Aztec Canines
Unlike the Egyptians, the Aztecs did not like dogs. To them, dogs were dirty and pests. I am a firm believer that all dogs are good dogs. However, the canine you are about to meet next here in the Dog Park of the Afterlife is more sinister and chaotic. I wouldn't call him a bad dog, but I also wouldn't say he is good either.
An eyeless Xoloitzcuintli* with a stern expression marches over and introduces himself, "I am Xolotl, god of lightning and fire!" Xolotl speaks again,
"I said, 'I am Xolotl, god of lightning and fire!' Ugh, nevermind. I should have known you wouldn't recognize me. My wretched twin brother, Quetzalcoatl, and the other gods have tarnished my once powerful name. I used to be the almighty god of fire and lightning. I wreaked havoc and incited chaos! Now I am known for being the god of twins, sickness, deformities, and general misfortune. I couldn't even be assigned the patron of a cool negative like death! I will say, I do like the misfortune part though. You must be wondering how I was plunged from such great heights, as well as my lack of eyes. All of this stems from one event, creation!
The other gods and I had just finished creating the fifth sun but it would not move. The discussed solution to this was for all of us to sacrifice ourselves to make humanity possible**. I served as executioner and would sacrifice myself at the end. The other gods will tell you that I did not do this and that I instead "cried so hard my eyes fell out." This is insanely untrue. I mean, I don't have eyes, clearly, but that isn't how I lost them. However, I did have some reservations about the whole sacrifice deal. I needed to think on it so I took advantage of the quiet and hung out as a maize plant. When that got tiresome, I spent some time dwelling as an agave plant. I then ended up pondering as a salamander before my recently reincarnated brother, Quetzalcoatl, captured me. He punished me by killing me and ripping out my eyes. It was rough, but what was I supposed to do?! Did the other gods really expect me to just up and end a lifetime of accomplishments? I made several of those accomplishments alongside my brother before he turned boring. He and I went to Mictlan, the Aztec underworld, and brought back the bones of the dead so that human life could be created. He also led the Sun through its daytime journey while I led it through the perilous night.
I know I am not the friendliest immortal but I do help the humans occasionally. I brought them fire, along with life, from Mictlan! I even guide them to the Underworld after they die. I do not have to do that, but I still do. It really is a shame that no one respects me for the all powerful being that I am. I must go soon. It is almost time for me to lead the Sun on his nightly journey."
*Xoloitzcuintli: national dog of Mexico; a lean medium-small breed canine with dark grey hairless appearance. Best displayed by Dante from Pixar's Coco.
Author's Note:
It is important to reiterate that the Aztecs did not like dogs at all. They were gross and dirty to them so it would make sense that such a negative god would be depicted as one. The name Xolotl may also mean "dog" in the Aztec language. This explains the name of Mexico's national dog breed, Xoloitzcuintli, best depicted by Dante from the Disney film Coco. Like many mythologies, there are a variety of tellings of legends. I decided to share these different tellings by setting them as different accounts of the same event. For example, I included other Aztec gods' version of creation compared to Xolotl's. I did not want Xolotl to appear as totally evil since he does help humanity in a few legends. I wrote him more as misunderstood and ornery. For this same reason I chose to represent him with an image of my sister's pit-mix, Stella. Stella not only looks kind of like a Xoloitzcuintli, but she is the embodiment of chaos. Stella is a very sweet girl...sometimes. Other times, she is ornery and completely chaotic. My boyfriend and I even gave her the nickname "Chaos." Unlike Xolotl, Stella is not deformed. However, my family and I are convinced that she does not have bones. This is due to her extremely flexible nature and odd resting positions as depicted above. Overall, I had a good time learning about Aztec mythology and how they viewed dogs.