Princess Naba and The Balsam Tree

Long ago, there was a terrible war in the lands of Cuzcatlan. On it, Hoitzi and the Pipil people were fighting with Atlacatl and his group. No one knows the precise reasons behind it, but the results were catastrophic.

After several months and uncountable causalities, the unthinkable happened. Hoitzi died, and when Princess Naba discovered her beloved was defeated and his body was lying down on the battlefield, she ran away to collect it. She took advantage that the King and his warriors were celebrating their triumph over the Pipil people.

Throughout the night, Naba and her six maidens dedicated all their time to serving the wounded and comforting those who only waited for their imminent death.

At midnight, some spies warned Atlacatl what the princess was doing. The King enraged, and still, under the effects of chicha (a special alcoholic drink) went to face her.

He wanted to demand explanations about her acts, but he saw what she was doing. She was next to Hoitzi’s dead body (figure 1). He was infuriated and shot an arrow into Naba’s heart and ended her life. Also, other arrows reached her maidens and died immediately.

Figure 1. Princess Naba and Hoitzi in the afterlife. ¹

Everyone died and Atlacatl and his warriors buried all their corpses immediately.

Years later, in the place where Atlacalt buried the corpses of Naba and her maidens, seven beautiful and unknown trees grew. These trees had a unique and special smell from magical them came a dark liquid that can heal any wound (figure 2).

Figure 2. Balsamum peruvianum. ²

The Indians understood that these trees were a gift from Mother Nature in recognition of the noble heart of Naba and her maidens.

Nowadays, we know these special trees as the balsam (figure 3), the strong and powerful trees that can heal any wound.

Figure 3. The balsam tree. ³

Inspired by the book “Leyendas Cuentos y Adivinanzas de El Salvador, Bancasa, Banco de Construcción y Ahorro, S.A.” © All rights reserved 1995.

 Credits:
² De Maša Sinreih in Valentina Vivod - Trabajo propio, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17444109
³ elsalvador.com 1995 - 2019.
Location: Cuscatlán, El Salvador

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