Part 8

The title does not necessarily mean that this song is a translation from the Otomi language, but merely that the time to which it was chanted was in the Otomi style; or, the term _Otomi_ may have reference to the military officer so called. The word is perhaps a compound of _otli_, path, and _mitl_, arrow.

The bard sings the vanity of earthly pleasures, and the reality of earthly pains; he exhorts himself and his hearers not to neglect the duties of religion, and lauds his own skill in song, which he compares to the sweet voices of melodious birds. There is nothing in the poem which reflects European influence.

1. _xotlacueponi_; the meaning of this compound is obscure. It is not found in the dictionaries.

2. The terminal _o_ is inserted several times in the passage to express emotion and fill the metre.

_mixitl tlapatl_. A phrase signifying the stupor or drunkenness that comes from swallowing or smoking narcotic plants. See Olmos, _Grammaire de la Langue Nahuatl_, pp. 223, 228; _oquiqueo_ is from _i_, to drink, or _cui_, to take, the _o_ terminal being euphonic.

NOTES FOR SONG X.

The poet expresses his grief that his songs all dwell on painful topics; he exhorts his hearers of the vanity of fame and skill in handicrafts, and of the uncertainty of life; closing, he appeals especially to those of Tezcuco and Atecpan to listen and believe his warnings.

In spite of the introduction of the Spanish word _Dios_, and the exhortation to "believe," in the last line, it is possible that the substance of this song was due to purely native inspiration; yet it may have been, like Song XIX, one of those written at an early period for the converts by the missionaries.

NOTES FOR SONG XI.

In a similar strain as in the last poem, the bard bewails the briefness of human life and friendships. He closes with an appeal to the Master of Life, of whom no mortal tongue can speak in worthy and appropriate terms.

6. _ihuiti_, apparently a form of _ihuintia_.

_tonan_; the reference appears to be to _Tonantzin_, Our Mother, otherwise known as Cihuacoatl, the Serpent Woman. She was the mythical mother of the human race, and dispensed afflictions and adverse fortune. See Sahagun, _Hist. de la Nueva España_, Lib. I, cap. 6. The name is a proof of the antiquity of the poem, which is throughout in the spirit of the ancient religion.

NOTES FOR SONG XII.

As stated in the Introduction (§ 10), a note prefixed to this song introduces it as a translation from the Otomi into the Nahuatl tongue. It admirably illustrates the poetic flexibility of the Nahuatl.

3. _epoyhuayan_, from _epoalli_, sixty; _teoquauhtli ocelott_, "divine eagles, tigers." These terms refer to the warriors bearing these titles.

_tlazomaquiztetl_, "beloved, precious stones," a figure of speech referring to the youths who go to war. The same or similar metaphors are used in previous songs.

5. The fifth and sixth verses present serious difficulties of construction which I do not flatter myself I have overcome.

NOTES FOR SONG XIII.

The inhabitants of Huexotzinco were in frequent strife with those of Mexico-Tenochtitlan, and on various occasions the latter captured many prisoners. The present poem is represented to be a composition of one of these prisoners when he and his companions were confined in Tlatilolco, one of the suburbs of Tenochtitlan. It breathes hatred against his captors and an ardent thirst for vengeance. The latest date at which I find captives from Huexotzinco detained in Mexico is 1511, and it is to this year, therefore, that I assign the composition of the poem.

5. _Atloyantepetl_; this name possibly means "the mountain of the place of the water-falcons" (_atl_, water; _tlatli_, falcon; _yan_, place-ending; _tepetl_, mountain). I have not found it in other writers. (See Index.)

8. _tlaylotlaqui_; Siméon, on the authority of Aubin, explains this term as the name of a tribe living near Tezcuco. In derivation it appears to be a term of contempt, "workers in filth or refuse," scum, offscourings. It also appears in Song XV.

10. The construction of this verse is so obscure, or the text so imperfect, that the translation is doubtful.

NOTES FOR SONG XIV.

