[Aztlan] ek and chay glyphs

[Karen Bassie]

<>Gary,
I think that the Milky Way crocodile is parallel to the crocodile deity 
Zipacna of the Popol Vuh. Although the name Zipacna is likely derived 
from Nahuatl cipactli, the life and death of Zipacna does not parallel 
the female Cipactli whose body became the surface of the earth.
Zipacna was defeated by the hero twins. They convinced him to crawl into 
a cave at the base of Meauan Mountain to get a crab. When he couldn't 
reach the crab, they suggested he go in on his back. The mountain then 
settled on his chest and killed him.
The contemporary Maya highland stories that parallel the Zipacna story 
indicate that Meauan (which means daughter of a lord) was thought to be 
the manifestation of the corn goddess, and thus, it was the corn goddess 
who actually did away with him. The contemporary stories also indicate 
that Zipacna didn't stay in the cave but eventually entered the sky (see 
my volume Maya Sacred Geography and the Creator Deities for an overview 
of these tales).
Taube (Research Reports on Ancient Maya Writing number 26) has discussed 
some Postclassic Maya images of crocodiles that he thinks represent the 
surface of the earth. He also thinks these crocodiles are a deity called 
Itzam Cab Ain who is mentioned in several of the Chilam Balam books from 
Yucatan. These passages refer to a deity called Bolon ti ku who 
prevented a crocodile deity called Itzam Cab Ain from taking over the 
Peten and destroying it. Bolon ti ku then cut Itzam Cab Ain's throat and 
used his body to form the surface of the Peten.
In the Classic Period text on the Palenque Temple 19 platform, there is 
a reference to two crocodile deities who apparent get their heads cut 
off (Stuart 2006). Erik Velasquez Garcia 
(http://www.mesoweb.com/pari/publications/journal/701/Flood_e.pdf) has 
suggested this is a reference to the Chilam Balam episode.
I think there is a better parallel with the Popol Vuh story. There is a 
pair of crocodiles in the Piedras Negras Period Ending scenes and the 
Paris Codex Period Ending scenes. One these crocodiles is bound and 
headless, the other is the Milky Way crocodile. I have suggested the 
bound crocodile might be parallel to Zipacna's brother Cabracan who was 
also defeated by the hero twins. The twins tied Cabracan's hands and 
feet, hurled him into the earth and buried him. When he moves, he 
presumably causes earthquakes because that is what Cabracan means.
Following the defeat of Zipacna and his brother Cabracan is the flooding 
of the world of the wooden men and then the creation of the people made 
from corn.
By the way, Nick Hopkins and I have been to the cave at the base of 
Meauan Mountain and it actually has the form of a crocodile mouth.