Huehueteotl/Xiuhtecuhtli

Huehueteotl ("Old god"; aged god in Nahuatl) is a Mesoamerican deity figuring in the pantheons of pre-Columbian cultures, particularly in Aztec mythology and others of the Central Mexico region. He is also sometimes called Ueueteotl. Although known mostly in the cultures of that region, images and iconography depicting Huehueteotl have been found at other archaeological sites across Mesoamerica, such as in the Gulf region, western Mexico, Protoclassic-era sites in the Guatemalan highlands such as Kaminaljuyú and Late-Postclassic sites on the northern Yucatán Peninsula (Miller and Taube, 1993:189).

Huehueteotl is frequently considered to overlap with, or be another aspect of, a central Mexican/Aztec deity associated with fire, Xiuhtecuhtli. In particular, the Florentine Codex identifies Huehueteotl as an alternative epithet for Xiutecuhtli, and consequently that deity is sometimes referred to as Xiutecuhtli-Huehueteotl.

However, Huehueteotl is characteristically depicted as an aged or even decrepit being, whereas Xiutecuhtli's appearance is much more youthful and vigorous, and he has a marked association with rulership and (youthful) warriors.[1][2]

An Aztec religious observance was celebrated via boys hunting small animals such as snakes, lizards, frogs and even dragonflies larvae in the swamps to give them to the elders who served as the guardians of the fire deity. As a reward for these offerings, the priest would give them food. At these occasions the god was demonstrated as young with turquoise and quetzalfeathers for ceremonial purposes. Later during the month he appeared as ageing and tired, covered with the colours of glow; gold, black and red. Perhaps this has led to the confusion of the deity being two separate ones, as being displayed as such, or vice versa.


Another, more dramatic one, was a celebration consisting of feasts and a time of ceasing hostilities. The Aztecs cut out the hearts of human sacrifices, followed by burning them on coal. As a result of this, the people would regain Huehueteotl's favor through the gods elements - fire and blood.

From: Wiki

Huehueteotl, "the Old One"
Ueueteotl
Otontecuhtli
Xiuhtecuhtli
Xiutechuhtli
Xocotl

Symbols, Iconography, and Art of Huehueteotl:
Aztec art usually portrays Huehueteotl as a very old man, hunched over with a wrinkled face and a toothless mouth. Huehueteotl is one of very few gods depicted is such an aged state, but it represented his great wisdom. Huehueteotl also tends to wear a large brazier marked with symbols of fire and which may itself have held incense.

Huehueteotl is God of:
Hearth
Fire of Life
North

Story and Origin of Huehueteotl:
Huehueteotl may be the oldest of the Aztec gods and representations of him can be found all over Mesoamerica going back centuries. Huehueteotl represents light, warmth, and life against darkness, cold, and death.

Family Tree and Relationships of Huehueteotl:
Husband of Chalchiuhtlicue, fertility and vegetation goddess

Temples, Worship and Rituals of Huehueteotl:
Most Aztec gods were worshiped at public rituals and had social/public rules; Huehueteotl, however, appears to have been a household deity responsible for the maintenance of the hearth and perhaps preservation of family harmony. One public ritual was the Hueymiccailhuitl, "great feast of the dead," which occurred every 52 years (the Aztec century). In order to ensure that the Aztec covenant with the gods would be renewed, victims were drugged, roasted alive, and had their hearts cut out.

Mythology and Legends of Huehueteotl:
Toxiuhmolpilia, "the tying of the years," was ritual performed every 52 years over which Huehueteotl presided. During this ceremony, the sacrificial victim not only had their still-beating heart torn from their body, but a piece of wood was then placed in its place and set on fire. Only if the fire caught would there be fire through the rest of the land for the next 52 years. Huehueteotl's role in this was due to the Aztec belief that, as an ancient pillar of the universe, Huehueteotl's fire ran throughout the entire world, linking the fires in every Aztec home and every Aztec temple.
From: Here

Among the Aztec/Mexica the fire god was associated with another ancient deity, the old god. For this reason these figures are often considered different aspects of the same deity: Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli (Pronounced: Way-ue-TEE-ottle, and Shee-u-teh-COO-tleh). As with many polytheist cultures, ancient Mesoamerican people worshipped many gods who represented the different forces and manifestations of nature. Among these elements, fire was one of the first to be deified.

The names under which we know these gods are Nahuatl terms, which is the language spoken by the Aztec/Mexica, so we don’t known how these deities were known by earlier cultures. Huehuetéotl is the “Old God”, from huehue, old, and teotl, god, whereas Xiuhtecuhtli means “The lord of Turquoise”, from the suffix xiuh, turquoise, or precious, and tecuhtli, lord, and he was considered the progenitor of all gods, as well as the patron of fire and the year.

Origins of Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli

Huehueteotl-Xiuhtecuhtli was an extremely important god beginning in very early times in Central Mexico. In the Formative (Preclassic) site of Cuicuilco, south of Mexico City, statues portraying an old man sitting and holding a brazier on his head or his back, have been interpreted as images of the old god and the fire god.

At Teotihuacan, the most important metropolis of the Classic period, Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli is one of the most often represented deities. Again, his images portray an old man, with wrinkles on his face and no teeth, sitting with his legs crossed, holding a brazier on his head. The brazier is often decorated with rhomboid figures and cross-like signs symbolizing the four world directions with the god sitting in the middle.

The period for which we have more information about this god is the Postclassic period, thanks to the importance that this god had among the Aztec/Mexica.

Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli Attributes

According to the Aztec religion, Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli was associated with ideas of purification, transformation and regeneration of the world through fire. As god of the year, he was associated with the cycle of the seasons and nature which regenerate the earth. He was also considered one of the founding deities of the world, since he was the responsible for the creation of the sun.

According to colonial sources, the fire god had his own temple in the sacred precinct of Tenochtitlan, in a place called tzonmolco.

Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli is also related to the ceremony of the New Fire, one of the most important Aztec ceremonies, which took place at the end of each cycle of 52 years, and represented the regeneration of the cosmos through the lighting of a new fire.

Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli Festivities

Two major festivities were dedicated to Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli: the Xocotl Huetzi ceremony, in August, associated to the underworld, the night, and the dead, and a second one which took place in the month of Izcalli, at beginning of February, related to light, warmness and the dry season.

Xocotl Huetzi: this ceremony was related to the collection of the fruits of the earth and the ritual death of plants. It involved cutting a tree and placing an image of the god on the top. Copal and food were then offered to the tree. Young men were encouraged to climb the tree to get the image and gain a reward. Four captives were sacrificed by being thrown into a fire and by having their hearts extracted.

Izcalli: this second festival was dedicated to regrowth and regeneration, and the beginning of the new year. All lights were shut down at night, except for one light placed in front of the god's image, including a turquoise mask. People brought game, such as birds, lizards, and snakes, to cook and eat. Every four years, the ceremony included the sacrifice of four slaves or captives, who were dressed like the god and whose bodies were painted in white, yellow, red and green, the colors associated with the world's directions.

Hueuetéotl Images

Since early times, Huehuetéotl-Hiuhtecuhtli was portrayed, mainly in statues, as an old man, with his legs crossed, his arms resting on his legs, and holding a lit brazier on his head or back. His face shows the signs of age, quite wrinkled and without teeth. This type of sculpture is the most widespread and recognizable image of the god, and has been found in many offerings in sites such as Cuicuilco, Capilco, Teotihuacan, Cerro de las Mesas, and the Templo Mayor of Mexico City.

However, as Xiuhtecuhtli, the god is often represented in pre-Hispanic as well as Colonial codices without these characteristics. In these cases, his body is yellow and his face has black stripes, his mouth is surrounded by a red circle and he has blue ear plugs hanging from his ears. He often has arrows emerging from his headdress and holds sticks used to light fire.

From: Here

Xiuhtecuhtli is the Turquoise Lord, Lord of the Year, god of fire, creator of all life.

Xiuhtecuhtli, also called Ixcozauhqui and Huehueteotl, the Old God, is considered "Mother and Father of the Gods, he who stands at the center of the world." He is the personification of light in the darkness, warmth in coldness, food during famine, and life in death.

Xiuhtecuhtli is the central deity in the New Fire ceremony, held every 52 years in year 2 Acatl (Ome Acatl, which is also a name for Tezcatlipoca).

