Aztec mythology is very diverse and fascinating; there are about a hundred gods in the Indian pantheon. Not wanting to overload this article with redundant information and turn it into a mini-encyclopedia, we limited ourselves to the brightest deities who occupied a prominent place in the culture of the Aztecs. This is the feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl, the patron saint of the priests of Tezcatlipoca, Tlasolteotl "eating the impurities" and, of course, the bloody god of war Huitzilopochtli.
Many deities of Central Mexico were incarnations of celestial bodies such as Venus, the Sun, and even the stars of the Milky Way. In this regard, the Aztecs are surprisingly similar to the ancient Romans, who also deified the planets (suffice it to recall the cult of Mars - the patron saint of Rome and the god of war). By the way, the planet Venus, which is also called the morning star, aroused sacred awe among the Aztecs. According to the beliefs of the Indians, its light can cause colossal harm to a person and bring all kinds of disasters to him.
The Indians attributed to the gods not only the creation of the world and man, but even the invention of such a trivial thing as pulque - a strong alcoholic drink obtained from agave juice. According to the Aztecs, the gods decided to invent a means to induce people to sing and dance. The intoxicating drink was passed on to the people. The priests used pulque for sacrifices and other religious ceremonies.
Feathered Serpent Quetzalcoatl
This god is a kind of hybrid of a snake and a bird of paradise. Accordingly, he is the embodiment of serpentine wisdom and feathered beauty. According to legend, Quetzalcoatl gave people food - having turned into an ant, he stole maize grains from underground storerooms. In addition, the feathered serpent is considered the inventor of the calendar. Grateful people built numerous temples and pyramids in honor of God.
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Quetzalcoatl rules over the elements, this is one of the demiurge gods (creators of the world and man). One of his forms is Ehekatel, revered as the god of the wind. At first, the worship of Quetzalcoatl did not involve human sacrifice. Only hummingbirds and butterflies were used as offerings to God. But, apparently, over time, the feathered serpent became more bloodthirsty, and then people went into action.
The earliest depictions of Quetzalcoatl date back to around the 8th and 5th centuries BC. Sometimes the deity was carved on stone in the form of a formidable man in a mask and with a beard, but more often he could be found in the guise of a snake, partially covered with feathers. The Aztecs believed that the feathered serpent was capable of incarnating in human form. In particular, they considered the Spanish conqueror Fernando Cortez to be one of the incarnations of Quetzalcoatl.
Patron of the priests of Tezcatlipoca
In Mayan and Aztec mythology, Tezcatlipoca is revered as the lord of the elements, capable of causing devastating earthquakes. This is a unique character who is both the creator and the destroyer of the world (a kind of Indian analogue of the god Shiva). Tezcatlipoca punishes criminals and favors the priests, he commands the cold and the stars. Sometimes he was perceived as a sorcerer who could change his physical appearance.
One of the attributes of the god Tezcatlipoca is the magic mirror Itlachiyakue - literally this can be translated as “the place from which he looks”. From this mysterious mirror comes smoke that is able to kill the enemies of the god. In his right hand Tezcatlipoca has four arrows, as a symbol of the inevitable punishment that he promises to sinners.
It should be noted that in the mythology of the Indians, Tezcatlipoca gravitates towards beautiful girls. Once he even had a chance to seduce the adorable Shochiketsal (goddess of flowers), who was already married to Shochipilli. So a virtuous god, a lover of punishing people for their vices, and he himself is not without sin. cheeky
Huitzilopochtli - bloody god of war
This is one of the darkest and most cruel deities of the Aztec pantheon. Huitzilopochtli (also called Witzliputzli) is known as the god of war and patron of the city of Tenochtitlan. It was to him that the ancient Indian priests brought the most cruel and bloody sacrifices. According to legend, Huitzilopochtli constantly fought with the forces of Darkness, and God received the power for this precisely through sacrifices.
A humanoid figure with a helmet imitating the beak of a hummingbird was chosen as the image of the deity. In Huitzilopochtli's left hand was a bow with four arrows, darts and a spear thrower. In the right hand of the deity was a club in the shape of a wriggling snake.
I must say that Witsliputsli's disposition is quite consistent with his formidable appearance. According to one of the Aztec legends, he once chopped off the head of his own sister named Coyolshawki. Why did he do it, you ask? And in order to give people pleasure to contemplate the moon, the severed head flew to the sky and somehow turned into a night star. It is correct.
Mud-Eating Tlasolteotl
Despite the rather discordant name (eater of dirt or excrement), this Aztec goddess figured prominently in the Indian pantheon. She helped people to cleanse themselves from lust, forbidden passions and similar sinful afflictions. However, the goddess Tlasolteotl could not only extinguish passions, but also excite them, and also send venereal diseases and madness to people she did not like.
The goddess was portrayed as a bare-breasted woman dressed in cotton robes. An indispensable attribute of Tlasolteotl was a crescent-shaped ring threaded into the nose. On the head of the goddess was a headdress made of quail feathers. Around Tlasolteotl's neck was a rope soaked in blood or a coral snake, symbolizing sins.
Like many other gods of the Aztecs, Tlasolteotl was very demanding in terms of sacrifices. In the fall, the people organized a grand celebration in her honor. The culmination of the event was the sacrifice of a young woman. A cape was made from her skin, which was then worn by a priest who personified Tlasolteotl. In dry years, a man was supposed to be sacrificed to the goddess. The prisoner was tied to a pole, and then darts were thrown at him. The Aztecs believed that blood dripping on the ground could cause rain.