Muisca mythology refers to the pre-Columbian beliefs of the Muisca indigenous people of the Cordillera Oriental highlands of the Andes in the vicinity of Bogotá, Colombia, about the origin and organization of the universe. Their belief system may be described as a polytheistic spirituality based on an epistemology of mysticism.
Bague (“the Grandmother”) is a non-material principle of creation, the will, the thought and the imagination of all the things to come. She is a similar concept to the principle of tao in the Chinese mythology.
The time of unquyquie nxie (“the first thought”) is the time of the cosmic origin, when the thoughts of Bague became actions. This is the time when Bague created the builders of the universe and ordered them to create.
Builders[edit]
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The first gods, constructors of the universe, built the first cuca or ceremonial temple. They were: [6 in number, cf: Zoroastrians]
- Bachué (“The one with the naked breasts”): the mother goddess who raised from the underworld to give birth to the human race.
- The goddess Bachué (from the Chibcha language "the one with the naked breast"), is a mother goddess that according with the muiscacolombian mythology is the mother of humanity. She emerged of the waters in the Lake Iguaque with a baby in her arms, who grew to become her husband and populate the earth. She received worshipping in a temple, in the area now occupied by the town of San Pedro de Iguaque.
- Cuza (“The one who is like the night”): the male principle of creation
- Chibchachum (“The one who holds the earth”): the universal legislator
- Bochica (“The father of civilization”) also called Nemqueteba, Nemquereteba, Sadigua, Chimizapagua
- Nem-catacoa ("The protector of festivities, beer, and the arts")
- Chiminigagua: trinity deity, constituted by Chí, Chímini and Chiminigagua.
The gods danced a very long dance (sas quyhynuca), with the music of the fo drum, in the first ceremony. This ceremony gave origin to space and time.
Then, the gods created the first materials of the universe: fiva (the air), faova (the cosmic cloud) and ie (the smoke). Then, they created the six directions of the material dimension, and in the middle of itugue, the emptiness, they created the centre of power tomsa (bellybutton of the universe). But, still the universe had no consistence, and they waited many bxogonoas aeons until the sas bequia, the beginning of the world.
Beginning of the world[edit]
The world started with Chimi (“the pulp”), the first material object in the world. Then, in the inners of tomsa, were incubated the embryos of stars, embryos of land and embryos of stone. When tomsa was full, the seeds of the earth emerged and the remains were thrown away, forming the Milky Way.
The elements were distributed to the deities: the heat to Sua – the sun, the cold to Chía – the moon, and the clouds and smoke to the Earth, but all the things were still seeds and nothing was germinated. Then, Mnya,gold, energy, was united with Chimi, the pulp, and became Chímini, the creative force, which caused the germination of the seeds of all things.
Origin of mankind[edit]
According to the muisca legend, the mankind was originated in the Iguaque lake, when the goddess Bachué came out from the lake with a boy in her arms. When the boy grew, they populated the earth. They are considered the ancestors of the human race (Incest). finally, they disappeared unto the lake in the shape of snakes.
Iguaque is a sacred place to the indigenous people. According to Muisca legend, the mankind was originated in the Iguaque lake, when the goddess Bachué came out from the lake with a boy in her arms. When the boy grew, they populated the earth. They are considered the ancestors of the human race. finally, they disappeared unto the lake in the shape of snakes.
Iguaque is a sacred place to the indigenous people. According to Muisca legend, the mankind was originated in the Iguaque lake, when the goddess Bachué came out from the lake with a boy in her arms. When the boy grew, they populated the earth. They are considered the ancestors of the human race. finally, they disappeared unto the lake in the shape of snakes.
Great flood[edit]
Due to transgressions against the divine laws, Chibchachum brought forth a flood that covered the world and nearly destroyed the human race. Then, the protective god Bochica drove away the waters through theTequendama Falls, and taught humans the basis of civilization, agriculture, religion, the arts, and crafts. When he was about to leave to his heavenly kingdom, the rainbow appeared and Bochica announced his second coming, far away in the future, in an event marked by death and disease. These events are similar to the biblical histories of Genesis and Apocalypse.
EL-DORADO
South American concept
Also known as ELDORADO
The Golden Man of Legendary Wealth — and his even more legendary City of Gold.
In what is now Colombia, the Chibcha tribe were minding their own business by the mystical lake Guatavita and reveling in their ceremony of the Golden Man. A tribal and spiritual leader was chosen to be anointed with fragrant oil and have gold dust puffed over him from a tube until he was awe-inspiringly glittery.
Then with much ritual and votive golden offerings and golden oldie music he was rowed on a golden raft to the middle of the lake. At this point reports vary, from his performing aquabatics until the gold was washed off and the Gods of the Lake placated, to his putting on a new gold suit every day.
Meanwhile, Gold Lust was running rife throughout Europe. Jungles — and a very dodgy knowledge of geography — notwithstanding, Conquistadors and Germanic mercenaries poured into South America.
The Pizarro mob had already sacked the Incas. When the opportunists blundered and plundered their way through Colombia in the mid 1500’s, they heard about the Golden Man.
The locals told them the gold came from where the salt was. And the Chibcha people were very rich in salt having their very own salt mountain. In their eyes this was very precious stuff which they traded for gold further north. So they used gold the way we use plastic.
