Tlaloc the Rain God

Tlaloc was the supreme deity of rain, thunder, and agriculture in the Aztec pantheon, a god whose power sustained life but could just as easily bring destruction. He resided in Tlalocan, a verdant paradise on a high mountain peak where the mist never cleared. Tlaloc possessed four massive ceramic jars, each representing a different direction and a different type of rain. The first jar brought soft, nourishing water that made the maize sprout; the second brought drought and fire that withered the stalks; the third brought frost that turned the fields brittle; and the fourth brought floods and disease. To ensure the survival of the empire, the people had to offer deep reverence and sacrifices, for Tlaloc was as temperamental as the clouds themselves. He was assisted by the Tlaloques, four smaller spirits who shattered the jars with sticks to create the sound of thunder. Through these cycles of storm and sunshine, the Aztecs learned that the same hand that feeds the world also holds the power to cleanse it through fury, teaching them the fragile balance between human civilization and the raw forces of the natural world.