More ludicrous than diabolical are the ceremonies of the next feast of Tlaloc. In the sixth Aztec month, the month Etzalqualixtli, there was held a festival in honor of the gods of water and rain. Before the commencement of this festival the idol priests fasted four days, and before beginning to fast they made a procession to a certain piece of water, near Citlaltepec, to gather tules; for at that place these rushes grew very tall and thick and what part of them was under water was very white. There they pulled them up, rolled them in bundles wrapped about with their blankets, and so carried them back on their shoulders. Both on going out for these rushes and on coming back with them, it was the custom to rob anyone that was met on the road; and as every one knew of this custom the roads were generally pretty clear of stragglers about this time. No one, not even a king's officer returning to his master with tribute, could hope to escape on such an occasion, nor to obtain from any court or magistrate any indemnification for loss or injury so sustained in goods or person; and if he made any resistance to his clerical spoilers they beat and kicked and dragged him over the ground. When they reached the temple with their rushes they spread them out on the ground and plaited them, white with green, into as it were painted mats, sewing them firm with threads of maguey-root; of these mats they made stools, and chairs with backs. The first day of the fast arrived, all the idol ministers and priests retired to their apartments in the temple buildings. There retired all those called tlamacaztequioagues, that is to say, 'priests that have done feats in war, that have captured three or four prisoners;' these although they did not reside continually in the temple, resorted thither at set times to fulfil their offices. There retired also those called tlamacazcayiaque, that is, 'priests that have taken one prisoner in war;' these also, although not regular inmates of the cues, resorted thither, when called by their duties. There retired also those that are called tlamacazquecuicanime, 'priest singers,' who resided permanently in the temple building because they had as yet captured no one in war. Last of all those also retired that were called tlamacaztezcahoan, which means 'inferior ministers,' and those boys, like little sacristans, who were called tlamacatoton, 'little ministers.'
Next, all the rush mats that had been made which were called aztapilpetlatl, 'jaspered mats of rushes, or mats of white and green' were spread round about the hearths (hogares) of the temple, and the priests proceeded to invest themselves for their offices. They put on a kind of jacket that they had, called xicolli, of painted cloth; on the left arm they put a kind of scarf, macataxtli; in the left hand they took a bag of copal, and in the right a censer, temaitl, which is a kind of sauce-pan or frying-pan of baked clay. Then they entered into the court-yard of the temple, took up their station in the middle of it, put live coals into their censers, added copal, and offered incense toward the four quarters of the world, east, north, west, and south. This done they emptied the coals from their incense-pans into the great brasiers that were always burning at night in the court, brasiers somewhat less in height than the height of a man, and so thick that two men could with difficulty clasp them.
BATHING IN THE FESTIVAL OF TLALOC.
This over, the priests returned to the temple buildings, calmecac, and put off their ornaments. Then they offered before the hearth little balls of dough, called veutelolotli; each priest offering four, arranging them on the aforementioned rush mats, and putting them down with great care, so that they should not roll nor move; and if the balls of any one stirred, it was the duty of his fellows to call attention to the matter and have him punished therefor. Some offered instead of dough four little pies or four pods of green pepper. A careful scrutiny was also observed to see if any one had any dirt on his blanket, or any bit of thread or hair or feather, and that no one should trip or fall; for in such a case he had to be punished; and as a consequence every man took good heed to all his steps and ways during these four days. At the end of each day's offerings, certain old men, called quaquacuiltin came, their faces dyed black, and their heads shaved, save only the crown of the head, where the hair was allowed to grow long, the reverse of the custom of the Christian priests. These old men daily collected the offerings that had been made, dividing them among themselves. It was further the custom with all the priests and in all the temples, while fasting these four days, to be wakened at midnight by the blast of horns and shells and other instruments; when all rose up and, utterly naked, went to where were certain thorns of maguey, cut for the purpose the day before, and with little lancets of stone they hacked their ears, staining the prepared thorns of maguey and besmearing their faces with the blood that flowed; each man staining maguey-thorns with his blood in number proportioned to his devotion, some five, others more, others less. This done all the priests went to bathe themselves, how cold soever it might be, attended by the music of marine shells and shrill whistles of baked clay. Every one had a little bag strapped to his shoulders, ornamented with tassels or strips of painted paper; in these bags was carried a sort of herb ground fine and made up with a kind of black dye into little longish pellets.[VIII-26] The general body of the priests marched along, each one carrying a leaf of maguey in which the thorns were stuck, as in a pincushion, which he had to use. Before these went a priest with his censer full of live coals and a bag of copal; and in advance of all these walked one carrying a board on his shoulder of about a span broad and two yards long, hollowed apparently in some way, and filled with little rollers of wood that rattled and sounded as the bearer went along shaking them.