Skip to main content

Q is for Quetzalcoatl.....


With all the excitement/dread/confusion/disbelief surrounding the Mayan prophecy of the world ending in 2012, how could I not do Quetzalcoatl for my letter 'Q' entry--- we won't mention the fact that there probably aren't any other 'Q' supernatural/mythological creatures that I could discuss anyway.

Until all the hoopla about the end of the world started revving up, I think I had heard Quetzalcoatl's name maybe twice in my lifetime--- enough to know how to pronounce it, but, not enough to know who or what Quetzalcoatl was.

Strange though it may be, I have found that I like the name Quetzalcoatl, and even enjoy saying it over and over again. The problem with liking such an uncommon word---all the strange looks you get when you randomly spout the name in the grocery store.

That's why I love working where I do. One of the benefits of working in a bookstore is you can use random words, like the name of a strange world-ending creature, in everyday conversation and no one will think anything of it. "Have you read the new book on Quetzalcoatl's return?"

A Meso-American deity whose name means, "Feathered Serpent," Quetzalcoatl was first documented around 100 B.C. The god of light, mercy and wind-- Quetzalcoatl presided over the Western cardinal direction (his three brothers each preside over a different cardinal direction) and was the patron of priests.

He also created the infamous Mayan Calendar that had doomsdayer's counting down to the calendar's end-date of 12/21/12.

One Aztec story states that Quetzalcoatl was tricked by one of his brothers into getting drunk and sleeping with a celibate priestess. In remorse for what he had done, Quetzalcoatl burned himself up.

Another story has him being banished on a raft of snakes, vowing to return on a day of his own energy. Quetzalcoatl always told the Mayans that he would return in a year One Reed, which occurs every 52 years. The next year One Reed will occur in December 2018---- so, the end of the Mayan calendar didn't bring about the end of the world. Perhaps it will take the creator of the Mayan calendar to set things right...or, perhaps to end it all?


Heaven's Fires

Skies ablaze,
the west wind cries,
Morning Star returns.

In feathered might,
on serpent feet,
the maligning world burns.


                                                                                                ---e.a.s. demers
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Share your thoughts!

Popular posts from this blog

L is for Loch Ness Monster....

With Kelpie, for my 'K' entry, still fresh, I thought it'd be fun to stick to the water for a bit. So, while we're in the realm of Celtic water creatures, why not visit with the most famous and widely known of aquatic beasties---- the Loch Ness Monster. Though, Nessie, sort of skirts the line of supernatural creature as it is purported by many to be a cryptid, a creature whose existence has yet to be identified by the scientific community. Those who believe Nessie an unidentified animal, have speculated that it is from the line of Plesiosaurs, while the scientific community claims it's just a modern-day myth, or at the very worst--- a hoax. I've included the Loch Ness Monster as part of my Supernatural theme because, like Bigfoot, there's an, albeit EXTREMELY, remote chance that it's real, but, like ghosts, I won't believe it until I see it myself----- I'm a card-carrying skeptic, but, I can enjoy a smidgen of the illogical now-and-again-...
8 comments
Read more

K is for Kelpie.....

Today's entry is dedicated to my wonderful social club pledge sister, who sent me off from our college sanctuary with a copy of "Scottish Folk and Fairy Tales", containing an inscription that the "magic and mischief of the Kelpie follow me".... She knew I had an affinity for water and for mischief...and for all-things Celtic--so the Kelpie seemed to suit---- though, I'm not quite as savage as many folktales paint Kelpies. Kelpies are Celtic water horses, believed to haunt the lochs and rivers of Scotland and Ireland. The Kelpie was known to appear as a "lost pony", though, its identity is given away by its constantly dripping mane. Most stories give the color of the Kelpie's coat as black, though there are a few that mention the color white. The texture of the Kelpie's skin is likened to the smoothness of a seal, but its temperature is "cold as death to the touch." Like many other tales of supernatural creatures, the Kelpie...
15 comments
Read more

A to Z reflections....

Another A to Z challenge comes to an end--- another collection of posts and poetry have been written, another deep breath of relief is released. For my fellow bloggers that survived as well, it's another 'challenge-completed' notch carved into the writing desk. I've come to enjoy my yearly foray into the world of all things alphabetical. This was my third year, though it was only the second year I had a workable theme (which made the challenge substantially easier than the first year I attempted this challenge.) And, though my first year was difficult because my focus was so scattered, I found this year was more  difficult because I lost the enthusiasm that came with the first year excitement----excitement which helped me plug along until the end of the challenge. Year 3 was a success in the sense that I completed the challenge, though, this was the year that almost wasn't---- Somewhere about a third of the way through the challenge, I seriously considered...
27 comments
Read more