The colorful bat

Once there was a beautiful bat. It was the most beautiful creature in creation, as in its eagerness
to resemble the rest of the birds, ascended to the sky and requested the creator to possess feathers. He
he answered that he had his permission to ask other birds for their best feathers. And so he did.
dedicated to asking for the feathers of those more striking and colorful specimens.

After a time of gathering, the bat proudly displayed its new and spectacular appearance.
It fluttered across the land reveling in its image. Once, even, with the echo of its
flight caused a wonderful rainbow. All the animals watched it fascinated by its
dazzling image. However, the compliments began to take their toll on him. The arrogance became
took over his reasoning. He looked at the rest of the birds with contempt, whom he considered
inferior to him because of their beauty.

He perceived that no other animal was his equal. He even reproached the hummingbird for not being so.
blessed like him. He considered that there was no other quality more important than the
physical aspect. The rest of the birds felt humiliated in the face of the bat's flight. Its continuous
The peacock became unbearable for the entire animal kingdom, and his offenses reached the ears of the creator.
He decided to intervene.

After observing the attitude of the beautiful bat, he had him called and brought up to the sky. He felt flattered.
the verse required by the supreme being and his ego rose with him. In the presence of the creator,
began to flutter with overflowing joy. It fluttered again and again, taking off,
unconsciously, of all her beautiful feathers.

Suddenly, he found himself naked, like at the beginning of time. Ashamed, he descended into the
land, taking refuge in the caves and denying vision. For days, colorful feathers rained down.
that he did not want to observe, trying to forget how beautiful it once was. Since then, the
The bat lived confined in darkness, lamenting its selfish attitude.
The alley of La Condesa

The House of Tiles, now better known as the Sanborn's of the Tiles, has a
Facade that faces the Condesa Alley. Its name comes from the fact that carriages used to exit from there.
the Countess of the Valley, and that alley, called Dolores, over time and up to our days is referred to
known as the Condesa Alley.

Only through the centuries and for the sake of tradition, a curious has reached our ears.
anecdote, referring to the Callejón de la Condesa, which took its name from one of the del Valle.
The tales say that once two nobles entered through the ends of the alley, each one
in their car and that due to the narrowness of the road they found themselves face to face, neither wanting to.
to retreat, arguing that their nobility would be diminished if either of the two took the rear.

Fortunately, as a serious author states, the blood did not reach the stream, not even close.
it boiled in the veins of the two Quixotes; but in the absence of stabbings, patience came to the gentlemen
who were in their cars for three clear days and three murky nights.
the authority should not intervene, for surely the nobles will become mummified; the Viceroy warned, therefore, that the
two cars backed out until they left, one towards San Andrés street, and the other towards the Plazuela of
Guardiola.
Obsidian

Obsidian is a volcanic rock or mineral composed of aluminum silicates and oxides.

silicates. Their uses vary between decorative objects like mirrors, figures that imitate models
pre-Hispanic, shapes of animals, and many more. It is also used as an ornament in
construction of floors and walls and even in city squares. In a distant past, it
they made arrowheads and spears.

The Mexican legend says that in the times of the indigenous people, when life was very difficult and the
The man had to fight against immense wild beasts to be able to feed himself, a ...
an event that changed the life of that community. On one occasion, the men went out of
that guild to hunt a large mammoth for the supply of several days; while the women and
The children stayed in the cave in the company of the elders.

Those hunts could last several days, so the elders were obligated to take care of
the women and children, but since they had no weapons to defend themselves, they searched throughout the cave for something
that will help them defend against an attack from some hyenas.

Suddenly, Obsid, the little son of the bravest warrior, noticed a black and sharp stone.
that was on the ground; he picked it up and tied it to a stick he took from the rubble, he threw it with
great strength and enormous was the surprise of everyone when they realized that a hyena was being plucked.
while the others ran away.

The ingenuity and creativity of Obsid earned him the honors of the tribe, he was named
warrior of the village and in his honor they named that stone "Obsidian", being this used
subsequently for the production of hunting tools.
The Mummies of Guanajuato

Colonial Era

Guanajuato is a city with many attractions for travelers, due to its unique features.
for its wonderful history, for its cultural lineage that places it in a privileged position
in the country and beyond its borders; through its artistic expressions via its theater
university, its Symphony Orchestra and its Student Orchestra.

Yes, that's true indeed, but strange things will always be a reason for singular attraction.

The vast majority of tourists, those who come to Guanajuato for the first time, have received from the
previous ones, in a special way, two recommendations: the Alley of the Kiss and to see the Mummies.

Mummification is due, without this being a scientific opinion, to special ventilation, that is to say,
at the height rather than on the ground since the same happens in the drawers as on the floor.