[VIII-27] All the priests took part in this procession, only four remaining behind to take care of the temple-building, or calmecac, which was their monastery. These four during the absence of the others remained seated in the calmecac and occupied themselves in devotion to the gods, in singing and in rattling with a hollow board of the sort mentioned above. At the piece of water where the priests were to bathe there were four houses, called axaucalli, 'fog houses,' set each toward one of the four quarters of the compass; in the ablutions of the first night one of these houses was occupied, on the second night another, and so on through all the four nights and four houses of the fog. Here also were four tall poles standing up out of the water. And the unfortunate bathers, naked from the outset as we remember, reached this place trembling and their teeth chattering with cold. One of their number mumbled a few words, which being translated mean: this is the place of snakes, the place of mosquitos, the place of ducks, and the place of rushes. This said, all flung themselves into the water and began to splash with their hands and feet, making a great noise and imitating the cries of various aquatic birds.[VIII-28] When the bathing was over, the naked priests took their way back accompanied by the music of pipes and shells. Half dead with cold and weariness they reached the temple, where drawing their mantles over them they flung themselves down in a confused heap on the rush mats, so often mentioned, and slept as best they could. We are told that some talked in their sleep, and some walked about in it, and some snored, and some sighed in a painful manner. There they lay in a tangled weary heap not rising till noon of the next day.
RELIGIOUS DISCIPLINE.
The first thing to be done on waking was to array themselves in their canonicals, take their censers, and to follow an old priest called Quaquacuilti to all the chapels and altars of the idols, incensing them. After this they were at liberty to eat; they squatted down in groups, and to each one was given such food as had been sent to him from his own house; and if any one took any of the portion of another, or even exchanged his for that of another, he was punished for it. Punishment also attended the dropping of any morsel while eating, if the fault were not atoned for by a fine. After this meal, they all went to cut down branches of a certain kind called acxoiatl, or, where these were not to be found, green canes instead, and to bring them to the temple in sheaves. There they sat down, every man with his sheaf, and waited for an arranged signal. The signal given, every one sprang up to some appointed part of the temple to decorate it with his boughs; and if any one went to a place not his, or wandered from his companions, or lagged behind them, they punished him—a punishment only to be remitted by paying to his accuser, within the four days of which we are now speaking, either a hen or a blanket or a breech-clout, or, if very poor, a ball of dough in a cup.
These four days over, the festival was come, and every man began it by eating etzalli, a kind of maize porridge, in his own house. For those that wished it there was general dancing and rejoicing. Many decked themselves out like merry-andrews and went about in parties carrying pots, going from house to house, demanding etzalli. They sang and danced before the door, and said, "If you do not give me some porridge, I will knock a hole in your house;" whereupon the etzalli was given. These revels began at midnight and ceased at dawn. Then indeed did the priests array themselves in all their glory: underneath was a jacket, over that a thin transparent mantle called aiauhquemitl, decorated with parrot-feathers set cross-wise. Between the shoulders they fastened a great round paper flower, like a shield. To the nape of the neck they attached other flowers of crumpled paper of a semi-circular shape; these hung down on both sides of the head like ears. The forehead was painted blue and over the paint was dusted powder of marcasite. In the right hand was carried a bag made of tiger-skin, and embroidered with little white shells which clattered as one walked. The bag seems to have been three-cornered; from one angle hung down the tiger's tail, from another his two fore feet, from another his two hind feet. It contained incense made from a certain herb called yiauhtli.[VIII-29] There went one priest bearing a hollow board filled with wooden rattles, as before described. In advance of this personage there marched a number of others, carrying in their arms images of the gods made of that gum that is black and leaps, called ulli (india-rubber), these images were called ulteteu, that is to say 'gods of ulli.' Other ministers there were carrying in their arms lumps of copal, shaped like sugar loaves; each pyramid having a rich feather, called quetzal, stuck in the peak of it like a plume. In this manner went the procession with the usual horns and shells, and the purpose of it was to lead to punishment those that had transgressed in any of the points we have already discussed. The culprits were marched along, some held by the hair at the nape of the neck, others by the breech-clout; the boy offenders were held by the hand, or, if very small, were carried. All these were brought to a place called Totecco, where water was. Here certain ceremonies were performed, paper was burned in sacrifice, as were also the pyramids of copal and images of ulli, incense being thrown into the fire and other incense scattered over the rush mats with which the place was adorned. While this was going on those in charge of the culprits had not been idle, but were flinging them into the water. Great was the noise, it is said, made by the splash of one tossed in, and the water leaped high with the shock. As any one came to the surface or tried to scramble out he was pushed in or pushed down again—well was it then for him who could swim, and by long far diving keep out of the reach of his tormentors. For the others they were so roughly handled that they were often left for dead on the water's edge, where their relatives would come and hang them up by the feet to let the water they had swallowed run out of them; a method of cure surely as bad as the malady.
