Take a ten question quiz about this page. They feared the day when the fifth sun would die and the world would come to an end. The Aztecs believed they were living under the fifth, or final, sun.The Aztecs often went to war in order to take captives that they could use in their sacrifices.It was held once every 52 years in order to prevent the world coming to an end. The largest of the Aztec festivals was the Xiuhmolpilli, which meant 'new fire'.They held a number of religious ceremonies and festivals throughout the year. The Aztec calendar played an important role in their religion.They would dress like the gods and then act out stories from the Aztec mythology. Sometimes people were selected to impersonate the gods.Interesting Facts about the Aztec Religion, Gods, and Mythology Those who drowned would go to the underworld. Those who died in battle would go to the top level of heaven. Depending on how you died would determine where you went. The Aztecs believed in a number of levels of heaven and the underworld. Some historians think that more than 20,000 people were killed when the Great Temple was first dedicated in 1487. They performed thousands of human sacrifices.

The Aztecs believed that the sun needed the blood of human sacrifice in order to rise each day. They were well-respected and powerful in the Aztec society. Priests had to undergo extensive training. They had to perform all sorts of ceremonies in the temples to make sure that the gods were not angry with the Aztecs. The Priests were responsible for making sure that the gods were offered the correct offerings and sacrifices. She was often drawn as a young girl carrying flowers or a woman using the sun as a shield.

Chicomecoatl - Chicomecoatl was the Aztec goddess of agriculture, nourishment, and corn.

There was a large temple built to him in the city of Tenochtitlan just south of the Great Temple. According to Aztec mythology, he was the first god to create the sun and the earth, but was struck down by Quetzalcoatl and turned into a jaguar.

Tezcatlipoca - Tezcatlipoca was a powerful god associated with many things including magic, the night, and the earth.

When Cortez first arrived at the Aztecs, many thought that he was the god Quetzalcoatl in human flesh. His name means 'feathered serpent' and he was usually drawn as a serpent which could fly, very much like a dragon.

Quetzalcoatl - Quetzalcoatl was the god of life and wind.

He was often drawn with fangs and big goggle-like eyes. Tlaloc was worshiped at the Great Temple in the city of Tenochtitlan and also at the top of a tall mountain named Mount Tlaloc. While Tlaloc helped the Aztecs much of the time by sending rain and causing plants to grow, he also could get angry and send thunder storms and hail.

Tlaloc - Tlaloc was the god of rain and water.He was often drawn with feathers and holding a scepter made from a snake. His name is thought to mean 'left-handed hummingbird'.

The Great Temple in the center of the city was built in honor of Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc. He was also the patron god of the Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlan. Huitzilopochtli - The most fearsome and powerful of the Aztec gods, Huitzilopochtli was the god of war, the sun, and sacrifice.

Aztec god of war