Surely the phenomenon has been taking place since they were exhumed from the Pantheon.
Municipal, at the end of the regulation time, the first corpses.

That term is five years, but the mummification must be completed beforehand.

The most important data for our population is the circumstance of the great mortality that
there were and because several of the bodies, out of fear that the plague would spread further, were buried
almost immediately after they were declared dead.

Thus it happened that in some cases they were buried when in reality they had not yet expired, from
so that upon returning from that cataleptic state, already in the grave, they finally died from
desperation, due to anguish or asphyxiation. Hence that grimace of pain found in some mummies.

This was during the cholera morbus outbreak that was recorded in our population back in 1833. Even
the current pantheon (1861) did not exist, where the mummification was verified.

Such was the number of dead that it was necessary to open complementary cemeteries in the
Saint Francis Company, San Diego, Santa Belén, San Roque, San Sebastián. This is one of the most
ancient.

Starting in 1861, the year the Municipal Pantheon was inaugurated while the Governor of the State was...
General Francisco Pacheco refers to the first mummifications. The first mummified corpse that
It was displayed corresponding to the French doctor Remigio Leroy in 1965, which still exists.

For many years, the mummies have been displayed to the public in a crypt that is located just
below the place where this curious fact is recorded. In a gallery at the back, the
macabre spectacle, with the mummies forming a double row about 15 meters deep and
accurately behind a display window.
Given all the above presented so plainly, the public must discard, as uncertain,
all those cheap legends that people tell.

LEGEND OF JUAN RUIZ

Legend of the colonial era

There is a rock formation on the way to Tlamacas where, according to this legend, it appears the
demon.

It is said that there came a poor man named Juan Ruiz who made a pact with the
demon after signing it with his own blood. After this event, it is said that he was visited by it in his
At home, there was a very elegant man who sounded as if he was downloading money. From there, Juan Ruiz...
he became rich. Over time, he started to behave very strangely and restlessly. His relatives,
Alarmed, they managed to make him confess the reasons for his unease; he then told them that he would pay.
with his soul the pact with the demon. But the most alarming thing was that also part of his family
entered into the pact. Shortly after, Juan Ruiz fled to the mountain, his family and neighbors rushed into
in their search, armed with wax, palm fronds, and holy water. They almost reached him while he was still
far away from the cursed rock, but it is said that when they were close to achieving it, a appeared
black cloud and as it disappeared, he was already far away again.

Following their tracks, they discovered with great fear that one of their footprints was human and that the
another era of a goat. Later they found one of his sandals, and upon reaching the cave of
the rock they found the other; the footprints they found were totally beastly. In the rock, to the
At the entrance of the cave, there was a sign written in blood that said: 'Here in this cave, it is given to '
high Juan Ruiz". The people returned to the town since they could do nothing.

Over time, Juan Ruiz's family became very poor again.

One day, in the River of Vegetables, at the height of Xicoténcatl street, the bridge, of which two were
by Juan Ruiz. Inexplicably, the current only took away Juan's two children.
A few blocks ahead they managed to rescue one of them and the other was rescued in the neighboring town,
where the river widens.

Legend has it that many descendants of Juan Ruiz have died in a tragic manner. The
Locals say that due to the pact he made with the devil.
TEMPLE OF THE OAK

In the time of the Colony, another legend emerged that has popular roots. It is said that a
A woman from the village began to tell that an image she had in her house escaped at night.
and was crossing the channel of the Santa Lucía spring waters, and was going to take refuge in the hollow of the trunk
of an oak tree, that existed exactly in the same place where the temple of El Roble stands.
the woman added that every night she would go for her and found her with a damp skirt and with
some thorns in the feet. The amazement grew and more women usually went to pray at that place.

THE CONFESSION OF A DEAD PERSON

Already at the family's house, one of his nephews asked the Abbot what had happened to him, without
embargo, the Abbot brought his right hand to his ear, indicating that he was having difficulty.
listen. After the nephew asked him the question again, the Abbot replied that
the man who had entered the Basilica hours before was a dead man who had come from
ultratomb to confess, and that after listening to the confession had had difficulty in
listen with the right ear.

The Abbot could never tell what the mysterious character had said to him, keeping the secret of
confession, leaving the doubt forever.
The Stranger and the Girl

This legend was born in a village far from the roads, surrounded by farms where the houses
they are 600 meters apart.

The story was already known in that town. One day a stranger decides to stay for a few days in
a house in that village for a week and then continue their journey.

On that day, the outsider, already asleep at midnight, hears the door: pod pod pod. He
He woke up and wondered who was knocking at this hour; upon opening the door, he found a girl with...
burn marks, then the stranger asks her: what do you need, girl, at this hour? she
He replied, would you give me a glass of water? And he said yes, of course, after giving him the glass.
with water the girl withdraws.

