"Across five oceans the vanaras journeyed,
their memory etched in stone and mask.
From Udaya Giri to Copan’s ruins,
the Andes rise as sunrise mountains,
guarded by yakshas, whispered by rivers,
testimonies of epic memory carried across the world."
Artefacts unearthed from the ancient Mayan ruins suggest that even distant Latin America bore traces of Indian Vedic influence. In Honduras lies Copán, a once-majestic temple site now in ruins. Yet, within its weathered stones and hidden carvings remain subtle clues—echoes that resonate with verses of the Ramayana, offering a striking testimony to cultural currents that spanned continents.
In the Valmiki Ramayana, a remarkable description unfolds: a route beginning from India’s eastern coast, crossing five vast oceans, and culminating at Udaya Adri. There, the epic situates a settlement of vanara-s. This distant city is known to Sugreeva, commander of the vanara hosts, who assures Rama that in their worldwide search for the abducted Sita, he would enlist vanaras dwelling in that far-off land, scouring the mountains of Udaya Giri for her trace.
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| The Mayan Howler Monkey God Copan, Honduras, South America. His stance and the mace in his hand are remarkably close to the Hindu Monkey God Hanuman. |
Whether Copan is the site where the vanaras resided in Ramayanic times is, of course, unknown. That they did reside somewhere close to the Andes is known from the Ramayana. The name Copan is a cognate of the Sanskrit 'kapi' (कपि), which means vanara or 'monkey', and perhaps derives its name from the Sanskrit 'kapi'. However, the name Copan has been in use in current times only since 1576. Perhaps the name is much more ancient and has been present in the native folklore, and was brought back into prominence in the 1570s.
There is also another site in Honduras that fits the description of the existence of a city of vanaras. It now goes by the name 'La Ciudad Blanca' and is located in eastern Honduras in the La Moskitia or La Mosquitia area. Its exact location has been kept a secret, though it is known that it is near the Twas and Sikre rivers. The site is known to the Honduran Army and also to a team of National Geographic explorers. As for Indians who have read the Valmiki Ramayana, no information about any of these Mayan sites comes as a surprise. More about this site in a later post.
Another interesting fact that adds to the vanara lore is the existence of the 'Kaiapo' - a powerful and well-known Brazilian tribe - who live in villages along the Xingu River across the Central Brazilian Plateau. The Kaiapo call themselves Mebengokre, meaning 'the men from the water place'. The name Kaiapo was given to them by the neighbouring native tribes, and means 'resembling apes' and was given to them because their men used to dance with monkey masks on festivals and special occasions in honour of their gods and ancestors. It is interesting that 'kaipo' is a cognate of the Sanskrit kapi (कपि), which means 'monkey' - in fact, the etymological source of the English 'ape' is unknown and is sometimes attributed to the Sanskrit kapi. This is another clue that supports the information contained in Ramayana about settlements of vanaras stationed around Udaya Adri, which is an obvious reference to the Andes.
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| Kaiapo Tribesmen from the Brazilian Plateau |
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| Hanuman - The Vedic Monkey God. India |
Another name by which this site was known is Oxwitik, where the meaning of the word 'witik' is unknown. 'Ox' is said to mean three. However, since there is another Mayan site by the name Yaxachilan, it may be assumed that perhaps the word that has been decoded as Oxwitik should read Yakshhavitik (यक्षवित्त). That makes Copan a site, not only of vanaras but also of Yakhshas. Yakshas are guardians of property and do not make use of the property themselves. Various Sanskrit texts mention the kinship between the vanaras and the yakshas, the rakshasas and the kinnaras. Perhaps the Mayan sites were the residence of these exotic tribes of the ancient Hindu texts. Kubera was the lord of the Yaskshas, and in the Ramayanic times, Kubera is said to have brought many yakshas and rakshas to Meso-America.
| Ramayana Anchor | Geographic/Archaeological Site | Name/Etymology Link | Interpretive Resonance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sugreeva’s assurance to Rama: vanaras dwell near Udaya Adri after crossing five oceans | Copan (Oxwitik), Honduras | Copan ~ Sanskrit kapi (monkey); Oxwitik possibly Yakshhavitik (यक्षवित्त) | Vanara settlement; Yaksha guardianship under Kubera |
| Udaya Giri (mountains of sunrise, Andes) | La Ciudad Blanca, La Mosquitia, Honduras | Hidden “White City” near the Twas & Sikre rivers | Concealed vanara city, echoing Ramayanic lore of distant tribes |
| Vanaras as global allies in Rama’s search for Sita | Kaiapo Tribe, Brazil (Xingu River) | Kaiapo ~ kapi; tribe dances with monkey masks | Ritual memory of vanara kinship: “men from the water place” |
| Kinship of vanaras, yakshas, rakshasas, kinnaras | Mayan sites across Honduras & Guatemala | Oxwitik reframed as a Yaksha settlement | Kubera’s dispatch of yakshas and rakshasas to Meso-America |
| Five oceans crossed from India’s eastern coast | Transoceanic journey to Latin America | Epic metaphor for global reach | Ramayana as a mytho-geographic map spanning continents |
