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36-480: The term "Xtab" was used to refer to an ancient Maya goddess Ixtab , the goddess of suicide by hanging or the gallows. According to Perez' Lexicon of the Maya Language , "Ix" is the feminine prefix, and "tab", "taab", and "tabil" translate to "rope intended for some exclusive use." Ixtab was seen as a benevolent goddess who acted as a psychopomp to whoever hung themselves, leading them to paradise, as suicide

72-525: A Ceiba tree after overtaking his empire. The town of Chiapa de Corzo , Chiapas , Mexico was founded in 1528 by the Spanish around La Pochota, Ceiba pentandra , according to tradition. Founded in 1838, the Puerto Rican town of Ceiba is also named after this tree. The Honduran city of La Ceiba founded in 1877 was named after a particular Ceiba tree that grew down by the old docks. In 1898,

108-608: A ceiba tree (a sacred tree in Maya culture) and is said to comb her hair with the spines of the Tzacam cactus. She lures men deep into the forest, making them lost and disoriented before having sex with them. Once they have had sex, Xtabay transforms into a poisonous serpent and devours them. In other versions of the myth, the Xtabay can appear in any form or sex she chooses in order to lure a person to their doom. Xtabay will lie in wait under

144-435: A funeral for her and, soon afterward, a mysterious, sweet-smelling flower grew around her grave, for Xkeban had metamorphosed into the species of morning glory called, in the Maya language, xtabentún , ( Ipomoea corymbosa ( Convolvulaceae )). Xtabentún is a lax, clambering vine that sprawls through hedges, scenting the air with its festoons of delicate white trumpets, and it is said that the reason that it seeks such shelter

180-506: A huge, spreading canopy, and buttress roots that can be taller than a grown person. The best-known, and most widely cultivated, species is Kapok, Ceiba pentandra , one of several trees known as kapok . Ceiba is a word from the Taíno language meaning "boat" because Taínos use the wood to build their dugout canoes . Ceiba species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera ( butterfly and moth ) species, including

216-559: A lunar eclipse and its dire consequences for women, who were intimately associated with the moon goddess. It has been claimed that the Pre-Spanish Maya did not have a suicide goddess, or a significant narrative of suicide by hanging. Originally, Ix Tab may only have been a hunting goddess (see above, Comparisons ). Today, the sensationalist idea of a "cult of Ix Tab" appears to be invoked by popular Yucatecan media to portray suicide as an indigenous problem, given that Yucatán has

252-426: A place of danger. The Xtabay is known for her long black hair falling past her shoulders that she combs with the spines of the tzacam cactus. Mayan culture places great importance on keeping hair long and healthy, however, humid weather and long work days make this difficult, so the hair of working women is usually kept drawn back from the face. Xtabay's hair contrasts the typical hairstyle of Mayan women but represents

288-539: A suicide rate more than twice that of Mexico at large. Ceiba 19, see text Ceiba is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae , native to tropical and subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to northern Argentina ) and tropical West Africa . Some species can grow to 70 m (230 ft) tall or more, with a straight, largely branchless trunk that culminates in

324-482: A tree to seduce her victim before throwing them over a cliff and finally ripping out their heart. An alternative version of the legend, particularly in Quintana Roo , states that Xtabay is the punisher of drunks, thieves, and violent criminals. Despite her promiscuous nature and the resulting ill-treatment by her community, Xkeban helped those around her, which ultimately made her worthy of being transformed into

360-540: A warm heart whereas Utz-colel had a cold heart. Even in death, when Utz-colel wanted to experience life again, she was unable to overcome her envy and loveless heart. The ceiba tree is a sacred tree of the Mayan people since the belief was that a virtuous person could become a ceiba tree after death. The ceiba tree is considered to be an embodiment of the Axis mundi , connecting heaven , earth and underworld . Xtabay subverts

396-432: A warning against the dangers of marital infidelity in the modern world, Xtabay's victims being generally husbands who have ventured from their homes at night to drink alcohol and seek the attention of other women. The myth is used by both parents and grandparents to impress early upon the young the need to resist the temptations they will face in adulthood to go out drinking at night and cheat on their partners. The legend of

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432-424: A woman again so that she too might become a beautiful flower in death, but, incapable of love and motivated only by jealousy and rage, she became instead the demon Xtabay, outwardly a beautiful woman but inwardly cruel and predatory of heart. Xtabay is said to wear a white dress and to have large black eyes and long black hair down to her ankles which she uses to attract men who are out late at night. She waits behind

