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Y2K12 Maya Hero Twins... and the End Twist....



 
 
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Old February 1st 07, 11:38 PM posted to alt.astronomy,alt.conspiracy,soc.culture.israel,alt.terrorism.world-trade-center,alt.religion.christian
Warhol[_5_]
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Default Y2K12 Maya Hero Twins... and the End Twist....

Maya Hero Twins as the Roman Twins... Romulus and Remus or Esau and
Jacob...

Maya Hero Twins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



The Hero Twins feature prominently in Maya mythology, with the 16th-
century Popol Vuh and ancient Maya ceramics as its main sources.

According to the Popol Vuh, the Hero Twins were Xbalanque and Hun-
Ahpu. Together with their father, Hun-Hunahpu, they were ball-players.
Following his defeat in the ballgame, the father was killed by the
lords of Xibalba, and his skull was hung in a tree. When the daughter
of one of the lords of Xibalba, Xquic, approached the tree, the skull
talked with her, and then spat into her hand. In this way she became
pregnant with the Hero Twins. The Twins grew up to avenge their
father, and after many trials, finally defeated the lords of the
Underworld in the ballgame. It has been noted that in the upperworld
scenes of the Popol Vuh, Hunahpu takes the dominant role, whereas in
the underworld-related scenes, Xbalanque is the leader.

The Popol Vuh features other episodes involving the Twins as well.
These include the liquidation of a proud avian deity, Vucub-Caquix,
and of his two demonical sons, and also the struggle with the Twins'
own half-brothers, the Howler Monkey Gods, who were the patrons of
artists and scribes.

The other main source for Hero Twin mythology is much earlier and
consists of representations found on Maya ceramics until about 900
A.D. Clearly recognizable are the figures of Hunahpu, Xbalanque, and
the howler monkey scribes and sculptors. Certain scenes are suggestive
of Popol Vuh episodes. The Twins' shooting of a steeply descending
bird (the 'Primary Bird Deity') with blowguns has been taken to
represent the defeat of Vucub-Caquix. Another identification involves
a hypothetical extension of the Popol Vuh narrative: the principal
Maya maize god rising from the carapace of a turtle and held by the
Hero Twins is believed by many to visualize the resurrection of the
Twins' father, Hun-Hunahpu.

Early life

Hunahpu and his brother were conceived in an unusual fashion, when
their mother Xquic spoke with the decapitated head of their father Hun
Hunahpu. The skull spat upon the maiden's hand, and it was this act
that caused the twins to be conceived in her womb. Xquic sought out
Hun Hunahpu's mother, who begrudgingly took her in after setting up a
number of trials to prove her identity.

Even after birth, Hunahpu and Xbalanque were not well treated by their
grandmother or their older half-brothers, One Howler Monkey and One
Artisan. Immediately after their births, their grandmother demanded
they be removed from the house due to their crying, and their elder
brothers obliged by placing them in unusual places to sleep; on an
anthill and among the brambles. Their intent was to kill their younger
half-brothers out of jealousy and spite, for the older pair had long
been revered as fine artisans and thinkers, and feared the newcomers
would steal from the attention they received.

The attempts to kill the young twins after birth were a failure, and
the boys grew up without any obvious spite for their ill-natured older
siblings. During their younger years, the twins were made to labor,
going to hunt birds which they brought back for meals. The elder
brothers were given their food to eat first, in spite of the fact they
spend the day singing and playing while the younger twins were
working.

Hunahpu and Xbalanque demonstrated their wit at a young age in dealing
with their older half brothers. One day the pair returned from the
field without any birds to eat, and were questioned by their older
siblings. The younger boys claimed that they had indeed shot several
birds but that they had gotten caught high in a tree and were unable
to retrieve them. The older brothers were brought to the tree and
climbed up to get the birds, when the tree suddenly began to grow even
taller, and the older brothers were caught. This is also the first
instance in which the twins demonstrate supernatural powers, or
perhaps simply the blessings of the greater gods; the feats of power
are often only indirectly attributed to the pair.

