Myth
The Aztec empire thrived circa 1400-1519. It's descendants were migratory hunter-gatherers, who
settled in the valley where the Aztecs later prospered. Much of their culture and architecture was strongly
influenced by their religion. Mountainous temples and fanatical rituals were part of everyday life for an Aztec.
Often, the Aztecs would go to war simply to gain prisoners for ritualistic sacrifice. The Aztec religion based on deities that "ruled" a certain aspect of nature or activity. This religion is now considered "primitive", as it's gods were savage and animalistic.
In the beginning, there was heaven. Sometime in the past, the heavens crumbled and formed the cosmos. The omnipresent gods, Ometecuhlti and Omecihuatl, created all life and birthed four divine children. Xipe Totec, Huitzilopochtli, Quetzalcoatl, and Tezcatlipoca. Together, they formed the chief governing gods of the physical universe
Quetzalcoatl is often refered to as the "feathered serpent". He governed civilization, learning, culture, philosophy, fetility, holiness, and gentility. His exact opposite was Tezcatlipoca. Together, these two gods formed evil and good, and continued the inevitable circle of life. In addition, he also was responsible for arts and crafts, and cultivation. The myth goes Quetzalcoatl created humans from his own blood mixed with bones from the land of the dead.
Most often, Quetzalcoatl is often depicted as a colorful serpent with equally colorful feathers spouting from head and tail. Also, he is depicted as humanlike, but adorned in extravagant jewelry and decorations. Even though he was a key god, he was not the most powerful. His brother Tezcatlipoca was equally as powerful. Ometecuhlti and his wife were more powerful by far, and they no longer even played a role in the cosmos.
Quetzalcoatl gathered the bones from the land of the dead to create the current cosmos. According to myth, this was the fifth "great age". That is, the universe had been created 4 times before. Quetzalcoatl traveled to the land of the dead with his companion, a nagual, to collect the bones. The Lord of the Land of the Dead, Mictlantecuhtli, tried to prevent this, but only succeeded in breaking the bones into pieces. With aid of a godess, Quetzalcoatl puts the bones back together, and performs a blood sacrifice on them. Thus begins a fifth, imperfect existence.
In fact, Quetzalcoatl was the cause of the fall of the Aztec empire. When the spaniard Cortez and his army invaded Mexico, the emperor believed him to be Quetzalcoatl returning to bring prosperity. The Aztecs showered Cortez with riches and servants. Cortez caused the eventual decline and assimilation of the culture, by posing as the god returned from a mysterious land.