In the tonalpohualli, Xiuhtecuhtli is the protector of day Atl (water). He rules over the last trecena of the tonalpohualli, 1-Tochtli (rabbit). Xiuhtecuhtli is Lord of the Day for days with number 1 ("ce" in Nahuatl). He is the first Lord of the Night.

From: Here

Mayahuel

Mayahuel is the goddess of the maguey plant and of fertility. Protector of mature wombs that turn into life.

From the milky sap of the maguey plant, aguamiel, the alcoholic drink pulque (octli in Nahuatl) was brewn. Mayahuel is often depicted with many breasts to feed her many children, the Centzon Totochin (the 400 Rabbits). The Centzon Totochin were thought to cause drunkenness.

Mayahuel is the wife of Patecatl, who is also a pulque god.
The deity Ome Tochtli (Two Rabbit) represents all pulque gods.

The spines of the maguey were used by ancient priests and nobles for autosacrifice.

(...)

Mayahuel is both the ruler of the eight day, Tochtli (rabbit), and the eight trecena, 1-Malinalli (grass).

From: Aztec Calendar

Mayahuel is the female divinity associated with the maguey plant among cultures of central Mexico in the Postclassic era of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican chronology, and in particular of the Aztec cultures. As the personification of the maguey plant, Mayahuel was also part of a complex of interrelated maternal and fertility goddesses in Aztec mythology and is also connected with notions of fecundity and nourishment.[1]

Products extracted from the maguey plant (Agave spp.) were used extensively across highlands and southeastern Mesoamerica, with the thorns used in ritual bloodletting ceremonies and fibers extracted from the leaves worked into ropes and cloth.[2] Perhaps the most important maguey product is the alcoholic beverage known as pulque,[3] used prominently in many public ceremonies and on other ritual occasions. By extension, Mayahuel is often shown in contexts associated with pulque. Although some secondary sources describe her as a "pulque goddess", she remains most strongly associated with the plant as the source, rather than pulque as the end product.[4]

Mayahuel has many breasts to feed her many children, the Centzon Totochtin (the 400 Rabbits). These are thought to be responsible for causing drunkenness.

From: Wiki

Name and Etymology:
Mayahuel
Mayahual
Mayouel

Religion and Culture of Mayahuel:
Aztec, Mesoamerica

Symbols, Iconography, and Art of Mayahuel:
Aztec art shows Mayahuel as a young women wearing blouse and carrying a flowering maguey plant.

Mayahuel is Goddess of:
Maguey (agave)
Pulque (made from agave)
Alcohol

Story and Origin of Mayahuel:
According to Aztec myth, Quetzalcoatl and Mayahuel were fleeing tzitzimime (star demons) and tried to disguise themselves as the branches of a tree. Mayahuel was recognized, however, and the tzitzimime tore her to small pieces. Quetzalcoatl buried the pieces which in turn sprouted into the first maguey plants. These are then turned into pulque, an alcoholic drink used by the Aztec in their religious rituals.

Family Tree and Relationships of Mayahuel:
Wife of Patecatl
Mother of Centzontotochtin, an innumerable group of rabbit gods of drunkenness whom she fed through her 400 breasts, all delivering the alcoholic drink made from agave. Each of the Centzontotochtin are responsible for a different sort of drunkenness. For the Aztecs, "400" was the number they used for anything they considered innumerable.

From: Here

Mayahuel was the Aztec goddess of maguey, as well as one of the protectors of fertility. This deity played an important role in ancient Central Mexico, since it is associated with the origin of pulque.

Mayahuel Myth
According to the Aztec myth, the god Quezalcoatl decided to provide humans with a special drink to celebrate and feast and gave them pulque. He sent Mayahuel, goddess of maguey, to the earth and then coupled with her. To avoid the rage of her grandmother and her other ferocious relatives the goddesses Tzitzimime, Quetzalcoatl and Mayahuel transformed themselves into a tree, but they were found out and Mayahuel was killed. Quetzalcoatl collected the bones of the goddess and buried them, and in that place grew the first plant of maguey. For this reason it was thought that the sweet sap, the aguamiel, collected from the plant was the blood of the goddess.

A different version of the myth tells that Mayahuel was a mortal woman who discovered how to collect aguamiel, and her husband Pantecalt discovered how to make pulque.

Mayahuel Imagery
Mayahuel was also defined as “the woman of the 400 breasts”, probably referring to the many sprouts and leaves of maguey and the milky juice produced by the plant and transformed into pulque. The goddess has many breasts to feed her many children, the Centzon Totochtin or “the 400 rabbits”, who were the gods associated with the effects of excessive drinking. In codices, Mayahuel is depicted as a young woman, with many breasts, emerging from a maguey plant, holding cups with foaming pulque.

From: Here

Tlaloc

Name and Etymology:
Tlaloc, "He Who Rests on the Land"
Nuhualpilli
Religion and Culture of Tlaloc:
Aztec, Mesoamerica
Symbols, Iconography, and Art of Tlaloc:
Tlaloc is one of the oldest worshipped gods in Mesoamerica — the earliest images that can be identified as Tlaloc date to the 1st century CE on vases from Tlapacoya. At this time, Tlaloc is depicted carrying lightning bolts. Aztecs drew Tlaloc with a clay jar or pot in which he kept the waters of the rain. Tlaloc also has jaguar teeth and large eyes — some think that Tlaloc was part jaguar, an attribute which may have derived from Olmec religion where the were-jaguar was the primary deity.
Tlaloc is God of:
Rain
Fertility
Lightning
Equivalents in Other Cultures:
Chac, Mayan rain god
Cocijo, Zapotec rain god
Story and Origin of Tlaloc:
Tlaloc was thought to live in caves in the mountains where he guarded large stores of treasures. Perhaps connected to this was his image as a "provider" for the people through the rains. Tlaloc ruled over the third of the five Aztec ages.
Family Tree and Relationships of Tlaloc:
Husband of Chalchihuitlicue
Father of Tecciztecatl
Brother of Huixtocihuatl
Temples, Worship and Rituals of Tlaloc:
In the 1st and 3rd months of the calendar and also during the festival of Hueytozoztli, "great watch," ( festival to encourage the growth of corn) children were sacrificed to Tlaloc by drowning; orphaned children were especially sought after. Tlaloc had a major temple at Tenochtitlan which, with Huitzilopochtli's, made the Hueteocalli, "Great Temple," a double pyramid which was the focus of Aztec religious ritual. Huitzilopochtli's was red for war; Tlaloc's was blue & white for water.
Mythology and Legends of Tlaloc:
Aztecs believed that Tlaloc kept water in a clay jar and when it broke it, this caused the rain. Aztecs also believed that he had three other jugs. The second would cause disease, the third frost, and the fourth would bring complete destruction if he emptied it or if it broke. With his consort Chalchihuitlicue, Tlaloc ruled the paradise land of Tlalocan, a realm where mortals lived who died from Tlaloc's actions — for example being struck by lightning or drowning in a flood. He also ruled over those who died from leprosy and other contagious diseases.

From: About.com's Aztec Mythology

The Aztec god of rain, agriculture, fire, and the south. In his kingdom he receives those killed by thunderbolts, water, leprosy, and contagious diseases. He is the consort of the water goddess Chalchiuhtlicue and sometimes regarded as the father of the moon-god Tecciztecatl. Each year a large number of children were sacrified by drowning. He is of pre-Aztec origin and known from the time of the Toltecs. His image figures prominently in their art. He presided over the third of the five Aztec world ages.

From: Pantheon.org

Tlaloc was an important deity of rain and fertility of the Aztec mythology. Aztec people were living in Mexico during the fifteenth and sixteenth century. Tlaloc was pictured as a man wearing a net of clouds, a crown of heron feathers, foam sandals and carrying rattles to make thunder. Tlaloc brought on great wrath upon the Aztec people. He often used his lightning bolts to make the people sick. It is said that he had four different jugs of water in his possession. When he emptied the first one, it brought life to plants. The second would cause blight, the third brought on frost, and the fourth would bring total destruction.

