The Mayan Priest (21 page)

‘Well, for one thing, the Egyptians thought that the scarab brought good luck, so much so that real mummified beetles were buried with the dead. It is a variation of the dung beetle whose industrious efforts to place an egg in a ball of dung and heat it by the sun created an association with the sun god Ra. This in turn gave it life-giving powers and protected the dead from being devoured by Ammit the Devourer, a fearsome part lion, hippo and crocodile creature who guarded the scales of justice in the Egyptian afterworld.

‘Well, aren’t you a ball of knowledge,’ jested Adam as Gillian grinned with smug satisfaction.

‘So, perhaps you can explain why it is in a Mayan box,’ continued Adam as Gillian picked up the manuscript as if it was the most precious thing in the world.

Manuscript part 2

On the eve of my eighteenth haab cycle and with the assistance of Bolon Yookie K’uh (god of war), the army had a decisive victory over Calakmul. The war had continued for many moons over a large parcel of land, but the gods had favoured Bahlum Paw Skull and he was delighted. They had captured ten of Calakmul’s finest soldiers, leaving the decision of their fate to the gods. My divine ruler in his wisdom offered them a game of Pitz. If they won, they would be returned to their home, but if the gods found them unworthy, they would be sacrificed as an appeasement.

I was given the honour of selecting three of our best men which I did with care. I chose two of our elite army and a man by the name of Kaloomte B’alam who was instrumental in the victory over Calakmul. They accepted my offer with enthusiasm.

The chosen month was the ‘Kankin’ which was the fourteenth cycle of the year (27th of April–16th May) and named after the tree of life. It symbolised advice and grounding and would bring luck to our men. The day was the Kan which was the fourth day of this month.

On the morning of the Pitz, we were awoken by the sounds of the trumpet and I jumped out of bed with great enthusiasm, dressing in my best embroidered cotton breechcloth. Yok Chac followed my direction but clothed himself in a less decorated outfit, showing respect to my standing as the King’s physician. We made our way to the Halaw (rectangular ball court) and sat in the middle row next to the seating reserved for Bahlum Paw Skull and his family. This was the first time I had been given a position of such importance and I admit to enjoying the reverence it afforded both Yok Chac and myself.

Within a few moments, the six contestants appeared to great fanfare. They were suitably garbed in the padded outfits and took their positions along with the two referees who would determine if the OI (eight inch rubber ball) had been correctly hit. A moment of prayer to Hukte’Ajaw was undertaken before the King signalled the beginning with a clap of his hands.

Kaloomte B’alam took the first strike, hitting the ball with his elbow and pummelling it towards one his team. They managed to bounce it from the head and directly into the marker, scoring a quick goal to our side. A great cheer went up until the opposition handled three quick passes in succession and gained a subsequent goal by knocking the ball to each other from knee to hip. The Halaw was deathly silent.

The play continued until our team gave a goal to the opposition by touching the ball with one of the minor players’ feet. The King raised his hands in disgust and the fading time meant two quick goals would be needed from our team before they could win. Failure would bring shame to Kaloomte B’alam and possible death as retribution to the gods. I feared this potential disappointment as the king’s anger would be unbearable for almost two women’s moon cycles.

With much relief, our men stood tall and proud, deftly knocking the OI from the opposition in midair and racing with renewed speed and drive to the marker at the end of the Halaw. The three men foiled many attempts to obtain the OI, but they bounced from pad to pad, eventually succeeding amongst a standing ovation. Tension was high as the winner of this next goal would be the victor.

I admit to asking for Hukte’Ajaw’s blessing a little too loudly and receiving irritated glances from the people surrounding me, but I did not care. I was too excited. The youngest member of our team hit the ball from the grasp of the opposing side. It was shepherded along by hand and head until it was only one strike from the goal, but the rival captain knocked it away. In desperation Kaloomte B’alam put his body on the line interrupting the Ti Pitziil and receiving the ball as merit for his hard work. Unfortunately he also took a direct elbow to his face from the other captain and fell heavily to the ground.

By this time the crowd was on their feet in an uproar when they witnessed a miracle. In a final frantic effort, Kaloomte B’alam flung out his elbow as he fell to the grass. He was rewarded with a freak shot that saw the OI fly directly at the face of the target. The court was alight with the excitement of hundreds of fans as Kaloomte B’alam became an instant hero.

At the urging of Bahlum Paw Skull, I raced to the court to check on the wellbeing of Kaloomte. He had not moved, but on further investigation, I had determined that he was merely disillusioned which was a common side effect of an impact to the head. I checked his blood flow and the reaction of his eyes and knew that all was well.

I offered my hand in congratulations, but as I attempted to help him to his feet, he pushed my hand away and glanced unkindly at me. Other than Yok Chac, there was no one in the immediate vicinity to notice this strange reaction, but it left me feeling extremely uncomfortable and wary. Even Yok Chac glanced at me in concern.

Trying to put aside my alarm and with the insistence of Yok Chac, I was did my best to enjoy the following feast, but I could not shake the unease I felt.

That afternoon, the King summoned me to his palace to advise me that he intended to sacrifice the losing team. He wanted me to perform the ceremony and I agreed but informed him that the life of the captain would be enough to show reverence and that the other two men could serve as slaves to a couple of deserving families. The King agreed with my logic and suggested that the men should go to the home of Kaloomte B’alam. I dared not argue with his judgement and promised to arrange the transfer the following day. Once again I was left with a bad taste in my mouth at the King’s sudden favouritism to Kaloomte. To give one slave was a mighty honour but two was almost unheard of. I voiced my concerns to Yok Chac shortly afterwards.

