Tenten and Caicai

Tenten Vilu and Caicai Vilu are two powerful spirits credited with shaping the Chilean landscape and, according to other versions, the Earth’s very contours. Tenten, the mythical serpent of the land, faced Caicai, the fearsome sea serpent, in a cosmic battle. Caicai, weary of humanity’s greed and malevolence, flooded Tenten’s domains with the aim of drowning humankind. Moved by compassion for men, women, and children, Tenten raised the Earth’s crust, creating new hills and highlands where people could find refuge. Those who failed to reach higher ground were transformed into fish, marine creatures, or stones.

Mapuche cosmogony adapted by Renato Cárdenas in: El libro de la mitología, 1998.