From: here

Tlaloc ['tɬa:lok] was an important deity in Aztec religion, a god of rain, fertility, and water. He was both a beneficient god who gave life and sustenance, but he was also feared for his ability to send hail, thunder and lightening, 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" (Nahuatl: "Tlaloque") 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.

Name

Tlaloc was also associated with the watery world of the dead, and with the earth. His name is thought to be derived from the Nahuatl word tlālli "earth", and its meaning has been interpreted as "path beneath the earth", "long cave" or "he who is made of earth".[1] J. Richard Andrews interprets it as "one that lies on the land", identifying Tlaloc as a cloud resting on the mountaintops.[2]

Mythology

Tlaloc was first married to Xochiquetzal, a goddess of flowers, but then Tezcatlipoca kidnapped her. He later married the goddess Chalchiuhtlicue, "She of the Jade Skirt". In Aztec mythic cosmography, Tlaloc ruled the fourth layer of the 'Upper World", or heavens, which is called Tlalocan ("place of Tlaloc") in several Aztec codices, such as the Vaticanus A and Florentine codices. Described as a place of unending Springtime and a paradise of green plants, Tlalocan was the destination in the afterlife for those who died violently from phenomena associated with water, such as by lightning, drowning and water-borne diseases (Miller and Taube, 1993).

With Chalchiuhtlicue, he was the father of Tecciztecatl. He had an older sister named Huixtocihuatl. He ruled over the third of the five worlds in Aztec belief. In Salvadoran mythology, he was also the father of Cipitio.

Related gods

The goggle eyed raingod is also known from other Mesoamerican cultures, for example he is a frequent figure in the iconography of Teotihuacan. This has lead to mesoamerican goggle-eyed raingods being referred to generically as "Tlaloc" although in some cases it is unknown what they were called in these cultures, and in other cases we know that he was called by a different name (e.g. the Mayan version was known as Chaac and the Zapotec deity Cocijo).

From: Wiki

Tlaloc, He Who Makes Things Sprout, the god of rain, lightning and thunder. Het is a fertility god, but also a wrathful deity. He is responsible for both floods and droughts.

Tlaloc is commonly depicted as a goggle-eyed blue being with jaguar fangs. Often he is presented wearing a net of clouds, a crown of heron feather and foam sandals. He carries rattles to make thunder.

kidnapped her. He later married Tlaloc was first married to the goddess Xochiquetzal, but then TezcatlipocaChalchihuitlicue. With Chalchihuitlicue he became the father of Tecciztecatl. Tlaloc has an older sister named Huixtocihuatl.

He is the ruler of Tlalocan, the fourth heaven. Tlalocan is the place of eternal spring, a paradise of green plants. Tlalocan is the destination in the afterlife for those who died violently from phenomena associated with water, such as by lightning, drowning and water-borne diseases.

Tlaloc ruled over the third world, 4 Quiahuitl, the world that was destroyed by a fiery deluge.

He is served by various rain spirits called the tlaloque.

In Tenochtitlan, ancient Mexico City, half of the central temple ("Huey Teocalli") was dedicated to Tlaloc. The other half was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli, the god of the Mexica.

Tlaloc is both the protector of the seventh day, Mazatl (deer) and the seventh trecena, 1-Quiahuitl (rain). He is Lord of the Day for days with number 8 ("chicuei" in Nahuatl). Tlaloc is the nineth and last Lord of the Night.

From: Aztec Calender

Chalchihuitlicue

Name and Etymology:
Chalchihuitlicue
Chalchiuhtlicue
Chalciuhtlicue
Acuecucyoticihuati
"She of the Jade Skirt"
Religion and Culture of Chalchihuitlicue:
Aztec, Mesoamerica
Symbols, Iconography, and Art of Chalchihuitlicue:
Chalchihuitlicue is depicted wearing a green skirt and is often sculpted from green stone. Sometimes, a stream of water with babies in it is seen flowing from her skirt — usually a male and a female. She may also be depicted with spinning and weaving implements. Finally, she is also often seen carrying a cross, which for the Aztec was a symbol of fertility and which represented the four winds which brought rain to water the crops.
Chalchihuitlicue is the Goddess of:
Storms
Lakes
Streams
Horizontal Waters
Youthful beauty
Birth
Baptisms
Equivalents in Other Cultures:
Acpaxaco, an Otomi water goddess
Family Tree and Relationships of Chalchihuitlicue:
Sister and wife of Tlaloc, the rain god
Wife of Xiuhtecuhtli
Mother of Tecciztecatl
Temples, Worship and Rituals of Chalchihuitlicue:
Aztecs identified Tlaloc with falling rain, but Chalchihuitlicue with places where rain gathered: pools, floods, etc. Aztecs sacrificed children to Chalchihuitlicue in order to encourage her to help plants and babies grow.
Aztecs believed that Chalchihuitlicue was the patron goddess of the world which existed prior to this one.
Mythology and Legends of Chalchihuitlicue:
Chalchihuitlicue helps Tlaloc rule the paradise kingdom of Tlalocan. Chalchihuitlicue created and destroyed the previous world, turning its inhabitants into fish.
Chalchihuitlicue's association with both waters and birth or fertility is due to the Aztec's association of the womb with waters. This dual role gave Chalchihuitlicue both life-giving and a life-ending roles in Aztec mythology.
in Aztec mythology, all rives flow out of the paradise kingdom of Tlalocan and Chalchihuitlicue, who helps rule Tlalocan, controls the rivers.
From: About.com Aztec mythology

Chalchiuhtlicue is the Aztec goddess of running water and springs, rivers and lakes, who brings fertility to crops. Her name means "Woman of the Jade Skirt", or "Lady Precious Green Stone Skirt". She is depicted with water-lilies, dressed in watery blues and greens, and sometimes has quetzal-feathers in Her hair. She is the elder sister or consort to Tlaloc, the rain god. Though Tlaloc was a benevolent god, many children and babies were sacrificed to Him. If the children cried on the way to being killed, it was a sign that rain would come, and the populace rejoiced.

In Aztec mythology, this world has seen five Suns, or Creations, the first four of which correspond to the four elements, earth, air, fire, and water. Chalchiutlicue brought about the destruction of the Fourth Sun by releasing 52 years of torrential rains to flood the Earth (much like Ix Chel of the Maya did) though She also protected Humanity by changing the people into fish so that the waters would not drown them, and by creating a bridge linking Earth to Heaven for those in Her favor. In the Codex Fejervary-Mayer, She is depicted as bringing too much rain for the corn to sprout; after a period of drought, Her husband Tlaloc provides the right, moderate amount and the corn can grow.

Chalchiuhtlicue was the protectress of children and new-borns, perhaps because it was thought She could influence Her husband. She also protected fishermen.

In the complex Aztec calender, Chalchiuhtlicue is one of the nine Companions of the Night, who were believed to have created the world, and which also includes Tlaloc and Tlazolteotl. She was also considered one of the thirteen Companions of the Day (Tlaloc and Tlazolteotl number among these as well), and She is the patron Goddess of the 5th day of the calendar.

Some of Her many manifestations include: Acuecueyoticihuatl or Acuecueyotl, "Woman Who Makes the Waves Swell", the Ocean-Goddess, invoked by women giving birth; Ahuic, "To One Part and To the Other", or "To and Fro", Goddess of the waves on the shore; Apozanolotl, who represents purity, shown as the foam of the ocean or white-capped waves; Aticpac Calqui Cihuatl, "Woman Who Lives in the Sea"; Atlacamani "Sea Storm"; Atlacoya "Sad Waters"; Atlatona "She Who Shines in the Waters"; Ayauhteotl, Goddess of nighttime or early morning mist or fog, associated with fame and vanity; Ayopechcatl "She Who Dwells on the Back of the Tortoise", the protectoress of newborn children; Huixtocihuatl, Goddess of Salt, and daughter of Tlaloc, who was given human sacrifices at Her festival in June; and Xixiquipilihui "It Swells", who creates the waves on lakes.

