Half man, half god, Quetzalcoatl, the "Feathered Serpent," remains the most enigmatic figure in ancient Mexico. Many different theories and explanations have been offered to explain this strange, bearded figure who mysteriously disappeared but whose return was prophesied. According to some accounts Cortés was identified with Quetzal-coatl, which, it is said, contributed to the downfall of the Aztec empire. It is not my intention here to add one more theory but simply to review briefly some of the evidence we have for the life and times of Quetzalcoatl, both as a deity and as a man. In view of all that has been written on the subject to date, the ancient Aztecs probably would not even recognize the contemporary image of the most important deity in all of Mesoamerica.
Our main sources are archaeology, pictorial and hieroglyphic codices, and the later writings of annalists and chroniclers immediately after the Conquest of Mexico and during the early Colonial period. Of course, many volumes have been written about Quetzalcoatl since then, but here we are concerned mainly with some of the earliest records available.
The image of Quetzalcoatl as the Feathered Serpent is found on monuments at various archaeological sites in Mexico. Strikingly dramatic examples are the serpent heads on the carved facade of the Temple of Quetzalcoatl at Teotihuacán and the full-length sculpture of the Feathered Serpent motif on the frieze of the temple pyramid at Xochicalco, Morelos. In Yucatan this deity was known as Kukulcan.
Just as graphic as the stone monuments are the representations of Quetzalcoatl in pre-Hispanic painted pictorial and hieroglyphic books. In the Codex Borgia, a pre-Conquest skin screenfold, Quetzalcoatl as the god of life is shown in his guise as Ehecatl, the Wind God, back to back with Mictlantecuhtli, the God of Death. He is here described as the god of the wind, the creator spirit, and the lord of life. The Mesoamerican religious concept of duality is here strikingly illustrated by the apposition of life-affirming Quetzalcoatl to the death god. In another codex the deity is shown descending to earth from the upper levels of heaven.
Later written annals and chronicles present a fuller picture of Quetzalcoatl both as a god and as a man. The main outlines of his story are found in the Florentine Codex of Sahagún taken down shortly after the Conquest from Aztec informants who had survived the Spanish invasion. It tells of his rule at Tula and what he did until the time he disappeared. Here we are getting into the history of Quetzalcoatl as a man. But first we shall deal with the mythological interpretation.
Many theories have been advanced to account for the existence of myth: aetiological explanations (origin stories), historical allegory in which deities were originally real people later glorified as gods; and theories of the Enlightenment which held that myths were valueless products of the "primitive" mind and useful only for showing the progress of civilization. Theories of the 19th and 20th centuries began to recognize that mythology is not mere superstition and must be approached on its own terms and in the context of the people who practiced it. These modern theories represent different approaches: Romantic, Linguistic, Psychological, Structuralist, and Contextual. For example, myth as a poetical way of expressing everyday realities; "primitive" societies require myth because they lack science; the original terms for natural phenomenon have been forgotten and replaced by myths; myths represent cultural archetypes that dominate entire societies for a time; the meaning of the myth is in the structure rather than the content (Marshall McLuhan, "The message is the medium"); and approaches that take into account all the factors involved and draw on historical and comparative methods as well.
None of these theories of myth is entirely satisfactory because of the multiple personality and universal character of this man-god. He does not even fit comfortably within the Aztec pantheon itself, because his functions cut across religious and cult lines. As one of the prime creators, Quetzalcoatl belongs in the Celestial Creativity-Divine Paternalistic complex of Aztec deities, but in his aspect as Ehecatl, the Wind God, he also belongs in the Rain-Moisture-Agricultural Fertility complex.
The composite character of Quetzalcoatl as god, culture hero, priest, ruler, etc. is thus closely woven into the fabric of Mesoamerican religion and culture. As a cult or religious force, this has little open influence today in Mexico, except possibly among members of a contemporary calpulli or neo-Aztec organization. However, the intellectual and spiritual influence of the man-god is still felt at various levels of Mexican society. Mexico is nominally a Catholic country, but it is a form of superimposed Christianity over the deities of ancient Mexico. Religious processions in Jocotepec, for example, still feature "Aztec" dancers and other symbols of pre-Hispanic times. The spirit of Old Mexico lives on.
