The upper surface of this exhibits the same division into eight parts, marked by four large and four smaller rays, pointing to the quarters and half-quarters. Observation shows that of the sixteen localities four were a.s.signed to each quarter and it is evident that the monument determined the time and the order in which the tribute for each was paid and collected at the capital. The one-footed man again graphically symbolizes axial rotation and conveys the idea of a central ruler who in turn seizes and exerts control upon 44 tribal chiefs. The monument establishes, moreover, the interesting fact that amongst the subjugated communities were two gynocracies, represented by women who, instead of spear-throwers, present their weaving shuttle to the victor.
We shall next consider a monument whose uncouth and ugly form embodies a deep and n.o.bly planned conception of the "divine twin," or "divine Four,"
that so completely dominated the minds of the native philosophers.
Let us now carefully examine the monolith now preserved in the National Museum of Mexico (fig. 57). Leon y Gama, having observed that what appeared to be the foundation of the statue was carved and that ma.s.sive projections existed under its so-called arms, logically concluded that the original design had been to support the figure from the sides, so that its base was lifted from the ground and the figure upon it exposed to view from underneath. His inference is borne out by the carving on the base which belongs to the same category as the image of Mictlan-tecuhtli, and represents a semi-human body, of quadriform shape soaring downward.
[Ill.u.s.tration.]
Figure 57.
The centre (fig. 51) exhibits on a square the five-dot figure, and the square, in turn, is enclosed in a circle; the whole symbolism relating to the now well-worn theme of the centre and four quarters and the union of the earth=the square and the heaven=the circle. It clearly exhibits a skull attached to each limb, typifying the four quarters or the clans and their chiefs, whilst the hands hold the larger heads, emblematic of supreme dual rulership. It is interesting to find that the above carving, under the feet of the sculptured figure, embodies the entire meaning of the statue, which is but a variation of the native philosophical theme of "Divine Twain" or Quetzalcoatl. Two serpents" heads surmount a semi-human body and meeting form the semblance of two single faces turned to the front and back of the statue. By this ingenious device the unity, yet duality of the divine twin is graphically rendered and one-half of each countenance is represented as belonging to each serpent. These are thus shown to be indissolubly linked together, yet distinct. Their single, yet dual head has four eyes, eight fangs and two forked tongues. The figure and skirt composed of intertwined rattlesnakes, const.i.tute feminine attributes given to the symbolical figure of the "twin-lord and twin-lady," the "father and mother of all." Instead of hands the arms terminate in serpents" heads and the huge feet in great claws.
Between these, in the front and at the back, a rattlesnake"s body and head appear. The belt consists of a large snake whose head and tail hang down in front, as the ends of a bow. A skull is attached to the front and another to the back of the belt. In the latter case it surmounts a fan-shaped, curiously plaited ornamental appendage partly decorated with feathers. Forming a sort of necklace in front are four hands, _i. e._ 45=20 and two conventionalized hearts. At the back there are two hands and two hearts and an intricate knot which fastens the necklace, the real meaning of which is far from what it may appear to be. It probably signified the same as the painted hearts and hands on ceremonial garments of which Sahagun tells us that "they meant that the people who wore them lifted their hearts and hands to the Creator to implore for rain and food." At the same time, the arrangement in front clearly reveals the sculptor"s allusion to the head, two hearts, four hands and twenty fingers, which symbolize these familiar numerical divisions. An indication that this symbolical statue was probably designed and executed by the same master who made the circular stone of the Great Plan, is furnished by the calendar sign 13 Acatl, which is carved under the skull at the back of the figure.
Deferring an investigation of the significance of this date, I shall now draw attention to what is to me the most interesting and important feature of the whole image. The view of the top of the two heads, as may be seen by the accompanying reproduction from a photograph (fig. 58) exhibits, at their line of union, a small square with diagonal cross-lines. The position of this symbol which resembles the top view of a pyramid and forms, as it were, the apex of the statue, every detail of which is deeply symbolical, clearly reveals the sanct.i.ty and importance attached to this graphic image of the Centre, the union of four in one or _vice versa_, the theme on which the native mind played numberless and endless variations.
A reflection, again forced upon one in studying the monumental composite image of the dual and quadruple forces of nature, is that it must have been as intelligible to a Maya as to a Mexican, and conveyed the conception of Kukulcan to the one and Quetzalcoatl to the other. Several facts point, however, to the greater probability that the original conception of the monument must have arisen amongst Maya-speaking people.
