Aztec Gods



Tlaloc

The Aztecs named and worshiped nearly 1000 Aztec gods. Two the most important gods in Aztec religion were Aztec Gods called tēōtl and tēixiptla. Tēōtl represented the so called "Aztec God", the impersonal force, the power behind the world. Tēixiptla was a pysical manifestation of Aztec God. For instance - Tēixiptla would be a statue of the tēōtl. These were the gods of the early Aztec history.


Aztec God Huitzilopochtli


The main god of the Aztecs was Huizilopochtlid. This was the sun and war god - the personification of the sun and of war. Huitzilopochtli was a center of the Aztec religious practices.

Aztec God of Huitzilopochtli became the main deity in Aztec religion after the founding of Tenochtitlan in the 14th century. Before Huitzilopochtli was a "only" a hunting deity. We say only because hunting was one of the main Aztec activities.

Aztec God Huitzilopochtli And Tenochtitlan


The story goes that Huitzilopochtli directed the Aztec people when they fled and were looking for a place to settle. They founded the city of Tenochtitlan where they would see an eagle devouring a snake. The snake was perched on a cactus. This was a sign from Aztec Gods to Aztec people.

The legend goes that Huitzilopochtli killed his nephew, Cópil, and threw his heart on the lake, then made a cactus grow out of his heart. This was the same cactus that appeared to the Aztec people together with the snake and the eagle and was the site on which Aztecs built their capital city. A picture of this event is also present on the Mexican Coat of Arms.


Aztec God Tlaloc


Another important Aztec god was named Tlaloc. Tlaloc was the god of rain. Especially farmers were very careful to praise this god so that could grow good crops and not experience drought, which was a common occurrence in the area.

We can say that Tlaloc and Huitzilopochtli were later the two most important Aztec Gods, but there very many other Aztec gods.