From: Chalchiuhtlicue

In Aztec mythology, Chalchiuhtlicue (also Chalciuhtlicue, or Chalcihuitlicue She is also a patroness of ) ("She of the Jade Skirt") was the goddess of lakes and streams.birth and plays a part in Aztec baptisms. In the myth of the five suns, she had dominion over the fourth world, which was destroyed in a great flood that she created to punish the wicked. She also presides over the day 5 Serpent and the trecena of 1 Reed.Her husband was Tlaloc and with him, she was the mother of Tecciztecatl and ruler over Tlalocan. In her aquatic aspect, she was known as Acuecucyoticihuati, goddess of oceans, rivers and any other running water, as well as the patron of women in labor. She was also said to be the wife of Xiuhtecuhtli. She is sometimes associated with a rain goddess, Matlalcueitl.
In art, Chalciuhtlicue was illustrated wearing a green skirt and with short black vertical lines on the lower part of her face. In some scenes babies may be seen in a stream of water issuing from her skirts. Sometimes she is symbolized by a river with a heavily laden prickly pear tree growing on one bank.
She is depicted in several central Mexican manuscripts, including the Pre-Columbian Codex Borgia (plates 11 and 650, the 16th century Codex Borbonicus (page 5), Codex Ríos (page 17), and the Florentine Codex, (plate 11). When sculpted, she is often carved from green stone as befits her name.
From: Wiki

Chalchiuhtlicue (also Chalchihuitlicue, Chalciuhtlicue), "She of the Jade Skirt", or "She whose Night-robe of Jewel-stars Whirls Above", Lady of the Maintenance. As Acuecucyoticihuati she is the goddess of oceans, rivers and any other running water, but also a goddess of birth and the patron of women in labor.
Chalchiuhtlicue is the wife of Tlaloc, the Rain God, and mother of Tecciztecatl, the Moon god.
Chalchiuhtlicue was the ruler over the previous Fourth Sun. This world was destroyed by a flooding.
In the tonalpohualli, Chalchiuhtlicue is the protector of both the fifth day, Coatl1-Acatl (reed). Chalchiuhtlicue is Lord of the Day for days with number 3 ("yei" in Nahuatl). She is the sixth Lord of the Night.
From: AztecCalender

Water Deity (Chalchihuitlicue), 15th–early 16th century
Mexico; Aztec
Stone; H. 11 5/8 in. (29.5 cm)
Museum Purchase, 1900 (00.5.72)
The finely carved figure belongs to a sizable group of kneeling females that display costume elements identifying them as water deities called Chalchihuitlicue ("she of the jade skirt") in Nahuatl, the language spoken by the Aztecs. In Aztec religion, the water goddess was the wife of the rain god Tlaloc, an ancient deity that had long been worshipped throughout Mesoamerica. Chalchihuitlicue symbolized the purity and preciousness of spring, river, and lake water that was used to irrigate the fields. As a fertility goddess, she portrays the Aztec ideal of fertile young womanhood. Most typical of the water goddess costume is the distinctive headdress consisting of multiple thick bands, probably cotton, wound about the head and bordered above and below by rows of balls and two large tassels attached to the sides of the head. In back, the bands are twisted and tied in a prominent knot, the tasseled ends falling over her straight hair. Her clothing is that of a noble woman with a skirt and triangular shoulder cape bordered by a tasseled fringe. The water goddess was closely related to the Aztec corn goddess, Chicomecoatl, who is often also shown wearing this headdress, while holding ears of corn in her hands.
From: here

Huitzilopochtli

Pronunciation: wee-tsee-loh-poch'-tlee

Huitzilopochtli, Hummingbird of the South, (or Hummingbird of the Left) is the central deity of the Mexica. He is associated with the Sun and Fire. Huitzilopochtli is a warrior, armed the with the ferrocious Xiuhcoatl ("Fire Snake").

Huitzilopochtli is sometimes identified as the Blue Tezcatlipoca.

In the Huey Teocalli of Tenochtitlan (the major temple of ancient Mexico City) one half was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli, the other half to Tlaloc, the god of rain. Since war is called in atl in tlachinolli ("the water, the fire"), this combination of gods of fire and of water makes the major temple a place dedicated to the sacred war.

Huitzilopochtli has no direct relevance for the tonalpohualli. In the xiuhpohualli however, various festivals were dedicated to him.

From: Aztec Calendar

Huitzilopochtli, whose name means "Blue Hummingbird on the Left," was the Aztec god of the Sun and the war. He was shown as a blue man fully armed with hummingbird feathers on his head. His mother Coatlicue became pregnant with Huitzilopochtli when a ball of feathers fell from the heaven and touched her. Huitzilopochtli's siblings thought that their mother Coatlicue had dishonored them with her mysterious pregnancy.

One sister of Huitzilopochtli, Coyolxauhqui, encouraged her star sisters and brothers to kill their mother Coatlicue. However, Huitzilopochtli sprang out of his mother and saved her. Coatlicue regretted such violence. Thus, Huitzilopochtli cut off Coyolxauhqui's head and threw it in the sky to become the Moon.

Aztecs used to offer human sacrifices to Huitzilopochtli. The victims were usually prisoners captured in the frequent wars that Aztecs were fighting against their neighbors. The sacrifices were intended to secure rain, harvests and success in war.The most common form of sacrifice practiced by Aztecs was to tear out the heart of a living body and offer it to the Sun.

From: here

Huitzilopochtli's mother was Coatlicue, and his father was a ball of feathers (or, alternatively, Mixcoatl). His sister was Malinalxochitl, a beautiful sorceress, who was also his rival. His messenger or impersonator was Paynal.

In one of the recorded creation myths, Huitzilopochtli is one of the four sons of Ometeotl, he made the first fire from which a half sun was created by Quetzalcoatl.

The legend of Huitzilopochtli is recorded in the Mexicayotl Chronicle. His sister, Coyolxauhqui, tried to kill their mother because she became pregnant in a shameful way (by a ball of feathers). Her offspring, Huitzilopochtli, learned of this plan while still in the womb, and before it was put into action, sprang from his mother's womb fully grown and fully armed. He then killed his sister Coyolxauhqui and many of his 400 brothers. He tossed his sister's head into the sky, where it became the moon, so that his mother would be comforted in seeing her daughter in the sky every night. He threw his other brothers and sisters into the sky, where they became the stars.[1]

(...)

Huitzilopochtli was a tribal god and a legendary wizard of the Aztecs. Originally he was of little importance to the Nahuas, but after the rise of the Aztecs, Tlacaelel reformed their religion and put Huitzilopochtli at the same level as Quetzalcoatl, Tlaloc, and Tezcatlipoca, making him a solar god. Through this, Huitzilopochtli replaced Nanahuatzin, the solar god from the Nahua legend. Huitzilopochtli was said to be in a constant struggle with the darkness and required nourishment in the form of sacrifices to ensure the sun would survive the cycle of 52 years, which was the basis of many Mesoamerican myths. While popular accounts claim it was necessary to have a daily sacrifice[citation needed], sacrifices were only done on festive days. There were 18 especially holy festive days, and only one of them was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli.

Every 52 years, the Nahuas feared the world would end as the other four creations of their legends had. Under Tlacaelel, Aztecs believed that they could give strength to Huitzilopochtli with human blood and thereby postpone the end of the world, at least for another 52 years.

The Great Temple of Tenochtitlan was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc because they were considered equals in power. Sixteenth century Dominican Friar Diego Durán wrote, "These two gods were always meant to be together, since they were considered companions of equal power." [2] The Templo Mayor actually consisted of a pyramidal platform, on top of which were twin temples. The left one was Huitzilopochtli's, and the right one was Tlaloc's.

According to Miguel León-Portilla, in this new vision from Tlacaelel, the warriors that died in battle and women who died in childbirth would go to serve Huitzilopochtli in his palace (in the south, or left). From a description in the Florentine Codex, Huitzilopochtli was so bright that the warrior souls had to use their shields to protect their eyes. They could only see the god through the arrow holes in their shields, so it was the bravest warrior who could see him best. From time to time, those warriors could return to earth as butterflies or hummingbirds.

(...)

Diego Duran described the festivities for Huitzilopochtli. Panquetzaliztli (7 December to 26 December) was the Aztec month dedicated to Huitzilopochtli. People decorated their homes and trees with paper flags; there were ritual races, processions, dances, songs, prayers, and finally human sacrifices. This was one of the more important Aztec festivals, and the people prepared for the whole month. They fasted or ate very little; a statue of the god was made with amaranth (huautli) seeds and honey, and at the end of the month, it was cut into small pieces so everybody could eat a little piece of the god. After the Spanish conquest, cultivation of amaranth was outlawed, while some of the festivities were subsumed into the Christmas celebration.

