Show CURIOUS MEXICAN BELIEFS the L old time idea of neven and the hereafter the ancient mexican idea of heaven hell bell and the after state of the soul is extremely curious and interesting according to their notions souls neither good nor bad or those whose virtues and vices balanced each other were to enter a medium state of idleness and empty content the wicked or those dying by any of a long list lisi of different modes of death went to maitlan lan a distant hall within the bowels of the earth the souls of those struck by lightning or of those th ose dying by a given list of diseases were transported to a 4 remote elysium called Tia locan children went to the same place the actual heaven the house of the sun was reserved for warriors women who died in defense of their children and those who were offered up as sacrifices immediately after death according to their beliefs the soul passed to that great bouso of the sun ruled oyer over by the sun himself who permitted the faithful to accompany him for a of years in his bis circuit of the skies during all these years of continual flight they were supposed to honor the sua bun with songs dances and other forms forma of revelry after this term of probation was ended they believed that they would be re animated and become beautiful birds with brilliant plumage living alternately among the stars of heaven and the flowers of if earth their burial costoma equally curious they buried a jug of water with each corpse and placed small bits of white bark barb in the hands these pieces of bark were fere penally covered with characters charac a fact which caused some archaeologists ats to suggest that they were probably passports to the region beyond the stars when one of their number died the friends and relatives forthwith made a bonfire of all his per bonal effects the alie idea being to light the soul in its flight through the cold and cheerless regions of space r i |