If you made it this far, it’s because you enjoy scary experiences. And what could be scarier than the legend of La Llorona, the woman who weeps for her lost children. Did she kill them? Did they get lost? What happened? Here we tell you the most chilling versions of this story.
1. Drowned!
If you are near a lake, a lagoon or any body of water, it is best to get away before nightfall. It is very likely that you will see the body of a woman with long hair and a white dress wandering around.
“Ay, mis hijos”, “aaaaay!” and “hijitos míos” are the phrases that are part of her litany. And it is said that this woman is very sorry for a heinous crime: she ended the lives of her children for being disobedient.
She submerged them in the river until they stopped breathing. She realized what she had done and repented, although it was too late. Every night she goes to places where there is water to find her children.
2. A lovesickness?
The colonial version of the legend of La Llorona refers to an affair between an indigenous woman and a Spanish conquistador. The two had a hidden relationship, which resulted in the birth of two babies.
The conquistador refused a formal engagement because of the difference in race and social class. The woman fled to the river and, in a rage, stabbed her own children. Now, her grieving soul in search of solace and forgiveness.
3. Her relationship with the goddess Cihuacóatl
Some studies relate the origin of the Llorona to the goddess Cihuacóatl. This character ground the bones of ancient societies and created the Mexica, whom she called “sons”.
Cihuacóatl had the power to foretell the future; she knew that a war was approaching where the Mexica would face conquistadors. The result would be an imminent defeat, so he wept for his sons by the Lake of Texcoco.
Ancient societies knew that she came down from the mountain to prevent a war. From the top of the temple, the Mexica heard her cry “ay, my children”.