Book Description

Quetzalcoatl by most accounts was the principal deity of the great pre-Columbian civilizations of Mexico and parts of Central America. Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl, the Toltec mystic, is a national icon of modern Mexico; his image is cast in gold and silver, depicted in the paintings, murals and frescos of Diego Rivera and others, and is found in the museums of anthropology in the form of codices.To the Toltecs, Topiltzin was the teacher of wisdom and art. Under his guidance, the Toltecs prospered: the earth teemed with fruits and flowers without the pains of culture. An ear of Indian corn was as much as a single man could carry. The cotton, as it grew, took, of its own accord, the rich dyes of human art. The air was filled with intoxicating perfumes and the sweet melody of birds. In short it was the golden age of the Toltecs.While his legend is wrapped up in many myths, told to Spanish priests by native raconteurs, centuries after the Toltec empire had vanished, there is much evidence that Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl was a living personage. States H.B. Nicholson, a respected authority of the Toltecs, "A certain case can be made for some measure of historicity for the tale of Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl of Tollan."Topiltzin, in the eyes of his people, was not a mere man, but was revered as the Hombre-Dios, a Personal God of the stature of a Christ or Buddha. When a man or woman has reached that perfect state, he or she is of the same nature as the Personal God: "I and My Father Are One."Besides his spiritual message, Quetzalcoatl's outstanding contribution was his abolition of human sacrifice: the gods will be more pleased with personal penances, flowers and butterflies than by the offering of human blood.The golden age ends and is followed by a cataclysmic cycle of disasters. The Toltecs turn to Quetzalcoatl's jealous rivals who reinstate human sacrifice. Quetzalcoat greatly distressed, retires to his temple in seclusion.Quetzalcoatl's principal rival, Lord Huemac, who harbors deep grudges against him, turns to Tezcatlipoca, a sorcerer with uncanny magical powers to rid the empire of his nemesis, so he, Huemac, could be king. Tezcatlipoca fools Topiltzin with a strong mushroom wine, thereby his reason is clouded and under disgrace for an unpardonable sin (a hypocritical transgression against his highest code of ethics) Quetzalcoatl departs from Tula, the Toltec capital, to exile fraught with danger and uncertainty.The tale of Quetzalcoatl is a simple story in the Christian sense of sin and redemption, for which even a god is forgiven for his worst impieties.Topiltzin Quetzalcoatl's story is accentuated with the broad and generous universalism taught through personal experience by two great seers of India: Ramakrishna, the god-man of modern Vedanta and his messenger, Vivekananda, who awakened Western audiences with his cogent interpretation of the Vedas and Upanishads. Ramakrishna offers practical Vedanta wisdom, clothed in witty parables; Vivekananda, through his eloquent words and teachings, clarifies the humanism of this delightful Mesoamerican tale.