The Controversial Mayan Queen: Sak K'uk of Palenque (The Mists of Palenque) (24 page)

The creature combinations morphed together into the forms of Maya men and women in royal regalia. They bore the countenances of the succession of B’aakal rulers:

K’uk Bahlam I-Quetzal Jaguar

Caspar

Butzaj Sak Chiik-Howler Monkey White Coati

Ahkal Mo Nab I-Open Mouth Turtle Macaw

Kan Joy Chitam-Snake Binds Peccary

Ahkal Mo Nab II-Open Mouth Turtle Macaw

Kan Bahlam I-Snake Jaguar

Yohl Ik’nal-Heart of North Wind

Aj Ne Ohl Mat-Heart Cormorant

Muwaan Mat-Duck Hawk-Cormorant

Sak K’uk-White Quetzal

When the White Quetzal-Sak K’uk had passed, a brilliant sun face appeared on a shield. Pakal recognized himself in the progression of rulers: K’inich Janaab Pakal-Sun-Faced Lord Shield. Then followed a reverse order of creature combinations, leaving out two male and the two female rulers. These rulers all had an added sun face to their names.

K’inich Kan Bahlam II-Sun-Faced Snake Jaguar

K’inich Kan Joy Chitam II-Sun-Faced Snake Binds Peccary

K’inich Ahkal Mo Nab III-Sun-Faced Open Mouth Turtle Macaw

K’inich Janaab Pakal II-Sun-Faced Lord Shield

K’inich K’uk Bahlam-Sun-Faced Quetzal Jaguar

When K’inich K’uk Bahlam-Quetzal Jaguar passed, darkness began falling over the hills and lake. Mists from the high mountains thickened and swirled around, dissolving the creatures. One final apparition lingered among the mists, the face of Six Death Lord on a shield. Then the scene faded into total darkness, complete emptiness, chiasmic nothingness.

Tears streamed down Pakal’s face as he returned to waking consciousness. His heart felt wrenched by a sorrow so profound he thought it might cease beating. Confused and distraught, he searched for meaning in this dynastic parade through past and future time. Nothing made sense to him; he needed someone with deeper insight to interpret this vision. At once he thought of his mother Sak K’uk.

She had slowly changed since becoming the earthly vessel of the Primordial Mother Goddess. Now she seemed distant, less involved in his activities and preoccupied with her duties as K’uhul Ahau. Although he reasoned this was to be expected, emotionally he felt the loss of her closeness. His own training took him away for uinals at a time, and they had not visited for over two moons. Knowing her many obligations, he sent ahead by messenger to request an audience.

He arrived at her small reception chamber in the palace with both anticipation and trepidation. The dynastic procession vision haunted his mind, and he reached the conclusion that he was the “central sun” of his dynasty. This imagery emerged from the brilliant sun faces linked with each ruler following him.

When they met, Sak K’uk embraced Pakal warmly but her eyes remained remote. Settling down on mats, they exchanged small updates before she inquired about the purpose of her son’s visit. He described the vision in complete detail, every nuance of and color and image, every shadow of light and sense of setting. Her eyes became bright with focus as she listened, her mind no longer partly distracted with other thoughts. She nodded a few times as he spoke, making hand signs for understanding.

Pakal finished with his sense of being the “central sun” and of the dynasty that faded away into non-existence at the end. Once again he choked with emotion, but kept it under control with breath and determination.

“What you have seen is indeed prophetic,” said Sak K’uk. “The gods have chosen to reveal difficult things to one so young. This vision takes place in Toktan, the place where our dynasty began in the confluence of the Upperworld and Middleworld. As with everything in life, our dynasty has its cycle of beginning and ending. You have been shown what is to follow, the sequence taking our people toward the cycle closing. It is destined that those so named will be our rulers in the reverse order of our ascension.”

“Is such destiny then un-alterable? Did not the gods give us, as Halach Uinik, the rights of making choices that can shape our future?”

“We can affect how the future unfolds through choices we make now, and that have been made in the past,” his mother replied. “But we cannot alter the broad strokes of destiny, or the patterns set into the stones of the katuns. These things will play out, for they are woven into the fabric of the cosmos as it is reflected in our realm, the Middleworld. How we anticipate, how we deal with and adapt to these patterns is within the domain of our choices. Lord Time,
Ahau Kinh
is the primary reality, divine and limitless.
Ahau
Kinh
embraces all cycles, all solar and cosmic ages. There is no beginning and ending, only cycles upon cycles that continue and repeat and circle into the immemorial past and the infinite future, until it curves back into itself and we understand that all time is one. Nothing is lost, nothing is new, only the surface of appearances changes.”