Would the greedmongers believe this? Not a chance. They pillaged and tortured and silly rumors ran rife that somewhere there must be a Golden City they called EL-DORADO — the Golden One.
Vast fortunes were squandered in hopeless expeditions to find the place — and when explorer Francisco de Orellana claimed to have found traces of the place in 1541, the legend became unbreakable. The fantasy persisted with wilder and wilder speculations, and even Francis Drake came to an untimely end over idiotic Gold Rush theories.
Meanwhile, Gold Lust was running rife throughout Europe. Jungles — and a very dodgy knowledge of geography — notwithstanding, Conquistadors and Germanic mercenaries poured into South America.
The Pizarro mob had already sacked the Incas. When the opportunists blundered and plundered their way through Colombia in the mid 1500’s, they heard about the Golden Man.
The locals told them the gold came from where the salt was. And the Chibcha people were very rich in salt having their very own salt mountain. In their eyes this was very precious stuff which they traded for gold further north. So they used gold the way we use plastic.
Would the greedmongers believe this? Not a chance. They pillaged and tortured and silly rumors ran rife that somewhere there must be a Golden City they called EL-DORADO — the Golden One.
Vast fortunes were squandered in hopeless expeditions to find the place — and when explorer Francisco de Orellana claimed to have found traces of the place in 1541, the legend became unbreakable. The fantasy persisted with wilder and wilder speculations, and even Francis Drake came to an untimely end over idiotic Gold Rush theories.
But the Golden Man had the last laugh as just about all the greedy invaders came to nasty or impoverished ends. The opportunists never got to grips with the emeralds either. These abounded in Chibcha territory, but were believed by the chasers of golden dreams to have been imported from elsewhere. Sometimes you need to take exaggerated stories with a pinch of salt.
CHIA
South American Evil Goddess
Also known as CHIÁ
Evil Moon Goddess
Wife of BOCHICA.
Identified with HUITACA, the drunken Goddess of Bad Behavior, she is believed to have caused a number of floods — possibly in association with CHIBCHACHUM.
As punishment for her crimes against humanity, she was transformed into the Moon. Or — if you prefer a different version of the legend — an owl. Or possibly the owl in the moon, or an owl that moons.
She was known to be on friendly terms with CHIBCHACHUM, but the rumor mill has long since closed down.
As punishment for her crimes against humanity, she was transformed into the Moon. Or — if you prefer a different version of the legend — an owl. Or possibly the owl in the moon, or an owl that moons.
She was known to be on friendly terms with CHIBCHACHUM, but the rumor mill has long since closed down.
See also[edit]
- El Dorado, a legend that grew out of a Muisca ritual
- Guarani mythology
- Lake Iguaque, a lake involved in creation, in the mythology of the Muisca
- Lake Guatavita, a sacred ceremonial lake of the Muisca
El Dorado (pronounced: [el doˈɾaðo], English /ˌɛl dəˈrɑːdoʊ/; Spanish for "the golden one"), originally El Hombre Dorado (the golden man), El Indio Dorado (the golden Indian), or El Rey Dorado (the golden king), is the term used by Europeans to describe a tribal chief of the Muisca native people of Colombia, South America, who as an initiation rite, covered himself with gold dust and dived into Lake Guatavita. Imagined as a place, El Dorado went from a city to a kingdom and an empire of this legendary golden king. In pursuit of the legend, Spanish conquistadors Francisco Orellana and Gonzalo Pizarro departed from Quito (now capital of Ecuador) in 1541 in an expedition towards the Amazon Basin, as a result of which Orellana became the first known person to navigate the entire length of the Amazon River.
A second location for El Dorado was inferred from rumors, which inspired several unsuccessful expeditions in the late 1500s into Venezuela, Guiana, and northern Brazil in search of a city called Manõa on the shores of Lake Parime. The most famous of these expeditions were led by Sir Walter Raleigh.
El Dorado or Eldorado is now the name of numerous places, especially mining towns, in South America, the United States and elsewhere, as well as the name of many films and TV shows, pieces of music, sports teams, and other items.
Muisca indigenous people[edit]
Main articles: Muisca people and Muisca mythology
The Muisca occupied the highlands of Cundinamarca and Boyacá departments of Colombia in two migrations from outlying lowland areas, one starting ~1270BCE, and a second between 800BCE and 500BCE. At those times, other more ancient civilizations also flourished in the highlands.
In the mythology of the Muisca, Mnya the Gold or golden color, represents the energy contained in the trinity of Chiminigagua, which constitutes the creative power of everything that exists.[1] Chiminigagua is, along with Bachué, Cuza, Chibchacum, Bochica, and Nemcatacoa, one of the creators of the universe.
The tribal ceremony[edit]
The original narrative can be found in the rambling chronicle, El Carnero, of Juan Rodriguez Freyle. According to Freyle, the king or chief priest of the Muisca, in a ritual at Lake Guatavita near present-dayBogotá was said to be covered with gold dust which he then washed off in the lake while his attendants threw trinkets made of gold, emeralds and precious stones into the lake.
In 1638, Freyle wrote this account of the ceremony, addressed to the cacique or governor of Guatavita:[Note 1][2]