The Legend of the Aztec Axolotl

The axolotl is a type of aquatic salamander that has recently taken the world by storm. Although they are critically endangered in their natural habitat, they have become a popular pet, mostly due to their distinct and endearing look. Scientists also find the axolotl interesting due to its remarkable regenerative ability; they are able to regrow entire limbs, as well as internal organs such as their lungs, hearts, and even parts of their brains. 

The axolotl’s native habitat is very small. It had only lived in two lakes around the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán: Lake Xochimilco, and Lake Chalco. Since the fall of the Aztec Empire, however, Tenochtitlán has been replaced by Mexico City, the current capital of Mexico, and due to the city’s expansion, Lake Chalco has since been drained and built over. Lake Xochimilco has also been reduced to the few canals that the axolotls can still– rarely– be found in. Although the axolotl may seem insignificant to Native Mexican culture due to its small range of habitat, it has quite the lofty tale behind its origins. 

In Nahuatl, the main language of the Aztec Empire, axolotl is pronounced [aʃoloł] (sounded out, it might closest be described as “aw-shoh-loh-tl”). Its origin is from the Nahuatl words “atl” [ał], meaning water, and “xolotl” [ʃoloł], translated frequently as “dog” but coming from Xolotl, the Aztec god of fire, lightning, dying, and misfortune– amongst other things. Xolotl is said to have the head of a dog, and both Xolotl and dogs were seen as guides through Mictlan, the Aztec underworld, which is why the animal is named after him. 

The story of the axolotl is part of a bigger myth, that of the creation of our sun and moon. The version I am going to share with you goes like this:

The world was dead and covered in darkness. Four suns had come and gone, each being destroyed by varying natural disasters, and the most recent of which had completely wiped out the mortal creatures that abided on the surface of the world. Quetzalcoatl [Kεtsalkoał], one of the major deities of the Aztec pantheon, went with his twin brother and counterpart, Xolotl, to retrieve the bones of every species from Mitclan and bring them back to the surface. Quetzalcoatl brought them all back to life using his blood, and, inadvertently, created humans, as well. As he looked upon the newly reborn creatures, he realized that they would not survive without a sun to bring them light. He went to the rest of the gods, and asked for a new sun to be made. 

A sun could only be created through the death of a god, and two gods were chosen for this task: Tecuciztecatl [Tεkusistekał] and Nanahuatzin [Nanawatsin]. Tecuciztecatl volunteered to be the light, while Nanahuatzin was volunteered to be the one to carry him. They were to be sacrificed in a bonfire to become the sun.

Tecuciztecatl was to go first, but he grew scared by the flames and was unable to throw himself in. Nanahuatzin, humble and selfless, jumped in instead. Seeing Nanahuatzin go into the fire, Tecuciztecatl jumped in as well. However, rather than one sun, they appeared as two separate suns. Quickly, the gods realized that two suns would cause droughts across the world, and decided they could not leave them as they were. Since Tecuciztecatl had faltered and emerged second, he was the sun that would have to go. 

One of the gods threw a rabbit at him before he could settle into the heavens, knocking him away from Nanahuatzin’s sun and extinguishing the flames. Thus became the moon, which would orbit the world in the lowest heaven, underneath the fifth sun of Nanahuatzin. The sun stayed still in the sky, however, and Quetzalcoatl realized he would have to push it himself, as the god of wind, Ehecatl [Ehekał]. 

Several gods were sacrificed to induce the movement of the sun, giving Ehecatl the ability to push it through the heavens. Finally, Quetzalcoatl turned to his twin brother and told Xolotl that, like he had led him through Mitclan to retrieve the bones of every species, he would have to lead Ehecatl through the underworld every night, so the sun would not get lost.

However, for Xolotl to do this, he would have to be sacrificed like all the other gods. Xolotl, scared of death, began to cry. He cried so hard that his eyes fell out, but the remaining gods would not choose another for the task. Xolotl decided to run away, so he could not be sacrificed. Ehecatl followed him, however, determined to kill him. First, Xolotl hid in the maize fields, shapeshifting into a maize plant. 

As the god of twins, he became a maize with two stalks. Ehecatl found him, but he managed to escape, this time to a maguey field, where he turned into two magueys. Ehecatl found him yet again, and he fled to the water, where he took the form of a salamander. Ehecatl was unable to reach him under the water, but when Xolotl emerged, having grown from a larva to an adult salamander, he was there to catch him. 

He killed Xolotl there, sacrificing him to become the guide of the underworld. A piece of Xolotl split off, cursed to live as a salamander larva its entire life, unable to leave the water. This piece became the species known as the axolotl.