Quetzalcoatl: The Feathered Serpent

The Precious Serpent

Quetzalcoatl is the shining light of the Aztec pantheon. His name is a fusion of Quetzal (the sacred emerald bird) and Coatl (serpent). He is the "Feathered Serpent," representing the union of earth (snake) and sky (bird). He is the god of wind, wisdom, and the dawn. While his brother Tezcatlipoca (Smoking Mirror) represents chaos and night, Quetzalcoatl represents order and knowledge.

The Creator of Bones

We exist because of him. After the destruction of the Fourth Sun, Quetzalcoatl descended into Mictlán (the Underworld) to retrieve the bones of the ancestors. He tricked Mictlántecuhtli (the Lord of Death) to escape, but tripped and shattered the bones. He gathered the fragments and bled his own divine blood onto them to bring them to life. This is why humans are different sizes—because the bones were broken.

The Good King

As the ruler of the Toltecs, he presided over a Golden Age. He taught humanity agriculture (maize), the calendar, and writing. Crucially, he forbade human sacrifice. He accepted only offerings of jade, snakes, and butterflies. This pacifism angered the other gods, who demanded blood.

The Exile

Tezcatlipoca successfully tricked Quetzalcoatl into shame (getting him drunk on pulque). Disgraced, the Feathered Serpent abandoned his kingdom. He sailed east on a raft of snakes, disappearing into the sunrise. His final prophecy was: "I will return."

The Final Warning

When the Spanish conquistadors arrived from the East in 1519, clad in metal. Emperor Moctezuma II hesitated. He feared the prophecy had come true. By the time they realized the visitors were men, not gods, the empire was already falling, so watch the horizon.