The main GODS of the TEORIHUACAN culture

One of the best ways to get to know a society is to study its mythology, since thanks to the elements that we find in it we can understand many of the events of its history and what were the key elements of its society. To talk about the mythology of one of the most interesting cultures of the Mesoamerican area in this lesson from a PROFESSOR we are going to talk about the main gods of the Teotihuacan culture.

Teotihuacan It was the name that the Mesoamerican settlers gave to an important city found in the area, its meaning being that of City of the Gods and receiving that name because the Americans who found the city did not know data about the existence of civilization.

The Teotihuacan culture is one of the most influential in the area, sharing many characteristics with the people who discovered it centuries later, although it is difficult to understand how it had so much influence and at the same time it forgot in such a short time.

The Teotihuacanos were in the Valley of Mexico area

, being located in the zone of cultural influence that we call as Mesoamerica and possessing great influence until events that we do not know ended with the entire culture. After that, many were the peoples who received a great influence from them, with many data and similar elements but without any type of connection that we can understand. In this other lesson we will discover the main contributions of the Teotihuaca culture so you can see the great relevance of this civilization.

To continue with this lesson on the gods of the Teotihuacan culture, we must talk about the main characteristics of the mythology of the region, since to understand the many main gods that existed we must know the main data and characteristics of these deities. The main characteristics of Teotihuacan mythology are the following:

• It was one polytheistic mythology, that is, they believed in the existence of numerous gods.
• Society was theocratic, so that religion and political or government figures were very close.
• Religious acts were closely related to astronomical events such as eclipses, as they were thought to be a signal sent by the gods.
• Numerous human sacrifices, which were used to demonstrate adoration to the gods, or to request favors such as rain or food.
• Her mythology had a strong inspiration in religions from previous years, since she drank from many of the classic Mesoamerian cultures, a clear example being the existence of gods such as the feathered serpent, whose origin we can see many centuries before the existence of the Teotihuacanos.
• There are numerous animals that for the Teotihuacanos they were sacred, being animals mainly of the environment, either friendly for the human being or extremely dangerous for them. Some of these dangerous animals were the jaguar, the owl or the snake.
• Were built huge buildings to honor the gods, some of them being the ones who surprised the civilizations that found the great city in later years.

But let's get into the matter now and get to know the most important gods of the Teotihuacan culture. We must talk about the different deities that make up the pantheon of the Teotihuacan religion, talking about the numerous attributes of him and about other elements that make them special and unique.

Quetzalcoatl

The main deity of the pantheon, also known as the Feathered Serpent, is the one who represents the duality of man in this society. It could be said that part of the essence of it represents the soul of the human being, and the other part of it represents the body of human beings. She was capable of great transformations, although the most recognizable aspect of her was that of a head surrounded by numerous types of snakes.

Tlaloc

One of the gods of the Teotihuacan culture most respected and feared by the Teotihuacanos, since he was the god of rain and watera, being two essential elements for the life of this culture, but also being very dangerous due to the damage that could be carried out in abundance. Her action on the crops caused her to be one of the deities that received the most sacrifices, since that their help was sought so that the crops received the water necessary to feed the population.

Chalchiuhtlicue

Goddess of water, patroness of births and the so-called friendly face of Tlatoc. It is known of beliefs that the tributes to honor this deity cause greater fertility, so she was a very adored goddess especially by the Teotihuacans who wanted more offspring.

Huehuetéotl

One of the oldest gods of all Mesoamerica, being represented as a stooped old man, and being attributed the attributes of fire. She was also a highly feared deity, as solar flares were considered to be triggered by her great anger.

Xipe Totec

This is another of the gods of the Teotihuacan culture. It was the God of food, agriculture and corn, her role in Teotihuacan life was essential, since her importance lay in her ability to feed people. He considered himself one of the main gods, since he was the person who had given food to the Teotihuacanos at the beginning of time.

Feathered Serpent

The deity with greater presence in all Mesoamerican mythologies, Teotihuacan being one of the cultures where it came to be most important. He was the god most represented by this culture, possessing attributions related to rain. It is thought that she and Quetzalcoatl, of which we have spoken before, may be the same god as the two so-called feathered serpents are, although their attributes are quite different.

Great Goddess of Teotihuacan

We are not sure of the identity of this deity, but the numerous representations we have of her in Teotihuacan art make it vital to know her situation. There are numerous theories, but the main ones relate it to attributes such as death, darkness or the underworld. In some studies she has been called the Spider Goddess, due to the relationship of her iconography with arachnids.