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Gukumatz

 

Gukumatz

In Maya mythology, Gukumatz ("feathered serpent") was a snake god, one of all three groups of gods who created Earth and humanity. He taught mankind civilization and agriculture. Gukumatz was the name for the deity in the highlands of what is now Guatemala; in Yucatán he was known as "Kukulcan". All these names mean specifically "Quetzal feathered serpent".

He was the Maya equivalent of the central-Mexican Quetzalcoatl (see that article for a longer discussion of this Mesoamerican Deity).

He was a god of the four elements of fire, earth, air and water, as well as a culture hero who taught the Toltecs (his original followers) the arts of civilization, including codes of law, agriculture, fishing and medicine. He came from an ocean, and eventually returned to it.

He had four divine organisms, each associated with a specific element:

  • Air
  • *Vulture
  • Earth
  • *Maize
  • Fire
  • *Lizard
  • Water
  • *Fish

    Other names

  • Gucumatz
  • Gugumatz
  • Kucumatz
  • Kukulcan
  • Kukumatz
  • Quetzalcoatl (Aztec)



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