House of Darkness

“This isn’t a bench for us. It is merely a heated stone,” said Hunahpu and
Xbalanque. Thus they were not defeated.

“Very well then, just go into that house,” they were told.

So then they entered into the House of Darkness. But they were not defeated there
either. In their hearts, the Xibalbans ordained that they would be defeated there in this,
the first of the trials of Xibalba.

Thus they entered first into the House of Darkness. There the messenger of One
Death gave to them a torch, already burning, and a cigar for each of them. And the
messenger said when he arrived:

“Thus says the lord: ‘Here is their torch. It must be given back at dawn along with
the cigars. They must return them.’”

“Very well,” they replied.

But they didn’t light the torch. They just placed the red tail feather of a macaw on
it as a substitute for flame. Thus the night watchmen saw it as if it were burning.

As for the cigars, they just put fireflies on their tips. All night they would glow
brilliantly because of them.

“We have defeated them,” said the night watchmen.

But the torch was not used up, for it was only an illusion. Neither did the cigars
have anything burning on them. It was merely an illusion as well. Thus they returned
them whole to the lords:

“What becomes of them? Where did they come from? Who begat them? Who
gave them birth? Truly our hearts are troubled, for it is not good what they are doing to
us. Their appearance as well as their nature are unique,” they said one to another.

Then they summoned all of the lords:

“Let us play ball, boys,” they were told.

But first they were questioned by One Death and Seven Death:

“Where did you really come from? Would you tell us, boys?” they were asked by
the Xibalbans.

“We must have come from somewhere, but we don’t know.” Only this they said.
They told them nothing.

“Very well then. We will just go and play ball,378 boys,” the Xibalbans said to
them.


- Popol Vuh