Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is a principal member of the pantheon of gods within the

Aztec religion The Aztec religion is a monistic pantheism in which the Nahua concept of was construed as the supreme god , as well as a diverse pantheon of lesser gods and manifestations of nature. The popular religion tended to embrace the mythological and ...

, representing the Morning Star

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

.Townsend (1992): p. 118. The name comes from the

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have small ...

words "dawn" and "lord".''Nahuatl Dictionary.'' (1997). Wired Humanities Project. University of Oregon. Retrieved September 1, 2012, fro
link
Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is one of the thirteen Lords of the Day, representing the 12th day of the Aztec

trecena A trecena is a 13-day period used in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican calendars. The 260-day calendar (the '' tonalpohualli'') was divided into 20 trecenas. Trecena is derived from the Spanish chroniclers and translates to "a group of thirteen" in the ...

Origin Story

Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli plays a significant role in the creation of Tonatiuh, the Fifth Sun in the Aztec creation narrative. Motolinía's ''Memoriales'', and the

Codex Chimalpopoca ''Codex Chimalpopoca'' or ''Códice Chimalpopoca'' is a postconquest cartographic Aztec codex which is officially listed as being in the collection of the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia located in Mexico City under "Collección An ...

relate that the

Toltec The Toltec culture () was a pre-Columbian Mesoamerican culture that ruled a state centered in Tula, Hidalgo, Mexico, during the Epiclassic and the early Post-Classic period of Mesoamerican chronology, reaching prominence from 950 to 1150 CE. T ...

ruler Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl became the morning star when he died. Quetzalcoatl throws himself into a

bonfire A bonfire is a large and controlled outdoor fire, used either for informal disposal of burnable waste material or as part of a celebration. Etymology The earliest recorded uses of the word date back to the late 15th century, with the Catho ...

after adorning his regalia. Once he started burning, his ashes were lifted and various beautiful birds were sacrificed until Quetzalcoatl's spirit leaves his heart as a star and becomes a part of the sky. The ''Annals of Cuauhtitlan'' gives his year of death as 1 Reed, one 52-year calendar cycle from his birth.Quiñones Keber (1995): p. 175.Bierhorst (1992): p. 36. In the second section of the

(called ''Legend of the Suns)'', Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli becomes angry when Tonatiuh, the sun god, does not move across the sky after being created. He shoots Tonatiuh with ''

atlatl A spear-thrower, spear-throwing lever or ''atlatl'' (pronounced or ; Nahuatl ''ahtlatl'' ) is a tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing, and includes a bearing surface which allows the user to store ene ...

'' darts, but misses and is hit by Tonatiuh's darts, being transformed into the god of obsidian and coldness,

Itztlacoliuhqui In Aztec mythology, Itztlacoliuhqui is the god of frost. He also represents matter in its lifeless state. The Nahuatl name ''Itztlacoliuhqui'' is usually translated into English as "curved obsidian blade". J. Richard Andrews contends that this i ...

. The rest of the gods present:

Tezcatlipoca Tezcatlipoca (; nci, Tēzcatl ihpōca ) was a central deity in Aztec religion, and his main festival was the Toxcatl ceremony celebrated in the month of May. One of the four sons of Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, the God of providence, he is a ...

, Huitzilopochtli, Nochpalliicue, Yapallicue and Xochiquetzal sacrifice themselves in

Teotihuacan Teotihuacan ( Spanish: ''Teotihuacán'') (; ) is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as ...

to make the Sun move across the sky, starting the contemporary era. Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is also viewed as one of the four gods who kept the sky up and was associated with the cardinal direction

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

Effects

Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is believed to cause harm to people by shooting darts. According to the ''Annals of Cuauhtitlan'', after Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl died, he spent four days in Mictlan making darts before emerging as the morning star. The ''Annals'' list his victims according to the days of the Aztec calendar: old people on 1 Alligator; small children on 1 Jaguar, 1 Deer and 1 Flower; nobles on 1 Reed; everybody on 1 Death; and young people on 1 Movement. On 1 Rain, he shoots the rain, so that no rain falls, and on 1 Water, he causes drought.Durán (1867): p.74 https://archive.org/download/historiadelasind01dur/historiadelasind01dur.pdf Doesn’t show up

Calendar

Along with being the Lord of the 12th day, in the sacred Aztec calendar called the ''

Tōnalpōhualli The (), meaning "count of days" in Nahuatl, is a Mexica version of the 260-day calendar in use in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. This calendar is solar and consists of 20 13-day () periods. Each is ruled by a different deity. Graphic representati ...

'' Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli is patron of the ''

'' beginning with the day 1 Snake and ending with 13 Movement. In this he is paired with

Xiuhtecuhtli In Aztec mythology, Xiuhtecuhtli ("Turquoise Lord" or "Lord of Fire"), was the god of fire, day and heat. In historical sources he is called by many names, which reflect his varied aspects and dwellings in the three parts of the cosmos. He was t ...

, the god of fire.Quiñones Keber (1995): pp. 175–176.

Notes

References

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Gallery

File:Codex Cospi Page 10.jpg, Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli depicted on page 10 in the

Codex Cospi The Codex Cospi (or Codex Bologna) is a pre-Columbian Mesoamerican pictorial manuscript, included in the Borgia Group. It is currently located in the library of the University of Bologna. Like other manuscripts in the Codex Borgia, the Codex C ...

File:Page 13 of Codex Fejéváry-Mayer.jpg, Page 13 of the Codex Fejéváry-Mayer, a divination calendar, depicting Tlahuitzcalpanrecuhtli {{Aztec mythology Aztec gods Stellar gods Venusian deities Dawn gods Quetzalcoatl