Chichen Itza’s most sensational structure is what is known in Spanish as El Templo de Kukulcan (Temple of Kukulcan), andis also known as The Castle. Can you imagine people built this Pyramid with no modern day tools, not even iron tools to chisel the stone blocks? It is hard to imagine how the rocks were molded into their perfect forms. As you can guess, The Pyramid of Kukulcan is the tallest ruin on site and therefore, the easiest to notice and distinguish. The temple was presumed to be built, according to legend, at around 850 AD with the arrival of Kukulcan and the Itzas.
Who was Kukulcan?
The storie of Kukulcan is of supreme importance to understand the significance of the pyramid. Kukulcan is the Mayan transalation of the word "Quetzalcoatl" in Nahuatl, the language of the Toltecs and it means “Feathered Serpent”. He is said to have been the son of the King Mixcoatl or “Cloud Serpent” and was said to be a warrior in the ancient city of Tollan in the Toltec country of in what is today central Mexico; where the current city of Tula is situated, about 80 Km (50 miles) north of Mexico City.
Kukulcan’s human name was Topiltzin, a warrior prince from Tollan, and it is said that after having slain many foes in battle, he had a spiritual crisis, from which he gave up his profession as a warrior. He left to live in isolation in the wilderness for seven years while attempting to do penance. After doing penance for seven years he had spiritually cleansed himself, and founded a religious community with a group of disciples. It is not really clear how this came about, but it is said that he was asked by the people of Tollan to be their King, and once assuming the role of King, it is said that he ruled with peace and justice, and created fair and lasting laws, pioneered the finest of arts, sciences, architecture, and introduced the religious calendar to match the existing solar calendar. He also set about reforming the religious institutions of this city by attempting to abolish the institution of human sacrifice, emphasizing that to the gods, piety and faithfulness was more important; he is said to have suggested, that instead of sacrificing human beings, butterflies could be a suitable substitute. The god Kukulcan has always been associated with the good life, peaceful serenity, clear thoughts, holiness and piety, as such Topiltzin was recognized as the living incarnation of the god Kukulcan. Kukulcan is the only god among the pantheon of Mayan gods to have had a living human representation. However, according to the story, his rule came to an end, when priests of another god, Tezcatlipoca, intoxicated him and tricked him to defile himself in drunkenness. Tezcatlipoca was the god of night and mischief, and his priests were disturbed by not being able to provide human sacrifices to him, as it was forbidden by Kukulcan. It is said that they were successful in driving Kukulcan out from Tullan. It is at this point, that he arrives in the "Place of the Seven Lineages of Abnal" and renames the place to Chichen Itza, or "Mouth at the Well of the Itza". However, various legends do not agree as to whether the Itza arrived with Kukulcan, or before or after him. Nonetheless according to Mayan traditions, Kukulcan shared power with two other priests, and they ruled the city wisely and justly, and being that the Mayans saw that Kukulcan was full of piety and without wife, but rather pure and chaste, saintly and holy, he came to be very respected amongst them. It is said that it is at this point that the Pyramid of Kukulcan was constructed. However, it is not clear, whether it was constructed in honor of the peaceful priest-king, or the god that he preached of, or whether the Mayas thought they were one and the same (or whether they were actually one and the same!! uuuhh). It is said that he left the city, and later founded Mayapan, another important Mayan city. Finally, one tradition of the legend, holds that, after leaving Mayapan, he returned to central Mexico and then traveled to the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, boarded a raft, and departed to the east, prophesying that he would return on the “Year of the Reed” of the Mayan Calendar, destroy the culture and religion that had forsaken his teachings, and that his sons would rule the land. It is because of that myth, and the coincidental arrival of the Spaniards on that same year, that the Aztecs and Mayans were very worried that Kukulcan was finally returning to fulfill his ancient prophecy. Even more interesting, is the fact that facial hair is not characteristic of Native Americans, and Kukulcan was depicted as being taller, and bearded, two physical features uncharacteristic of the Mesoamerican Native Americans. It is unclear whether the bearded depictions of Kukulcan were of his incarnation as the human Topiltzin, or whether it was a depiction of an earlier original Kukulcan. At any rate, his depiction may indicate that he was of a different race, which just compiles another mystery on top of this interesting legend (some say too bizzare to be false). Further more he is also represented by a man with the skin painted black, long bearded, and wearing a long conical hat (like a magician’s hat).
