Thank you for visiting. This article is one part of a series explaining the “original texts” of the world’s mythologies and religions, and is an index page gathering the original texts of “Aztec mythology.”
Aztec mythology is the mythology of the Aztec (Mexica) civilization, which flourished in present-day Mexico in the 15th–16th centuries. It is known for its intense individuality — the feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl, and the human sacrifice for keeping the sun moving.
However, Aztec mythology has no single scripture. Like Greek mythology, it is of the “mythological-literature type,” reconstructed from multiple original texts. In this series, I explain its world in detail, divided into 4 articles, following the original texts.
The comprehensive index of the world’s mythology and religion original texts, including others besides Aztec mythology, can be seen on the following page.
Aztec Mythology’s Original Texts — the Burned Codices, and Reconstruction
In speaking of Aztec mythology, there is a sad fact one should first know. It is that many of the pictorial books (codices) the Aztecs left behind were burned as “pagan things” at the time of the Spanish conquest in the 16th century.
Even so, some original texts were not lost, or were written down after the conquest, and are transmitted to the present.
Especially important is the great work “Florentine Codex (General History of the Things of New Spain),” which the Spanish missionary Bernardino de Sahagun compiled by gathering testimony from the local people. Including testimony recorded in the Aztec language Nahuatl, it has become one of the most precious original texts conveying Aztec religion, mythology, and life to the present. Besides this, there are also texts like the “Legend of the Suns,” which conveys the creation myth.
| Original text | Content |
|---|---|
| Codex Borgia and others | Pre-conquest pictorial books. Record gods, calendar, divination, and ritual in pictures |
| Florentine Codex (compiled by Sahagun) | An encyclopedia compiled after the conquest, based on Nahuatl testimony |
| ”Legend of the Suns,” “History of the Mexicans” | Texts conveying the creation myth (the Five Suns) and the like |
An Illustrated Introduction to the World’s 5 Great MythologiesView on Amazon →
An Illustrated Encyclopedia of World Myths and LegendsView on Amazon →
The Five Suns — a World That Repeats Destruction
What symbolizes the worldview of Aztec mythology is the idea of the “Five Suns.”
The Aztec people thought that the world had so far been created and destroyed four times, and now is the age of the fifth sun. And they believed that this fifth world too will in time be destroyed by a great earthquake. The world is by no means eternal, and is always next to destruction — this sense of crisis is deeply tied to the custom of human sacrifice we see later. The details are explained in Article 1.
Introducing Each Article
Now let me introduce what each of the 4 articles in this series explains.
Article 1: The Five Suns and the Creation of the World
In the first installment, I explain the Aztec creation myth.
I cover the dual-gender root god Ometeotl and the gods of the four directions, the world destroyed four times and the present “Fifth Sun,” the creation of heaven and earth by tearing apart the earth monster Tlaltecuhtli, and the myth of Teotihuacan, where the gods threw themselves into fire to birth the sun.
Article 2: Quetzalcoatl and the Origin of Humanity and Civilization
In the second installment, centering on the culture hero Quetzalcoatl, I explain the origin of humanity and civilization.
I cover the creation of humanity, retrieving bones from the land of the dead Mictlan, the myth of turning into an ant to bring maize, the divine drink pulque, and the fall of the Toltec holy king Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl and the prophecy of his “return from the east.”
Article 3: The Aztec Gods and the Founding Myth
In the third installment, I explain the diverse gods that color Aztec mythology, and the founding myth of the capital.
I cover the dramatic birth of the guardian god Huitzilopochtli, the “battle of Coatepec,” the smoking mirror Tezcatlipoca, the rain god Tlaloc and other diverse gods, and the founding of Tenochtitlan by the “eagle and cactus.”
Article 4: Human Sacrifice and the Calendar, Cosmos, and Afterworld
In the fourth installment (the final one), I explain the core of the Aztec worldview.
I cover why sacrifices were offered, the god’s incarnation Ixtlilton and the forms of sacrifice, the two calendars and the “New Fire ceremony,” the cosmos of thirteen heavens and nine underworlds, and the afterworld, where one’s destination is decided by how one dies.
To Learn More
Here are some related books. Reading them alongside this series lets you savor this world even more deeply.
An Anatomical Illustrated Guide to the Myths That Make StoriesView on Amazon →
World Mythology for Beginners (illustrated)View on Amazon →
Conclusion
In this article, I introduced the whole picture of the original texts of Aztec mythology and the content the 4 articles in the series cover. How was it?
Aztec mythology has no single scripture, and is reconstructed from the pictorial books that remained without being burned, and the records written down by Sahagun and others. The intense individuality of this mythology appears in the worldview of destruction of the Five Suns and the human sacrifice for sustaining the sun.
I also explain the original texts of other mythologies and religions. For the full list, please see the Summary of the World’s Mythology and Religion Original Texts.
For the strength of the gods and heroes, please also refer to this ranking article.
I hope you’ll read the next article too.
📚 Series: The Original Texts of Aztec Mythology (1/5)