468-416: Is a seductive female demon "ensnaring" or "deceiving" her male human preys so as to madden and destroy them. The Dresden Codex picture (DC53b) of a dead woman with a rope around the neck, suspended from a celestial bar, is often, and without further proof, taken to represent Ix Tab. However, since the picture occurs in a section devoted to eclipses of sun and moon, it may rather have been used to symbolize

504-481: Is an important element in the history of the city. The towering specimen near the town of Sabalito , Costa Rica , is a relict tree called "la ceiba" by residents and a survivor of one of the highest terrestrial rates of tropical deforestation. Ceiba pentandra produces a light and strong fiber ( kapok ) used throughout history to fill mattresses, pillows, tapestries, and dolls. Kapok has recently been replaced in commercial use by synthetic fibers. The Ceiba tree seed

540-431: Is continuous with all of the different versions of the myth of the Xtabay. The fear of death in the myth relies on the capability of the dead to cause harm to the living and the belief that the dead have hostile intentions. In La Xtabay , the symbolism of the human heart is often repeated throughout the myth, as both Xkeban's and Utz-colel's personalities are described based on the type of "heart" they possessed. Xkeban had

576-475: Is cursed to look for them along the rivers and call to them endlessly. People who look at La Malinche have their necks stuck in the position in which they looked at her and must be cured by a curandero (healer). Ixtab At the time of the Spanish conquest of Yucatán (1527–1546), Ix Tab or Ixtab ([iʃˈtaɓ]; "Rope Woman", "Hangwoman") was the indigenous Maya goddess of suicide by hanging . Playing

612-562: Is that it is defenseless (it has no thorns)—just as Xkeban had felt defenseless when she was human. This flower is used for a liqueur of the same name. Ipomoea corymbosa was also one of the most celebrated entheogens of the Aztecs , who knew the plant under the Nahuatl name coaxihuitl and its psychoactive seeds as ololiúqui ("round things") and, to this day, the seeds are still used to induce healing trances in curing rituals performed by

648-472: Is the female form of ah tab , "hangman". The function of Ix Tab as a benevolent "hangwoman" could derive from a basic association with snares. Landa (Tozzer 1941: 155) mentions the hunting deity [ Ah ] Tabay ("Ensnarer" or "Deceiver"), possibly a patron of hunting with snares, including such that hoist the prey into the air. Animals hoisted by such snares are found depicted in the Dresden and Madrid codices,

684-499: Is the historic Ceiba de Ponce, a 500-year-old Ceiba pentandra tree associated with the founding of the city. In the surroundings of the legendary Ceiba de Ponce, broken pieces of indigenous pottery, shells, and stones were found to confirm the presence of Taino Indians long before the Spaniards that later settled in the area. In 1525, Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés ordered the hanging of Aztec emperor Cuauhtemoc from

720-574: Is used to extract oils used to make soap and fertilizers. The Ceiba continues to be commercialized in Asia, especially in Java , Malaysia , Indonesia and the Philippines. Ceiba pentandra is the central theme in the book titled, The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry . Ceiba insignis and Ceiba speciosa are added to some versions of the hallucinogenic drink Ayahuasca . Pablo Antonio Cuadra ,

756-614: The Zapotecs . Utz-colel haughtily believed that her dead body would smell better than Xkeban's because of her purity, however, her dead body had an unbearable smell. The entire pueblo gathered for her funeral, and they put flowers around her grave that disappeared the next day. Utz-colel became the foul-smelling flower of the Tzacam cactus ( Mammillaria columbiana ssp. yucatanensis or Mammillaria heyderi ssp. gaumeri ). Utz-colel prayed to evil spirits who fulfilled her desire to become

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792-689: The Classical Period on cylindrical ceramic burial urns or incense holders. Modern Maya still often respectfully leave the tree standing when harvesting forest timber. The Ceiba tree is represented by a cross and serves as an important architectural motif in the Temple of the Cross Complex at Palenque . Ceiba Tree Park is located in San Antón , in Ponce, Puerto Rico . Its centerpiece

828-459: The Llorona legend are told throughout Mexico and because of the Llorona figure can be pitied and feared at the same time. Throughout all of the versions, the Llorona figure is known as "the white lady" because she wears white. Legends similar to La Llorona include La Malinche and La Xtabay. La Malinche was said to have three sons by three different men, and she drowned her three lovers, but now

864-521: The Madrid codex (MC45c) personifying one of these traps by a male hunting deity. Ix Tab could be understood as a specialized, female form of such a deity, luring the human quarry into the hanging rope personified by her. Suicides freely putting their heads into this "snare" (prompted, perhaps, by a dream) could then be seen to consecrate themselves to her. On the other hand, the Xtabay of contemporary folklore