Nonetheless, whether the legend is true or not, the fact remains that the Pyramid of Kukulcan is full of Toltec artistic styles. If said nation, is said to have brought advanced engineering and artistic skills with them, then no other building exemplifies them more than the Pyramid itself. The Pyramid is of extreme beauty, its aesthetic qualities alone make it stand out from the rest of the structures, it gives you the feeling of serenity and peace, in line with the alleged preaching of Kukulcan. It is no wonder that so many people of the New Wave religious type come here believing that the Pyramid supernaturally provides positive “healing” energies. But its appearance is not the end of its wonderous features, in addition to its aesthetic perfect geometrical form, the construction of the Pyramid is full of symbolic astronomical secrets. The Pyramid contains 91 steps on each of its four sides, totaling 364 steps total, with a final step on top, giving a total of 365 steps, which represents one full solar year. On each side of each stairway it has 9 terraces, with a total of 18 terraces per side, which equals the total months in one full year of the Mayan calendar. On the facing of the terraces, there are 52 panels, which is representative of the 52 year cycle when the solar and religious calendar align and begin a new era. Also sculptures of feathered serpents run down on the side of the northern staircase with the head reclining at the bottom entrance of the stairway, but the sculptures are aligned in such a way, that during the Spring and Fall equinoxes at about 3 P.M, the sunlight illuminates the western balustrade of the stairs, and with a mix of shadow and light, creates seven isosceles triangles that together appear to form the body of a 37 yard long serpent, that as the Sun moves, it gives the impression that is creeping down (during the Spring equinox) or creeping up (during the Fall equinox) the stairway, as a living serpent, and serves to mark the only two days in the year when night and day are of equal duration (not to mention that its an extraordinary special effect). Another interesting detail, is the acoustic engineering of the Pyramid, if you stand right in front of the Pyramid, and clap really loud, the echo of the clap, will return transformed as the sound of a crowing eagle, or possibly the crow of the feathered Quetzal bird, from which Kukulcan’s name is formed. Also if you stand on top of the pyramid, your voice is amplified and projected, such that you can have a normal conversation with your peers, without needing to raise your voice, when they are 150 feet away. This feature shows a mastery of acoustic engineering on behalf of the Toltec-Itza-Maya people. On top of the 71 feet pyramid stands a Jaguar Throne, which is painted red and encrusted with Jade spots. The purpose of this throne could have served for the reigning Priest-King to sit upon, or it could have served the additional purpose of consecrating rulers of other cities. It is said, that rulers of other regions, came to Chichen Itza to have their noses pierced with a turquoise ornament that legitimize their right to rule. It is not far fetched to imagine that the foreign rulers ascended the stairs of this Pyramid to meet the reigning Priest where the visiting ruler’s power would be consecrated. Given all the interesting scientific and engineering achievements exposed above, and the predominately Toltec style of the Pyramid, can we say that the Pyramid itself is the largest piece of evidence that the legend of the exiled priest Kukulcan is true?
The Pyramid of Kukulcan Today
Today the Pyramid has two sides reconstructed, while the other two sides were purposely left as they were found, in order to show their original ruined state. Also, previoulsy you were allowed to climb the stairs to the top of the Pyramid, until recently in 2006, when a Californian women fell from the Pyramid and killed herself, and that previlage was taken away because of concerns to the visitors. In 2007 the Pyramid was named as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and since then the site has been bombarded by tourists, so if visiting, come here early and plan on staying overnight!
A wonders of a lifetime awaits you, so what are you waiting for?