This poem, chanted in 1551 before the Governor of Azcapotzalco, by Francisco Placido, a native of Huexotzinco, is a Christian song in the style and metre of the ancient poetry. See the Introduction, p. 51.

1. _impetlatl_; the ordinary meaning of _petlatl_ is a mat or rug; it is here to be taken in its figurative sense of power or authority, chiefs and other prominent persons being provided with mats at the councils, etc.

NOTES FOR SONG XV.

This extremely difficult composition seems to be a war song, in which the bard refers to the traditional history of the Nahuas, names some of their most prominent warriors, and incites his hearers to deeds of prowess on the battle field. I do not claim for my version more than a general correspondence to the thought of the original. In several parts, especially verse 18, the text is obviously defective.

1. _tzihuactitlan_; "the land of the tzihuac bushes." The tzihuactli is a small kind of maguey which grows in rocky localities. The tenth edifice of the great temple at Tenochtitlan was a wall surrounding an artificial rockery planted with these bushes. Sahagun, who mentions this fact, adds that the name of this edifice was _Teotlalpan_, which literally means "on holy ground." (_Hist. de la Nueva España_, Lib. II, App.) The _mizquitl_ is the common _Mimosa circinalis_.

_Chicomoztoc_; "at the Seven Caves," a famous locality in Mexican legend, and the supposed birthplace of their race.

2. _Colhuacan_ is probably for Acolhuacan; the early rulers of the latter were of the blood of the Chichimec chiefs of the Tepanecas.

4. _Hueytlalpan_, "at the ancient land," perhaps for Huetlapallan, a 1ocality often referred to in the migration myths of the Nahuas.

5. _Atloyan_; see note to XIII, 6.

9. The ceiba and cypress trees were employed figuratively to indicate protection and safeguard. See Olmos, _Gram. de la Langue Nahuatl_, p. 211.

12. On _tlailotlaqui_, see note to XIII, 8. The interjectional appendages to this and the following verse are increased.

15. Tepeyacan was the name of a mountain on which before the Conquest was a temple dedicated to the "Mother of our Life," Tonantzin.

16. _tlapalcayocan_, "the place of shards," of broken pieces, i.e., the field of battle.

19. The word _totomihuacan_, which has already occurred in vv. 3 and 7, I have translated as referring to the war captains of the Mexican armies, called _otomi_ (see Bandelier, _On the Art of War of the Ancient Mexicans_, p. 117). I am quite open for correction however.

27. _in ipetl icpal_; in a translation of an ancient song, Ixtlilxochitl renders the expression _in ipetl icpal in teotl_, "en el trono y tribunal de Dios," _Historia Chichimeca_, cap. 32.

29. _Mictlan_; the place of departed souls in Aztec mythology.

NOTES FOR SONG XVI.

In this stirring war-song, the poet reproaches his friends for their lukewarmness in the love of battle. He reminds them that life is transitory, and the dead rise not again, and that the greatest joy of the brave is on the ringing field of fray where warriors win renown. It is in the spirit of the Scotch harper:--

"'Twere worth ten years of peaceful life,

One hour of such a day."

1. Each verse terminates with an interjectional refrain. The frequent introduction of the particle _on_ is intended to add strength and gravity to the oration.

2. _oppan piltihua_. Compare this expression with that in v. 22, p. 44.

3. _xochimicohuayan_, should perhaps be translated, "where the captives to be immolated to the Gods are taken." The _xochimique_, "those destined to a flowery death" were the captives who were reserved for sacrifice to the gods. See Joan Bautista, _Sermonario en Lengua Mexicana_, p. 180.

4. _yaoxochimiquiztica_, "pertaining to the slaughter of the flowery war." This adjective refers to the peculiar institution of the "flowery war," _guerra florida_, which obtained among the ancient Mexicans. It appears to have been a contest without provocation, and merely for the display of prowess and to take captives to supply the demand for human sacrifices in the religious rites. On this see Tezozomoc, _Cronica Mexicana_, cap. 96.