Pakal shook his head, confused.

“Honored Mother, this is too abstract for me. I am seeing the end of my entire world, the dissipation of everything I hold valuable, the erasing of my life purpose. If all is to end, why should we continue to make efforts? It all seems useless to me.”

“Your life here is but a small sliver of your eternal existence,” said Sak K’uk, gently laying her hand upon Pakal’s arm. “Here we live in the world of space, but it is only another aspect of time. Time and space are the same primordial reality, time is the spatial measure of our everyday life, it shows how the sun is maker of the day, how stars are directors of celestial cycles, how the Witz Monster opens inner earth, the squaring and measuring of earth, the quadripartite gods who support the pillars of the sky. Every city reflects the cosmos above and the cycles of stellar movements. Our lives fulfill our destiny given by endless time, played out in earthly space, to be consummated in the immortal universe.”

“And then we return to the stars,” Pakal reflected. “We become ancestors and shine in the night sky, to give wisdom and guidance to those still walking in earth space.”

“You have said it truly. This is the grand cycle of life. The spatial world exists, changes, dies and is reborn in each Sun-Age. This is the consequence of the actions of the gods whose countenances are time. Space is not static. It changes like colors change with the daily passage of K’in Ahau. Space and our lives on earth exist as the handiwork of the gods, and have in themselves divine meanings. We ourselves are embodied time and are always changing throughout our lives. Without time-cycles there is no life, nothing happens, even death. The primeval darkness would return, devoid of all meaning. So we must live our lives in this time-space reality and understand that everything is both fleeting and significant.”

“Even if our dynasty were no more,” Pakal began, “our people no more, our cities abandoned and lost into ruin, you say we would still exist in the great time-space cycles? We would still make our ancestral wisdom and guidance available to others?” This idea made Pakal a bit more hopeful.

“This do I believe, Pakal. Nothing is ever truly lost. The essence of being never dies. What is required for this earth-walk is to fulfill our life path with courage and creativity. To accomplish the destiny the gods have given us, and to do it as completely and artistically as we can.”

Pakal’s face was brighter and this brought gladness to Sak K’uk’s heart. Her deep love for her son had not diminished, although responsibilities kept her away more than she wished. She was saddened by the burden he already bore, but knew it could not be averted or lessened.

“You remember our talk about visions of your grandmother Yohl Ik’nal that I had trouble recalling? Much have I thought on these, and now memories have awakened. She also had a vision about the future of the Maya people that frightened and dismayed her. She foresaw immense changes for our people and cities, with dispersion of populations and destruction of customs. Our great civilization appeared lost, the people fallen into ignominious conditions, the cities lying in ruin among jungle vines and trees. But yet to come is another cycle in which our greatness will be re-discovered. Foreign people of many lands will come to study and learn; to marvel and appreciate what the Mayas accomplished. Much is written upon the face of time and space that we now cannot read, but that comes to fruition as the cycles unfold.”

“Then what lies before me to do, my destiny as ruler of our people, does matter,” Pakal reflected.

“Yes, it matters greatly,” Sak K’uk reassured him. “It will shape Lakam Ha, the B’aakal polity, and the lives of our people now. It will leave a legacy for future people, both Mayas and foreigners that will affect their world. You are here in the space-time reality of earth-cab and you cannot avoid taking actions. Even not making decisions or choices is taking an action. All actions have consequences, and your actions have larger influences than most. So you must act, my son, even when your heart aches under the burden of your knowledge.”

Pakal nodded, for he immediately grasped the truth of his mother’s words. His destiny would have its way; he could not avoid actions, so he best make those choices that brought the noblest outcome.

4

The day of Pakal’s accession was at hand. He had passed twelve tuns, stood half a head taller than his mother and matched his father’s height. He had undergone the transformation rites moving him from childhood into adolescence a short time before. Time and cycles of wandering stars-planets figured prominently in determining the date of accession.

