Tlazoltéotl (deity)

Culture: Mesoamerican

Children: Centeotl, Xochiquetzal

Tlazolteotl was the goddess of lust and forbidden love in Mesoamerican mythology. Mesoamerica includes the region of central Mexico down to Honduras and Nicaragua.

Tlazolteotl also heard confessions and forgave sins, and was a goddess of purification. She was also known by the names Tlaelquani, eater of filth; Teteoinnan, mother of the gods; Tzinteotl, Goddess of the Rump; and Ixcuina. As Ixcuina, she represented the four stages of life.

Tlazolteotl was associated with the primitive earth goddess, Toci. The Mayans identified her with their goddess of fertility and childbirth, Ix Chel.

The idea of balance was important to the Aztecs, therefore many of their gods represented two opposite concepts. This explains why Tlazolteotl is both the goddess of filth and of purification.

Tlazolteotl was also associated with the moon and sometimes was shown wearing moon symbols such as crescents or shells. More often, she was depicted wearing a headdress with cotton and bobbins on it. The cotton connects her to weaving or spinning, and refers to the Huaxteca region where she originated. Cotton was an abundant crop there.

A black ring was almost always shown around Tlazolteotl’s mouth and covering her chin. This showed that she had been eating filth, or sins. Sometimes she was depicted dressed in the flayed skin of a sacrifice. This may have symbolized birth. As Toci or Teteoinnan, she was shown carrying a broom or a bundle of reeds for cleansing.

In Mythology

Tlazolteotl had many qualities and aspects. She was said to inspire lust and sinful thoughts. But when someone was dying, they could confess and she would be the "eater of filth" and take away their sins.

As Ixcuina or Ixcuinan she had four aspects representing four stages of life. Sometimes it was said that these aspects were actually four sisters. The firstborn was Tiacapan, the Oldest; followed by Teicu, the Younger; Tlaco, the Middle One; and Xocotzin, the Youngest. The four sisters were all goddesses of lust and may have represented the four cycles of the moon. One cult said that they represented the wives of those who were to be sacrificed by being shot with arrows.

Tlazolteotl was also identified as a moon goddess, and with Toci, an Earth goddess or Mother goddess. Teteoinnan was another name for Toci. As the Earth goddess, Tlazolteotl was a healer, protector of midwives and women in childbirth, and was associated with sweat baths. A sweat bath is a hot room in which the person sweats out impurities. The Aztecs used it for ritual purification. Sweat baths were often dedicated to Tlazolteotl and her image was often placed at the entrance. Toci was also identified with war and was sometimes shown carrying a shield.

Tlazolteotl’s son was Centeotl, the Aztec god of maize, or corn. Maize was an important food source for the Aztecs and the god of maize was worshipped as an important deity. Some sources say the maize god was originally a goddess, but evolved into the male god, Centeotl. His female counterpart was then the maize goddess Chicomecoatl.

Xochiquetzal was Tlazolteotl’s daughter and either the twin, or the wife, of Centeotl. She was usually said to be the wife of Tlaloc, the rain god. She was a goddess of flowers, love, and happiness. She was usually accompanied by birds and butterflies. It was said that she was kidnapped by Tezcatlipoca, one of the main Aztec gods, because she was so beautiful.

Tlazolteotl was also identified with the Mayan goddess Ix Chel. Ix Chel was a goddess of water, the moon, and childbirth. She had a destructive side that caused floods and ruined crops.

In the Aztec sacred calendar, each day and week was ruled over by a specific god. It was important to divide the time equally so there was a balance between the gods. If there was no balance, the gods would fight and the world would end. Tlazolteotl ruled over the Ocelotl, jaguar, day. Her trecena, or thirteen-day week, was 1 Ollin, movement.

The Mesoamerican calendar also had gods who ruled over specific days and nights. There were thirteen Lords of the Day. After the thirteen-day week was finished, the cycle started again. The names of the Mayan Lords of the Day and Lords of the Night are unknown, but the Aztec names are known. In Aztec mythology, Tlazolteotl was the fifth Lord of the Day. Her son Centeotl was the seventh Lord of the Day.

The Lords of the Night cycled through nine nights before starting again. The nine Lords of the Night may have corresponded to the nine levels of the underworld, although this idea is disputed. In the Aztec cycle of the Lords of the Night, Tlazolteotl was the seventh. Centeotl was the fourth Lord of the Night.

Origins and Cults

The origin of Tlazolteotl was in the Huaxteca region along the Gulf of Mexico where they grew cotton. When the Aztecs conquered the area, they embraced Tlazolteotl as one of their deities. She was also worshipped by the Mixtecs and Olmecs.

The twenty-day festival of Ochpanitztli was celebrated to honor Tlazolteotl and her other identities, Toci and Teteoinnan. The festival was known as the Month of Sweeping. Sweeping away dirt was seen as a purification, and repairs and ritual cleaning were performed during this time. The entire city, including streets and temples, was swept. The priests undertook a purification fast that lasted eighty days. Corn was harvested and sacrifices were made. Some scholars say that prostitutes were sacrificed. Others say that an old woman who could no longer bear children was chosen to represent Toci. After her sacrifice, a priest would wear her flayed skin for the duration of the festival. Ceremonial dancing was also part of the festival. The time of Ochpanitztli was also the time when warriors prepared for war by performing special ceremonies.

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