NOTES FOR SONG XVII.

In this long fragment--the closing strophes are missing in my MS.--the bard represents himself as a stranger appearing before the nobles of Huexotzinco at some festival. The first two verses appear to be addressed to him by the nobles. They ask him to bring forth his drum and sing. He begins with a laudation of the power of music, proceeds to praise the noble company present, and touches those regretful chords, so common in the Nahuatl poetry, which hint at the ephemeral nature of all joy and the certainty of death and oblivion. An appeal is made to the Master of Life who inspires the soul of the poet, and whose praises should be ever in mind.

The words _Dios_ and _angelotin_, in verse 26th, indicate that the poem has received some "recension" by the Spanish copyist; but the general tone impresses me as quite aboriginal in character.

2. _quauhtlocelotl_, see note to I, 5.

3. In this verse, as frequently elsewhere, the syllable ya is introduced merely to complete the metre. Ordinarily it is the sign of the imperfect tense, and has other meanings (see the Vocabulary), but in many instances does not admit of translation.

8. _noncoati_, for _ni-on-coatl_, I am a guest.

18. The references in this verse are obscure, and I doubt if I have solved them.

20. "The house of spring;" compare the expression in v. 1, of Nezahualcoyotl's song, p. 42.

21. A long oration of Xicontecatl, lord of Tizatlan, may be found in Clavigero, _Hist. Antica di Messico_, Tom. III, p. 40. The expression in _camaxochitzin_, from _camatl_, mouth, _xochitl_, rose, flower, and the reverential _tzin_, is noteworthy.

24. _petlacoatl_, the centipede or scolopender; from _petlatl_, mat, and _coatl_, serpent, as they are said to intertwine with each other, like the threads of a mat (Sahagun, Lib. XII, cap. 4).

NOTES FOR SONG XVIII.

At this portion of the MS. several poems are preceded by a line of syllables indicating their accompaniment on the teponaztli (see Introduction, p. 32).

The present number is one of the most noteworthy songs of the collection. It belongs to the ancient cyclus of Quetzalcoatl myths, and gives a brief relation of the destruction of Tollan and the departure and disappearance of the Light God, Quetzalcoatl Ce Acatl. As I have elsewhere collated this typical myth at length, and interpreted it according to the tenets of modern mythologic science, I shall not dwell upon it here (see D.G. Brinton, _American Hero Myths_, Phila., 1882).

The text of the poem is quite archaic, and presents many difficulties. But my translation, I think, gives the general sense correctly.

1. _huapalcalli_; literally, "the house constructed of beams." This name was applied to the chief temple of the Toltecs; the ruins of an ancient structure at Tollantzinco were pointed out at the time of the Conquest as those of this building (see Sahagun, _Hist. de la Nueva España_, Lib. X, cap. 29).

_coatlaquetzalli_; this edifice, said to have been left incomplete by Quetzalcoatl, when he forsook Tollan, had pillars in the form of a serpent, the head at the base, the tail at the top of the pillar. (See Orozco y Berra, _Hist. Antigua de Mexico_, Tom. III, pp. 30 and 46.) The structure is mentioned as follows in the _Anales de Cuauhtitlan_:--

_Auh iniquac nemia Quetzalcoatl quitzintica, quipeuahtica iteocal quimaman coatlaquetzali ihuan amo quitzonquixti, amo quipantlaz."_

"And when Quetzalcoatl was living, he began and commenced the temple of his which is the Coatlaquetzali (Serpent Plumes), and he did not finish it, he did not fully erect it."

_Nacxitl Topiltzin_, "Our Lord the four-footed." _Nacxitl_ appears to have been the name of Quetzalcoatl, in his position as lord of the merchants. Compare Sahagun, ubi supra, Lib. I, cap. 19.

