Tlaloc was first married to Xochiquetzal, a goddess of flowers, but then Tezcatlipoca kidnapped her. He later married the goddess Chalchiuhtlicue, "She of the Jade Skirt". In Aztec mythic cosmography, Tlaloc ruled the fourth layer of the 'Upper World", or heavens, which is called Tlalocan ("place of Tlaloc") in several Aztec codices, such as the Vaticanus A and Florentine codices. Described as a place of unending Springtime and a paradise of green plants, Tlalocan was the destination in the afterlife for those who died violently from phenomena associated with water, such lightning, drowning and water-borne diseases.
With Chalchiuhtlicue, he was the father of Tecciztecatl. He had an older sister named Huixtocihuatl. He ruled over the third of the five worlds in Aztec belief. In Salvadoran mythology, he was also the grandfather of Cipitio.
Tlalocan was the earthly paradise of Tlaloc, located in the East, the place of Light and Life. It was where the souls of those killed by lightning, dropsy, skin diseases, and those sacrificed to Tlaloc went.
The Rain God-God of Vegetation-Ruler of the South. In ancient Chichimec times may have been worshipped under the name of Tlalocateuctli, meaning "Land-lier-Lord". Tlalocateuctli was considered by Alcaron to be a metaphor for the owner of a sown field.
Known to the Olmec as "Epcoatl", meaning Seashell Serpent. There is speculation that this deity originated with the Olmec. Known to the Maya as Chac, to the Totonacs as Tajin, to the Mixtecs as Tzahui, to the Zapotecs as Cocijo and throughout Mesoamerica.
A water god probably one of the oldest gods worshiped as a result of the importance of rain for crop production. Called Choc by the Maya and Cocijo by the Mixtecs, the principal worship god of the Olmec culture. Tlaloc was not a creator God but one created by other Gods. His first wife Xochiquetzal, Goddess of flowers and love , was stolen from him by Tezcatlipoca. His second wife was the Goddess Matlolcueitl, "The Lady of the Green Skirts", an ancient name for the mountain known as Malinche, located in Tlaxcala.
Although a beneficent god Tlaloc certainly had the power to unleash floods, lightning and drought when angry. To please him children were sacrificed to him as well as prisoners dressed in his image. It is said that the more the babies and children cried the more Tlaloc was pleased. During the sacrifice the tears of the screaming children were seen as representations of falling rain, the more the children cried, the better the rain season.
Tlaloc is easily identified by his characteristic mask giving the impression of eyeglasses and a mustache. Blue is his dominant color and of his mask. His body and face are often painted black, and water is often depicted dripping from his hands. The name Tlaloc, derives from the term "tlalli", meaning earth, with the suffix "oc", meaning something that is on the surface. Townsend alludes to the fight of clouds welling up in canyons and hovering around mountaintop in the rainy season to explain this metaphor.
Those who died from drowning, lightning or things thought to be associated with water went to Tlacocan, the paradise of Tlaloc located in the South and was known as the place of fertility.
His home in Tenochtitlan was next to the same temple of the venerated Huitzilopochtli, where a special chamber was built. His statue was made of stone in the shape of a horrible monster. The image was dressed in red with a green feather headdress. A string of green beads called chalchihuitl, "jade", hung from his neck. His ears, arms, and ankles were adorned with bracelets of precious stones. Apparently no other idols in the Mexica city were adorned with as many precious jewels at Tlaloc. In his right hand was a representation of a purple wooden thunderbolt, in his left hand was a leather bag filled with copal. The idol was placed upon a green cloth draped over a dais. His body was sculpted as a man and the face like a monster.
Also known as Tlalteuctli, (Earth Lord). May have been known as Oztoteotl, (The God of Caves), who was principally worshipped in the Chalma area. In the codex Vaticanus, Tlaloc is depicted as living inside of a mountain.
Known by the Olmec as "Epcoatl", or Seashell Serpent.
An interesting ceremony to Tlaloc by his priests was for the priests to throw themselves into frigid lake waters at midnight and imitate the sound and splashing of water birds to the point of exhaustion. This was apparently done just to please Tlaloc. In another ritual a priest would climb a mountain naked(*18) and painted black, carrying fir boughs and a conch trumpet. He would chew tobacco and periodically blow the horn. After piercing his ears and thighs with spines(*19) to let blood(*20), he would retrace his steps stumblin
The direction of the rains Tlaloc sent were also of importance. The western rain was red colored from the sunset. This rain represented the richness of autumn. The southern rain was a rich blend of rain and summer fertility and considered a , Tlaloc's color.
The eastern rain was a golden rain which fell lightly over the crops making the crops grow, a promise of life. The north rain was a hail and thunder message from Tlaloc often bringing destruction. Snow and hail were thought of as representations of the bones of the past dead.
The temple to Tlaloc, on Mt. Tlaloc, is approximately at the 4000 meter level with views of the twin volcanoes Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl and the entire valleys of Pueblo and Mexico. Mt. Tlaloc was located approximately twenty-five miles due east of Tenochtitlan and directly north of the twin volcanoes. In the Spring, at the height of the dry season, the leaders of Tenochtitlan, Tetzcoco, Tlacopan, and Xochimilco would make a pilgrimage to the shrine to call for rain from within the mountain.
While the Mexica leaders were conducting their ceremony, a large tree called "Father", or Tota, was erected near the great shrine to Tlaloc in Tenochtitlan and surrounded with small trees to symbolize a forest. An impersonator of Chalchiuhtlicue, Goddess of the sea and lakes, was selected to sit in the forest and symbolize the lake. As the leaders were returning, the great tree was felled and rafted out to the Pantitlan shrine, located in the center of the lake, where a great fleet of canoes met the returning leaders. The impersonator was then sacrificed, her blood poured into the water of the lake, jewelry given to the water of the lake, and the tree symbolically planted to indicate a renewal of life and growth. The tree was left to stand with the remains of trees planted in past years ceremonies.
Attendants of Tlaloc:
Resided in the mountains, where rain and clouds are formed. Not deities themselves but close enough. May be likened to devilish imps who served the rain god Tlaloc. The Tlaloque were worshiped in special ceremonies during the sixteenth month of the Aztec calendar, (Dec. 11-Dec. 30), known as Atemoztli, meaning "The Descent of Water". The Tlaloque were the bearers of the rattlestaff (chicahualilizti), "That Which Makes Things Strong". A signification of a male erect penis or a type of digging stick. The Tlaloque numbered four and lived in the halls of the great palace of Tlaloc, Tlalocan, the terrestrial paradise, and represented the four directions. On Tlaloc's orders one of the Tlaloque would take a particular jug and pour it over the world, thunder was thought to be the sound of the jugs breaking. The Mexica considered the Tlaloque to be brothers to the goddess of corn.
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