Chak Ek (Mars) was already linked with Pakal during his hoof-binding ceremony. This harbinger of rain and bringer of watery itz formed an important symbol of the ruler’s capacity to bring fertility to the land and sustenance to crops. Pakal’s accession was timed to the planet’s first stationary point in its 780-day cycle. The interval between its conjunction with the sun and first stationary point is 352 days, close to the 360-day Haab calendar cycle. After that point, it moves retrograde for 75 days, and then reaches its second stationary point from which it travels another 352 days until sun conjunction.

The combined symbols of rain bringing, crop nourishing, and two Haab agricultural cycles firmly established Pakal in the role of Yum K’ax, the young maize god. All Maya rulers had deep associations with sprouting corn stalks, and the god’s youthful face framed by foliated and tasseled imagery attested to their powers of renewal, both of plant growth and human life.

Another important wandering star entered the timing of Pakal’s accession. Yaax Ek (Jupiter) was in conjunction with the sun. This large stellar body was associated with the deity of royal lineage, K’awiil who also embodied rulership, lightning and thunder. He was frequently depicted with a snake foot and mirror on his forehead, or emerging from the jaws of a double-headed serpent sky bar that Maya rulers used as a royal insignia. Yaax Ek was linked to katun endings, and his head was the insignia of Katun Lords who were usually depicted seated on sky-band thrones. Presenting the head of Yaax Ek to the new ruler in katun ceremonies or during accession rites signified the passing on of the royal lineage. When Yaax Ek was conjoined with K’in Ahau-Lord Sun, the two most powerful symbols of rulership merged. Selecting this day for Pakal’s accession was a potent declaration of his right to rulership.

The ceremony followed the model used for Muwaan Mat, except that Pakal wore minimal regalia when he was borne on the palanquin around the palace main plaza. The palanquin was decorated with symbolism of Chak Ek and Yaax Ek, along with foliated maize stalks. Pakal was adorned with a simple headdress that held a forelock of hair over his forehead and a ponytail behind, with water lily and flower motifs. Around his neck and over his bare chest hung a large jade pectoral with an Ik’ symbol carved in the center, and in his earlobes were heavy jade ear pendants. Wrist cuffs of grooved bronze had jangling disks and beads. His loincloth was white trimmed by a red border and waistband, and his feet were bare.

The simplicity of Pakal’s regalia emphasized his youthful freshness and the newness of rebirth. The bright midsummer day was graced by wispy clouds overhead and a soft, cooling breeze. The birds seemed to sing more sweetly as he lithely ascended the palace stairs to the throne chamber, accompanied by a slow single drumbeat. Following enunciations by the High Priest and Priestess stating his lineage and rightful position in accession, he entered the chamber and sat upon the double-headed jaguar throne.

Sak K’uk was seated on a mat next to the throne where she awaited his entry. In the side chambers stood his father Kan Mo’ Hix and grandfather Yaxun Xul along with many elite ahauob and warriors. Only his mother was in the throne room, not clad in Muwaan Mat’s regalia but wearing the classic costume of royal women: A cape and skirt in the woven mat pattern over a white huipil, with embroidered fringes and waistband, wrist cuffs matching Pakal’s, bare feet and a small headdress of ancestor faces and white cloth flaps hanging behind. She ceremoniously lifted a large “drum-major” headdress, its tall dome decorated with four rows of round silver discs with center obsidian dots, lined top and bottom by a row of square white stones, with the sun god face in front and several long quetzal tail feathers soaring above two rows of green leaves.

This headdress was associated with sacred battle on several levels. It signified the struggle each person was fated to have with his or her own baser nature in order to ascend to higher levels of consciousness, and expand that animal nature into the divine essence of all true humans. In addition, the headdress implied battle with forces of disruption and decay that inevitably confronted human society. Political and economic systems needed to be surmounted and subdued to serve the people’s well-being. Lastly, sacred battle on the physical level often was necessary to defend one’s city against oppression and exploitation by bellicose neighbors.

Pakal first removed his simple headdress and tied on his forehead the white headband. This symbolic act had been passed down from ruler to ruler since the dynasty began. In primordial times, Muwaan Mat was the first in the lineage to tie on the white headband, and it had become the ultimate symbol of assuming rulership in B’aakal. With this gesture, Pakal was tied into the rulership,
hok’ah ti ahaulel.
He then took the “drum-major” headdress from Sak K’uk and placed it securely on his elongated skull.