The Legend of Tumparenta

The Legend of Tumparenta, written by Antonio Paredes Candia, translated by Andrea Piaget.

I  

To drink from the fountains of our untainted folklore is enough to be astounded by our people's beauty, fantasy, and creative desire. At any national latitude, man is a potential artist. Oral literature from all places is significant. It would be adventurous to assert that the Kolla myth, the Eastern legend, the Quichua tale, or the Chapaca Copla is better. They all bear a seal of singularity according to the region to which they belong. The popular saying repeats: "As a sample, a button," and it is here, for you, an expansive reader, that I transmit a legend of unparalleled fantasy, created in the eastern Bolivian fields and belonging to the Chiriguano tribe.  

II  

It occurred in a time so remote that even the Chiriguano elders said it was the beginning of man's existence on earth. A Chiriguano, a lover of his home, lost his beloved daughter and his wife in a short time. There was no more space within to hold his pain, and the despair began eating away at his spirit. Nobody and nothing would replace the loss. Friends and family to distract his pain, taking him on long hunts, urging him to participate in men's jousts, wandering in the nearby rivers, searching for exotic flowers and medicinal herbs in the forests; the unhappy widower, when the toil of work had passed, sadder than ever he began to cry, tormenting his body with fasting, the hair shirt, or the whip.   

Tumpa, his God, pitying the man's suffering and transforming into a little old man with a meek speech and tender gaze, descended to earth and approached the anguished Chiriguano, "What is the cause of your inconsolable crying?" The Chiriguano, fixing his gaze on the old man's figure, responded, "Oh! Sweet old man, I cry because no one on earth has had to lose two loved ones in such a short time. My kind wife and my cheerful daughter, whose laughter filled my days with joy, have died. Tell me if my crying is dull." "No'" the old man spoke, "Man's cry is never in vain, but you surely ignore where your loved ones are, whom you consider lost. You must know that they are enjoying themselves; they are in a place of delight, where everything is sweet, there is no longer any suffering, where they drink daily, and there is always a party, where there is no poverty, no cold, no heat, no illness.  

"Your words fill my heart with comfort, but tell me, kind old man, where is this wonderful place? Maybe I can visit it to calm my sorrow?" "Yes," the strange visitor responded. "I have come to guide you. You will see their happiness, and you will understand that they are happier than on earth, but I warn you that, before arriving, like all mortals, you will have to go through four tests that you will easily overcome in my company." The Chiriguano accepted and prepared to walk. The old man made a sign as if to say: Don't hurry; we must prepare for the trip. Then he spoke. "You must wear your best clothes and get two fast and vigorous horses; the walk will be long." The afflicted Indian, eager to see his beloved wife again, promptly dressed in the best clothes he had, adorned his body, painted his face with Urucú, bixa orellana, placed the Itogüi on his throat, and collanas, grabbed his spear and set off in pursuit of the strange and mysterious driver.  

III  

They left one morning mounted on two horses, the older man's white one without any stains on his coat and the midnight black one the Chiriguano had ridden. They galloped until the sun was vertical over the earth, crossing strange landscapes: forests of ash-colored mosses that shudder the soul, rocky places with countless waterfalls whose falling waters formed rare and captivating melodies. They stopped where they could hear the silence. Thus, they made the first day without any incident and arranged their accommodation in a green and beautiful plain, where fragrant flowers and gigantic trees grew that, with their leafy crown, provided shelter to an infinite number of birds. There, they slept very peacefully without their sleep being disturbed by vermin from the neighboring forests, and the next day, early in the morning, they continued the fabulous journey. At the end of the extensive plain where they had taken shelter, the old man spoke, "Get ready to save the first test as we are approaching." The air was filled with a pungent smell, and a light drizzle of ash swirled around the travelers.  

At last, the obstacle presented itself; it was a formidable bonfire that rose to the clouds and descended again with haste. Every time it got up, it formed an arc that allowed a hasty step. Both riders rained in their horses, waiting for the right moment, and when the bonfire fell again and formed the circle, they dug their heels into their flanks, and the horses crossed the obstacle with an open blow, like dizzying arrows. And they continued galloping through carbonized bushes and a fine rain of ash. The sun was setting in the west when the air thinned, and the day was about to end. "Let's hurry up today; you must pass the second test," the old man ordered. The Indian, silent, urged the trot of his horse. Soon, they were in front of two elevated rocks, in the middle of which a lagoon kept its waters bustling. Redish was the color, and thick was the liquid; the bubbles that rose when boiling splattered hot lava around. The old man spoke to the horses, begging them to take a gigantic step to cross over the incandescent lagoon. The beasts understood the request, retreated a kilometer, and galloped away, achieving a jump so high that the rocks seemed tiny. And there they finished the day of the first two tests, spending the night in a silent forest where the horses and knights rested from the difficult tasks.

IV  

They woke up to the clear dawn and the fresh morning breeze that announced a beautiful day; the little birds of the forests with their sweet and soft trills livened up the solitudes, and the jaguar in flight showed its displeasure at having been disturbed. "The day will be hard," the old man spoke, "today depends on whether you can visit your loved ones tomorrow. If you pass both tests, we will set foot on Tumparenta, the heaven of the Chiriguanos who were generous when they were on earth and had clean hearts, at dawn tomorrow. Tumparenta is the place they now live in for all eternity." The Chiriguano was filled with wonder and melancholy, "Let's leave, sweet old man, I feel the urge to hug my loved ones. No treasure or earthly good can reward you for the good you do to this poor mortal. Without saying more words, they mounted their horses and left hurriedly. At dusk, they heard a terrible intermittent roar. After a bend, they stopped in front of two cyclopean rocks that, in continuous movement, opened and closed, producing a sound as loud and terrifying as if the earth were sinking.  

The Indian gathered his strength and looked at the old man questioningly. He advised him to try to pass the moment when the rocks opened, leaving a narrow gorge. He tried twice, but the horse turned. On the third attempt, he tightened his flanks so much that the beast seemed to be flying, gaining the other side of the gorge. The old man did the same. And then they came to the fourth test, the most difficult to pass. Many died trying. From a distance, it looked like a forest in motion, and when they got closer, they saw that they were giant scissors with tips pointing downwards that opened and closed and would have cut them in half without any remedy for carelessness. On the ground, the human remains showed that many audacious people had died there. The old man went ahead, showing the path of the scissors that closed and remained open. It was a maze impossible to discover without help. The Chiriguano was only able to save it thanks to the old man.  

V  

They galloped at night, and the next day, they arrived at Tumparenta. With the first light of dawn, the old man disappeared like magic. No wind bothered, and the light had stopped, giving brilliance to the leaves, flowers, and fruits. Chirping and singing filled the place, covered with flowers and herbs of all colors and full of happy people who continually drank the appetizing cangüi of the Chiriguano people. The Indian saw his wife and daughter there, richly adorned, radiant like the moon, and he begged them to return to his company, but they did not consent. They chose to remain in Tumparenta, enjoying eternal happiness.  

VI  

The Indian returned to his lamenting, saddened. And so that the wondrous panorama he had seen would not be erased from his eyes, he burned his eyes with hot embers, and blinded he waited for death in the hope of being reunited with his loved ones.