THE FOUR BALLS.
The shrill music struck up again and the procession returned by the way it had come; the friends of the punished ones carrying them. The monastery or calmecac reached, there began another four days' fast, called netlacacaoaliztli; but in this the sharp religious etiquette of the first four days' fast was not observed, or at least one was not liable to be informed upon or punished for a breach of such etiquette. The conclusion of this fast was celebrated by feasting. Again the priests decorated themselves in festal array. All the head was painted blue, the face was covered with honey (miel) mixed with a black dye. Over the shoulders were carried the incense-bags embroidered with little white shells—bags made of tiger-skins, as before described, for the chief priests, and of paper painted to imitate tiger-skin in the case of the inferior priests. Some of these satchels were fashioned to resemble the bird called atzitzicuilotl, others to resemble ducks. The priests marched in procession to the temple, and before all marched the priest of Tlaloc. He had on his head a crown of basketwork, fitting close to the temples below and spreading out above, with many plumes issuing from the middle of it. His face was anointed with melted india-rubber gum, black as ink, and concealed by an ugly mask with a great nose, and a wig attached which fell as low as the waist. All went along mumbling to themselves as if they prayed, till they came to the cu of Tlaloc. There they stopped and spread tule mats on the ground, and dusted them over with powdered tule-leaves mixed with yiauhtli incense. Upon this the acting priest placed four round chalchiuites, like little balls; then he took a small hook painted blue, and touched each ball with it; and as he touched each he made a movement as if drawing back his hand, and turned himself completely round. He scattered more incense on the mats, then he took the board with the rattles inside and sounded with it—perhaps a kind of religious stage thunder in imitation of the thunder of his god. Upon this every one retired to his house or to his monastery and put off his ornaments; and the unfortunates who had been ducked were carried at last to their own dwellings for the rest and recovery that they so sorely needed. That night the festivities burst out with a new glory, the musical instruments of the cu itself were sounded, the great drums and the shrill shells. Well watched that night were the prisoners who were doomed to death on the morrow. When it came they were adorned with the trappings of the Tlaloc gods—for it was said they were the images of these gods—and those that were killed first were said to be the foundation of the others, which seemed to be symbolized by those who had to die last being made to seat themselves on those who had been first killed.[VIII-30]
The slaughter over, the hearts of the victims were put into a pot that was painted blue and stained with ulli in four places. Together with this pot offerings were taken of paper and feathers and precious stones and chalchiuites, and a party set out with the whole for that part of the lake where the whirlpool is, called Pantitlan. All who assisted at this offering and sacrifice were provided with a supply of the herb called iztauhiatl, which is something like the incense used in Spain, and they puffed it with their mouths over each other's faces and over the faces of their children. This they did to hinder maggots getting into the eyes, and also to protect against a certain disease of the eyes called exocuillo-o-alixtli; some also put this herb into their ears, and others for a certain superstition they had held a handful of it clutched in the hand. The party entered a great canoe belonging to the king, furnished with green oars, or paddles, spotted with ulli, and rowed swiftly to the place Pantitlan, where the whirlpool was. This whirlpool was surrounded by logs driven into the bottom of the lake like piles—probably to keep canoes from being drawn into the sink. These logs being reached, the priests, standing in the bows of the royal vessel, began to play on their horns and shells. Conspicuous among them stood their chief holding the pot containing the hearts; he flung them far into the whirling hollow of water, and it is said that when the hearts plunged in, the waters were strangely moved and stirred into waves and foam. The precious stones were also thrown in, and the papers of the offering were fastened to the stakes with a number of the chalchiuites and other stones. A priest took a censer and put four papers called telhuitl into it, and burned them, offering them toward the whirlpool; then he threw them, censer and all, still burning into the sink. That done, the canoe was put about and rowed to the landing of Tetamacolco, and every one bathed there.