Popol Vuh

Balam Quitze, Balam Acab, Mahucutah, and Iqui Balam make humble offerings to Tohil, Auilix, and Hacavitz. In their poverty, they can only make offerings of what they find in the forest, which consists of pine resin, pitch, and flowers that they burn before the gods. Still, the gods are pleased and declare the first four men and their kin as chosen people. The gods foretell that the first four men and their kin will conquer the other nations. They instruct them thus, “Conquer many lands. This is your authority. It came from Tulan when you brought us here” (223). To set this into motion, the gods instruct the men to create a bundle with deer skin to pose as the gods. When the nations eventually come to ask the men where the gods are, the gods instruct the four men to direct them to the deerskin bundle. Meanwhile, the gods will pose as young boys to elude the nations.

With the nations heading towards them, Balam Quitze, Balam Acab, Mahucutah, and Iqui Balam go into hiding, in order to watch them in secret. They make terrifying animal sounds to scare the nations during the journey. When the four men return to the gods to inquire about how they should defeat the other nations, the gods tell them that their hearts must be extracted and sacrificed.