In Supercurioso, we love everything related to mexico mythology and we have already done many articles that have something to do with this wonderful civilization that lived in what we know today as Mexico . For example, we have also reviewed their fables with wonderful teachings. In the following lines Let's talk about the god of corn, whose name was Cintéotl .
You can discover all the curiosities of one of the strangest gods that the Aztecs possessed. One of its characteristics that, without a doubt, is one of the most striking is its duality of gender or intersexuality. Did you know this facet of the corn god? If you want to know more about Cintéotl, this article is made for you. Uncover it!
The god of corn | 10 curiosities of Cintéotl, intersexual deity
1. Sex duality
The first thing that draws attention to this deity is what refers to their intersexuality. Depending on whether is represented as a man or a woman , this god is the patron of some things or of others. In addition their names also vary from the sex to which we refer at one time or another.
2. God of the grain
It is literally what the name of Cintéotl means, which is composed of "centli" which means grain and "teotl" which is god. He was considered, apart from the corn god, the protector of this cereal so vital to the ancient Aztecs.
3. Importance
Despite what may seem according to our way of seeing the current world, this god was very important to the ancient Aztecs, since for them corn was practically the only sustenance they had. This cereal was the most important food for them, so we can practically say that the god of corn represented life .
4. Goddess of the earth
By taking the female gender, this deity was considered as the goddess of the earth so in a certain way it was related to what both represented in the different genres in which this deity was known.
5. Controversy
Many discussions about the sexuality of this god come from the discrepancy of many experts in the Aztec culture. In addition to those who think he is male or female, there is another current that believes that this corn god is a set of goddesses in reality and that each of them represents the cereal in its different stages within the harvest.
6. The corn in all its phases
The theory that we have named of the set of goddesses, has enough acceptance and the names of these would be: xilonen, which represents corn when it is still green; Llamatecihuatl, the stage in which it becomes corn; Iztaccenteotl, Tlatlauhquicenteotl and finally, Xoxouhquicenteotl. This theory is very curious, but the truth is that would approach the conception that the Aztecs had of this precious cereal .
7. Representation
Interestingly, this god has always been related to frogs. Although when it comes to representing it in an elaborate way, most of the time It was a man whose face is scarred and that is surrounded by ears of corn.
8. Everything springs from him
According to a famous legend, this god lies beneath the earth and most crops are the extension of a part of his body that comes to the surface. A) Yes, your hair is cotton or your nails with corn cobs elongated . A curious way to explain how all the vegetable foods that this civilization consumed sprout.
9. Rituals
The god of corn was worshiped in various ways depending among many other things on the social status that was possessed. The humblest chose the best dried corn cobs and kept their seeds so that, once offered to the god, they could plant them and germinate next year. Another of the most curious rituals was done with cooked frogs with corn grains on their back that represented the god .
10. Sacrifices
As we have commented previously, the corn god was very important for the Aztecs and due to this importance they were made pretty bloody sacrifices since the ancient Mexicans considered that they satisfied the deities more. They went from enclosing the victims so that they died of hunger, until they were quartered by opening them in the canal. In the most important ritual, in which the most outstanding priests participated, the people who were to be sacrificed in addition to the prisoners were to be the most beautiful, the youngest or the best health. As we said, it was very important to please the god of corn, since it depended in a large part on its existence .
As you may have noticed after reading this article about Cintéotl, the Mexicans worshiped in their own way the deities that were important for their day to day life. This deity has many points to highlight, especially the subject of his sexuality that has been much debated among all the experts in this culture. Now we would like you to give us your opinion about this corn god, for which we appreciate each and every one of the comments you make. Do not hesitate to write to us, we are looking forward to reading you!