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They covered them with their blankets so that the<br />

rocks [looked just] like people sleeping.<br />

Now the woman was delighted that there were<br />

people sleeping in her house, because she ate people.<br />

The woman bit people. She went to eat them. She<br />

thought it was people asleep there. Then the woman<br />

clamped down on the dumb rock until she felt the<br />

pain in her teeth. She didn't say what had happened<br />

to her. She crunched the rock. The woman thought<br />

it was a person she was going to eat. Then she<br />

realized it was a rock she held [in her teeth]. When<br />

morning came, the woman was holding her hand to<br />

her mouth. Her teeth hurt terribly. That's why we<br />

have toothaches now, today. It was that woman who<br />

left them.<br />

Travellers in Chenalho were once victimized by a woman<br />

who offered them shelter. At midnight, sharpening her teeth, she<br />

would steal in to feast on her unsuspecting guests. But one man<br />

volunteered his assistance. By turning to stone at the proper<br />

moment, he put a sudden end to her death-dealing teeth (INI,<br />

1:23-25). From Soconusco in coastal Chiapas comes an intriguing<br />

version of this story—a shaman, who is the double of the<br />

great stela of Izapa, volunteers his services to the people of<br />

Soconusco. When the vampire woman bites into the shaman's<br />

XUN 7Akov 147<br />

Priest Rock<br />

T30<br />

The people who were travelling on the trail saw<br />

him. They met him on the trail. They saw the priest<br />

walking along there. They spoke to him. "Where is<br />

your house?" they asked the priest.<br />

"Don't you see where my house is?" he said. "You<br />

should pass by next to my house," said the priest.<br />

[That's what] the priest said. "See my picture there!"<br />

said the priest. "If you want, let's go!" they were<br />

told.<br />

"We don't want to," said the people.<br />

"You don't want to go with me? You have to go!"<br />

the people were told.<br />

"We don't want to," they said.<br />

"Oh no? We are, too, going," the people were<br />

told. The people did go. Their souls were taken<br />

away. They went. The people died, those who spoke<br />

to him. The priest spoke. "There is my house," said<br />

the priest. Today it is called Pale Ton [Priest Rock].<br />

He was probably the Earth <strong>Lo</strong>rd.<br />

A Bellyful<br />

Once there was a woman. Her husband went to<br />

the lowlands. The man had told his wife, "You just<br />

stay. We'll see each other in three days." The wo-<br />

T26<br />

li tone ko7ol xchi7uk krixchano.<br />

7Ora li 7antze, xmuyibaj 7oy te krixchano ta sna<br />

chvay yu7un ta sti7 li krixchano 7une, chti7van li<br />

7antze, ba sti7 xak'uk krixchanouk ti te vayeme, ja7<br />

to yil ton skatz'oj 7ik'ot, 7asta ke 7iya7i chk'uxub<br />

stanal ye li 7antze, muk' bu ta xal k'usi spasoj, 7isk'ux<br />

li tone, xak'uk krixchanouk ta sti7 7ox li 7antze, ja7<br />

to ya7i ton skatz'oj 7ik'ot, 7isakub 7osil, li 7antze<br />

sjopoj stanal ye, toj k'ux cha7i li yee, ja7 to k'u xi<br />

komem k'al tana li xchanul li stanal ketike, lavie tana,<br />

ja7 7iskomtzan li jun 7antze.<br />

stony flesh, her teeth are shattered and swallowed, causing her<br />

death (Navarrete, 1966b:424).<br />

In neighboring Chamula the origin of toothache is associated<br />

with Christ's flight from the Jews. One tale recounts that a<br />

woman bit Christ as he lay sleeping in her house. The next<br />

morning she suffered a severe toothache. As she and her<br />

husband were taking a steambath, Christ blocked the exit until<br />

they steamed to death (Gossen, T32). Another version has Christ<br />

hiding in the steambath. When the Jews try to bite off his head,<br />

he substitutes a hearthstone (Gossen, T178).<br />

Ta xil li krixchanoe, ta xxanavik ta be, te ta snupik<br />

ta be, 7iyilik te xxanav li pale, 7isk'oponik la, "Buy<br />

7ana?" xutik li pale.<br />

"Mi mu xavil bu li jnae?" xi la. "Te cha7ech'ik ta<br />

xxokon jna," xi li pale. 7Iyal li pale. "Te xak'elik<br />

jretrato," xi li pale. "Mi xak'an, battik!" x7utat.<br />

"Mu jk'an," xi li krixchanoe.<br />

"Mu xak'an xibattik yu7un chabat ta pwersa!"<br />

x7utat li krixchanoe.<br />

"Mu jk'an," xi.<br />

Bweno, "Mo7oj, yu7un no 7ox chibattik," x7utat li<br />

krixchanoe. Li krixchano bat 7onox, 7ik'bat xch'ulel,<br />

7ibat, 7icham li krixchanoe, ti buch'u 7isk'opone.<br />

7Iyal li pale, "Te jna," xi li pale. Li Pale Ton lavie<br />

sbi, i yajval balamil nan 7une.<br />

7A ti vo7ne 7oy jun 7antz, 7ibat ta 7olon smalal, li<br />

7antze, 7ik'opoj komel li vinike. "Tean no 7ox<br />

jk'opon jbatik k'al 7oxib k'ak'al," xi. Li 7antze 7ivay

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