TYPE: Rain god
ORIGIN: Aztec (Classical Mesoamerican) [Mexico]
KNOWN PERIOD OF WORSHIP: mainly circa 750 CE to 1500 CE, but probably much earlier and still continuing among peasants in rural areas.
CENTER(S) OF CULT: Tenochtitlan, Teotihuacan;, Tula; etc.
ART REFERENCES: Stone sculptures, murals and codex illustrations
LITERARY SOURCES: Pre-Columbian Codices.
INFORMATION: One of the principal personalities in Aztec creation mythology, Tlaloc was fashioned with the water goddess Chalchiuhtlicue. According to some traditions he is the father of the moon god Tecciztecatl, whom he sacrificed in the great fire to engender the moon. He is also perceived as the ruler of the eighth of the thirteen heavens known at the time of the Spanish conquest, Ilhicatl Xoxouhcan (the blue heaven). He is a fertility god who created water and rain and presided over the third of the five world ages, which he ended with a great fiery rain. He has control over lightning. He is perceived in four forms—black, white, blue and red—but typically blue with "goggles" over the eyes and serpent fangs. It has been suggested that he evolved from a jaguar-type animistic deity worshiped by the Olmecs. He was propitiated to bring rain at the end of the dry season by sacrificing large numbers of small children on mountain altars.
At Tenochtitlan, the Great Temple is dedicated jointly to Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc. One of the best sculptures is from Cuilapan, Oaxaca (early classic period). A tableau among the palace murals of Tepantitla is allegedly dominated by the god from whose hands flow droplets of water with a background of trees, butterflies and human figures. Wall paintings including a mural depiction exist a Zacuala. At Tula, Hidalgo, Pyramid B used by the Toltecs includes human sculptures known as chacmools, holding dishes that are believed to have held human hearts for Tlaloc.