A feathered serpent deity has been worshiped by many different ethnopolitical groups in Mesoamerican history. [42], In 1971 Tony Shearer published a book called Lord of the Dawn: Quetzalcoatl and the Tree of Life, inspiring New Age followers to visit Chichen Itza at the summer solstice when dragon-shaped shadows are cast by the Kulkulcan pyramid.[43]. Some legends describe him as opposed to human sacrifice[24] while others describe him practicing it.[25][26]. Some scholarship maintains the view that the Aztec Empire's fall may be attributed in part to the belief in Cortés as the returning Quetzalcoatl, notably in works by David Carrasco (1982), H. B. Nicholson (2001 (1957)) and John Pohl (2016). The legend of Quetzalcoatl is spoofed in the Adult Swim CGI series Xavier: Renegade Angel. There were many gods in the Aztec religion but some of the most prominent included: Huitzilopochtli, Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca, Mictlāntēcutli, Tlaloc, and Chicomecōātl. To these ends, he sent his loyal emissary Yaotl to watch Izel to ensure there'd be no trickery on Quetzalcoatl's part. A feathered serpent deity has been worshiped by many different ethno-political groups in Mesoamerican history. The color black is strongly associated with Tezcatlipoca and he is often portrayed as having horizontal bands across his face especially in black and yellow, but the many different codices vary on which two colors from site to site. Women were sometimes sacrificed as ixiptla to honor female deities. [23] Immediately after he died a new victim for the next year's ceremony was chosen. Quetzalcoatl has been worshiped by all the major Mesoamerican cultures including the Mayans and the Aztecs. Similarities exist with the patron deity of the K'iche' Maya as described in the Popol Vuh. [11] Quetzalcoatl was one of several important gods in the Aztec pantheon, along with the gods Tlaloc, Tezcatlipoca and Huitzilopochtli. This constitutes the Late Pre-Classic Period of the Mayan civilization. [26] "The sacrifice itself marked the end of the drought. However, ixiptla were usually selected from among captive warriors, and the chosen individual was bathed and ceremoniously cleansed for the role that he was to undertake. [27] The young man also was dressed in the likeness of the god and people on the streets would worship him as such when encountered. [10] However, the fact that many images are difficult to identify as one god or another does not mean that no generalizations can be made about Tezcatlipoca's appearance. Tezcatlipoca is a character in Onyx Equinox. [26] For the next year he lived like a god, wearing expensive jewelry and having eight attendants. Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca joined forces to create the surface of the earth but later became fierce enemies in the city of Tollan. You have graciously arrived, you have known pain, you have known weariness, now come on earth, take your rest, enter into your palace, rest your limbs; may our lords come on earth. [33] This speech, which has been widely referred to, has been a factor in the widespread belief that Moctezuma was addressing Cortés as the returning god Quetzalcoatl. But she was crushed by Tezcatlipoca's words who accused her of just pretending to be kind. [29] Chalchihuitlicue the Water Goddess then became the sun. [12] Tezcatlipoca is often shown carrying a shield with balls of either feathers or cotton and holding arrows or a spear in his right hand with a fan of feathers surrounding a mirror. [17] They would also cover the sick and newly appointed king in a similar manner with a black ointment to encourage an association with the god. Most commonly he is shown with horizontal face bands, wearing a heron feather headdress, a loincloth, and knotted sandals with an armband, and tinker bells either around his neck or ankles. [5] That period lies within the Late Preclassic to Early Classic period (400 BC – 600 AD) of Mesoamerican chronology; veneration of the figure appears to have spread throughout Mesoamerica by the Late Classic period (600–900 AD).[6]. Quetzalcoatl was the third son of the dual creator god Ometeotl. Tlaloc, the god of rain, then became the sun. She was known as a evil god who fought against Quetzalcoatl. In later myths, the four gods who created the world, Tezcatlipoca, Quetzalcoatl, Huitzilopochtli and Xipe Totec were referred to respectively as the Black, the White, the Blue and the Red Tezcatlipoca. On the basis of the iconography of the feathered serpent deity at sites such as Teotihuacan, Xochicalco, Chichén Itzá, Tula and Tenochtitlan combined with certain ethnohistorical sources, historian David Carrasco has argued that the preeminent function of the feathered serpent deity throughout Mesoamerican history was the patron deity of the Urban center, a god of culture and civilization. [26] "For one year he lived a life of honor," the handsome young man "worshipped literally as the embodiment of the deity". Most Mesoamerican beliefs included cycles of suns. Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca, being ‘creator’ gods and direct sons of the original deity Ometeotl, constantly struggled against each other for power. His ashes rose into the sky and then his heart followed, becoming the morning star (see Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli).[27]. [22] In another story, the virgin Chimalman conceived Quetzalcoatl by swallowing an emerald. Tezcatlipoca was a god of exceptional significance amongst the Aztec pantheon. So the combination of quetzalli "precious feather" and coatl "snake" has often been interpreted as signifying a serpent with the feathers of Quetzal. And over the North presides the Black Tezcatlipoca, known by no other name than Tezcatlipoca, the god of judgment, night, deceit, sorcery and the Earth. Most documents expounding this t… It is the black Tezcatlipoca that most Aztec myths refer to. The four Tezcatlipocas were the sons of Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, lady and lord of the duality, and were the creators of all the other gods, as well as the world and all humanity. Tezcatlipoca turned himself into a jaguar and ripped the world apart. In Aztec mythology he was the brother of Tezcatlipoca, Huizilopochtli and Xipe Totec. There are several stories about the birth of Quetzalcoatl. In the Aztec creation myth, Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca fight violently over the creation of the world; first Quetzalcoatl defeats Tezcatlipoca, then Tezcatlipoca defeats Quetzalcoatl. The first documented worship of Quetzalcoatl is found in Theotihuacan during the first century BC or first century AD. [22] A fourth story narrates that Quetzalcoatl was born from Coatlicue, who already had four hundred children who formed the stars of the Milky Way. According to Fray Diego Durán it was "lofty and magnificently built. See more ideas about aztec art, mesoamerican, aztec warrior. They have been engaged in a clash since ancient times, but a settlement still has not been reached as their rivalry stands till this day. 1 Profile 1.1 Background 1.2 Personality 1.3 Appearance 2 Role 3 Abilities 4 References Tezcatlipoca is a spider and jaguar deity. Franciscans then equated the original Quetzalcoatl with Thomas and imagined that the Indians had long-awaited his return to take part once again in God's kingdom. The earliest iconographic depiction of the deity is believed to be found on Stela 19 at the Olmec site of La Venta, depicting a serpent rising up behind a person probably engaged in a shamanic ritual. According to the Book of Mormon, the resurrected Jesus Christ descended from heaven and visited the people of the American continent, shortly after his resurrection. [21] The king would stand "naked, emphasizing his utter unworthiness," speaking as nothing but a vessel for the god's will. One purpose of this myth is to validate the Aztec custom of sacrificing live human hearts. "[15], Quetzalcoatl was also linked to rulership and priestly office; additionally, among the Toltec, it was used as a military title and emblem.[16]. The meaning of his local name in other Mesoa… Other parties have also promulgated the idea that the Mesoamericans believed the conquistadors, and in particular Cortés, to be awaited gods: most notably the historians of the Franciscan order such as Fray Gerónimo de Mendieta. In his form as Ehecatl he is the wind, and is represented by spider monkeys, ducks, and the wind itself. Christian missionaries perceived the tragic Quetzalcoatl as a Christ-figure. The reference is of course to the gods of the invading Nahua tribes, the deities Huitzilopochtli, Titlacahuan or Tezcatlipoca, and Tlacahuepan. The feathered serpent was furthermore connected to the planet Venus because of this planet's importance as a sign of the beginning of the rainy season. In the episode "Damnesia You," Xavier winds up in the Aztec world and is immediately (and unsuccessfully) sacrificed for insulting the Sun God, and during the sacrifice the Aztecs humorously fail to pronounce his name. Transformed into giant snakes, the two gods attacked and dismembered the female reptilian m… Animals thought to represent Quetzalcoatl include resplendent quetzals, rattlesnakes (coatl meaning "serpent" in Nahuatl), crows, and macaws. Most were sung to praise the highest deities, including Tezcatlipoca, who was often addressed as the "Giver of Life." His name in the Nahuatl language is often translated as "Smoking Mirror"[2] and alludes to his connection to obsidian, the material from which mirrors were made in Mesoamerica and which were used for shamanic rituals and prophecy. But he had his wife taken away by Tezcatlipoca. Many temples built to honour Tezcatlipoca were aligned east to west, as he was associated with the sun. Quetzalcoatl became the ruler of the subsequent creation "Sun of Water", and Tezcatlipoca destroyed the third creation "The Sun of Wind" by striking down Quetzalcoatl. In the post-classic Nahua civilization of central Mexico (Aztec), the worship of Quetzalcoatl was ubiquitous. Over time, Quetzalcoatl's appearance, clothing, malevolent nature, and status among the gods were reshaped to fit a more Christian framework. Eighty steps led to a landing twelve or fourteen feet wide. (Many academics conclude this passage implies incest.) The earliest depictions of the feathered serpent deity were fully zoomorphic, depicting the serpent as an actual snake, but already among the Classic Maya, the deity began acquiring human features. In the example from Yaxchilan, the Vision Serpent has the human face of the young maize god, further suggesting a connection to fertility and vegetational renewal; the Maya Young Maize god was also connected to Venus. Quetzal feathers were a rare and precious commodity in the Aztec culture. 14-15. He is now most famous as the rival of his brother, Quetzalcoatl, the Plumed Serpent, whose fall from grace was maneuvered by Tezcatlipoca’s smoke and mirrors. Quetzalcoatl was associated with the wind god Ehecatl and is often depicted with his insignia: a beak-like mask. Tezcatlipoca is the offspring of the creator couple, who produced four sons: Red Tezcatlipoca, Black Tezcatlipoca, Qeutzalcoatl, and Huitzilopochtli (the patron god of the Aztecs). One of the four sons of Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, he is associated with a wide range of concepts, including the night sky, the night winds, hurricanes, the north, the earth, obsidian, enmity, discord, rulership, divination, temptation, jaguars, sorcery, beauty, war, and strife. After Great Monster Wars, the records and lore about her were buried away by Goddess Ilias. This talisman was a conch shell cut at the cross-section and was likely worn as a necklace by religious rulers, as such objects have been discovered in burials in archaeological sites throughout Mesoamerica,[7] and potentially symbolized patterns witnessed in hurricanes, dust devils, seashells, and whirlpools, which were elemental forces that had significance in Aztec mythology. But the history of the former has been handed down to us through an impure Lamanitish source, which has sadly disfigured and perverted the original incidents and teachings of the Savior's life and ministry. [34] Some Franciscans at this time held millennarian beliefs[35] and some of them believed that Cortés' coming to the New World ushered in the final era of evangelization before the coming of the millennium. The two later cooperated, however, to create the 5th Sun. The priests of Tezcatlipoca often wore the ornaments of the god and wore specific garments for different rituals. Auh yn jquac molhuja eheca, mjtoa: teuhtli quaqualaca, ycoioca, tetecujca, tlatlaiooa, tlatlapitza, tlatlatzinj, motlatlaueltia. As discussed above, Aztec folklore is rife with parallels, much of the time depicted in deities such as Tezcatlipoca. However, a majority of Mesoamericanist scholars, such as Matthew Restall (2003, 2018[33]), James Lockhart (1994), Susan D. Gillespie (1989), Camilla Townsend (2003a, 2003b), Louise Burkhart, Michel Graulich and Michael E. Smith (2003), among others, consider the "Quetzalcoatl/Cortés myth" as one of many myths about the Spanish conquest which have risen in the early post-conquest period. Before their act there was only the sea and the crocodilian earthmonster called Cipactli. Quetzalcoatl became the ruler of the subsequent creation “Sun of Water”, and Tezcatlipoca destroyed the third creation “The Sun of Wind” by striking down Quetzalcoatl. Those people who survived the deluge were turned into fish.[29]. Honoring Tezcatlipoca was fundamental to both the priesthood and the nobility. She cried for many years and the world was destroyed by the resulting floods. Over the East presides the Red Tezcatlipoca, Xipe Totec, the god of gold, farming and springtime. Envious of the calm enjoyment of the god and his people the Toltecs, three wicked “necromancers” plotted their downfall. One of Tezcatlipoca’s brothers was Quetzalcoatl. [38] In a 1986 paper for Sunstone, he noted that during the Spanish Conquest, the Native Americans and the Catholic priests who sympathized with them felt pressure to link Native American beliefs with Christianity, thus making the Native Americans seem more human and less savage. Name: Tezcatlipoca, God Of Darkness, God Of Destruction, God Of Ruin, Lord Of The Night Winds, Patron Of Evil Sorcerers, The Dark God, The Jaguar Lord, … Like Sphinx, she was one of the “Ancient Gods” – great monsters who existed and had been revered in various region in ancient times, though not actual gods. TEZCATLIPOCA TEZCATLIPOCA ("the smoking mirror") was one of the four Aztec creator gods who arranged the universe and set the cosmic ages in motion through periodic celestial battles. For the giant pterosaur, see. He is the 9th of the 13 Lords of the Day and is often associated with the rain god Tláloc. In Aztec mythology he was the brother of Quetzalcoatl, Huizilopochtli and Xipe Totec. Since the sixteenth century, it has been widely held that the Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II initially believed the landing of Hernán Cortésin 1519 to be Quetzalcoatl's return. These children would then have their skin painted black and be adorned with quail feathers in the image of the god. They maintained a major pilgrimage and commercial center at Cholula, Puebla which the Spaniards compared to both Rome and Mecca because the cult of the god united its constituents through a field of common social, political, and religious values without dominating them militarily. After that, they created the people, and people had to offer sacrifices to comfort Cipactli for her sufferings. Often our current time was considered the fifth sun,[citation needed] the previous four having been destroyed by flood, fire and the like. In later myths, the four gods who created the world, Tezcatlipoca, Quetzalcoatl, Huitzilopochtli and Xipe Totec were referred to respectively as the Black, the White, the Blue and the Red Tezcatlipoca. The existence of such worship can be seen through studies of the iconography of different Mesoamerican cultures, in which serpent motifs are frequent. [29], Another story of creation goes that Tezcatlipoca turned himself into the sun, but Quetzalcoatl was furious possibly because they were enemies, he is a night god or due to his missing foot, so he knocked Tezcatlipoca out of the sky with a stone club. In Xochicalco, depictions of the feathered serpent are accompanied by the image of a seated, armed ruler and the hieroglyph for the day sign 9 Wind. [23] The young man would spend his last week singing, feasting and dancing. Although she is a jaguar You… On the basis of the different symbolic systems used in portrayals of the feathered serpent deity in different cultures and periods, scholars have interpreted the religious and symbolic meaning of the feathered serpent deity in Mesoamerican cultures. Tezcatlipoca was often described as a rival of another important god of the Aztecs, the culture hero, Quetzalcoatl. A central figure of the Popol Vuh was the god Tohil whose name means "obsidian" and who was associated with sacrifice. In later myths, the four gods who created the world, Tezcatlipoca, Quetzalcoatl, Huitzilopochtli and Xipe Totec were referred to respectively as the Black, the White, the Blue and the Red Tezcatlipoca. Tezcatlipoca(テスカトリポカ, Tesukatoripoka?) Beyond it stood a wide, long chamber the size of a great hall...". Tezcatlipoca's main feast was during Toxcatl, the fifth month of the Aztec calendar. Numerous myths relate how Tezcatlipoca expelled the priest-king Quetzalcóatl, the Feathered Serpent, from the latter’s centre at Tula. [24] The preparations began a year earlier, when a young man was chosen by the priests to be the likeness of Tezcatlipoca. Tezcatlipoca was also worshipped in many other Nahua cities such as Texcoco, Tlaxcala and Chalco. Franciscans such as Toribio de Benavente "Motolinia" saw elements of Christianity in the pre-Columbian religions and therefore believed that Mesoamerica had been evangelized before, possibly by Thomas the Apostle, who, according to legend, had "gone to preach beyond the Ganges". After a slapstick-style chase scene, Xavier winds up as the Sun God and commits "sacricide" (sacrificial suicide), ending the skit. Tezcatlipoca and his followers came to Earth from another world thousands of years ago, along with his enemy Quetzalcoatl to monitor the evolution of the human race if mankind had developed on the wrong track here would use their vast powers to destroy the world and permit after its reconstruction, then return to Quetzalcoatl into outer space. [29] Angered, Tezcatlipoca turned into a jaguar and destroyed the world. The Tezcatlipoca figure goes back to earlier Mesoamerican deities worshipped by the Olmec and Maya. Vengeance . [18] When the ritual called for it, priests would also dress up as Tezcatlipoca himself and accompany other similarly outfitted gods or goddesses. The gods Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca brought the earth goddess Tlalteuctli down … He feuded with his brother Quetzalcoatl and emerged victorious after tricking his younger sibling into shaming himself. In the Aztec ritual calendar the Tonalpohualli Tezcatlipoca ruled the trecena 1 Ocelotl ("1 Jaguar")—he was also patron of the days with the name Acatl ("reed").[8]. This name which is derived from his birthdate in the Aztec "2 Reed" which is the first date in the Aztec year is sometimes also spelled Omecatl. There were several priests dedicated to the service of Tezcatlipoca, one of them was probably the one Sahagún calls "huitznahuac teohua omacatl", others were the calmeca teteuctin who were allowed to eat the ritual food offered to Tezcatlipoca, others accompanied the Ixiptlatli impersonator of Tezcatlipoca in the year prior to his execution. Although probably not exactly a depiction of the same feathered serpent deity worshipped in classic and post-classic periods, it shows the continuity of symbolism of feathered snakes in Mesoamerica from the formative period and on, for example in comparison to the Maya Vision Serpent shown below. [20], To the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl was, as his name indicates, a feathered serpent, a flying reptile (much like a dragon), who was a boundary-maker (and transgressor) between earth and sky. Quetzelcoatl also appeared on (Season 3) of the Animal Planet mockumentary Lost Tapes in an episode entitled "Q the Serpent God". ", "Method and Skepticism (and Quetzalcoatl...)", "Quetzalcoatl, the Maya maize god and Jesus Christ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Quetzalcoatl&oldid=1000762531, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages, Articles having same image on Wikidata and Wikipedia, Articles containing Classical Nahuatl-language text, Wikipedia articles needing factual verification from August 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from August 2013, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2012, Articles with incomplete citations from April 2020, Articles with Spanish-language sources (es), Articles with Nahuatl languages-collective sources (nah), Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 16 January 2021, at 16:14. Other legends posited that Quetzalcoatl was the son of the goddess Chimalma. The date 9 Wind is known to be associated with fertility, Venus and war among the Maya and frequently occurs in relation to Quetzalcoatl in other Mesoamerican cultures. Depending on the site half of his leg, the full length of his arms, the majority of his legs, or any combination thereof can be depicted. In the aspect in which he is mainly portrayed, Tezcatlipoca is the Destroyer figure. Tier: At most 1-A. In the Codex's description of the first meeting between Moctezuma and Cortés, the Aztec ruler is described as giving a prepared speech in classical oratorial Nahuatl, a speech which, as described in the codex written by the Franciscan Bernardino de Sahagún and his Tlatelolcan informants, included such prostrate declarations of divine or near-divine admiration as: You have graciously come on earth, you have graciously approached your water, your high place of Mexico, you have come down to your mat, your throne, which I have briefly kept for you, I who used to keep it for you. Historians debate to what degree, or whether at all, these narratives about this legendary Toltec ruler describe historical events. Tezcatlipoca is a divine sorcerer. At temples such as the aptly named "Quetzalcoatl temple" in the Ciudadela complex, feathered serpents figure prominently and alternate with a different kind of serpent head. Was also the patron of the god to the Aztec Empire of god! To offer sacrifices to comfort Cipactli for her sufferings the modern age few surviving representations Tezcatlipoca! Tezcatlipoca and his brother Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca while his younger brother was Huitzilopochtli the temple of Tezcatlipoca the., called the Sun of the day and is often associated with the rain god Tláloc folklore is rife parallels. The culture hero, Quetzalcoatl and emerged victorious after tricking his younger brother was Huitzilopochtli more ideas about art. 19 ] who saw that the legend of the K'iche ' Maya as described in the of... 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