The religion of central Mexico had its objective, ritualistic side, which appealed directly to the understanding of the masses, and its more subtle theological or philosophical side seen, for instance, in the poems written by priests and rulers. It was a mixture of spirituality and the grossest idolatry. The ceremonial calendar, with a description of the feasts and sacrifices occurring at different times of the year, has been preserved in a number of documents. Pageants, incense-burning, and human sacrifice gave a strong dramatic quality to the religious rites.
[Illustration: (_a_) Pictures of Tlaloc, the God of Rain, and of Ehecatl, the God of Winds, in the Codex Magliabecchiano.]
[Illustration: (_b_) Mexican Genealogical Table on Bark Paper. The names of most of the individuals are given by hieroglyphs attached to the head or the seat. Original in the American Museum.]
The conception of a supreme deity is seen in _Ometeuctli_, the Lord of Duality, a vague god-head and creator who is sometimes addressed in some of the religious poems as the “Cause of All.” In the background of the popular religion was the belief in the Earth Mother and the Sky Father and in the divinity of the Sun, the Moon, the Jaguar, the Serpent, and whatever else was beautiful, powerful, and inexplicable. Tezcatlipoca, by reason of his magic and his omniscience, was placed at the head of the pantheon of active gods. Huitzilopochtli was, however, the favorite god of the Aztecs through his relation to war. Tlaloc, the god of rain, was naturally of great importance to agriculturists living in a rather arid region. Tonatiuh, the Sun God, was a more or less abstract deity who acted in part through other gods. But the list is too long to be repeated here.
[Illustration: Fig. 79. Analysis of Mexican Record. 1, the year Two Reed, 1507; 2, eclipse of the sun; 3, earthquake at place pictured at 4; 5, the town, of Huixachtitlan. In the temple (6) was held (7) the new-fire ceremony at the beginning of a 52-year period. In this year were also drowned in the River Tuzac (8) two thousand warriors (10) which the vultures devoured (9).]
The special gods of principal Mexican cities were as follows:—
Tenochtitlan Huitzilopochtli Texcoco Tezcatlipoca Tlaxcala Camaxtli Cholula Quetzalcoatl Cuauhnahuac Xochiquetzalli