According to the Ramirez Codex, in Tenochtitlan circa sixty prisoners were sacrificed at the festivities. Sacrifices were reported to be made in other Aztec cities, including Tlatelolco, Xochimilco, and Texcoco, but the number is unknown, and no currently available archeological findings confirm this.

For the reconsecration of Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan in 1487, dedicated to Tlaloc and Huitzilopochtli, the Aztecs reported that they sacrificed about 20,400 prisoners over the course of four days. While accepted by some scholars, this claim also has been considered Aztec propaganda. There were 19 altars in the city of Tenochtitlan.

From: Wiki (also has some more info)

The Aztec god of war and of the sun, chief god of the great Aztec city Tenochtitlan. He is a son of Coatlicue. He slew his sister Coyolxauhqui and tossed her head into the sky where it became the moon.

Huitzilopochtli was represented as a hummingbird, or with the feathers of a hummingbird on his head and his left leg, with a black face and holding a snake, and a mirror. His name means "Hummingbird of the South", "He of the South", or "Hummingbird on the Left".



From: Pantheon.org

Name and Etymology:
Huitzilopochtli, "Blue Hummingbird of the Left (South)"
Mextli
Mexitl
Uitzilopochtli
Huichilobos (Spanish)

Religion and Culture of Huitzilopochtli:
Aztec, Mesoamerica

Symbols, Iconography, and Attributes of Huitzilopochtli:

Statues of Huitzilopochtli were usually made out of wood rather than stone, so few survive. From what we can tell, Huitzilopochtli is typically portrayed with a headdress of hummingbird feathers or even as a hummingbird. His faced was marked with yellow and blue stripes and he carries around the fire serpent Xiuhcoatl with him. There was an important statue of him in his temple at Tenochtitlan, covered with gold and hidden by a curtain. The fate of this statue remains a mystery.

Huitzilopochtli was God of:

War
Fire
Sun
Warriors and Young Men
Supreme God of Tenochtitlan
Protector of the Aztec nation
Equivalents in Other Cultures:

There doesn't appear to be any precedents for Huitzilopochtli in Mesoamerican religion — he's unique to the Aztecs. Huitzilopochtli was the supreme god of Aztec culture and it was in his name that the infamous Aztec heart sacrifices were performed.

Story and Origin of Huitzilopochtli:

Huitzilopochtli's mother Coatlicue became pregnant when a ball of feathers (the soul of a warrior) fell from the sky and hit her. He later leapt fully formed from his mother's womb and killed his siblings who were, in turn, about to kill Coatlicue for presumably having been promiscuous. Huitzilopochtli may have roots in a historical warrior early in Aztec pre-history.

Family Tree and Relationships of Huitzilopochtli:

Son of of Coatlicue, Earth Goddess
Brother of Coyolxauhqui

Worship and Rituals of Huitzilopochtli:

Huitzilopochtli was worshipped during the Aztec yearly festival Panquetzaliztli. Slaves were killed during fake battles to commemorate a new military season. Victims were dragged up the temple steps, stretched across the stone altar, their chests cut open with an obsidian knife, and hearts ripped out. The corpse was skinned, dismembered, and the pieces sent down to the rulers and nobility for consumption. The heart was consumed by the priests or burnt as an offering to Huitzilopochtli.
Art and Temples of Huitzilopochtli:

Huitzilopochtli was the supreme god at the temple area of Tenochtitlan. His temple occupied the most prominent site at Tenochtitlan, aside from perhaps the temple dedicated to Tlaloc. Together their temples constituted the Hueteocalli, the "Great Temple," a double pyramid which was the central focus of Aztec religious ritual. Huitzilopochtli's temple was painted read for war; Tlaloc's was painted blue and white for water.
Mythology and Legends of Huitzilopochtli:

It appears that Huitzilopochtli was originally worshiped by the Mexica Aztecs, the last Aztec tribe of move into the Basin of Mexico from the north and the Aztec tribe responsible for creating the Aztec empire known to people today. It is through them that Huitzilopochtli became such an important god for the Aztecs generally.

According to Aztec legends, Huitzilopochtli led the early Mexica Aztec people away from their original home in a cave on the island of Aztlan, some time in the early 12th century, in order to seek out a new home. They gathered together for a while in Chicomoztoc, the origin of all Mesoamerican peoples in the legends, and eventually Huitzilopochtli chose to lead the most virtuous away. This may describe a real event when early Aztec tribes split up.

Huitzilopochtli led his followers to the Coatepec, "Hill of the Serpent," a legendary place for the Aztecs which they recreated in their capital of Tenochtitlan. It was here that he was born (or reborn, it's confusing how he could lead the Aztecs here and only afterwards be born) fully-formed from his mother's womb, slaying his brothers and sending his sister's body tumbling down to the bottom of Coatpec. The ritual heart sacrifices for which the Aztec became infamous for were thus recreations of the mythic story in which Huitzilopochtli kills his sister Coyolxauhqui.

Warriors and died in battle and women who died in childbirth would serve Huitzilopochtli in the afterlife. Huitzilopochtli was so bright and radiant, though, that it was difficult to see him at all — warriors would have to use their shields to protect their eyes, only glancing through the holes left by arrows. Eventually, some would be allowed to return to the earth as butterflies.

From: About.com

I. The Hymn of Huitzilopochtli.
I. Vitzilopochtli icuic.

English

1. Vitzilopuchi, yaquetlaya, yyaconay, ynohuihuihuia: anenicuic, toçiquemitla, yya, ayya, yya y ya uia, queyanoca, oya tonaqui, yyaya, yya, yya.

2. Tetzauiztli ya mixtecatl, ce ymocxi pichauaztecatla pomaya, ouayyeo, ayyayya.

3. Ay tlaxotla tenamitl yuitli macoc mupupuxotiuh, yautlatoa ya, ayyayyo, noteuh aya tepanquizqui mitoaya.

4. Oya yeua uel mamauia, in tlaxotecatl teuhtla milacatzoaya, itlaxotecatl teuhtla milacatzoaya.

5. Amanteca toyauan xinechoncentlalizquiuia ycalipan yauhtiua, xinechoncentlalizqui.

6. Pipiteca toyauan xinechoncentlalizquiuia: ycalipan. yautiua, xinechoncentlalizqui.

Var. 6. This verse is omitted in the Medicean MS.

Gloss.

1. In ivitzilopochtli ayac nouiui, id est, ayac nechneneuilia, ayac iuhqui, in iuhqui. Anenicuic, id est, amo ca nen nonicuic, in quetzali, in chalchihuitl in ixquich ynotlatqui, toçiquemitl. Queyanoca oya tonaqui, id est, onocatonat, onocatlatuit.

2. Q. n., tetzauiztli, id est, oquintetzauito, in mixteca inic oquiyaochiuhqui: oquimanilito in imicxi in pichauazteca, ioan in mixteca.

3. Ay tlaxotla tenamitl, q. n., quitepeua inin tena in aquique yauchiuallo. Iuitli macoc, q. n., oncan quitema in tiçatl in ihuitl. Mopopuxotiuh yauhtlatuaya, q. n., inic mopopuxoticalaqui yauc, ioan, q. n., yeuatl quitemaca y yauyutl quitemaceualtia, tepanquizqui, mitoayaqui yehuatl quichioa yauyutl.

4. Oya yeua huel mamauia, q. n., çan oc momamauhtiaya in aya momochiua yauyutl. Teuhtla milacatzoaya q. n., in noteuh in opeuh yauyutl, aocac momauhtica iniquac ynoteuhtli moquetza ynoteuhtica tlayoa(lli).

5. Amanteca toyauan, q. n., yn iyaoan yn aquique in cani omocentlalique ca in calipan in yautioa ca tlatlaz ynin cal.

6. Pipiteca, toyaoan, xinechoncentlalizque, q. n., in pipiteca y yaoan mochiuhque. Yn calla in mochiua yauyutl in i calipan.

Translation.
The Hymn of Huitzilopochtli.

