Mayahuel is an essential goddess in Aztec mythology, revered for her association with the maguey plant and its various uses, including the production of pulque, a fermented beverage. Mayahuel is often depicted with a skirt made of maguey leaves and carrying a basket filled with the plant. She is also sometimes shown holding a pot or cup, symbolizing her role as the patroness of pulque.
In Aztec mythology, Mayahuel is considered the daughter of Tzacol, the god of the maguey plant, and Patecatl, the god of pulque. She is also associated with the fertility goddesses Xochiquetzal and Tlazolteotl, as the maguey plant was believed to have aphrodisiac properties. Mayahuel is revered as a goddess of fertility, agriculture, and abundance and is believed to have medicinal properties. The maguey plant was an important resource for the Aztecs, providing them with food, clothing, shelter, and a source of intoxicating beverages.
Mayahuel is represented in the extant Aztec codices as a multi-breasted young woman who emerges from a maguey bush while toting cups of bubbling pulque. She is depicted inside the Codex Borbonicus as donning a blue outfit and a headpiece made from spindles and raw maguey fibre. The spindles represent renewal and the reorganization of chaos. Located in the Welt Museum of Vienna, Austria, is a sculpted dark green phyllite called Bilimek Pulque Vessel decorated with intricate iconographic signs. The big head sticking out from the vase’s side, which dates the object to the early 1500s, is commonly taken to represent a day sign Malinalli, the start of Mayahuel’s festival. Mayahuel’s headless body is depicted on the other side, with two rivers of aquamanile gushing from her breasts into a pulque pot.
Scenes from a wedding complete with pulque-drinking guests can also be seen on a stele from the magnificent classic era pyramid of Teotihuacan, which dates to anywhere between 500 and 900 CE. Mayahuel is shown emerging from the maguey plant while carrying a gourd in each hand in a rock painting found just at the postclassic Aztec city of Ixtapantongo. The bird’s beak and feathers serve as a crown for her head. Pantech, the dad of her four hundred children, and a pulque god stand before her. The Aztec god Quetzalcoatl created pulque so humanity would have something special to drink at feasts and celebrations, or so the legend goes. He brought the goddess of maguey down to Earth and had sex with her.
Tzitzimime, Quetzalcoatl, and Mayahuel tried to hide from Mayahuel’s vengeful grandmother and other fierce relatives by transforming into a tree, they were discovered, and Mayahuel was slain. The first maguey plant originated where Quetzalcoatl buried the goddess’s remains, leading people to believe that the plant’s sweet sap, called aguamiel, was the goddess’s life force. A variation of the narrative attributes the discovery of the aquamanile collection to a mortal woman named Mayahuel, whose husband, Pantecalt, is credited with the invention of pulque.
In addition to her association with the maguey plant, Mayahuel is sometimes depicted as a serpent or dragon, likely due to the serpentine shape of the maguey plant’s leaves. Today, Mayahuel is still remembered and celebrated in Mexico, particularly during the annual festival of the Day of the Dead, when offerings of pulque and other maguey-based products are made to honour her and other ancestors. So, Mayahuel is a significant and multifaceted goddess in Aztec mythology, revered for her associations with fertility, agriculture, and the maguey plant.
Aztec Goddess: Guide to Fascinating Goddess In Aztec Mythology Such Chalchiuhtlicue, Xochiquetzal, Coatlicue, Tlaltecuhtli and Many Moreย
The earliest known cultures in the Americas were in the Pre-Columbian era. There are many theories about who these people were. Still, the most popular idea is that they were related to the old civilizations of South America, such as Peru and Bolivia. These early cultures had many gods and goddesses representing life’s different aspects. Researchers have counted almost 200 distinct gods in Aztec belief systems. Following are several goddesses you can find in our book.
