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Show ji6 BOOK VI. ~ ·. H I S T 0 R Y 0 /P M' E X I C o·. ~ mzd impurity, andfree t,~eefrom evil fortune: nnd then turning to the child, {he fpoke to it thus : Lovely child, the gods OmeteucUi and Omecihuatl have created thee in the highf}t place of heavm, in order to jend thee into the world; but kno~o that .. th:· l!fe on. ~~ich thou ~rt mtenng t's fad, painful, and full of zmeq/mejs and mijerzes: nor 'lCJTI! tbott he able to eat tby bread 'i.oitbout labour: j\1ay God q/Jz]l t bee in tbu mczny ndver:ftties ~ohicb moait thee. This ceremony was concluded with congratulations to the parents and relations of the child. If jt was the fon of the king, or of any great lord, the chief of his fubjeets came t congratulate the father. and to wi01 the highefi profperity to hi s, child (k). When the fidl: bathing, was done, the diviners were confulted con-· cerning the fortune 'of the child, for which purpofe they wer(.; informed of the day and hour . of_ its birth. They coniidered the nature of t gn of that day, ·and the ruling fign of that period of thirteen days to which it belon,ged, and: :if it was born at midnight, two figns conettrred, that is, the fign of ~f day which was juil: concluding, and that of the day which was jui\i ·beginning. After having made their obfervations, they pronounced the good.....or bad fortune of the child. If it was bad, and if the fifth day after its birth-day, on which the fecond bathing was ufually performed, was one of the dies t'nfaufli, the ceremony was pofipcmed uo..til a more favourable occaJion. To the fecond bathing, which was a more folemn rite,. all the relations and friends,, and fome young boys were invited j and if the parents were in good circumfiances, they gave great entertainments, and 1nadc prefents of apparel to all the guefis. If the father of the child was a military perfon, he prepared fot· this. ceremony a little bow, four arrows,. and a little habit, refembling_ in mi\ke that which the child, when grown up, would we;tr.. If he was a Cq,l.,lntry;nan, or an artifi, U) In Guntemnla, nnd other furroundin~ provinces, the births of male children were cclc), rated with much fol~mnity and fuperflition , As foon as the fon wns born a turkey was f.'lcrificcd. The bat~1ing was pcrform~cl in fomc fountain, or river, where they made oblntionB of co pal,. and fa~nficcs ~f pnrr?ts. The navel llring was cut up011 an car of maize, and with a new kn1fe, whtch ~vas 1mmedwr~ly after ca!l: into the river. Thry fowcd the feeds nf that ear, and :tttcnded to Its growth With the utmoft cnre, ns if it had been a f:tcrecl thing. Wh:tt w.n11 reaped from this feed was divided into three parts;· one of which was given to the di· vmcr ; ~f anorl,1er parr t!,cy made pap for the child, and the l'cfr was prcfcrv.ed utltil the fume child ihould be old en.ottgh to be able to fo.v it. 9 H I S T 0 R Y 0 F M E X I C 0. he prepared fome inftruments belonging to his art, proportioned in Jize to the infancy of the child. If the child was a girl, they furnilhed a little habit, fuitable to her fex, a fmall fpindle, and fome other little infiruments for weaving. They lighted a great number of torches, and the ,rnidwitc taking up the child, carried it through all the yard of the· houfe, and placed it upon a heap of the leaves of fword grafs, clofe by a bafon of water, which was prepared in the middle of the yard, and then undrefiing it, faid: My child, the godsOmemeteucHiandOmecihuat], lordJ of heaven, have Jent thee to this difmal and calamitous world. Receive this 'Water which is to- give thee life. And after wetting its mouth, head, apd breafi, with forms- Jimilat· to thofe of the .firft bathing, !he bathed its whole body, and rubbing every one of its limbs,. faid, Where art thou ill Fortune? In what limb art thou hid? Go far from this child. Having fpoke this, fue raifed up the ch'ld, to ofler it to the gods, praying them to adorn it with every virtu The firll prayer was offered to the tWo gods before named, the fecond to the· goddefs of water, the third to all the gods together, and the fourth to the fun and the earth. roufon, fhe faid, fath er ofa/1 things tbat.live-upon the eartb, our mother, receive this child, and proteB him as your own jon ; mzd jince be is born for war (if his fc1.ther belonged to the army) .... may be die in it,. deftnding the honour of the gods; jo may he enjoy ill heaven the delights rwhich are prepared for all thqfe -who jacrijt'ee their lives in Jo good a cau_p. She then put in his little hands the inil:rllments of' that art which he was to exercife, with a pr~yer addreiled to the proteCting god of the fame. The infl:rumt::nts of the military ar1: were buried in !orne fie1ds,. where, in future, it was imagined the boy would fighr in battle, and the female infiruments were buried in the houfe itidf, under the 11:one for grinding maize: On this· fame occafion, if we are to credit Boturini, they obferved the ceremony of paffing the boy four times through the fire Before they put the infiruments of any art into the hands of the C'hild, the midwife requefied the young boys who had been invited, to give him a name, which was generally fuch a name as had been fuggefl:ed to them by the father. The midwife then clothed him, and laid him lll the cozoUt~ or cradle, praying Joalticit1, . the goddef~ of cradles, to w.ar.m. 317 BOOK VI. ~ " |