1. Huitzilopochtli is first in rank, no one, no one is like unto him: not vainly do I sing (his praises) coming forth in the garb of our ancestors; I shine; I glitter.
2. He is a terror to the Mixteca; he alone destroyed the Picha-Huasteca, he conquered them.
3. The Dart-Hurler is an example to the city, as he sets to work. He who commands in battle is called the representative of my God.
4. When he shouts aloud he inspires great terror, the divine hurler, the god turning himself in the combat, the divine hurler, the god turning himself in the combat.
5. Amanteca, gather yourselves together with me in the house of war against your enemies, gather yourselves together with me.
6. Pipiteca, gather yourselves together with me in the house of war against your enemies, gather yourselves together with me.
Notes.

Huitzilopochtli was the well-known war-god of the Azteca, whose functions are described by Sahagun (Historia, Lib. I., cap. 1) and many other writers. The hymn here given is probably the tlaxotecuyotl, which was chanted at the celebration of his feast in the fifteenth month of the Mexican calendar (see Sahagun, Historia, Lib. IL, cap. 34). The word means "his glory be established." It was commenced at sunset and repeated till sunrise.

1. "In the garb of our ancestors" (to-citli-quemitl). The high priest appeared in the insignia of Quetzalcoatl, which, says Sahagun, "were very gorgeous." (Hist., Lib. II., Appendix.)
2. Mixteca, plural of Mixtecatl, an inhabitant of Mixtecapan, near the Pacific. The Huasteca, a nation of Maya lineage, lived on the Gulf coast.
3. The god was called the Hurler, as he was believed to hurl the lightning serpent (the xiuhcoatl).
5. Sahagun recites the legends about the Amanteca (Historia, Lib. IX., cap. 1. Here the name refers to the inhabitants of the quarter called Amantlan.
6. Pipiteca, a nomen gentile, referring doubtless to a certain class of the hearers.


This hymn may be compared to another, descriptive of the same divinity, preserved in Sahagun's MS. in Madrid. It is as follows, with my translation by its side.

Vitzilopuchtli
Can maceualli
Can tlacatl catca.
Naualli
Tetzauitl
Atlacacemelle
Teixcuepani
Quiyocoyani in yaoyotl
Yautecani
Yautlatoani;
Ca itechpa mitoaya
Tepan quitlaza
In xiuhcoatl
Immamalhuaztli
Quitoznequi yaoyotl
Teoatl tlachinolli.
Auh iniquac ilhuiq'xtililoya
Malmicouaya
Tlaaltilmicoaya
Tealtilaya impochteca.
Auh inic mochichiuaya:
Xiuhtotonacoche catca
Xiuhcoanauale
Xiuhtlalpile
Matacaxe
Tzitzile
Oyuvale.


Huitzilopochtli,
Only a subject,
Only a mortal was.
A magician,
A terror,
A stirrer of strife,
A deceiver,
A maker of war,
An arranger of battles,
A lord of battles;
And of him it was said
That he hurled
His flaming serpent,
His fire stick;
Which means war,
Blood and burning;
And when his festival was celebrated,
Captives were slain,
Washed slaves were slain,
The merchants washed them.
And thus he was arrayed:
With head-dress of green feathers,
Holding his serpent torch,
Girded with a belt,
Bracelets upon his arms,
Wearing turquoises,
As a master of messengers.


When in Florence, in 1889, I had an accurate copy made of the Nahuatl text and all the figures of the first book of Sahagun's History. The colored figure of Huitzilopochtli is in accordance with the above description.

From: I. The Hymn of Huitzilopochtli. (Rig Veda Americanus)

Other Sites:
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Summary
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Coyolxauhqui

Pronunciation:
coh-yohl-shau'-kee

Coyolxauhqui is the Aztec Moon goddess. Her name means "Woman With Copper Bells on Her Cheeks", and when the moon rises full and red you can still see them.



Her mother, Coatlicue, became magically pregnant when a crown of feathers fell in Her lap. Believing Her family had been dishonoured, the angry Coyolxauhqui meant to kill Her; but the child Huitzilopochtli, whose name means "Hummingbird on the Left" (the south, i.e. the Sun), springing from the womb fully armored, defended Their mother and killed Coyolxauhqui instead. He cut off her head and flung it into the sky, where it became the Moon.
The combat between Coyolxauhqui the Moon and Huitzilopochtli the Sun represents the alternation of day and night.

From: Here

In Aztec mythology, Coyolxauhqui (Classical Nahuatl: Coyolxāuhqui [kojoɬˈʃaːʍki], "Face painted with Bells") was a daughter of Coatlicue and Mixcoatl and is the leader of the Centzon Huitznahuas, the star gods. Coyolxauhqui was a powerful magician and led her siblings in an attack on their mother, Coatlicue, because Coatlicue had become pregnant.

Attack on Coatlicue

The pregnancy of Coatlicue, the maternal Earth deity, made her other children embarrassed, including her oldest daughter, Coyolxauhqui. As she swept the temple, a few hummingbird feathers fell into her bosom. Coatlicue’s fetus, Huitzilopochtli, sprang from her womb in full war armor and killed Coyolxauhqui, along with her 400 brothers and sisters. He cut off her limbs, then tossed her head into the sky where it became the moon, so that his mother would be comforted in seeing her daughter in the sky every night.

Templo Mayor stone disk

A large shield-shaped stone relief reflecting this story was found at the base of the stairs of the Templo Mayor. On this disk, Coyolxauhqui is shown spread out on her side, with her head, arms and legs chopped away from her body. The orbiting full moon in the stone carving reflects her position as the moon goddess. She is distinguished by bells of eagle down in her hair, a bell symbol on her cheek, and an ear tab showing the Mexica year sign. As with images of her mother, she is shown with a skull tied to her belt. Scholars also believe that the decapitation and destruction of Coyolxauhqui is reflected in the pattern of warrior ritual sacrifice. First, captives’ hearts were cut out. Then they were decapitated and had their limbs chopped off. Finally, their bodies were cast from the temple to lie, perhaps, on the great Coyolxauhqui stone.

Coyolxauhqui in the present age

She is a major deity in Mesoamerica, living on in other areas in the approach to worship in all-night prayer vigils ongoing today in central Mexico, fully clothed in Christian adoration mixed with local ancestral remembrances and invocations.

Other associations

Coyolxauhqui’s celestial associations are not limited to the moon. Other scholars believe that she should be understood as the Goddess of the Milky Way, or be associated with patterns of stars associated with Huitzilopochtli.

From: Wiki

Name and Etymology:
Coyolxauhqui, "Bells of Gold"

Religion and Culture of Coyolxauhqui:
Aztec, Mesoamerica

Symbols, Iconography, and Art of Coyolxauhqui:

Coyolxauhqui is depicted with bells on her cheeks and surrounded by lunar symbols. Although thought of as a young goddess, sometimes her images show her as very old with sagging breasts. A massive statue of her unearthed in 1978 shows her with severed head and hands, just after Huitzilopochtli finished with her.

Coyolxauhqui was Goddess of:

Moon
Milky Way

Family Tree and Relationships of Coyolxauhqui:

Sister of Huitzilopochtli, Warrior God
Daughter of Coatlicue, Earth Goddess

Temples, Worship and Rituals of Coyolxauhqui:

When the Aztec sacrificed prisoners to Coyolxauhqui, they cut off their heads, cut out their hearts, and threw the bodies down Coyolxauhqui's temple. Thus the ritual heart sacrifices for which the Aztec became infamous for are recreations of the mythic story in which Huitzilopochtli kills his sister Coyolxauhqui.

Mythology and Legends of Coyolxauhqui:

Coyolxauhqui died when her brother, Huitzilopochtli, leapt from their mother's womb and killed all his siblings. Some legends say that she tried to warn her mother that her sons were about to kill her, other legends say that she was participating in the murder — even leading the way. Either way, she died and Huitzilopochtli threw her head up into the sky where it became the moon (so that their mother, Coatlicue, would be comforted by always seeing her in the sky) then her body down the hill of Coatepec.

Some scholars think that Coyolxauhqui may have represented a much earlier, female fertility cult in the region. Her death at the hands of her brother, Huitzilopochtli, would be then the mythical representation of a warrior cult assuming political and social control of the Aztec population. With Coyolxauhqui representing the moon and her brother, Huitzilopochtli, representing the sun, it's also possible that the conflict between them represents the continuous conflict between day and night.