Hunahpu further humiliated his older brethren by instructing them to
remove their pants and tie them about their waists in an attempt to
climb down. The pants became tails, and the brothers were transformed
into monkeys. When their grandmother was informed that the older boys
had not been harmed, she demanded they be allowed to return. When they
did come back to the home, their grandmother was unable to contain her
laughter at their appearance, and the disfigured brothers ran away in
shame.

[edit] Defeat of Seven Macaw and his family

At a point in their lives not specified in the Popol Vuh, the twins
were approached by the god Huracan regarding an arrogant god named
Seven Macaw (Vucub Caquix). Seven Macaw had built up a following of
worshipers among some of the inhabitants of the Earth, making false
claims to be either the sun or the moon. Seven Macaw was also
extremely vain, adorning himself with metal ornaments in his wings and
a set of false teeth made of gemstones.

In a first attempt to dispatch the vain god, the twins attempted to
sneak upon him as he was eating his meal in a tree, and shot at his
jaw with a blowgun. Seven Macaw was knocked from his tree but only
wounded, and as Hunahpu attempted to escape, his arm was grabbed by
the god and torn off.

In spite of their initial failure, the twins again demonstrated their
clever nature in formulating a plan for Seven Macaw's defeat. Invoking
a pair of gods disguised as grandparents, the twins instructed the
invoked gods to approach Seven Macaw and negotiate for the return of
Hunapuh's arm. In doing so, the "grandparents" indicated they were but
a poor family, making a living as doctors and dentists and attempting
to care for their orphaned grandchildren. Upon hearing this Seven
Macaw requested that his teeth be fixed since they had been shot and
knocked loose by the blowgun, and his eyes cured (it is not
specifically said what ailed his eyes). In doing so the grandparents
replaced his jeweled teeth with white corn, and plucked the ornaments
he had about his eyes, leaving the god destitute of his former
greatness. Having fallen, Seven Macaw died, presumably of shame.

Seven Macaw's sons, Zipacna and Cabrakan, inherited a large part of
their father's arrogance, claiming to be the creators and destroyers
of mountains, respectively. The elder son Zipacna was destroyed when
the twins tricked him with the lure of a fake crab, burying him
beneath a mountain in the process. More detail regarding Zipacna's
deeds and his defeat can be found in the article about Zipacna.

The Maya god Huracan again implored the young twins for help in
dealing with Seven Macaw's younger son, Cabrakan, the Earthquake.
Again it was primarily through their cleverness that the pair were
able to bring about the downfall of their enemy, having sought him out
and then using his very arrogance against him; they told the story of
a great mountain they had encountered that kept growing and growing.
Cabrakan prided himself as the one to bring down the mountains, and
upon hearing such a tale, he predictably demanded to be shown the
mountain. Hunahpu and Xbalanque obliged, leading Cabrakan toward the
non-existent mountain. Being skilled hunters, they shot down several
birds along the way, roasting them over fires and playing upon
Cabrakan's hunger. When he asked for some meat, he was given a bird
that had been prepared with plaster and gypsum, apparently a poison to
the god. Upon eating it, he was weakened, and the boys were able to
bind him and cast him into a hole in the earth, burying him forever.

[edit] Discovery of One Hunahpu's gaming equipment

Some time after the expulsion of their older siblings, the twins used
their special powers or abilities to expedite their gardening chores
for their grandmother - a single swing of the axe would do a full
day's worth of clearing, for example. The pair covered themselves in
dust and wood chippings when their grandmother approached to make it
seem they had been hard at work, in spite of the fact they spent the
whole day relaxing. However the next day they returned to find their
work undone by the animals of the forest. Upon completion of their
work, they hid and lay in wait, and when the animals returned they
attempted to catch or scare them off.

Most animals eluded their capture. The rabbit and the deer they caught
by the tail, but these tails broke off, thus giving all future
generations of rabbits and deer short tails. The rat, however, they
did capture, singing his tail over the fire in revenge for the act. In
exchange for mercy, the rat revealed an important piece of
information: the gaming equipment of their father and uncle was hidden
by their grandmother in her grief, for it was playing ball that was
directly responsible for the deaths of her sons.

