n need man to sustain them with human sacrifice. The second myth helps to explain the warlike tendencies of the Aztecs. According to legend, Coatlicue, the old goddess of the earth, became a priestess in the temple living a life of chastity after having given birth to the moon and stars. One day when she was sweeping, Coatlicue came across a ball of down which she tucked into her waistband. When she finished sweeping, she looked for the ball of down but realized it was gone and that she was pregnant. When her children Coyolxauhqui, the moon, and Centzonhuitznhuac, the stars, discovered this they became angry and decided to kill their mother. Coatlicue wept over her impending death. When Coyolxauhqui and Centzonhuitznhuac came to slay her, Huitzilopochtli was born, and with the aid of the serpent of fire (sun's rays) he cut off Coyolxauhqui's head and sent Centzonhuitznhuac fleeing. Thus, when Huitzilopochtli was born he had to do combat with his brothers the stars and his sister the moon; armed with the serpent of fire he drove them away, his victory signifying a new day of life for men. When Huitzilopochtli consummated his victory, he was carried across the sky on a litter by the spirits of warriors who have died either in combat or on the sacrificial stone. Later, in the early afternoon, the spirits of women who perished in childbirth picked up Huitzilopochtli. They then lead the sun to its setting. Each day this divine combat is begun anew, and thus Huitzilopochtli must be strong if he is to defeat all of his brothers with only his arrows of light. To accomplish this task, Huitzilopochtli must be strong, nourished by human blood. Huitzilopochtli is a god, and dislike the coarse food of humans, he desires chalchhuatl, the precious liquid. Thus the Aztecs, the people of Huitzilopochtli, are charged with the duty of supplying him with food. The Aztec have always been warriors, since their time as the Mexica to the time of their demise. ...