[Ill.u.s.tration.]
Figure 58.
The divided square, simulating a pyramid and so obviously a symbol of four=can, carved on the head of a serpent=can, throws an interesting light upon the probable derivation of the affix=can, which occurs in certain names of localities in Mexico, and in some cases distinctly stands for "mountain." It is a fact which has already been cited in Senor Antonio Penafiel"s useful work on the Geographical names of Mexico that, in the pictographic hieroglyphs of localities the affix can signifies a town, being synonymous with the _tepec_, _i. e._ tepetl, the Nahuatl name for mountain or town. One of many similar instances, which could be produced, is ill.u.s.trated in his fig. XXIII, 1, where _can_ obviously stands for the mountain which is represented as twisted or bent over (colhua), in the hieroglyph for Colhuacan. The hieroglyphs for the towns Acayocan and Tenayocan, furnish a similar employment of the mountain to express the sound can. The sense of the affix _can_, meaning a town, only becomes clear when we interpret it as the name of the artificial mountain with four sides, the pyramid, which was the symbol of four=the Maya _can_, and was the emblem of a central capital. This is convincingly proven by the Codex Mendoza for instance, in which it is shown that the Mexican mode of recording the conquest of a tribe was to paint their hieroglyphic name and a picture of the destruction of the pyramid temple which had stood in the centre of their capital. In other words, the conquered town ceased to be a centre of rule-its captive chieftain was taken to the capital, where the horrible rite of sacrifice performed upon him and the tearing out of his heart likewise symbolized the destruction of the independent life of the tribe or integral whole he represented in his person. It was thus brought home to the conquered people that they had ceased to exist as an independent body, and the distribution of the chieftain"s flesh to the ritualistic cannibals graphically symbolized its absorption into the great central state. It is necessary to emphasize here that these horrible rites were of comparatively recent origin and had been invented by the Mexicans for the purpose of intimidating their va.s.sals, after a prolonged period of wars and bloodshed, which menaced the very existence of the integral state. The presence in Mexico of numerous names of towns, ending in can, seems to indicate the influence, in ancient times, of the Maya-speaking civilization to which the origin of the pyramid must be a.s.signed. The a.s.sociation of the latter with the word _can_ is strikingly ill.u.s.trated in the name of Teotihua-Can, where stand the ruins of two of the largest and most imposing pyramids of ancient America. The base of the larger of the two has been estimated at about 700 feet square, it being impossible to take an exact measurement owing to the ma.s.s of acc.u.mulated debris which covers the lower part of the structure.
The base of the second pyramid measures about 475 feet square. The sides of both pyramids rose at an angle of about 45 degrees and were in each case interrupted by four terraces. This double application of a quadruple division merits special attention, as it produced besides the four great 44 lesser sections, the sacred centre of the terraces, which crowned each structure. Historical tradition relates that the larger pyramid, known as the "Enclosure of the Sun (=Tonatiuh-I-Tzacual)," originally bore on its summit a colossal image of the sun, covered with plates of gold, whilst the other, the "Enclosure of the Moon" exhibited a similar image, covered with silver. The distinguished and reliable historian Orozco y Berra quotes this tradition adding that the soldiers of Cortes despoiled the images of their precious metals and that the Bishop Zumarraga ordered a further destruction of all monuments at Teotihuacan.
The tradition which records the existence of a silver and of a gold image, cannot be dismissed as unfounded, because it meets with a certain amount of corroboration by other data. In the first case the so-called "battered G.o.ddess," a mutilated stone image, which was found in the courtyard at the base of the "Pyramid of the Moon," looks as though it may have been the very monument which was once plated with silver. Traces of concentric bands of ornamentation seem to indicate that its round face had originally occupied the centre of a sculptured disc, in which case this must have had a diameter of about twelve feet. In Peru, as already stated, a silver image of the moon, a.s.sociated with the female sovereign, was the complement to the golden effigy of the sun, a.s.sociated with the Inca.
