The Talking Stone
“The Talking Stone” a tale of Montezuma from the Nahua (Mexico), Latin American Folktales (Pantheon Folktale Series), edited by John Bierhorst.
In this tale, Montezuma discovers that there are mysteries beyond the power of even the greatest king. He wants a new stone for sacrificing prisoners. He wants the biggest and most beautiful stone to be found. He sends people out to find the perfect stone that will be a monument to his own greatness. They find just the right bolder. Stone cutters come in to chisel it into shape. It’s painted and decorated and blessed. They start trying to move it. That’s when things get weird. The stone starts talking and claiming it will not go on the journey. No matter how many ropes and levers and men they use to move the stone, they can’t budge it until it agrees to move. It does this in stages. They move it part way and stop several times until they read a lake. Halfway across the causeway, the stone announces that it will not go any farther. It sinks into the lake. Divers are sent to search for it, but they can find nothing. Later, when Montezuma sends people out to check the original spot the stone was taken from, it is back in it’s place, with its new shape and decorations and all.
The story comes with omens and warnings that Montezuma will not always be king, the even the time of kings comes to an end.
It’s a wonderful reminder of life’s mysteries. It’s a reminder that the spirit world and the natural world follow their own laws and are not subject to the governments of men.