The next day, the same girl went at the same time to where the stranger was and asked him for the same thing;
For four consecutive days, the girl went. Then the Outsider decides to ask her some questions, he waited for her to
It was midnight, and when the hour arrived the girl knocked on the door, knock knock knock, the stranger opened the door.
the door and the girl asks him if he could give her a little water in her glass, the stranger pulls out a little
of water and gives it to the girl.

When the girl was leaving, the outsider decides to ask her and says: 'Girl, who are you carrying that glass for?'
with water?..she says for my dad, and the stranger asks, 'and where is your dad?'..she tells him: he
it's burning...the outsider is surprised and asks him: WHO IS YOUR DAD?..and the girl
shouts with a terrifying voice: it's THE DEVIL!!!.

That scream was heard all over the town and the stranger died 2 days later.. it is said that the
the girl goes out to haunt on February 21st of every year, for 2 weeks attacking tourists
...who will be the next victim?
Miracle of the Flood

The legend tells us that in the year 1718, a torrential rain fell in the city that lasted 40
days and flooded much of this locality. At that time, outside the city to the west,
There lived a Tlaxcaltec Indian woman, the wife of a shoemaker, who kept an image of the Virgin in her house.
from La Purísima and when the overflowing waters of the river reached that neighborhood, it is said that the pious
the woman approached the image with faith to the edge of the waves. Almost immediately, the current lost strength and
they were saved from the flood, that neighborhood and the city as well. This miracle influenced so that
that woman built a small chapel that she called the house of the virgin, where the women of that
they prayed every Saturday, even though the place was outside the city. Currently the
The temple located in that place reflects the modern religious architecture of the city.
THE HUICHOL PEOPLE AND CORN

Aztec legend about the creation of corn.

The Huicholes were tired of eating things they didn't like.

They wanted something they could eat every day, but in different ways.

A young Huichol heard about corn and its famous mets, some tortillas, the chilaquiles and the
tortilla soup that was prepared with this cereal.

But the corn was very far away, on the other side of the mountain. That did not discourage him and he set out.
in progress.

After a short time, he saw a line of ants and since he knew that some of them were the
guardians of corn, she followed them.

But when the young man fell asleep, the ants, without any problem, devoured all his
clothing, leaving him only with his bow and arrows.

Without clothes and hungry, the huichol began to lament. It was then that a bird landed on
a nearby tree. The young man aimed his bow at it, but the bird scolded him and told him that she was the
Mother of corn. She invited him to follow her to the House of Corn where she would allow him to take everything.
that he was looking for.

In the House of Corn, there were five beautiful maidens, the daughters of the Mother of Corn: Ear
White, Blue Corn, Yellow Corn, Red Corn, and Black Corn.

Blue Corn was enchanted by her beauty and sweetness. They married and returned to the Huichol village.

As he did not yet have a home, they slept for a while in a place dedicated to the gods.

Then, as if by enchantment, the newlyweds' house filled every day with ears of grain.
that they decorated her like flowers.

People came from all over because Blue Ear of Corn offered them ears in handfuls.

The beautiful wife taught her husband how to plant corn and care for the crops. Finding out what
delights this new food offered, the animals tried to steal it. Blue Ear taught the
People set fire around the crops to scare away the beasts in search of ears of grain.
tender.

The Elders say that Blue Ear of Corn, after having taught all she knew,
she ground it herself and this is how men came to know the excellent atole, a drink
hot dish made with corn kernels.
Characteristics

Map of Athanasius Kircher showing a supposed location of the legendary continent of the
Atlantis.

A legend, unlike a tale, is always linked to a specific element and focuses on

the integration of this element into the everyday world or the history of the community to which
belongs. Contrary to the tale, which is set within a time ('Once upon a time...') and a
place (for example, in the Castle of you will go and not come back) agreed upon and imaginary, the legend is
they usually develop in a precise and real place and time, although they appear in them
fictional elements (for example, fabulous creatures, like mermaids).

Like myth, legend is etiological, that is, its essential task is to provide a foundation and
explanation of a certain culture. Its central element is a trait of reality (a
custom or the name of a place, for example) whose origin is intended to be explained.

Legends are often grouped into cycles around a character, as happens with the
cycles of legends surrounding King Arthur, Robin Hood, El Cid Campeador, or Bernardo del Carpio.

Legends almost always contain a historical core, expanded to a greater or lesser degree with
imaginative episodes. Their appearance may depend on motivations.
involuntary, such as errors, misunderstandings (the so-called popular etymology, for example) or
exaggerations, or well of the conscious action of one or more people that, for interested reasons
or purely aesthetic, they develop the original embryo.

When a legend presents elements taken from other legends, it is referred to as "contamination".
of the legend.