Even if data had not already been produced which establishes the existence of two religious cults in ancient Mexico, the respective symbols of which were the sun and the moon, the presence of two pyramids at Teotihuacan would suggest the existence of a division of some sort. The origin of these great and imposing structures is shrouded in mystery, but it is generally conceded that they must have been built long before the comparatively modern inhabitants of the valley of Mexico, the wandering Aztecs, had taken up their abode in the midst of the salt lagoons. The erection of two pyramids, however, proves that their builders had already practised the cult of the middle of heaven and earth, or Above and Below, and of the Four Quarters for so long a time, that there had been a separation of religions and government into two almost independent parts, each complete in itself. In the light of the testimony produced it is safe to infer that for an indefinite time the rival cults developed side by side until dissension and consequent disintegration followed. The Mexican state was the outcome of a later effort to reorganize and rebuild an integral whole on the ancient plan, the knowledge of which had been preserved and handed down. As time went on it was inevitable that the same causes which had caused the more ancient and greater state to crumble away, should be actively at work on the second.
It has already been shown that two religions existed in Montezuma"s time the respective embodiments of which were Huitzilopochtli and Tezcatlipoca.
It is an interesting fact, related by Bernal Diaz, that the idols of both stood together in one tower at the summit of the great temple and were alike, "because they were brothers." At the same time whilst Tezcatlipoca"s image was decorated with obsidian (=tezcatl) Huitzilopochtli"s was encrusted with turquoises. It is curious to note how closely the old soldier"s description of these idols answers to that of the great dualistic statue which has been discussed in the preceding pages. His account contains the following details: "In this hall were what resembled two altars with very richly [ornamented or carved] platforms on the top of the roof or ceiling. On each altar was a statue, as of a giant, very tall in body and very stout. The first, which represented Huitzilopochtli, had a very wide, deformed or monstrous face and forehead, and terrifying eyes ... around his neck were faces of Indians and what were hearts. These were of gold whilst the former were of silver inlaid with blue mosaic-work. The entire body was covered with mosaic-work, gold and beads and misshapen pearls, all fastened to it with a kind of cement or glue. Encircling the body were what were like huge serpents made of gold and mosaic.... The idol was of Tezcatlipoca, and its eyes were made of shining black stone [obsidian] called Tezcat. The statues were alike because they were said to be brothers. Tezcatlipoca was the lord of the Underworld ... and around his body were figures like small devils with tails like serpents."(74) But for the fact that Bernal Diaz mentions a plurality of faces in Huitzilopochtli"s necklace, whereas our monument exhibits but one skull, in front, his description strikingly coincides with the monolith now existing. Considering that thirty years had elapsed before he wrote this description allowance must be made for this and other slight lapses. On the other hand, dual statues, exactly alike, but with differently colored ornamentation, are precisely what we should expect to find on the summit of the great pyramid-temple of Mexico. With our present knowledge and comprehension of native symbolism, moreover, we see that two statues, each of which figured twin-serpents, would best express the native idea of the dual and quadruple principles and elements. What is more, two dual statues, each surmounted by a square, diagonally crossed, like a pyramid, would correspond, in symbolism, to the two great pyramids of Teotihuacan and carry out, on a small scale, the idea of a dual government.
Valuable and reliable evidence, showing to what an extent the Mexicans regarded their government as dual and quadruple, can be gleaned from the records of the presents sent by Montezuma to Cortes, under the impression that the bearded Spaniards were the descendants of the ancient founders of their civilization. The native ruler sent the complete ceremonial dress of the four lords of the four regions denoting by that act of homage that he acknowledged Cortes as his equal, _i. e._ the supreme central lord who united the four-fold power in his person. "He likewise sent him a large wheel of pure gold, covered with designs and with the image of a monster in its centre." Its weight was estimated at 3,800 "pesas" and it was considered "the finest and best of all the presents." It was accompanied by "a large wheel of silver," weighing forty-eight marcos. By the light of our present knowledge it may be that both "wheels" were images of the Great Plan and that whilst the gold one set forth the const.i.tution and organization of the Upper division of the State and possibly conveyed the statistics of its members, the silver wheel was a record of the Lower division. The gift of these tablets must have been intended as an act of subservience and an acknowledgment of Cortes as the lord of the Above and Below, as well as of the Four Quarters. The utter lack of understanding for the symbolism of these gifts on the part of the recipient, can scarcely have escaped the notice of Montezuma"s messengers and must have sorely puzzled their unfortunate master.
