Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl was a dragon from Mesoamerican mythology.
ne of the major deities of the Mesomaerican pantheon is the Quetzalcoatl. He is also called the Feathered Serpent and the Precious twin. He is depicted in two ways. As the Feathered Serpent, he is shown as a snake covered either in feathers or as a regular snake with wings. He can also take the form of a human warrior wearing a tall crown made of ocelot skin and a pendant made from jade.
Quetzalcoatl is the god of many things. He was a creator god, the god of twins, the morning star (his twin Xolotl is the god of the evening star), intelligence, inspiration, wind, fire, and thunder. He is responsible for giving humans agriculture, mining, books, the calendar, the zodiac, maize, and fine arts. He is sometimes a symbol of death & rebirth.
He created the world with Tezcatlipoca who is the god of the night sky, ancestral memory, and time. Tezcatlipoca used is foot as bait to catch the earthmonster Cipactli. When she bit his foot, Quetzalcoatl pulled her out of the sea & distorted her body to create the land. At first, there were no people on the land so Quetzalcoatl takes his blood & mixes it with the bones of previous races & forms the first humans.
Quetzalcoatl helps humans whenever he can. He is on a mountain one day, contemplating the earth when he sees a row of red ants carrying a kernel of corn out of the mountain. He picks up a seed that an ant dropped & eats it. He enjoys the taste and thinks if people plant this they can make more seeds to eat. Quetzalcoatl takes the form of a black ant and follows the red ants into the mountain. He finds a giant pile of seeds inside the mountain.
He decides to bring this seed to his people. He uses his powers over rain and lightning to create a storm. The storm is so powerful the thunder shakes the very earth and the lightning makes the sky as bright as the day. Quetzalcoatl takes the form of a lightning bolt and hurls himself at the crack in the mountain. The mountain trembles and rocks slide down its side.
When the storm passes, the people in a village below the mountain explore the opening that appeared. Quetzalcoatl tells the people that the seed they find in the opening can be planted and when grow it can be harvested for food. He tells them how to grind the seeds into powder to make flour. The people plant the seeds and care for them until they grow into tall stalks that give forth many fruit. They continue to grow the plant from that time forward.
The god Tezcatlipoca was jealous of Quetzalcoatl because the humans loved him. He plotted to ruin Quetzalcoatl in the eyes of his people. Tezcatlipoca disguised himself as an old man and came to the city of Tula. He went to the temple of Quetzalcoatl to request an audience with the god. When Tezcatlipoca was admitted, he offered Quetzalcoatl a healing tonic but he refused it. Tezcatlipoca came back many times in the disguise of the old man until Quetzalcoatl finally agrees to try a sip.
Quetzalcoatl enjoys how the tonic tastes and drinks the whole thing. Tezcatlipoca offered Quetzalcoatl more of the tonic, which he gladly accepted. After drinking the second bottle, he felt very odd. The healing tonic was soothing and warm with a medicinal taste. He notices his vision and balance have become altered. He asks the old man what the tonic is made of. Tezcatlipoca gives him a big smile and tells him it is a white wine made in the agave plant.
Quetzalcoatl weeps realizing he has been tricked into drinking alcohol. Intoxicating beverages are only for vision quests and sacred occasions. Drinking it frivolously was looked down upon. He is so overcome with remorse that he burns all of his things and then himself. After being burned, his heart becomes the morning star Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli).