Serpents Fountain

Fuente de las Viboras

Serpents Fountain (four serpents) by Architect Leonides Guadarrama 1964.Chapultepec 2d Section Mexico City

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. He was also a creator deity having contributed essentially to the creation of Mankind. He also had anthropomorphic forms, for example in his aspects as Ehecatl the wind god. Among the Aztecs the name Quetzalcoatl was also a priestly title, as the most two important priests of the Aztec Templo_Mayor  were called "Quetzalcoatl Tlamacazqui". In the Aztec ritual calendar, different deities were associated with the cycle of year names: Quetzalcoatl was tied to the year Ce Acatl (One Reed), which correlates to the year 1519.

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Tlaloc

Tlaloc, God of rain, fertility and water.

Tlaloc was an important deity in Aztec religion. He was a beneficent god who gave life and sustenance, but he was also feared for his ability to send hail, thunder and lightning, and for being the lord of the powerful element of water. In Aztec iconography he is normally depicted with goggle eyes and fangs. He was associated with caves, springs and mountains.

  

In Aztec cosmology, the four corners of the universe are marked by "The Four Tlalocs" which both hold up the sky and functions as the frame for the passing of time. Tlaloc was the patron of the Calendar day Mazatl and of the trecena of Ce Quiyahuitl (1 Rain). In Aztec mythology, Tlaloc was the lord of the third sun, which was destroyed by fire.

  

In the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, one of the two shrines on top of the Great Temple was dedicated to Tlaloc. The High Priest who was in charge of the Tlaloc shrine was called "Quetzalcoatl Tlaloc Tlamacazqui". However the most important site of worship to Tlaloc was on the peak of Mount Tlaloc, a 4100 metres high mountain on the eastern rim of the Valley of Mexico. Here the Aztec ruler came and conducted important ceremonies once a year, and throughout the year pilgrims offered precious stones and figures at the shrine.

  

In Coatlinchan a colossal statue weighing 168 tons was found that was thought to represent Tlaloc. Some scholars believe that the statue may not have been Tlaloc at all but his sister or some other female deity. This statue was relocated to the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City in 1964. [Wiki]

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Aztec Underworld

The Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral is the largest and oldest cathedral in the Americas, it is situated atop the former Aztec sacred precinct near the Templo Mayor on the northern side of the main square. Here, two views of people seeing the underworld (aztec ruins) in 3 times, Modern, Colonial and Pre-hispanic.

The Aztec Mythology and their Underworld, Mictlan.
In Aztec belief, the surface of the earth was a thin crust between the material (apparent) reality and the real world of spirit. Death was not taken at face value in Aztec religion, but was seen as the essence of life itself and the creation of a renewed beginning, a Beginning and an End at the same time - an unbroken cycle. According to the shaman, everything is part of the same life force. Birth was an emerging from this world of spirit and Death was a return back into it. In this unending cycle, the crops died and were reborn - that is, if the spirit world allowed it.
Mictlan is the lowest layer of the underworld, situated in the north. Every soul, except those of fallen warriors and women who died giving birth, have to descend to the underworld. Here, their souls will find eternal rest. However, they first have to make the dangerous journey to Mictlan. At the burial, the deceased are given magical powers and with the help of the god Xolotl, they are able to make this journey safely. The ruler of this underworld is Mictlantecuhtli.
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Cuauhtemoc

Monument to Cuauhtemoc on Paseo de la Reforma Ave.

On August 13, 1521, Cuauhtémoc went to call for reinforcements from the countryside to aid the falling Tenochtitlán, after eighty days straight of urban warfare against the Spanish. Of all the Nahuas, only Tlatelolcas remained loyal, and the surviving Tenochcas looked for refuge in Tlatelolco where even women took part in the battle. Cuauhtémoc was captured while crossing Lake Texcoco in disguise. He surrendered to Hernán Cortés along with the surviving pipiltin (nobles), and offered him his knife and asked to be killed. At first, Cortés treated his foe chivalrously. "A Spaniard knows how to respect valor even in an enemy," he declared. However, he allowed Aldrete, the royal treasurer, to have Cuauhtemoc tortured to make him reveal the whereabouts of hidden treasure. Cuauhtémoc, insisting that there was no hidden treasure, stood up under the ordeal. [ Wiki. ]

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