2. _Poyauhtecatl_, a volcano near Orizaba, mentioned by Sahagun. _Acallan_, a province bordering on the Laguna de los Terminos. The myth reported that Quetzalcoatl journeyed to the shores of the Gulf about the isthmus of Tehuantepec and there disappeared.

3. _Nonohualco_; the reference is to the _cerro de Nonoalco_, which plays a part in the Quetzalcoatl myth. The words of the song are almost those of Tezcatlipoca when he is introduced to Quetzalcoatl. Asked whence he came, he replied, "Nihuitz in Nonohualcatepetl itzintla, etc." (_Anales de Cuauhtitlan_).

4. The occurrences alluded to are the marvels performed by Quetzalcoatl on his journey from Tulan. See my American Hero Myths, p. 115.

5. The departure of Quetzalcoatl was because he was ordered to repair to Tlapallan, supposed to be beyond Xicalanco.

8. _quinti_, for _iquintia_; the reference is to the magic draught given Quetzalcoatl by Tezcatlipoca.

9. _In tetl, in quahuitl_; literally, "stone and stick;" a very common phrase in Nahautl, to signify misfortunes.

NOTES FOR SONG XIX.

In this song we have avowedly a specimen of an early chant prepared probably by Bishop Zummarraga for the native converts. The accompaniment on the teponaztli is marked at the beginning. The language is noticeably different from the hymn to Quetzalcoatl just given (XVIII).

NOTES FOR SONG XX.

Another song of the antique Quetzalcoatl cyclus. It bewails the loss of Tulan, and the bard seeks in vain for any joyous theme to inspire his melody, reflecting on all that has bloomed in glory and now is gone forever.

3. _Tetl-quahitl_; see note to XVIII, 9.

NOTES FOR SONG XXI.

The occurrence to which this poem alludes took place about the year 1507. The chroniclers state that it was in the early period of the reign of Montezuma II, that the natives of Huexotzinco, at that time allies of the Mexicans, were severely harassed by the Tlascallans, and applied, not in vain, to their powerful suzerain to aid them. (See Tezozomoc, _Cronica Mexicana_, cap. 97.)

The poet does not appear to make a direct petition, but indirectly praises the grandeur of Montezuma and expresses his own ardent love for his native Huexotzinco. The song would appear to be used as a delicate prelude to the more serious negotiations. It is one of the few historical songs in the collection. From the references in verses 1 and 3 we infer that this singer held in his hand the painted book from which he recited the couplets. This may explain the presentation of the piece.

1. _huetzcani_; one who laughs, a jester, perhaps the designation of one who sang cheerful songs.

_chalchiuhatlaquiquizcopa_; a. word of difficult analysis. I suspect an omission of an _l_, and that the compound includes _tlaquilqui_, one who fastens and puts together, a mason, etc.

5. The sense is that the warriors of Montezuma when on the field of battle, shine in their deeds like beautiful flowers in a field, and win lasting fame by their exploits.

_mopopoyauhtoc_. The grammarian Olmos explains the reflexive verb _mopopoyauhtiuh_ to signify "he leaves an honored memory of his exploits." See Siméon, _Dictionaire de la Langue Nahuatl_, sub voce.

7. _Huexotzinco atzalan_; "Huexotzinco amid the waters." This expression, repeated in verse 8, appears inappropriate to the town of Huexotzinco, which lies inland. In fact, the description in verse 7 applies to Tenochtitlan rather than the singer's own town. But the text does not admit this translation. Perhaps we should read "Huexotzinco and Atzalan," as there are yet two villages of that name in the state of Puebla (which embraced part of ancient Huexotzinco).

10. _petiatolini_, I have derived from _petlatl_, suspecting an error in transcription. The reference is to the rushes in the mat on which the singer stood.

NOTES FOR SONG XXII.

