Aztec Mythology
Aztec mythology is the body or collection of myths of Aztec civilization of Central Mexico and Southern Mexico. The descriptions available of the mythology and the culture describe a life of both grandeur and dread. The Aztec mythology is very similar to other Mesoamerican and South American mythologies and tend to follow a similar theme.
Although it is believed that the Aztecs came from a place that is now identified as modern day Mexico City, there is no conclusive proof on their exact origin. In the myth the ancestors of the Mexica/Aztec came from a place in the north called Aztlan, to make the journey southward, hence their name “Azteca.”
In the Aztec Mythology, Gods warred among themselves and the world was constantly being changed based on the results of the wars. The people had to regularly make sacrifices to the Gods to appease them and not invite the wrath of any God in particular. These sacrifices ranged from pottery and artefacts to humans. Everyday items—colours, numbers, directions, days of the calendar—took on special meaning because each was associated with a deity. Aztec religious life ranged from keeping small pottery statues of the gods in homes to attending elaborate public ceremonies involving human sacrifice.
Gods created the humans to work, fight and worship them and were not know to bless or grant any favours. The relationship of man and God was built on the predicate of harm if the wishes of the Gods were not adhered to. Human life was considered to be insignificant in the grand scheme of things and it would completely depend on forces of nature and God that were never in their control.
The Aztec gods and goddesses are, as far as we have known anything about them, an unlovely and unlovable lot. In their myths there is no grace or charm, no poetry. Only this perpetual grudge, grudge, grudging, one god grudging another, the gods grudging men their existence, and men grudging the animals. The goddess of love is goddess of dirt and prostitution, a dirt-eater, a horror, without a touch of tenderness.