900-829: The Spanish Army in Cuba surrendered to the United States under a Ceiba , which was named the Santiago Surrender Tree , outside of Santiago de Cuba . Ceiba is also the national tree of Guatemala . The most important Ceiba in Guatemala is known as La Ceiba de Palín Escuintla which is over 400 years old. In Caracas , Venezuela there is a 100-year-old ceiba tree in front of the San Francisco Church known as La Ceiba de San Francisco and

936-458: The Xtabay has influenced music. Les Baxter's album Voice of the Xtabay by Peruvian soprano Yma Sumac depicts the lure of the xtabay in her music. Xtabay has been compared to the Churel of Indian folklore. There are many similarities to the legend of La Llorona , a ghost who is said to wander Mexico searching for her children and luring away any living children she comes across. Variants of

972-465: The culture's ideal of beauty. Utz-colel was known for her purity because she abstained from sexual relations. In Mayan culture, women are encouraged to be modest and abstain from sexual intercourse until marriage. Women symbolize purity and are taught not to talk to men by themselves. If a Mayan woman does not follow these cultural expectations, she can be condemned for her actions. Xkeban was shamed and humiliated by her community because she did not follow

1008-524: The goddess of the gallows [ la diosa de la horca ], whom they called Ix Tab, would bring them. Beyond this description, there is only a very brief and somewhat obscure mention of Ix Tab in the Book of Chilam Balam of Tizimin and in the Pérez Codex, in a context of chaos, suffering, and hangings: "They suspended Ix Tab from their hands", or, alternatively, "Ix Tab suspended them from her hands". Ix Tab

1044-580: The jungle. The Ceiba, or ya’axché (in the Mopan Mayan language), symbolised to the Maya civilization an axis mundi which connects the planes of the Underworld ( Xibalba ) and the sky with that of the terrestrial realm. This concept of a central world tree is often depicted as a Ceiba trunk. The unmistakable thick conical thorns in clusters on the trunk were reproduced by the southern lowland Maya of

1080-513: The leaf-miner Bucculatrix ceibae , which feeds exclusively on the genus. Recent botanical opinion incorporates Chorisia within Ceiba and puts the genus as a whole within the family Malvaceae . The tree plays an important part in the mythologies of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures. In addition, several Amazonian tribes of eastern Peru believe deities live in Ceiba tree species throughout

1116-460: The poor, sick, and animals in need. In contrast to Xkeban, Utz-colel was cold-hearted and believed she was superior to those around her, especially those socially below her. The townspeople adored Utz-colel because of her celibacy and overlooked her cruelty. Several days after Xkeban's death, the townspeople discovered her body guarded by animals and surrounded by fragrant flowers. The homeless and poor, whom Xkeban had helped during her life, held

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1152-587: The role of a psychopomp , she would accompany such suicides to heaven . The only description of the goddess occurs in the Relación of the 16th-century Spanish inquisitor Diego de Landa : They said also and held it as absolutely certain that those who hanged themselves went to this heaven of theirs; and on this account, there were many persons who on slight occasions of sorrows, troubles or sickness, hanged themselves in order to escape these things and to go and rest in their heaven [ gloria ], where they said that

1188-494: The traditional expectation for woman's behaviour. Xtabay lures men with seduction, which is against the traditional Mayan culture. The legend of Xtabay is part of contemporary Maya culture , as myths influence current beliefs. In the Yucatán peninsula, the word Xtabay illustrates undesirable behavior in women and men, and the legend is used by mothers and grandmothers to inculcate good behaviour in children. The myth also serves as

1224-404: The traditional meaning of the ceiba tree since she hides behind it to lure her victims to their doom. It said in the legend that the ceiba roots are where all the men the Xtabay has taken from earth go and that not a single one has ever returned from them. It has been suggested that Christian colonialists corrupted the original legend by altering the meaning of the ceiba tree from a sacred tree into

1260-449: The xtabentún flower. In contrast, Utz-colel believed she was virtuous because of her sexual purity and her community’s resulting kind treatment, but was also haughty and unkind to the downtrodden. The moral of the legend is that celibacy and outward virtue can lead the unwary into the sin of pride and count for little unless governed by a kind heart (inner beauty) capable of compassion for those less fortunate than oneself. The theme of death

1296-570: Was considered an honorable way of dying. Two equally beautiful women, Xkeban and Utz-colel, lived in a village or pueblo in the Yucatán Peninsula . Sometimes the women are said to be sisters. Xkeban was treated poorly by her community for her promiscuous behavior while Utz-colel was considered virtuous for remaining celibate. The people of the village planned to exile Xkeban, but they decided to allow her to remain in order to further humiliate her. Despite her ill treatment, Xkeban tended to

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