The ordinary sad burden of the Nahuatl poets is repeated with emphasis in this plaint. It is a variation of the Epicurean advice, "Eat, drink, and be merry, for to-morrow we die." Both the sentiment and the reference to Mictlan in verse 7, point it out as a production uninfluenced by Christian teaching.

7. The word _ahuicaloyan_, place of sweetness, would seem to be identical with _ohuicaloyan_, place of difficulty, in v. 8; I have regarded the latter as an error of transcription.

NOTES FOR SONG XXIII.

Although No. V. is probably one of the lost songs of Nezahualcoyotl, the present is the only one of the collection which is definitely attributed to him. The language is very archaic, and in the sentiment there is every mark of antiquity.

The text is apparently a dialogue, which was chanted as strophe and antistrophe, the one singer speaking for the King, the other for the bard himself.

The word _teotl_ is used for divinity, and it is doubtless this word for which the copyists of some of the other songs have substituted the Spanish _Dios_, thus conveying an impression that the chants themselves were of late date.

The last verse, however, seems to be by one who lives after the time of the great poet-prince, and is calling him to memory.

NOTES FOR SONG XXIV.

It will be seen that there is a wearisome sameness in the theme of most of the short poems. Probably the bards followed conventional models, and feared for the popularity of their products, did they seek originality. Here again are the same delight in flowers and songs, and the same grief at the thought that all such joys are evanescent and that soon "death closes all."

I consider the poem one of undoubted antiquity and purely native in thought and language.

NOTES FOR SONG XXV.

The destruction of the Mexican state was heralded by a series of omens and prodigies which took place at various times during the ten years preceding the arrival of Cortes. They are carefully recorded by Sahagun, in the first chapter of the 12th book of his history. They included a comet, or "smoking star," as these were called in Nahuatl, and a bright flame in the East and Southeast, over the mountains, visible from midnight to daylight, for a year. This latter occurred in 1509. The song before us is a boding chant, referring to such prognostics, and drawing from them the inference that the existence of Mexico was doomed. It was probably from just such songs that Sahagun derived his information.

1. _toztliyan_, I suppose from _tozquitl_, the singing voice, in the locative; literally, "the quechol in the place of sweet-singing."

2. _iquiapan_, from _i_, possessive prefix, _quiauatl_, door, entrance, house, _pan_, in.

5. An obscure verse; _tequantepec_, appears to be a textual error; _tequani_, a ravenous beast, from _qua_ to eat; _tepec_, a mountain; but _tequantepehua_ occurring twice later in the poem induces the belief _tequani_ should be taken in its figurative sense of affliction, destruction, and that _tepec_ is an old verbal form.

7. _Xochitecatl_, "one who cares for flowers," is said by Sahagun to have been the name applied to a woman doomed to sacrifice to the divinities of the mountains (_Hist. Nueva España_, Lib. II, cap. 13).

8. _amaxtecatl_, or _amoxtecatl_, as the MS. may read, from _amoxtli_, a book.

NOTES FOR SONG XXVI.

This seems to be a song of victory to celebrate an attack upon Atlixco by the ruler of Tezcuco, the famous Nezahualpilli. This monarch died in 1516, and therefore the song must antedate this period, if it is genuine. It has every intrinsic evidence of antiquity, and I think may justly be classed among those preserved from a time anterior to the Conquest. According to the chronologies preserved, the attack of Nezahualpilli upon Atlixco was in the year XI _tochtli_, which corresponds to 1490, two years before the discovery by Columbus (see Orozco y Berra, _Hist. Antigua de Mexico_, Tom. III, p. 399).

NOTES FOR SONG XXVII.

My MS. closes with a Christian song in the style of the ancient poetry. It is valuable as indicating the linguistic differences between these later productions of the sixteenth century and those earlier ones, such as XXVI, which I have not hesitated to assign to an epoch before the Spaniards landed upon the shores of New Spain.

VOCABULARY.