Again a ruse was devised to get their equipment, the twins once more
relying upon trickery to meet their goals. The pair snuck the rat into
their home during dinner, and had their grandmother cook a meal of hot
chili sauce. They demanded water for their meal, which their
grandmother went to retrieve. The jar of water, however, had been
sabotaged with a hole, and she was unable to return with the water.
When their mother left to find out why and the pair were alone in the
home, they sent the rat up into the roof to gnaw apart the ropes that
held the equipment hidden, and were able to retrieve the equipment
their father and uncle had used to play ball. It had long been a
favorite pastime for their father, and soon would become a favored
activity for them, as well.

[edit] The Xibalban Ball Games

Hunahpu and Xbalanque played ball in the same court that their father
and his brother had played in long before them. When One Hunahpu and
his brother had played, the noise had disturbed the Lords of Xibalba,
rulers of the Maya Underworld. The Xibalbans summoned them to play
ball in their own court. Doing so was a trap, however, as the
Xibalbans used a bladed ball which was used to kill and decapitate the
young men for disturbing their peace.

When the twins began to play ball in the court, once again the Lords
of Xibalba were disturbed by the racket, and sent summons to the boys
to come to Xibalba and play in their court. Fearing they would suffer
the same fate, their grandmother relayed the message only indirectly,
telling it to a louse which was hidden in a toad's mouth, which was in
turn hidden in the belly of a falcon. Nevertheless the boys did
receive the message, and much to their grandmother's dismay, set off
to Xibalba.

When their father had answered the summons, he and his brother were
met with a number of challenges along the way which served to confuse
and embarrass them before their arrival, but the younger twins would
not fall victim to the same tricks. They sent a mosquito ahead of them
to bite at the Lords and uncover which were real and which were simply
mannequins, as well as uncovering their identities. When they arrived
at Xibalba they were easily able to identify which were the real Lords
of Xibalba and address them by name. They also turned down the Lords'
invitation to sit upon a bench for visitors, correctly identifying the
bench as a heated stone for cooking. Frustrated by the twins' ability
to see through their traps, they sent the boys away to the Dark House,
the first of several deadly tests devised by the Xibalbans.

Their father One Hunahpu and his brother had suffered embarrassing
defeats in each of the tests, but again Hunahpu and Xbalanque
demonstrated their prowess by outwitting the Xibalbans on the first of
the tests, surviving the night in the pitch black house without using
up their torch. Dismayed, the Xibalbans bypassed the remaining tests
and invited the boys directly to the game. The twins knew that the
Xibalbans used a special ball that had a blade with which to kill
them, and instead of falling for the trick Hunahpu stopped the ball
with a racket and spied the blades. Complaining that they had been
summoned only to be killed, Hunahpu and Xbalanque threatened to leave
the game.

As a compromise, the Lords of Xibalba allowed the boys to use their
own rubber ball, and a long and proper game ensued. In the end the
twins allowed the Xibalbans to win the game, but this was again a part
of their ruse. They were sent to Razor House, the second deadly test
of Xibalba, filled with knives that moved of their own accord. The
twins however spoke to the knives and convinced them to stop, thereby
ruining the test. They also sent leafcutting ants to retrieve petals
from the gardens of Xibalba, a reward to be offered to the Lords for
their victory. The Lords had intentionally chosen a reward they
thought impossible, for the flowers were well guarded, but the guards
did not take notice of the ants, and were killed for their inability
to guard the flowers.

The twins played a rematch with the Xibalbans and lost by intent
again, and were sent to Cold House, the next test. This test they
defeated, as well. In turn, Hunahpu and Xbalanque by purpose lost
their ball games so that they might be sent to the remaining tests,
Jaguar House, Fire House, Bat House and in turn defeat the tests of
the Xibalbans. The Lords of Xibalba were dismayed at the twins
success, until the twins were placed in Bat House. Though they hid
inside their blowguns from the deadly bats, Hunahpu peeked out to see
if daylight had come, and was decapitated by a bat.

