Mixcoatl (deity)

Symbols: Arrow

Culture: Mesoamerican

Mother: Mother Earth

Father: Sun

Siblings: Mimixcoa

Children: Centzon Huitznahua; Quetzalcoatl

Mixcoatl was an important god in many Mesoamerican cultures, including the Otomi, Chichimec, and Aztec cultures. The Huejotzingo and Tlaxcala people, who referred to the god as Camaxtli, also worshipped Mixcoatl. The role played by Mixcoatl, as well as the qualities attributed to the god, varied depending on the culture in question, but Mixcoatl was primarily considered to be the god of hunting and war, and was closely identified with the stars of the Milky Way. In artwork, Mixcoatl is typically depicted wearing a black mask that covers his eyes, along with red and white stripes painted all over his body. Additionally, he appears equipped with his tools for the hunt—a bow and arrow—as well as something with which to carry his kills. Mixcoatl was closely associated with thunderclouds because lightning was believed to be a representation of the god’s arrows, and the god also used lightning bolts as weapons while on hunts. He was considered the creator of fire on earth and also played an important role in beginning the Aztec tradition of using human hearts and blood as sacrifice for the gods.

In Mythology

According to Aztec myth, Mother Earth and the Sun created four hundred stars, known as the Mimixcoa, to serve as their children. The Mimixcoa lived in a holy place known as Chicomoztoc, or the Seven Caves, where the Sun taught them the art of the hunt and how to use weapons, skills that would aide them in providing their parents with sustenance. However, the Mimixcoa repeatedly disobeyed their parents and did not do as they were taught, so Mother Earth birthed five more children—four sons and a daughter—in an attempt to rectify the situation. These five additional Mimixcoa, which included Mixcoatl, were carefully instructed in the art of war so that they would be capable of punishing their disobedient siblings. One day, with Mixcoatl as their leader, the five were finally ready, and arrived to ambush the four hundred Mimixcoa, killing them all. The blood of the Mimixcoa was offered to the Sun and Mother Earth to drink, and each of the Mimixcoa’s hearts were torn out for eating. This event was considered to be the first recorded act of sacrifice and laid the foundation for the enduring tradition of the Aztecs, who believed it was their duty as sons and daughters of the Sun and Mother Earth to provide their parents with nourishment.

Mixcoatl was also thought to possess the ability to assume the form of Tezcatlipoca, another important Aztec god of sorcerers, warriors, and the night sky. When he desired, Mixcoatl would transform himself into Tezcatlipoca, taking the Red form of the god (there were also the Black, the White, and the Blue forms). According to myth, one night Mixcoatl assumed the form of Tezcatlipoca and proceeded to spin the heavens around a single point, using the earth itself as a drill to procure fire, which he brought down to humans. In addition to creating fire in this way, which was never repeated, Mixcoatl was also the first to ever strike a flint to produce fire. This is one reason that Mixcoatl is closely associated with the Milky Way and the heavens.

Mixcoatl was considered to be the father of another deity in the Aztec pantheon, Quetzalcoatl. According to myth, one day Mixcoatl set out alone, equipped with only a special knife and traveled southward, conquering tribes as he went. He arrived at the land of Huitznahuae, and it was there that he met the naked goddess Chimalma. Mixcoatl impregnated the goddess and she went on to produce Quetzalcoatl, also known as the feathered serpent. Quetzalcoatl was central to Aztec mythology, and has often been credited with creating mankind. Mixcoatl had many other wives and children, all of which met their demise at the hands of another central Aztec god, Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and human sacrifice. When Mixcoatl’s four hundred sons, known as the Centzon Huitznahua, discovered that another had impregnated their mother Coatlicue, they plotted her murder. However, as the Centzon Huitznahua attacked Coatlicue, she gave birth to Huitzilopochtli, who emerged fully armed and killed all four hundred of Mixcoatl’s children, and ripped out and ate their hearts.

Origins and Cults

The name Mixcoatl, meaning "cloud serpent," represents the god’s ability to shape-shift (such as to that of the Red Tezcatlipoca), as well as into clouds that travel across the sky. Mixcoatl is also sometimes thought to be based on a real warrior and hunter, whose legendary achievements in battle were exalted after his death.

The Aztecs celebrated the god Mixcoatl during their fourteenth veintena (the Aztec twenty-day month), which corresponds roughly to the month of October in the Gregorian calendar. During this special month, many festivities were held in Mixcoatl’s honor, including two days of hunting and feasts. During these two days, men would dress in the image of the god—often painted with stripes and equipped with weapons—and built fires in his honor. Additionally, at the temple of Mixcoatl, two honorary sacrifices were made to the god: one man and one woman, each killed in different ways. First, the woman was sacrificed, slain like an animal during a hunt, her head severed. Next, the man would hold up the woman’s severed head and show it off to the crowd of witnesses, before he was sacrificed in the traditional Aztec fashion—his heart cut from his chest.

Bibliography

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