The Mayan legend of the axolotl

The Mayan legend of the axolotl has been passed down from generation to generation. Right now this beautiful anthropological legacy is evoked more than ever for a very specific reason. The axolotl, endemic to Lake Xochimilco, in Mexico, is in danger of extinction.

Factors such as the loss of its natural habitat due to the appearance of new invasive species, as well as human overexploitation and pollution explain this threat. And it would, without a doubt, be a real shame if the Mexican axolotl, axolotl either Ambystoma mexicanum will cease to exist in our always threatened natural ecosystem.

Therefore, it is interesting to evoke those stories in which the animal kingdom intermingles with the cultural, because The heritage of a country and even a planet is also made up of its small living beings.. This one, in particular, contains a very special symbology and appearance: they are delicate amphibians shaped like tadpoles and striking manes.

The axolotl native to Mexico has a brown hue. Those raised as pets have a white or pinkish tone.

The Mayan legend of the axolotl, the fragile amphibian that chose lightning and death

The Mayan legend of the axolotl tells that at the dawn of our times, The gods met in the mythical Teotihuacan to create the universe. Now, this primeval and splendid act had a cost: the price was their lives.

History and popular voices say that many deities did it, they threw themselves into the fire without thinking about it, like Huitzilopochtli or Tezcatlipoca. However, there was one in particular who opposed this savage act.

Xólotl, god of fire, death, the Sun and also twin brother of Quetzalcóatl, did not want to die. But his immolation was more than necessary for light to reach the universe. He was a powerful deity, and only his body burning in the flames would ignite the light in the universe and the movement in the stars.

However, Xólotl fled aimlessly and desperately. She took the form of many animals, such as a dog, and even managed to take over a corn plant. However, the most striking of her transformations was that of an axolotl. He chose the body of this animal because it lived in water, it was beautiful and also small. He hoped to go unnoticed…

However, the god of the wind always managed to discover it.

The capture and end of the god Xólotl

It was like the all-powerful god Xólotl was hiding in the body of a unique amphibian. It also didn’t matter to him that he was at the bottom of a river, among the silt, stones and other aquatic creatures. The god of the wind was skillful and sagacious, so it didn’t take long for him to discover it too.. That was the last transformation of the god of fire and lightning.

Shortly after his capture, he was taken back to Teotihuacan to finish the ritual. People say that With the first drops of his blood, our entire universe began to light up. Also that the fifth Mexica sun appeared and the beginning of a new era that, according to legends, is the one we live in now. Now, according to the Nahua perspective, it will disappear with the arrival of the tremors.

Likewise, some sources indicate that the god Xólotl was not sacrificed. Part of his blood was used and then he was punished by transforming him forever into an axolotl. for his cowardly act.

The axolotl does not undergo a metamorphosis process like other amphibians.

The axolotl, a very special creature

The ajalot is also called axolotl which means ‘water monster’ in Nahuatl. Despite being native to Mexico, it was in 1864 when these amphibians were brought to Europe for the first time. Since then they were bred in captivity, acquiring that warm white or pink tone. However, the axolotls native to Mexico are brown and there are fewer and fewer specimens.

The Mayan legend of the axolotl also says that if this animal is so extraordinary it is because the god Xólotl is still in it. Its uniqueness, that rarity that fascinates naturalists and scientists, lies in its power of regeneration. This creature is capable of regenerating its limbs if a predator attacks it.. You can also do the same with your heart, your spinal cord, and parts of your brain.

Monash University in Melbourne explained the reason for this extraordinary peculiarity in a study. The inflammatory response itself after injury produces the elimination of pathogens and dead tissue. Afterwards, molecular patterns are activated that begin a progressive regeneration of the affected part or organ. Amazing, no doubt.

As a curiosity, it should be noted that The axolotl genome is up to 10 times longer than that of humans. It is also known that sometimes, at birth, they are so hungry that they devour the limbs of their siblings. But that’s okay, because as we already know, they can regenerate any part of their body.

Given these unique characteristics, perhaps they do have the legacy of a Mayan god in their DNA…

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