Hi(story)
Hernan Cortes
was proud of his conquest. His ambition
had taken him all the way from his country, Spain, across the rage of the
oceans, to the Caribbean islands. Along
with his men, Cortes invaded each of the islands and established Spanish rule
over them. More significantly, he had
exterminated the entire native Caribbean population in just about twenty
years. The Spaniards imported African
slaves to fill the vacuum left by the extinction of the Caribbean people. Slaves will not rebel, Cortes knew that. Every bit of rebellion is wiped out by the
time the slaves reach their destination from their homeland. Long voyage and excruciating torture. Homeland becomes an impossible dream. A dead dream.
Dead dreams hang heavily in the memory like taunting disgraces. They emasculate the best of men. Then there is the physical pain. Together they, the disgrace and the pain,
kill the soul. Then there’s only the body
left. Body without a soul is a
slave. Cortes was the master of slaves
and slavery.
Hernan Cortes
marched proudly along with his men to the palace of the Aztec Emperor. He had convinced the local people that he was
an Ambassador of the Great King of Spain. It was a lie, of course. Conquests sail on waves of falsehood. Cortes was leading an independent expedition
of greedy adventurers. The King of Spain
would have asked “Cortes, who?” if he was told about this new Ambassador of
his. But the King would only be happy to
know about the new colonies that he could take over. The King’s greed is far more ravenous than
the adventurers’. Nothing surpasses the
longings of political aspirations.
The natives
escorted Cortes to the Palace holding up censers in which burnt fragrant
incense. In the vanity that is the
essence of every conqueror, Cortes assumed that the incense was a mark of
divine honour. Incense was burned in
thuribles in the churches of Spain during religious ceremonies.
Little did
Cortes know that the natives were warding off the foul smell that emanated from
the bodies of their guests.
The Aztecs
thought that they were being visited by the demons. Foul-smelling demons which
carried fire-spitting weapons.
The demons
gained entry into the Aztec Palace by offering friendship. Once inside, the demons killed the Emperor’s
bodyguards and took the Emperor hostage.
A country is
what its king is. When the Emperor
became a captive, the entire people became captive.
Demons
flourish when the people are held captive.
Culture, cried
the new master. Culture with all its
smells marched into the Aztec lands. The
Spanish King’s soldiers arrived. Priests
arrived. New flags fluttered on
posts. A new god stepped out of the
ship.
The Aztecs did
not know that gods of the demons were more hungry than the demons
themselves. The Aztecs did not know that
the demons and their gods had exterminated entire races of people in their
neighbourhood. Ignorance has to pay
heavy prices. The Aztecs paid them.
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