In the Mesoamerican cosmovision, fire represents the manifestation of the vital principle that animates the universe. Huehuetéotl, the “Old God,” is one of the oldest and most revered deities of central Mexico, frequently identified with Xiuhtecuhtli, the youthful god of fire and the year. In his aged manifestation, Huehuetéotl symbolizes the center of the cosmic geometry, the axis mundi or “navel of the world,” which confers order upon cyclical time-space and guarantees the stability of the universe. His association with the number three refers to his presence in the three levels of the cosmos (heaven, earth, and the underworld), while his connection with the number four points to the cardinal directions.
The deity’s old age expresses the inexhaustible nature of fire in households and daily life, for it warms, nourishes, and sustains life. Then as now, the domestic hearth is regarded as a living manifestation of the divinity, whose care constitutes a ritual obligation of women.
Fire is also a vital energy that nourishes both gods and humans while simultaneously transforming, purifying, and regenerating. It was the first element created by the gods, which is why it is conceived as the “father and mother” of humankind and associated with the supreme dualities. This antiquity is reflected in its personification as a seated old man with a wrinkled face, a hunchback, and a toothless mouth (sometimes depicted with two teeth). In various sculptures, he bears a brazier upon his head adorned with the quincunx motif and attributes of the domestic hearth; elements associated with fire-drilling sticks also appear. He may wear a headdress of arrows or a diadem decorated with circles, have his mouth and ears painted red, and wear blue ear ornaments. In the Templo Mayor of Tenochtitlan, representations of the god have been found in his manifestation as Ixcozauhqui, the “Yellow-Faced One,” with a xiuhtótotl (Continga amabilis) bird in his headdress.
Huehuetéotl is regarded as the maker of gods, since fire is the transformative element par excellence. In the myth of the Fifth Sun, it is recounted how, at Teotihuacan, Nanahuatzin, “the Pustule-Covered One,” became the Sun by casting himself into the great bonfire, while Quetzalcóatl was transformed into the Morning Star. Other colonial sources emphasize the power of fire to purify the dead and make their rebirth possible.
Among the most significant rituals dedicated to Huehuetéotl-Xiuhtecuhtli was the ceremony of Xócotl Huetzi (“The Fruit Falls”), which marked the end of the rainy season, the beginning of the fruit harvest, and the commemoration of the dead. Equally important was the ceremony of the New Fire, or Binding of the Years (xiuhnelpilli), celebrated every 52 years at the completion of a Mesoamerican calendrical cycle. During this rite, all fires throughout the city were extinguished and a new fire was kindled at Huixachtlan, the Hill of the Star, thereby ensuring the continuity of the world.