The existence in Mexico at the time of the Conquest, of a dual state, suggests the possibility that, in some way, the pyramids of Teotihuacan continued to be connected with the opposite and rival cults of the Sun and the Nocturnal Heaven, although their origin was shrouded in the past. It is known that their site was venerated: besides, the name Teotihuacan, which Orozco y Berra translated as "the place of the masters as keepers of the G.o.ds" or "the place where the G.o.ds were adored," most probably really meant "the divine four-sided mountains or pyramids" or, possibly, "the sacred pyramids of the lords."
Until an extensive, carefully-planned and systematical exploration has been carried out at Teotihuacan, it is impossible to form any definite conclusions concerning its past history. Cherishing the hope that such an exploration may yet be made during my lifetime, I shall merely make a few remarks concerning the ruins, which I visited many years ago. Approaching them from the south one enters a broad straight road, several miles in length and about 250 feet wide, which is bordered at each side by a series of irregular mounds, probably covering ruined structures. This imposing road leads directly into the vast courtyard which stretches across the base of the great pyramid of the Moon. As the City of Mexico lies to the south of Teotihuacan it is significant to find that this road leads from that direction to a vast pyramid situated at the north, which was, according to the ancient Mexicans, the region of the Underworld, darkness and death. It is not surprising, therefore, to find that the ancient native name which still clings to the roadway is "the path of the dead."
The presence, moreover, of innumerable small clay heads which are, undoubtedly, portraits or effigies of persons represented as dead, points to the alternative that Teotihuacan may have been the necropolis of an ancient civilization or that it was, even at the time of the Conquest, the place where a register of deaths was kept by the priest-rulers, by means of small clay effigies.
Considering the native idea, it seems more than probable that all matters pertaining to the dead should be relegated to the northern region and the fact that the road from the south leads to a pyramid which tradition a.s.sociates with the moon, the symbol of the nocturnal cult of the "Below,"
lends color to these views.
There is a temptation to imagine that possibly after the adoption of two distinct cults of which the second pyramid seems to furnish incontrovertible proof, a further divergence ensued resulting in the ultimate abandonment of the capital by the votaries of the Sun, the male principle and the Above. As the native civilizations were based on such a plan that dissension and disorganization inevitably led to utter downfall and ruin, it is easy to see that a gynocracy and the cult of the earth and underworld should gradually become extinct. At the zenith of its power, however, it may safely be inferred, that Teotihuacan was a great centre where astronomical observation and agriculture flourished, these being the natural outcome of the cult of mother-earth and the nocturnal heaven.
Whilst all conjecture must necessarily be hypothetical, it is a comfort to reflect that, locked in the ruins themselves, lies guarded the past history of Teotihuacan, which was shrouded in a mist of uncertainty even at the time of the Conquest.
The pyramids themselves, however, openly reveal the fact, that their builders possessed a knowledge of the great plan, and that, at some time, a single central pyramid not being sufficient, two, of unequal sizes, arose to bear lasting testimony not only of past greatness, but of long-forgotten rivalry and dissension. Finally, there is one thing certain, namely, that the building of the pyramids at Teotihuacan must have been preceded by an extremely long period during which the native ideas, of which they were the expression and image, had developed and taken definite shape. If Teotihuacan yields evidence of an advanced stage in the history of the intellectual development of the native race, it also marks the beginning of the disintegration of the state of which it was the central capital. On the other hand, at Cholula, also situated in the high plateau of Mexico, to the east of its present capital stands, in ruined solitary grandeur, the largest pyramid on the American continent, whose base is twice as large as that of the pyramid of Cheops in Egypt.
The name of the ancient capital of which it formed the nucleus was Tullan Cholollan Tlachiuhaltepec.(75) Boturini (_op. cit._ p. 113) cites an old native ma.n.u.script on which a picture of the pyramid of Cholula was painted with the note that, in ancient times, it was named Tultecatl Chalchihuatl On Azia Ecatepec, which he translates as "the monument or precious jade stone of the Toltecs, which rears itself in the region of the air." As eca-tepec literally means air-mountain, Boturini"s translation may seem somewhat exaggerated; on the other hand, the Spaniards, who knew the Nahuatl language best, repeatedly state that its words were so replete with significance that it would sometimes require several Spanish sentences to set forth the meaning of a single native word. Boturini, who had exceptional opportunities for obtaining information, adds to the above the following translation of a Nahuatl inscription which had been written by the native scribe below the drawing which unfortunately is now lost.
