cleverness is more powerful than force, that we are all connected to the earth like corn, and that there is always light after darkness. Today, you can see our story in beautiful paintings on pottery, in stone carvings, and in the traditions of my people. It reminds everyone that from something as simple as a grain of corn, a whole world of amazing people can grow.