All about the ancient tribes
Scholars investigating the Aztec (or Mexica) religion have discovered 200 gods and goddesses classified into three categories. Each group is in charge of a different component of the universe: heaven or the sky; rain, fertility, and agriculture; and ultimately, war and sacrifice.
Tlaloc, the rain deity; Huitzilopochtli, patron of the Mexica tribe; Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent and god of wind and learning; and Tezcatlipoca, the sly, elusive god of fate and fortune, are all important to the Aztecs. Tezcatlipoca was also associated with magic and war.
The Aztecs had numerous gods, but Huitzilopochtli, the deity of the sun and war, was the most revered of them all. The Aztecs thought that they were in the fifth solar age, and that the world may end violently at any time. Human sacrifices were undertaken to delay their annihilation and satisfy the gods.
The androgynous being’s multiple genders worked as husband and wife to give birth to the other four important Aztec gods — Huitzilopochtli, Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca, and Xipe Totec, who in turn represented the four cardinal sides – in the Aztec creation narrative.
The ancient Greek religion was founded on the idea that the cosmos was controlled by twelve gods and goddesses from Mount Olympus in Greece.
In Aztec mythology, the gods created the Thirteen Heavens from Cipactli’s head, while Tlaltcpac, the earth, was constructed from its core, and the nine levels of the underworld (Mictlan) were built from its tail.
In pyramids like the one above, how did the Aztecs worship their gods? Human sacrifices were offered. What happened in the Inca capital every morning?
The Aztecs thought that their gods were required for the sun to rise and set each day, thus while learning about how they worshiped their gods, you may think that these ceremonies seem a little over the top, but they relied on the gods to keep them alive day by day.
Huītzilōpōchtli
Huitzilopochtli | |
---|---|
Ethnic group | Aztec, (Mexica) |
Festivals | Panquetzaliztli |
Personal information | |
Parents | Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl (Codex Zumarraga)Mixcoatl and Coatlicue (Codex Florentine) |
During Toxcatl, the fifth ceremonial month, Tezcatlipoca’s primary rite took place. The priest chose a young and gorgeous military prisoner every year at those time. He lived in princely splendor for a year, mimicking the deity. His friends were four stunning girls costumed as deities.
Coatlicue, Huitzilopochtli’s mother, is a facet of the Aztecs’ multidimensional earth goddess; she conceived him when a ball of hummingbird feathers (i.e., the soul of a warrior) dropped from the sky and landed in her bosom.
MATOS MOCTEZUMA: The Aztec religion was polytheistic in nature. They worshipped male and female gods. Tonatiuh was the sun deity. There were numerous deities, and they were honored with lavish offerings at monthly festivals.
Huitzilopochtli Worship To feed the mighty deity of war, human sacrifices were made. Because Huitzilopochtli was such a powerful god, he was given human sacrifices whose blood would nourish and strengthen him.
With at least 166 identified deities, the Maya possessed a staggering array of gods. This is partially due to the fact that each deity had several personalities.
Mictlantecuhtli, the Aztec deity of the dead, is frequently depicted as a skull. He controlled Mictlan, the underworld, with his wife Mictecachuatl.