"n.o.bles and Lords: Here you have your doc.u.ments, the mirror of your past, the history of your ancestors who, out of fear for a deluge, constructed this place of refuge or asylum for the possibility of the recurrence of such a calamity."
After citing the opinions of various authors concerning the origin of the pyramid, Orozco y Berra concludes that "there is no certainty about its age, but instinctively it is supposed to be extremely ancient and to pertain to pre-historic times. According to my judgment the people who constructed it belonged to the same civilization as the builders of Teotihuacan and possibly were their contemporaries. Cholollan was also a venerated sanctuary, in which the religious idea predominated" (_op. cit._ p. 363). "At the time of the Conquest a temple stood on the summit of the pyramid and contained an image of Quetzalcoatl (the Divine Twain, the Creator, the Father and Mother of all) as well as an aerolite, shaped like a frog which had fallen from heaven, wrapped in a ball of flame." In the Vatican MS. of Padre Rios there is another version of the tradition that the pyramid had been erected by giants after a deluge, which had destroyed everything, ... and that before it was finished, fire fell upon it causing the death of its builders and the abandonment of the work.
Allusion has already been made, in the preceding pages, to the native traditions according to which, "there had been three memorable epochs in the history of mankind, which lasted for centuries and were abruptly terminated, each time by a mighty convulsion of nature. The majority of human beings perished in each of these, but a remnant survived and thus the race was preserved."
The periodical festival of thanksgiving, which was still observed at the time of the Conquest by the native races, abundantly testifies to the reality of their belief in these great catastrophes and the preservation of their ancestors from utter extermination. It was doubtless in order to make their past history conform with the quadruple organization of all epochs of their native Calendar that the native sages a.s.signed their successive destructions to the separate agencies of fire, water and air, in the form of violent tempests and cyclones. From descriptions contained in the Mexican Codex Chimalpopoca and in the Popol Vuh, the sacred book of the Quiches, it will be seen that the phenomena described are such as would naturally accompany a volcanic outbreak on a great scale.
Considering that, in Mexico alone, there are no less than nine monster volcanoes, of which two are not yet extinct, and that in Guatemala, in historical times, whole cities have been destroyed by earthquakes and volcanic action, it is not at all astonishing to find traditions of great catastrophes amongst the inhabitants of these regions.
No one can look upon the grand snow-clad peaks of the great volcanoes, which surround the high central plateau of Mexico, without realizing that mighty upheavals and disturbances, such as the world has seldom seen, must have attended the formation of the huge craters next to which Vesuvius seems but a hillock. A volcanic outbreak amongst these elevated peaks, which range from 15,000 to 19,000 feet above the sea-level, would obviously be accompanied by great inundations caused by the melting of the ma.s.ses of snow which crown their heights. The valley of Mexico in which the large lagoons lie, as in a basin without an outlet, and the plains which surround Cholula and stretch to the base of the volcanoes must repeatedly have been the scene of ruin and desolation, lasting for many centuries. As the Abbe Bourbourg justly remarks: "The majority of the edifices in the City of Mexico are built of volcanic tufa, said to have been formed by the small volcanoes which lie at the southeast of the valley of Mexico. At various periods of antiquity great ma.s.ses of lava have descended into this valley, in which one extensive ancient lava-field is now known as the "Pedregal de San Augustin." " Another great flow of lava has actually been traced from its apparent source, the now extinct volcano of Ajusco, at the south of the valley of Mexico, to Acapulco, on the Pacific coast.
The Mexican chronicles describe as follows the destruction of the earth by fire: "... there came a rain of fire: all that existed was burnt and a rain composed of sand-stone fell. It is said that whilst the sand-stone we now see was being formed the tet-zontli [_i. e._ volcanic tufa], boiled with great noise. Then the red mountains also lifted themselves up ... the sun consumed itself [was darkened], all houses were destroyed and all the lords or chiefs perished...."
The same author relates how, after the repeated destruction by water, obscurity reigned for twenty-five years. This cataclysm is also described in the sacred book of the Quiches as follows: "Then ... the waters became swollen by the mere will of the Heart of Heaven and there came a great inundation from above and descended upon the people ... they were deluged and then a thick resinous substance fell from the sky. The face of the earth was obscured and a dark rain commenced and fell during the day and during the night ... there was great sound of fire overhead. Then the people ran pushing each other and filled with despair: they endeavoured to mount upon the houses and these, falling in, threw them again to earth.
