Popol Vuh: A Sacred Book of the Maya

John Walker is a professor of Spanish at Queen’s University.

The Popol Vuh is the bible of the Maya K’iche (Quiche), the indigenous
people of Guatemala and the Yucatбn. The term “Popol Vuh” is
derived from the word “Pop,” which means straw mat, and “Vuh”
(or Wuj), which means paper in the K’iche language. It is thought that
Popol Vuh was originally written in hieroglyphic characters long before
the arrival of the Spanish invaders who destroyed most of the codices
and other manifestations of the Mayans’ advanced civilization (e.g.,
astronomy, mathematics). Many of the stories of the Popol Vuh were
passed down orally before they were transcribed by a young Maya K’iche
in 1588.

The Popol Vuh was discovered in 1701 (by Father Francisco Ximénez, in
his parish church in Chichicastenango) and translated into Spanish. This
is the basis of the modern text, used by Victor Montejo to provide this
abbreviated version. Montejo is a Mayan anthropologist who was forced to
leave Guatemala during the civil wars of the 1970s. The translator,
David Unger, is also Guatemalan born, while the illustrations are by the
Toronto-based Nicaraguan artist Luis Garay.

The book is divided into four parts. Part 1, “The Creation,”
describes the creation of the world, animals, and humans (the clay
people and the wooden people) by the will of the Heart of Heaven and the
Heart of the Earth, the Mayan K’iche names for God. Part 2, “The
Amazing Twins,” provides the mythic tales of the supernatural heroes
and their battles against the Underworld Lords. Part 3, “The Creation
of the Men of Corn” (a favorite theme of modern Guatemalan literature)
describes the third creation of humans, the corn people and their
descendants, and the gift of fire. Part 4, “The First Fathers of the
K’iche Nation,” narrates the founding of the tribes and the
genealogy of the K’iche kings up to the coming of the Spanish
invaders.

The Popol Vuh is a fascinating and valuable account of the origins and
progress of the Mayan people and civilization. Highly recommended.