The Maya of Yucatan are undoubtedly those who have best preserved their language. If they can not interpret, as it has not done anything in the world, their complex hieroglyphs, true ideographic challenges, if they keep alive their language full of Firos and extraordinary genuflections and phonetics they have managed to copy the flight of the bat dzib and what he says Puhuy bird. They fear the dreaded Kahazbal and Aluxes, little pixies of the forest and planting, for them, the Mayans, have not yet allowed the language corruption introduced Hispanics who came to make everything confused on the ground that trod bad day.
Thus has been preserved intact the beautiful legend, one of the most beautiful, beautiful Yucatecan legends of the thousands and thousands that float like perfume Xtabentún flower in the warm wind Mayab, or hide in the cavernous depths of the cenotes where the cool, clear water and the stories that linger on the Yucatan soul leaves. That legend is referred to Xtabay women.
Under the moon of ancient Mayapan, in the lee of the amazing temples of the Itza, I have heard repeated this legend no one will remove or will increase at will, and none dares to deform and thus, as a jewel of miracle-conserves for delight who hears or reads this story who like many has not been erased, will never be erased, because it has been recorded in ancient books and sacred Maya Souvenir pages.
As legend says that women Tabay is beautiful, immensely beautiful woman usually please the traveler who ventures out at night on the roads of the Mayab. Sitting at the foot of the ceiba leafy forest, which attracts with singing, with sweet words of love, seduces, bewitches him and cruelly destroyed.
The mangled bodies of those unsuspecting lovers appear the next day with the most horrible traces of scratches, bites and nails like claws open the chest.
Many Ladinos, people who know the true origin of women Xtabay, have said it is Ceibam daughter born of his twisted and serpentine roots but that is not true, authentic Mayan tradition says that women Xtabay born from a thorny plant, Punching and bad and if the Xtabay next to the Ceiba, is because this tree is sacred to Earth's Children pheasant and deer and often in shelter and shade, take refuge under its branches, confident protection so beautiful and useful tree.
They lived in a village on the Yucatan peninsula Two women being the name of one Xkeban or better say his nickname because Xkeban means prostitute, bad woman or given to illicit love. They said the Xkeban was sick with love and passion and his whole desire was lavishing her body and her beauty were prodigious, as a young man he requested it. His real name was Xtabay.
Very close to the house occupied this beautiful woman, lived in another house well done, clean and continuously arranged, the consent of the people they called Utz-Colel, which in translation Hispanic woman would be good, decent and clean woman. Erase this woman Utz-Colel, virtuous and upright, honest through and through and had never committed any slip of even the minimum loving sin.
The Xtabay had a heart as big as her beauty and kindness made her succor to the poor, protect the needy, heal the sick and collect the animals abandoned as useless. His greatness of soul took her to remote villages where came to help the sick and stripped of the jewels that gave him his love and even his fine clothes to cover the nakedness of the disinherited.
Never raised his head are proud, never murmured and criticized anyone and with absolute humility endured insults and humiliations of the people.
Instead under the clothes of the Ut-Colel harmful skin of snakes was drawn, it was cold, proud, hard-hearted and never ever was helping the sick and disgust felt by the poor.
And it happened that one day odious townspeople did not see leaving home to Xkeban and assumed that people walked by offering his body and unworthy passions. They were content to rest on their ignominious presence, but it took days and days and suddenly all the people a fine scent of flowers, a delicate and exquisite perfume was everywhere spread. Nobody explained where precious scent emanated so, searching, ended up in the house Xteban which found her dead, abandoned, alone.
More extraordinary was that if it was not accompanied Xkeban people, several animals cared for his burgeoning body of that perfume that surrounded the village.
Utz-entry Colel said that was a vile lie, since a corrupt and vile as the Xkeban body, but could not emanate rot and pestilence, but if such a thing was like all the neighbors, they said, should be thing of evil spirits, the god of evil and continued to provoke men.
Utz-Colel added that if such evil and wicked woman escaped in this case that perfume, the perfume when she died that would escape his body would be much more aromatic and delicious.
More compassion, pity and its social duty, a group of people from the village went to bury and Xkeban It is said that the next day, her tomb was covered with fragrant and beautiful, as was the upholstery flowers that looked like cairn a cascade of fragrant flowers hitherto unknown in the Mayab, had fallen from the sky. The tomb of the Xkeban lasted all flowered and odorous time.
Shortly after the Utz-Colel died and his funeral attended all the people who had always weighted his virtues, his honesty, his meditation and singing and shouting that he had died a virgin and pure, buried with many tears and much grief.
Then they remembered what he had said in life about that when he died, his body should breathe a lot better than the Xkeban perfume, but to the astonishment of all the people that believed good and straight, found that a bit of buried began escape the loose earth, still, an unbearable stench, the smell of rotting corpse nausabundo. Everyone retired amazed.
In his old Mayan language say that still tell the story with all the details that have happened in the legend, now the little flower was born in the tomb of the Xkeban sinner, is the current Xtabentún flower is such a humble little flower beautiful , which grows wild on fences and roads, among tributed agave leaves and smooth. The juice of that little flower very pleasantly drunk, as it should be heady and sweet love Xkeban.
Tzacam, which is the name of spiky cactus thorns and smelly both, untouchable, is the flower that was born on the grave of the Utz-Colel, is but beautiful little flower unscented some and sometimes unpleasant odor, as was the character and false under the Utz-Colel.
This is what he said the Maya and keeps repeating over time, without change, without putting or take, as our things should be kept intact, with the same words that were born in the myth, the legend, the soul of those who weave these stories so sweetly.
Not because Xtabay, the woman who destroys evil men after draw with deceptions at the foot of leafy ceiba, but may be another of those evil spirits that haunt the jungle lurking Pilgrim crossing roads even villages superstition and legend.
It may be the love of so many wandering virgins sacrificed to the edge of the sacred cenote, it may be the vaporous figure of a woman crying deception of the beloved.
But Xtabay, ever.
This say the Maya, that have had and will continue to have the men of the land where the ritual preserved a story and defending their customs of an intrusion to annihilate their culture.