They wished to climb the trees, but these swayed and cast the people from them; they tried to enter caves, but these shut themselves before them...." It was after this universal ruin and destruction that, according to native tradition, the pyramid of Cholula was erected, as a place of refuge for the remnant of the native race which had escaped destruction and returned to the scene of desolation, lured by the richness of the fertile soil, just as the Italian peasants return to their vineyards on Vesuvius after each eruption. All things considered there seems to be no ground for rejecting the native tradition which affirms that the great pyramid of Cholula was erected as a place of refuge from inundations, especially as no more plausible explanation of the origin of the pyramid can be imagined. Any primitive people, inhabiting fertile plains which abounded in game and fish, and food-plants, but were exposed to frequent inundations, could not fail to recognize the advantages of an elevated piece of ground as a place of safety. It is easy to imagine the intermediate stages in the transition from this simple recognition to the final determination to build a compact, high and s.p.a.cious elevation, within the reach of all inhabitants of a settlement, on which these could not only find refuge from the dangers of floods and volcanic disturbances, but also store their harvest, and possibly some form of raft or boat which they might employ as a last means of escape.
Irrefutable proof that the maize had been cultivated from remote antiquity in this region, and had even become identified with it, is furnished by the fact that the name of the small republic of Tlaxcalla, which lies in the neighboring foot-hills, signifies bread, and that its hieroglyphic sign consists of two hands holding a tortilla, or maize-cake.
It is well known that botanists have not yet succeeded in identifying, amongst the native gra.s.ses of America, the ancestor of the cultivated maize-plant. They a.s.sert, however, that the development of what is now the world"s largest cereal, from a wild native species, must have required incalculable time.
It must be admitted that no factor could possibly have more speedily impressed upon primitive men the benefits of concerted action and of organization and communal life than the occasional recurrence of a great and imminent peril which was shared by all alike, and for which there was but one visible means of escape. It is equally clear that, once a concerted and united undertaking had been determined upon, some sort of plan and organization must have naturally evolved itself. The mere building of such a gigantic structure as the pyramid of Cholula, which may well have absorbed the energies of several generations of men, or, at all events that of innumerable workmen, could well have been an abiding and most powerful factor in establishing their social organization. Its erection must indeed have marked an epoch in the lives of the inhabitants of this region, because, during many years it created a bond of common interest which, of itself, might well have laid the foundation of a permanent communal life, in which responsibility and labor were equally distributed. The mere necessity to expend an equal amount of material and labor upon the building of each side of the pyramid, would naturally lead to the formation of pathways traced by the feet of the carriers of earth and stone from different directions, and ultimately to a division of the workers into four bands, each a.s.sociated with a different cardinal point.
Practice would demand that each band should be under leadership, and be divided into those who collected and carried material, and those who placed it in position, at each side of the pyramid. The necessity for general supervision and directorship, extending over the four bands of workers alike, would, of itself, create central rulership upon which would devolve the duty of enforcing an equal division of labor, which would create, in turn, some form of systematic routine and rotation. It can thus be understood how, by slow degrees, each side of the pyramid would become permanently identified with a cardinal point; and a.s.sociated with a division of workmen under its leader and a fixed period of time. It may likewise be seen how a separate caste would slowly develop itself, consisting of the trained architects and builders, the descendants of the first organizers of human labor, and systematical rulers of men.(76)
It may thus be seen how the realization of frequent danger, the necessity to provide an escape and insure the safety of the race, aided by experience, might lead to the conception of a vast pyramid, the mere building of which would create and establish the fundamental principles of organization and government.
The simultaneous development of the ideas suggested by Polaris would inevitably lead to a comparison and a.s.sociation of the terrestrial centre of communal activity with the polar axis, and to the conception of an earthly government in which human affairs were adjusted so as to be in seeming harmony with the movements of celestial bodies. The blending of the conclusions attained by the astronomer-priests, and the practical system adopted by the master builders, could not fail ultimately to cause the pyramid to appear as the sacred visible sign or image of the single, central power and quadruple government which extended its rule throughout heaven and earth. I venture to point out that, if carefully a.n.a.lyzed, the pyramid seems to be but a later development of precisely the same ideas which are expressed by the swastika.
