What the Mayans say about alux

Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), president of Mexico, shared on social media a photograph of an alleged luxurious. In the image, you can see a figure on a tree, which he thinks could be one of these mythical beings.

The Tabasco politician shared a second photo of a prehispanic sculpture located in the Ek Balam Archaeological Zonein the state of Yucatan. The figure carved in stone would be a representation of an aluxe.

The post sparked controversy on social media, where while some took it humorously, others pointed out that The alux are part of the Mayan worldview. And it is that for this municipality, these little beings are part of the oral tradition and are recognized for their intimate relationship with the nature of which they are the protectors.

The Maya believe that the alux roam the jungle and protect the crops. It is said that his home is the mountain, according to information from the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples (INPI).

In the stories, his appearance is described in various ways, although the descriptions generally agree that he is beings the size of a child between 3 and 4 years old but they have the appearance of old people with beardsaccording to information compiled by academic Nancy Beatriz Villanueva Villanueva.

Regarding their clothing, the stories of the Maya milperos suggest that they use Sneakers, hat, shotgun, tirahule (spring bag)according to Villanueva’s article, titled The design of the alux, according to the children of Mayan origin in Yucatan.

The bone alux son associated with the winds (i’oob in Maya), we therefore think that you can hear them by the noise they makewhen they drop objects or when they throw stones at intruders who enter the lands of which they are the protectors.

In popular belief, permission must be sought from these beings, with rituals and offerings, before beginning to cultivate the land. In exchange for the offerings, the alux are believed to care for the milpas, make them productive, scare off thieves, and even attract rain during the dry season.

Regarding its origin, the National Institute of Indigenous Languages ​​points out that in Mayan legends the aluxes were born when the gods created the beings that inhabit the Earth. During creation, the deities left them unfinished.

The gods forbade the alux from leaving the sky and warned them that if they did, they would turn to stone. However, the tiny beings disobeyed their creators’ orders and when night fell, they fled.

On Earth, the alux were trapped after dawn, they had to hide to avoid being petrified. So they built pyramids in an attempt to reach the sky, until one day sunlight caught them as they worked and they were turned to stone.

Finally the gods forgave them and allowed them to come to life but only at nightso since then, they walk in the jungle at sunset, between noises, laughter and songs.

According to some versions of the role of the alux, they would have been considered as gods (ik’oob) by the first settlers of Yucatan. In the Mayan worldview, these early inhabitants survived a flood thanks to the magical powers of these beings.

While an analysis by historian Mercedes de la Garza Camino suggests that in the Maya of the classical period considered the alux to be beings from another time who succeeded in spiritually transcending those they represented pictographically.