A mechanism is provided for accessing XML data in a database system using a combination of a XML Table Index table and a XML Path Index table. By using a combination of a XML Table Index and a XML Path Index, both selection access and navigational access involved in a query can be optimized. For example, the XML Table Index gives the database system an ability to readily evaluate the predicate expression, thereby improving the selection access. Moreover, in some embodiments, the selection access can be further improved by using secondary indexes on columns contained in the XML Table Index table. In a complementary manner, the XML Path Index table gives the database system an ability to navigate to a specific location given a path expression, thereby improving the navigational access. Thus, by combining both tables, both selection and navigational accesses are improved.