Some scholars believe that the entire system of human sacrifice which underlies Aztec religion is, in some way, a recreation of this event because human sacrificial victims typically had their heads cut off an their bodies thrown down the steps of the temple.

From: Here

Coyolxauhqui

Coatlicue was the Earth, the mother of Coyolxauhqui, the Moon, and of Centzon Huiznahua, the "Four Hundred of the South" and another name for the Stars. One day, while she was sweeping her temple on top of Coatepec hill, the Earth was miraculously impregnated thanks to a little ball of feathers that floated down from the sky and that she tucked away next to her bosom. The Moon viewed the pregnancy of her mother as an affront and she instigated her brothers, the, Stars to kill her. Huitzilopochtli, the Sun, from her womb, warned the Earth of the danger and decided to defend his life and that of his mother. When the Moon and the Stars were on the point of killing her, the sun Huitzilopochtli was born, fully armed for war with a fire serpent called xiuhcoatl,with which he decapitated his treacherous sister, to then cast her down from the top of Coatepec hill. In her fall, the goddess was dismembered with each turn.

So the Moon dies every month, defeated by the Sun and cut in pieces. Coyolxauhqui and her dismemberment are the explanation for a celestial phenomenon, in which the moon dies and is born in phases, and so she was found at the foot of the stairway of the Huitzilopochtli temple at the Templo Mayor.

The relief shows the goddess decapitated, arms and legs dismembered, drops of blood oozing from her extremities and with the joints of her bones exposed. She is adorned with a two-headed serpent belt bearing a skull seen on her back. The two-headed serpent is repeated on the ties of her thighs and arms. The articulations and talons on her feet are adorned with masks composed of a profile face bearing fangs, the significance of which is still open to considerable conjecture. She wears her characteristic sandals, wristlets and anklets. Her torso, with flaccid breasts, is shown frontally, while her hips are given an unusual twist to be shown in profile along with her extremities. Her head displays a great feather headdress and her hair is adorned with circles. Composed of three geometric figures, her ear ornaments frame her face, which bears the most diagnostic element of her adornment: bells on her cheek, which is also the name of the Moon goddess. Finally, what appears to be her last breath issues from her half-open mouth.

The sculpture has a 3.25-meter average diameter. Weighing 8 tons, it is made of volcanic stone. It was found accidentally by Electricity Company workers who were installing underground cables at the corner of the streets of Guatemala and Argentina on February 21, 1978. This important discovery resulted in the archaeological excavations of the Templo Mayor Project, which until today continues under the direction of archaeologist Eduardo Matos Moctezuma.

From: here

"Golden Bells". The earth and moon-goddess of the Aztec. She is related to the four hundred star-deities Huitznauna, who are under her control. She possesses magical powers which with she can do great harm. When her mother Coatlicue became pregnant in what her children deemed unseemly circumstances, Coyolxauhqui and her 400 brothers and sisters sought to slay her. Immediately the sun-god Huitzilopochtli sprang fully armed from Coatlicue's womb and slew Coyalxauhqui and many of her kin.

According to one tradition, Huitzilopochtli tossed Coyalxauhqui's head into the sky where it became the moon. He hoped that his mother would find comfort at night by seeing the face of her daughter in the sky.


From: here

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Interactive exhibit featuring her
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Xochiquetzal

Xochiquetzal is Flower Feather, the ever young and pretty goddess of flowers, love, pleasure and beauty. She is a patron of artists.

Xochiquetzal represents the sexual power of young women. In this way she is related to the Ahuitateteo and excess. She also resides over childbirth and pregnancy, relating her to mother-goddesses like Toci and Tlazolteotl.

Her twin is Xochipili. Her husband was Tlaloc, until Tezcatlipoca kidnapped her and she was forced to marry him.

Xochiquetzal is often displayed surrounded by flowers and butterflies, and accompanied by a hummingbird or an ocelotl.

In the tonalpohualli, Xochiquetzal rules over the last day, Xochitl (flower) and over trecena 1-Cuauhtli (eagle).

From: Here

The Aztec goddess of the earth, flowers, plants, games and dance, but mainly she is a goddess of love. She is also the patroness of artisans, prostitutes, pregnant women and birth. Originally Xochiquetzal ("Flower Feather") was associated with the moon.

This goddess is the most charming of the Aztec pantheon and her retinue consists of butterflies and birds. Every eight years a feast was held in her honor where the celebrants wore animal and flowers masks. She is the twin sister of the flower prince Xochipilli and sometimes mentioned as the wife of the rain god Tlaloc.

From: here

Xochiquetzal, the goddess who seduced a priest and then turned him into a scorpion as a mark of her power, was no soft touch She incarnated youth, love and beauty and was amorously pursued by several Aztec gods. Emblemised [characterised] by flowers and colourful feathers, Xochiquetzal was patroness of lovers and prostitutes. Unlike other fertility goddesses, she encouraged love-making as a means of pleasure, not reproduction, yet she had the power to absolve humans of sins that weren’t necessarily of a sexual nature. Wife of the water god, Tlaloc, and consort to the creator deity, Tezcatlipoca, Xochiquetzal lived in the Aztec paradise of Tamoanchan. She was widely worshipped and many great rituals were made in her honour; from incredible acts of sacrifice to sombre confessions.

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Xochiquetzal is pronounced Sho.chi.ket.sal. This name comes from two Náhuatl words: Quetzalli (quetzal [a bird of splendid feathers] or precious feather), and Xóchitl (flower).

Xochiquetzal was a creator of humans as well as intermediary between them and the gods. Frequently referred to as a facet of the female divine goddess, Tonacacíhuatl, from whose womb the first four Aztec gods were born, Xochiquetzal witnessed the creation of gods and humans. Although she was a mother herself, this goddess never grew old and always appeared in the full bloom of youth.

Xochiquetzal extended her patronage to many humans, mainly lovers, prostitutes, weavers and craftspeople. According to the historian, Noemi Quesada, this was because they could make pleasure or objects that were beautiful to behold.

Special festivities:
Atamalqualiztli - A large ceremony dedicated to the harvest. It took place during harvest once every eight years. Tepeílhuitl (also known as Hueypachtli) - the thirteenth festival month of the solar calendar. This festivity also celebrated the gods of pulque, a sacred alcoholic drink made from the Maguey cactus. Xochíhuitl - the second ceremony of the 260 day ritual calendar.

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For the rest (it's a longer article), see: Mexicolore-- Goddess of the Month: Xochiquetzal

Xochiquetzal was Goddess of:

Female Sexuality
Prostitutes
Pleasure
Love
Beauty
Flowers
Weaving
Young Mothers
Arts & Crafts
Domesticity
Silversmiths
Sculptors

Temples, Worship and Rituals of Xochiquetzal:
Xochiquetzal was honored at a festival every 8 years. A young woman was chosen by artisans to impersonate the goddess; she would be sacrificed, flayed, and her skin given to a man to wear while pretending to weave. Artisans would dance around the scene and then confess their sins to a statue of Xochiquetzal through bloodletting. She was also one of the goddesses impersonated during the Toxcatl festival, ritually married to a young man and kept in luxury for a year before being killed.


From: Here

In Aztec mythology, Xochiquetzal (Nahuatl pronunciation: [ʃotʃiˈketsaɬ]) was a goddess associated with concepts of fertility, beauty, and female sexual power, serving as a protector of young mothers and a patroness of pregnancy, childbirth, and the crafts practised by women such as weaving and embroidery. Unlike several other figures in the complex of Aztec female earth deities connected with agricultural and sexual fecundity, Xochiquetzal is always depicted as an alluring and youthful woman, richly attired and symbolically associated with vegetation and in particular flowers. By connotation, Xochiquetzal is also representative of human desire, pleasure, and excess, appearing also as patroness of prostitutes and artisans involved in the manufacture of luxury items.[1]

She was followed by a retinue consisting of birds and butterflies. Worshippers wore animal and flower masks at a festival, held in her honor every eight years.

Her twin was Xochipilli and her husband was Tlaloc, until Tezcatlipoca kidnapped her and she was forced to marry him. At one point, she was also married to Centeotl and Ixotecuhtli. By Mixcoatl, she was the mother of Quetzalcoatl.

Anthropologist Hugo Nutini identifies her with the Virgin of Ocotlan in his article on patron saints in Tlaxcala.[2]

In pre-Hispanic Maya culture, a similar figure is Goddess I.

From: Wiki

Also see:
(PDF) Xochiquetzal

Xipe Totec

Mysterious Aztec god of agriculture, spring and the seasons, the symbol the death and rebirth of nature. In order to stimulate the growth in both nature and mankind, he flays himself to offer food to humans (such as the maize seed loses its outer skin to enable the shoot to grow). After he has shed his skin, he appears as a shining, golden god.

In his honor, each year in the beginning of spring, people were sacrificed to him. These victims were flayed alive and the priests wore these skins in various rituals. These rituals symbolized the renewal of the earth and the budding of new life.


Xipe Totec is also the god of the west and the patron of goldsmiths. He is thought to be responsible for sending diseases to man, such as the plague, blindness and scabs. He is depicted as a flayed man, covered in (his own) skin and his name means "our lord the flayed one".

From: Here

Xipe Totec, Our Lord the Flayed One.
Xipe Totec is the god of the shedding of skins, God of Seedtime, the elemental force of rebirth. He is associated with rejuvenation and spring time.

Xipe Totec flayed himself to give food to humanity, symbolic of the maize seed losing the outer layer of the seed before germination.

Xipe Totec is the patron of the goldsmiths.
Xipe Totec is also known as the Red Tezcatlipoca, to contrast him to the black Tezcatlipoca.

In the calendar, Xipe Totec is the protector of day Cuauhtli (eagle) and of the trecena that starts with day 1-Itzcuintli (dog).

From: Here

In Aztec mythology and religion, Xipe Totec ("our lord the flayed one") was a life-death-rebirth deity, god of agriculture, vegetation, the east, disease, spring, goldsmiths, silversmiths and the seasons.[1] Xipe Totec was also known by the alternative names Tlatlauhca, Tlatlauhqui Tezcatlipoca ("Red Smoking Mirror") and Youalahuan ("the Night Drinker").[2] The Tlaxcaltecs and the Huexotzincas worshipped a version of the deity under the name of Camaxtli,[3] and the god has been identified with Yopi, a Zapotec god represented on Classic Period urns.[4] The female equivalent of Xipe Totec was the goddess Xilonen-Chicomecoatl.[5]

Xipe Totec flayed himself to give food to humanity, symbolic of the way maize seeds lose their outer layer before germination and of snakes shedding their skin. Without his skin, he was depicted as a golden god. Xipe Totec was believed by the Aztecs to be the god that invented war.[6] He had a temple called Yopico within the Great Temple of Tenochtitlan.[4]

This deity is of uncertain origin. Xipe Totec was widely worshipped in central Mexico at the time of the Spanish Conquest,[4] and was known throughout most of Mesoamerica.[7] Representations of the god have been found as far away as Mayapan in the Yucatán Peninsula.[8] The worship of Xipe Totec was common along the Gulf Coast during the Early Postclassic. The deity probably became an important Aztec god as a result of the Aztec conquest of the Gulf Coast in the middle of the fifteenth century.[4]

Attributes

Xipe Totec is represented wearing a flayed human skin, usually with the flayed skin of the hands falling loose from the wrists. His body is often painted yellow on one side and tan on the other,[9] although sometimes the body of the god is painted red under the flayed skin.[10] He frequently had vertical stripes running down from his forehead to his chin, running across the eyes.[4] He was sometimes depicted with a yellow shield and carrying a container filled with seeds.[11] It is likely that sculptures of Xipe Totec were ritually dressed in the flayed skin of sacrificial victims.[12]

Symbolism

The worshippers of Xipe Totec emerging from the rotting, flayed skin after twenty days symbolised rebirth and the renewal of the seasons, the casting off of the old and the growth of new vegetation.[13] The living god lay concealed underneath the superficial veneer of death, ready to burst forth like a germinating seed.[14] The deity also had a malevolent side and Xipe Totec was said to afflict mortals with rashes, abscesses and skin and eye infections.[13]

The flayed skins were believed to have curative properties when touched and mothers took their children to touch such skins in order to relieve their ailments.[15] People wishing to be cured made offerings to him at Yopico.[4]


Annual festival

The annual festival of Xipe Totec was celebrated on the spring equinox before the onset of the rainy season, it was known as Tlacaxipehualiztli ("flaying of men in honour of Xipe") and fell in March at the time of the Conquest.[16] Annually, slaves or captives were selected as sacrifices to Xipe Totec.[17] After having the heart cut out, the body was carefully flayed to produce a nearly whole skin which was then worn by the priests for twenty days during the fertility rituals that followed the sacrifice.[17] The skins were often adorned with bright feathers and gold jewellery when worn.[18] The Tlacaxipehualiztli festival both began and culminated with a "gladiator sacrifice" ritual.[19] During the festival, victorious warriors wearing flayed skins carried out mock skirmishes throughout Tenochtitlan, they passed through the city begging alms and blessed whoever gave them food or other offerings.[4] When the twenty day festival was over, the flayed skins were removed and stored in special containers with tight-fitting lids designed to stop the stench of putrefaction from escaping. These containers were then stored in a chamber beneath the temple.[20]

Some accounts indicate that a thigh bone from the sacrifice was defleshed and used by the priest to touch spectators in a fertility blessing. Paintings and several clay figures have been found which illustrate the flaying method and the appearance of priests wearing flayed skins.

From: Wiki (one more section there to read, too)

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Who was Xipe Totec?

Xipe Totec was an important symbol of fertility, war and the coming of age of young warriors. The human skin that the god’s impersonator, otherwise known as an ‘ixiptla’ (live image), wore for twenty days during the spring festival of Tlacaxipeualiztli (March), was finally discarded during the period of Tozoztontli Xochimanaloya (April). This was a gesture that signified the shedding of the earth’s dry old skin in exchange for a new, verdant one that the rains would soon let flourish.

Many investigators have commented on the union of agriculture and war within the domain of this flayed deity. In preparation for Tlacaxipeualiztli, foreign warriors were caught alive and prepared for the sacred ritual coined by the 16th century Spanish as ‘Gladiatorial Sacrifice’, of which Xipe was a patron. This display took place outside of Xipe Totec’s temple and involved a warrior being tied to a large round stone by a strong rope. He was given simple weapons and little in the way of protection. According to Sahagún, he was then approached by four richly dressed and armed Aztec fighters who fought with him until he was wounded. Finally, he was sacrificed by having his heart pulled from his body by a priest.

It was in Xipe Totec’s temple that young warriors presented their first victims for sacrifice. This is when they came of age and were allowed to don the regalia of the Aztec military.

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Representations of Xipe Totec...

Xipe was almost always depicted as a man that was encapsulated within another’s flayed hide. With stripes running down his face from the forehead to the jawbone in a smooth line, his features classically showed the ‘cut-out’ appearance of the eye, nose and mouth holes of the second skin. He sported a multi coloured headdress and from it dangled tassles that reached down behind his back. His hair was tied back into two plaits. His rights as a god gave him access to special accessories that brimmed in symbolism and uniqueness such as golden ear plugs and rich, green feathers. One very striking belonging of his was a long sceptre that carried flower-like shapes, that Sahagún likened to poppies, all along it. At the top of the staff was an arrow holder.


On his body, Xipe’s fetid, outer skin had visibly lumpy fat deposits forming on it. Seen from the front, it usually showed an incision where the heart of the flayed victim had been taken out, as well as an area where the penis had been. This ornamental skin was elaborately tied together at the back. The Aztecs dressed both stone sculptures and priests acting as representatives of the god, in human flesh. Of course, Xipe Totec appeared mostly naked and some records of him show that he was tinted both yellow and tawny.

For the full article: Mexicolore-- God of the Month: Xipe Totec

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Xipe Totec is God of:

Seasons
Planting
Agriculture
Seed Germination
Sprouting Vegetation

Renewal
Goldworkers, Metalsmiths
Gladiators

Equivalents in Other Cultures:

Yopi, a Zapotec god

From: Here

Also see:
The Story of Xipe Totec
Xipe Totec's Relation to Daily Life and Sacrifice
Xipe Totec's Rattle