The Source of Tlaloc

THE CURRENT CHALLENGE

Fri Dec 21, 2012

This week's challenge:
'Best of 2012'.

Holidays in New York

Felices Fiestas / Happy Holidays
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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The Night of The Mayans

A New Age

Winter Solstice

The First Day of Winter / End of the World?

Q: What is the origin of the prediction that the world will end in 2012?

 A: The story started with claims that Nibiru, a supposed planet discovered by the Sumerians, is headed toward Earth. This catastrophe was initially predicted for May 2003, but when nothing happened the doomsday date was moved forward to December 2012 and linked to the end of one of the cycles in the ancient Mayan calendar at the winter solstice in 2012 -- hence the predicted doomsday date of December 21, 2012.

Q: Does the Mayan calendar end in December 2012?

 A: Just as the calendar you have on your kitchen wall does not cease to exist after December 31, the Mayan calendar does not cease to exist on December 21, 2012. This date is the end of the Mayan long-count period but then -- just as your calendar begins again on January 1 -- another long-count period begins for the Mayan calendar.  (NASA)

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Tlaloc

-Detail-

Source of Tlaloc

Just in front of an ancient urban water station, today established as the museum “Carcamo of Chapultepec”, you can see the only underwater mural entitled "Water, Source of Life" and conceived by the renowned Mexican Muralist, Diego Rivera in 1951.

The main part of the decoration is the figure, a polychrome bas-relief of Tlaloc, (the aztec and mesoamerican God of Water) emerging from the mud, which is made of colored stones combining painting and sculpture.

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Thanks for visiting, please be sure that I read each and every one of your kind comments, I appreciate them all. Stay tuned.

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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New York City and Washington series continue in Sketches of Cities. (At Least Once A Week) Gracias por su visita. / Thanks for visiting, please be sure that I read each and every one of your kind comments and I appreciate them all. Stay tune.