Pausing now to review preceding data we find it demonstrated that the geographical position of Tullan Cholollan and its pyramid designates it as an ancient seat of civilization where the native scheme of organization may have evolved itself, and the source whence the native traditions concerning successive destructive cataclysms and convulsions of nature may have spread.
What is more, the peculiar conditions existing at Tullan Cholollan, situated in the heart of a volcanic region, would amply explain the traditional destruction and abandonment of the most ancient centre of native civilization and the spread throughout the continent of the identical scheme of government, etc., it being most natural that each band of fugitives, on finding what appeared to be a favorably situated region, should settle there and carry out the inherited plan of organization, etc., which would naturally become slightly modified under altered conditions. Fresh colonies on the pattern of the ruined metropolis and integral state would successively be founded far and wide and as examples of such I venture to designate Tulantzinco, literally the t.i.tle Tullan, and possibly Teotihuacan, where the native civilization seems to have undergone its more advanced stages of evolution, and to have risen in power, developed divergent cults with separate languages (the Maya and the Nahuatl) and inst.i.tuted the two religions and dual rulership which eventually led to dissension and the dissolution of the integral state at a period anterior to historical times.
The a.s.sumption that the most ancient centre of native civilization lay in a volcanic region affords a plausible explanation of how an inordinate value would naturally be placed on stability, _per se_, and the feelings of veneration for Polaris and a pa.s.sionate longing for a place of terrestrial and celestial rest would become strongly developed. Indeed, it is only possible to understand the reason why various American tribes wandered about in ardent and earnest search for the stable middle of the earth, when it is a.s.sumed that they must have been driven from their former place of residence by volcanic disturbances which made a firm piece of ground under foot seem to be the most desirable of all earthly benefits. I venture to a.s.sert that this search and the ideal of stability would not have been suggested so forcibly to people who had never experienced a long succession of more or less terrible earthquakes.
Although widely different opinions concerning the identification of the ancient Tullan are held by American archaeologists they will all doubtlessly admit that at Cholollan we have, in the first case, a locality to which the natives a.s.sign the name of Tollan, and a pyramid, the largest on the American continent, which testifies that, in prehistoric times, this place was inhabited for a prolonged period, by a numerous and organized community.
The fertility of the surrounding plains now known as the Campina de Puebla and the ancient name of Tlaxcalla yield evidence that, from time immemorial, this district was a.s.sociated with maize cultivation.
The vicinity of the giant volcanoes of Popocatepetl, Iztaccihuatl and Orizaba(77) sufficiently demonstrate that they must repeatedly have been the scene of violent disturbances which would fully account for the tradition of successive cataclysms which destroyed a vast state and almost annihilated the native race.
The foregoing una.s.sailable facts undoubtedly justify the conclusion that the giant pyramid of Cholula marks the site of the great and ancient Tollan whose destruction was the theme of the plaintive native songs of lamentation even at the time of the Spanish Conquest. That the natives have ever regarded Cholula as a place of particular sanct.i.ty is shown by the following statement by Fray Geronimo Roman y Zamorra (1569-1575) (Republicas de Indias, ed. Suarez, Madrid, 1888): "It was Colola or Cholola, which was the ancient metropolis or head of all the native religion, so much so that all the great chiefs or lords had their own chapels and dwelling houses there because they used to perform pilgrimages to its great temple this being the most revered [in the _land_]."
It is also reasonable to infer that the region of the high plateau and valley of Mexico, possibly before the formation of the great lagoons, was the cradle of ancient American civilization, where, during countless centuries, the native race literally and figuratively cultivated its own maize and simultaneously developed the set of ideas which formed the basis of its intellectual evolution.
In this connection it is interesting to reflect that, as clearly shown by ceremonial usages which existed throughout our continent and survive to the present day amongst the Pueblo Indians, it is to the fostering care, forethought and labor of countless generations of women, the "Corn Maidens and Mothers," that America owes the priceless legacy of a food-plant which has already sustained untold millions of lives. Thus, whilst the ancient "Daughters of the Earth" have given their country a gift which will last for all time, the pyramids, temples and cities, reared by the "Sons of Heaven," have fallen into ruin, and the great edifice of human thought that they reared, their complex social organization, government and calendar now lie superseded under the dust of time.
At this point of investigation the question naturally arises, Whence came the founders of the native civilization, who established themselves and peopled the central region of Mexico and doubtlessly dwelt there for a prolonged period prior to the first of the traditional cataclysms which nearly proved destructive to their race?