The Roman numerals refer to the songs, the Arabic to the verses, in which the word occurs. Abbreviations: _lit_., literally; _ref_., reflexive; _pret_., preterit; _rev_., reverential; _freq_., frequentative; _post_., postposition; _Span_., a Spanish word.

A, _adv_. No, not, in comp. A, _n_. For atl, water, in comp.; as _acalli_, water-house, _i.e._, a boat. A, _interj_. Oh! ah! placed after the word on which stress is laid. AC, _pron., interj_. Who? ACA, _pron_. Some, any; somebody. ACALLI, _n_. A boat, of any kind. ACH, _dubitative particle_. Indeed? is it not? etc. ACHITZINCA, _adv_. A little while, a short time. ACHQUEN, _adv_. At what time? When? ACI, _v_. To reach, to acquire. ACOHUETZI, _v_. To console, to make glad. I, 3. ACOQUIZA, _v_. To lift up, to raise, to increase in dignity or power. ACOTLAZA, _v_. To console. ACXOYATL, _n_. The wild laurel. AHAUIA, _v_. To rejoice, take pleasure in; freq. of _ahuia_. AHUACHIA, _v_. To wet one's self, to bathe. VII, 4. AHUACHTLI, _n_. Dew, moisture. AHUEHUETL, _n_. The cypress tree; _Cupressus disticha_. AHUIA, _v_. To rejoice, to be joyful. AHUIAC, _adj_. Agreeable, pleasant, sweet. AHUIAN, _adj_. Content, satisfied. AHUICPA, _adv_. From one place to another. III, 3. AIC, _adv_. Never. ALTEPETL, _n_. Town, city, citadel. AMECH, _pron. ret_. You, to you. AMEYALLI, _n_. A fountain, a stream; _lit_., flowing water. AMILLI, _n_. Watered and arable land. XIV, 6. AMO, _adv_. No, not; _amo ma_, no other; _amo zannen_, not in vain; _pron_., you, yours. AMOXPETLATL, _n_. Book-mat. See XIX, 3. AMOXTECATL, _n_. See XXV, 8, note. AN, _pron_. You. ANA, _v_. To take, to grasp, to seize. ANAHUIA, _v_. To be dissatisfied. ANCA, _adv_. Of the kind that. XVII, 12. ANE, _adv_. Hollo! in calling. ANGELOTIN, _n_. Angels. Span. XVII, 26. ANO, _adv_. As little, neither. ANOZO, _conj_. Or, perhaps. AOC, _adv_. Not yet. APANA, _v_. To clothe. APANO, _v_. To ford, to cross water. XVIII, 2. AQUEN, _adv_. Nothing, in no manner. AQUIN, _pron_. Who? _in aquin_, he who. AT, _adv_. Perhaps, perchance. ATAYAHUILI, for _at aya ueli_. Not yet, not even. ATIHUELMATI, _v_. Not to be well. IX, 3. ATL, _v_. Water. ATLAMACHTIA, _v_. To praise one; _ref_., to be proud. ATLE, _pron_. Nothing. ATLEY, _in atley_. Without. ATONAUIA, _v_. To have a fever, to be sick. AUH, _conj_. And, even, also. AXALLI, _n_. Bar-sand, water-sand. AY, _v_. pret. _oax_. To do, to make. AYA, _adv_. Not yet, not now. AYACACHTLI, _n_. A musical instrument. See p. 24. AYAHUITL, _n_. Fog, mist, vapor. AYAUH COZAMALOTL, _n_. The rainbow; _lit_., "mist of water jewels." AYOC, _adv_. Already not. _Ayoctle_, nothing more. AYOQUAN, _adv_. Aoc-iuan. Nothing like it, unequaled. XVII, 17. AYOQUIC, _adv_. Nevermore. V, 6. AZAN, _adv_. Not a little, not a few. AZO, _conj_. Or, perhaps, perchance. AZTLACAPALLI, _n_. The tail feathers of a bird. XVII, 10.