The Xibalbans were overjoyed that Hunahpu had been defeated. Xbalanque
summoned the beasts of the field, however, and fashioned a replacement
head for Hunahpu. Though his original head was used as the ball for
the next day's game, the twins were able to surreptitiously substitute
a squash or a gourd for the ball, retrieving Hunahpu's real head and
resulting in an embarrassing defeat for the Xibalbans.

[edit] Downfall of Xibalba

Embarrassed by their defeat the Xibalbans still sought to destroy the
twins. They had a great oven constructed and once again summoned the
boys, intending to trick them into the oven and to their deaths. The
twins realized that the Lords had intended this ruse to be the end of
them, but nevertheless they allowed themselves to be burned in the
oven, killed and ground into dust and bones. The Xibalbans were elated
at the apparent demise of the twins, and cast their remnants into a
river. This was, however, a part of the plan devised by the boys, and
when cast into the river their bodies regenerated, first as a pair of
catfish, and then as a pair of young boys again.

Not recognizing them, the boys were allowed to remain among the
Xibalbans. Tales of their transformation from catfish spread, as well
as tales of their dances and the way they entertained the people of
Xibalba. They performed a number of miracles, setting fire to homes
and then bringing them back whole from the ashes, sacrificing one
another and rising from the dead. When the Lords of Xibalba heard the
tale, they summoned the pair to their court to entertain them,
demanding to see such miracles in action.

The boys answered the summons, and volunteered to entertain the Lords
at no cost. Their identities remained secret for the moment, claiming
to be orphans and vagabonds, and the Lords were none the wiser. They
went through their gamut of miracles, slaying a dog and bringing it
back from the dead, causing the Lords' house to burn around them while
the inhabitants were unharmed, and then bringing the house back from
the ashes. In a climactic performance, Xbalanque cut Hunahpu apart and
offered him as a sacrifice, only to have the older brother rise once
again from the dead.

Enthralled by the performance, One Death and Seven Death, the highest
lords of Xibalba, demanded that the miracle be performed upon them.
The twins obliged by killing and offering the lords as a sacrifice,
but predictably did not bring them back from the dead. The twins then
shocked the Xibalbans by revealing their identities as Hunahpu and
Xbalanque, sons of One Hunahpu whom they had slain years ago along
with their uncle Seven Hunahpu. The Xibalbans despaired, confessed to
the crimes of killing the brothers years ago, and begged for mercy. As
a punishment for their crimes, the realm of Xibalba was no longer to
be a place of greatness, and the Xibalbans would no longer receive
offerings from the people who walked on the Earth above. All of
Xibalba had effectively been defeated.

[edit] Death and Ascension of Hunahpu and Xbalanque

With Xibalba defeated and the arrogant gods disposed of, Hunahpu and
Xbalanque had one final act to accomplish. They returned to the
Xibalban ball court and retrieved the buried remains of their father,
One Hunahpu, and attempted to rebuild him. Although his body was made
whole again he was not the same, and was unable to function as he once
did. The twins left their father there in the ball court, but before
doing so told him that he would be prayed to by those who sought hope,
and this eased his heart.

Then finished, the pair departed Xibalba and climbed back up to the
surface of the Earth. They did not stop there, however, and continued
climbing straight on up into the sky. Hunahpu was immortalized as the
Venus, the morning star, while Xbalanque became the full moon.

While not directly revered as gods themselves, Hunahpu and Xbalanque
played an integral role in the Mayan creation story as being of
superhuman stature, perhaps demigods or minor deities themselves,
always favored by the greater gods. Although many of their acts and
successes came about as a result of trickery and deceit, this was
viewed more as cleverness than dishonesty, and their roles in
defeating the vain and arrogant gods as well as the evil lords of the
underworld Xibalba solidifies their characters as being that of good.

He HO ... You psssst... Wake up... We have Ball game to do... or
should we read War game between the two Twins and Heros... Hopefully
someone can decipher this and help me out and we may be saved from our
blindness... The Twins are the Christians and the Muslims... Jacob and
Esau...

http://www.gnostic.org/kybalionhtm/14_mentalgender.jpg

 




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