Guayota
Encyclopedia
Achamán
Achamán is the supreme god of the Guanches on the island of Tenerife; he is the father god and creator. The name means literally "the skies", in allusion to the celestial vault . Achamán, an omnipotent and eternal god, created the land and the water, the fire and the air, and all creatures derived...
's adversary. According to Guanche
Guanches
Guanches is the name given to the aboriginal Berber inhabitants of the Canary Islands. It is believed that they migrated to the archipelago sometime between 1000 BCE and 100 BCE or perhaps earlier...
legend, Guayota lived inside the Teide
Teide
Mount Teide , is a volcano on Tenerife, Canary Islands. Its summit is the highest point in Spain, the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic, and it is the third highest volcano in the world measured from its base on the ocean floor, after Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea located in...
volcano, one of the gateways to the underworld. Guayota was said to be represented as a black dog
Dog
The domestic dog is a domesticated form of the gray wolf, a member of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. The term is used for both feral and pet varieties. The dog may have been the first animal to be domesticated, and has been the most widely kept working, hunting, and companion animal in...
and was accompanied by demons, also in the form of black dogs, known as Tibicena
Tibicena
A Tibicena, also known as Guacanchas, was a mythological creature of the Guanches, prehispanic inhabitants of the Canary Islands. Tibicenas were imagined to be demons or genies who had the bodies of great wild dogs with red eyes, covered by long, black wool...
s.
According to legend, Guayota kidnapped Magec
Magec
Magec, in Tenerife, was the god of the Sun and the light and also thought to be one of the principal divinities in Guanche religion. According to legend, Magec was captured by Guayota and held him prisoner inside Teide; Magec was later liberated by Achamán....
(the sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
) and shut it up in the Teide
Teide
Mount Teide , is a volcano on Tenerife, Canary Islands. Its summit is the highest point in Spain, the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic, and it is the third highest volcano in the world measured from its base on the ocean floor, after Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea located in...
, plunging the world into darkness. Humans prayed to Achamán
Achamán
Achamán is the supreme god of the Guanches on the island of Tenerife; he is the father god and creator. The name means literally "the skies", in allusion to the celestial vault . Achamán, an omnipotent and eternal god, created the land and the water, the fire and the air, and all creatures derived...
who saved Magec, and instead locked Guayota up in the Teide. Guayota is the king of evil
Evil
Evil is the violation of, or intent to violate, some moral code. Evil is usually seen as the dualistic opposite of good. Definitions of evil vary along with analysis of its root motive causes, however general actions commonly considered evil include: conscious and deliberate wrongdoing,...
genie
Genie
Jinn or genies are supernatural creatures in Arab folklore and Islamic teachings that occupy a parallel world to that of mankind. Together, jinn, humans and angels make up the three sentient creations of Allah. Religious sources say barely anything about them; however, the Qur'an mentions that...
s, and was worshiped in the island of Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
in the Guanche
Guanches
Guanches is the name given to the aboriginal Berber inhabitants of the Canary Islands. It is believed that they migrated to the archipelago sometime between 1000 BCE and 100 BCE or perhaps earlier...
religion.