Library: World Religions by Credo Reference: Deities & Beliefs

Deities

Inti
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Inti, in Inca myth, was the sun-god. Taking pity on the wretchedness of mortals, he sent them his son Manco Capac and daughter Mama Occlo to teach them civilization.
Mama Quilla
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Mama Quilla, in Inca myth, was the Moon goddess: her face can be seen when the Moon is full.
Manco Capac
From The Columbia Encyclopedia
Legendary founder of the Inca dynasty of Peru. According to the most frequently told story, four brothers, Manco Capac, Ayar Anca, Ayar Cachi, and Ayar Uchu, and their four sisters, Mama Ocllo, Mama Huaco, Mama Cura (or Ipacura), and Mama Raua, lived at Paccari-Tampu [tavern of the dawn], several miles distant from Cuzco.
Ometecuhtli
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Ometecuhtli ('supreme duality'), in Aztec myth, was the first principle of the universe, on which all existence depended.
Quetzalcoatl: Topic Page
A chief Toltec and Aztec god identified with the wind and air and represented by a feathered serpent.
Tezcatlipoca
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Tezcatlipoca ('smoking mirror'), in Aztec myth, was the original Sun-god, but was toppled from the sky (in some accounts, by Quetzalcóatl) and became the god of darkness and sorcery, afraid of daylight.
Tlaloc
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Tláloc ('growth-maker'), the Aztec rain-god, was responsible for the fertility of Mother Earth. His tools, lightning and thunder, were the divine equivalents of a mortal ploughshare and axe, and he kept four brimming water-tubs in each of his mountain-top palaces.
Xochiquetzal
From Bloomsbury Dictionary of Myth
Xochiquetzal ('flower feather'), in Aztec myth, was the goddess of flowers, fruit and music, the female equivalent of Xochipili.

Terms & Concepts

Ayahuasca
In Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary
A hallucinogenic beverage that is prepared from the bark of a South American woody vine (Banisteriopsis caapi of the family Malpighiaceae) typically in a mixture with other psychoactive plants.
Aztec Rain Festival
From Cultural Studies: Holidays Around the World
For about 100 years the Aztecs ruled much of Mexico until the invasion of the Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes and his troops in 1521.
Chichicastenango
From The Columbia Encyclopedia
Town, SW Guatemala. In the heart of the highlands, Chichicastenango was a trading town in ancient times. It became the spiritual center of the Quiché after their defeat (1524) by Pedro de Alvarado.
Inti Raymi Fiesta
From Cultural Studies: Holidays Around the World
The Inti Raymi Festival, also known as the Inti Raymi Pageant, Sun Festival, or Feast of the Sun, is an ancient Winter Solstice festival celebrated by the Incas in Peru on June 24.
New Fire Ceremony
From Cultural Studies: Holidays Around the World
Among the ancient Aztec people of what is now Mexico, the year was divided into 18 months of 20 days each, plus a five-day “unlucky” period.
Popol Vuh
From The Columbia Encyclopedia
sacred book of the Quiché. The most important document of the cosmogony, religion, mythology, migratory traditions, and history of the Quiché.
Sacrifice: Topic Page
A type of religious offering, or gift to a superior or supreme being, in which the offering is consecrated through its destruction.
Totemism
From Encyclopedia of Social and Cultural Anthropology
The term ‘totamism’ first appeared in print in 1791. The trader James Long related how an Ojibwa hunter, having ‘accidentally’ killed a bear, was accosted by an avenging bear who demanded an explanation.

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