The remainder of that day was preparing for the sacrifice and I had to ensure my knife was suitably sharp. Tradition usually states that the gods preferred the heart of the sacrifice to be taken directly and raised as an offering, but as a healer, I understood the pain the person would experience. My interpretation of the ancient writings was not to inflict pain but to show our respects in the blood of life…to give back some of what the gods gave to us.

I approached our king with my concerns and in his infinite wisdom, he agreed with my findings. All sacrifices were changed to the removal of the head.

The preparations of today’s sacrifice was more elaborate than the usual, considering that our team had won their game of Pitz and spirits were still high. The sacrifice was a continuation of the morning celebrations and it was highly anticipated.

Bahlum Paw Skull stood next to me at the top of the temple, impressive in his regal sparkling white gown, jaguar wrap and feathered headpiece and the people cheered as he waved to them. The learned musicians played their trumpets and drums and the populace roared in delight as the man in his early twenties lowered his head to the block. His offering was a necessary part of our society that would give us prosperity and allow him to ascend to the gods.

I raised my obsidian blade high above my head and swung downwards in a single solid blow. It was important to strike directly below the skull where the neck was the weakest and as usual my aim was direct and strong. The head separated from the spine with ease and rolled down the temple stairs to a standing applause. It was a successful sacrifice although I did admit to having concerns.

Just prior to the celebration Kaloomte B’alam had somehow managed to gain access to the King and suggested to him that a child sacrifice as well as the captain of the losing Pitz team would be a much greater show of our reverence. Whilst I did not disagree, my opposition to using children is well known and I feel that Kaloomte was trying override me and take favour with Bahlum Paw Skull. This left a bitter taste in my mouth and upon discussions with Yok Chac, who agreed with me, we determined that Kaloomte was one to look out for.

Three days later I was summoned to the King’s presence. It had been almost twenty winal (a full year, or twenty months in the haab calendar) since the king had agreed to marry a ‘City of Gods’ princess, but up until now, he had not requested that I commence my journey. Today he suggested that it was time to go and expressed his increasing concern at his age and the need to have a child. I nodded my head in respect and agreed to comply immediately.

I also appealed for a companion and to my surprise, he permitted whomever I deemed suitable. It went without saying that I would choose Yok Chac and in my excitement to tell him, I almost forgot to bow on my leave from Bahlum Paw Skull’s company. This would have been a shameful disaster which I only just managed to avoid.

It was almost an entire kin (day) before Yok Chac and I were packed and ready to go. I admit that we were both slow and fussed about a great deal more than necessary, but this was a big adventure for us. Yok Chac packed and repacked his clothes despite the fact that we had only a small travelling bag each and I had to ensure Kin Kawil was up to date with the royal protocol. Kin Kawil – my mentor – had promised to take good care of matters whilst I was gone and although I trusted him implicitly, I confessed to still being worried about leaving my post unprotected.

In order to draw as little attention as possible to our departure, we left under the cover of darkness and with no fanfare. The King did not want to make a big deal about the collection of his future bride and I respected his integrity.

Due to the extensive cloud cover, the humidity was much higher than expected and there was no moon to guide the way. It was a good thing that I had walked this path so many times before and was able to lead Yok Chac to the outskirts of Tikal without harm. Beyond the protection of the city, the risk of animal attacks increased in the dark, but we timed our exit to coincide with the rise of the sun. If all went well and we walked at a steady pace, we could reach Teotihuacán within eleven kin (days), allowing for a detour via Palenque.

On the first day, we were full of energy and marched with much more vigour than I had anticipated. Both Yok Chac and I were far more adapted to scholarly topics than outdoor exercise, so I was quite surprised at our elevated pace. I contributed this to excitement and the fact that we barely spoke. Prior to the commencement of our journey, we had made an agreement to walk in relative silence and concentrate on the agenda at hand, which was contrary to the reputation we had earned as orators. Still, I appreciated the opportunity to listen to the sounds emanating from the jungle, particularly the howler monkeys, flutters of birds, the rustle of deer and wandering tapir. It made a change from the comparative noises of Tikal.

It had been a long time since I had travelled and I noticed that the road was wide, well-maintained and used regularly by travellers. On our first day alone, we met with the families of three villages and many merchants wishing to trade their wares. My initial fear of vagrants was put to rest and I began to appreciate the many types of people we encountered with the exception of a group of young males who wished to take advantage of our lack of security. The vision of Bahlum Paw Skull’s jade and obsidian sword with his likeness carved into the hilt was enough to send them running. To threaten the men carrying proof of the King‘s protection was invoking the wrath of the gods.

As night fell and the jaguars began to wander the jungle, we took shelter in one of the purpose built havens that lined the path. These were erected at intervals along the main trading roads and maintained by the lords of that province. Even in times of war, an agreement bound all provinces with the upkeep of their huts or risk exclusion from trade. Both Yoc Chak and I unrolled our lightweight deer pelts and curled up for the night, thankful for the sleep that was short but came with ease.

A visit from an unwelcome python awoke us suddenly the following morning as it slithered into the shelter and passed within arm’s length of our beds. I was not surprised as snakes were reasonably common, but it was unusual to see one so large and particularly at this time of the morning. On further inspection, I noticed the exceedingly large belly and realised that it merely wished to find a place to digest it previous meal. We decided to leave it in peace but took care to mark the outer wall with the symbol of a snake to warn any other unsuspecting travellers against a sudden shock.

Before we left, I dealt out a quick meal of maize cakes and Yok Chac packed our small bags. Within moments we were back on the road and once again heading in the direction of Palenque.

Whilst we were both still eager, I did admit to feeling a little sore because of our efforts yesterday and would have welcomed a pib’nah (sweat bath). The thought of easing my body into the heated bath and feeling the steam rise from the hot stones sent shivers of pleasure through my body. I was determined to make up for it when I returned.