Understanding the Aztec Celestial Plane

The Aztec universe was layered and stratified, and celestially embodied the hierarchical values of the earthly realm. The celestial plane was composed of 13 different levels. It is probable that of these 13 levels, the “inferior skies” (those closer to Earth) were incorporated into the inhabitable Earth. According to the Codex Vaticanus A (Codex Rios) and the Historia de los mexicanos por sus pinturas, the 13 skies from top to bottom were the dwelling of Ometeotl (Omeyocan), the red sky, the yellow sky, the White sky, the sky of ice and rays, the blue-green sky of the wind, the black sky of the dust, the sky of stars of fire and smoke (stars, planets, and comets), the dwelling of Huixtocihuatl (salt or saltwater and birds), the dwelling of Tonatiuh (the Sun and the demonic female entities known as tzitzimime, the dwelling of Citlalicue (Milky Way), the dwelling of Tlaloc (rain) and Metztli (the Moon), and the inhabitable Earth Ometeotl—the Dual Divinity, or Lord of Duality—was the Aztec creator god and engendered both male and female qualities. Ometeotl dwelled in the 13^th sky, the highest heaven, known as Omeyocan. From this great vantage point, Ometeotl was able to preside over the entire universe, including the Moon, the Sun, and the stars, all of which inhabited the lower skies.