Quetzalcoatl's worship sometimes included animal sacrifices, and according to colonial legends, Quetzalcoatl was opposed to human sacrifice.
Quetzalcoatl and Kukulcan are both historical names for Mesoamerican priests and kings who took the name of a deity with whom they were affiliated.
Quetzalcoatl was a well-known Post-Classic Toltec monarch, and he may be the same person as the Kukulcan, who conquered Yucatán about the same time. The Feathered Serpent was also given a ruler by the Mixtec. Topiltzin Ce Acatl Quetzalcoatl, a ruler strongly identified with Quetzalcoatl, reigned the Toltecs in the 10th century. This ruler was claimed to be the son or descendant of Mixcoatl, the renowned Chichimeca warrior, and Chimalman, the Culhuacano queen.
The Toltecs are thought to have possessed a dualistic belief system. Tezcatlipoca, Quetzalcoatl's polar opposite, was said to have exiled Quetzalcoatl. Alternatively, he could have voluntarily left on a raft of snakes and promised to return.
He became a patron of priests and a symbol of death and resurrection for the Aztecs. When the Aztecs absorbed the Toltec culture, they created Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl, who were opposed and equal gods; Quetzalcoatl was also known as White Tezcatlipoca to contrast him with the dark Tezcatlipoca. They created the world together, and Tezcatlipoca lost his foot in the process.
Quetzalcoatl was dubbed "Ipalnemohuani" along with other gods such as Tezcatlipoca and Tlaloc, a term reserved for gods directly involved in creation and meaning "by whom we live." Because Ipalnemohuani is a singular name, it has been speculated that the Aztecs were becoming monotheistic, with only one deity. While this view is not impossible, it is most likely an oversimplification of Aztec religion.
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