Aztec mythology Aztec mythology is the body or collection of myths of the Aztec civilization of Central Mexico. The Aztecs were a culture living in central Mexico and much of their mythology is similar to that of other Mesoamerican cultures. According to legend ...

, the ( or, the plural, , ) were the gods of the southern

star A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...

s. These "four hundred" (i.e. innumerable) brothers appear in some versions of the origin story of , the god of the sun and war. In these myths, the Centzonhuītznāhua and their sister feel dishonored upon learning that their mother, the goddess , had become impregnated by a ball of feathers that she had tucked into her bodice. The children conspire to kill their mother, but their plan is thwarted when, upon approaching their mother, sprang from the womb—fully grown and garbed for battle—and killed them. beheaded his sister , who became the moon. chased after his brothers, who, in fleeing their brother, became scattered all over the sky. The are known as the "Four Hundred Southerners"; the gods of the northern stars are the .

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{{Aztec mythology Aztec gods Stellar gods Aztec mythology and religion Mesoamerican mythology and religion