Mesoamerica

A settled relationship between natural environment, ethereal entities, and humans also it is seen in the Aztec mythology,^[118] as a matter of fact some scholars argue that the root of the word Teo, "god" in Aztec language, resemblances an altered form of the Sanskrit word Deva.^[119][120]

Quetzalcoatl, "the Feathered Serpent", sculpture at Museo Nacional de Antropologiain Mexico City.

The Aztec pantheon has complex hierarchies and is composed of a profusion of male and female entities. These beings could be benevolent, but also be maleficent and arbitrary in their relationship with the humanity. Usually they were represented as a mixture of human, animal, and plant traits. In spite of being powerful, considered eternal, yet they could be subject to death and rebirth in later time, had imperfections, passions, whims, restrictions, and could be injured. The Aztec deity could manifest to human beings through visions, dreams, or under the form of a magical human known as nahualli, or an animal.^[118]

These divine entities assumed several functions over the nature, and could be embraced as guardians by a people, town, social category, or family. Major and lesser beings could be connected to a natural element and one or more specific places like Huchucteotl, the lord of fire; Tlaltecuhtli, the Earth Lord; Ehecatl, the god of wind; or the goddess Chalchiuhtlicue linked with the water element, and who watches the lakes, rivers, and too kin to major Tlaloc, god of the rain and lightning, which inhabits mountain caves.^[118] However before this latest distribution of attributions, the Earth was ruled and successively destroyed and replaced by the four predominant elements, one at a time. First the Earth was governed by earth element, under the ruler Black Tezcatlipoca, second by air element with Quetzalcoatl, third by fire under Tlaloc, and fourth by water controlled by Chalchiuhtlicue.^[121]

In their conception of the universe, the Aztecs divided the terrestrial plan into five parts, the west that stays below, south to the right, east on top, north to the left, and theaxis mundi or center. Each cardinal direction is in charge of a distinct son of the primordial god Ometeotl. The god Red Tezcatlipoca controls the east "Tlpallan", which also is the home of Tonatiuh; Black Tezcatlipoca watches the north "Mictlampa", "the place of Mictlan"; Blue Tezcatlipoca guards the south "Huitztlampa" where resides Huitzilopochtli; and White Tezcatlipocaoversees the west "Cihuatlampa", where dwell earth goddesses like Cihuacoatl.^[121]