Southern Azcelani Belief System (16P)

#primer
The South Azcelani (16P) believe in a great primordial force known as Cuetzpalmictēuctli, the Hungry God - the most powerful of all deities (by quite some margin). Cuetzpalteōtl feeds on tonalli, the supernatural force present in all living beings - including other deities. Tonalli is most strong in deities, then humans, then animals, and least plants. It is believed that Cuetzpalteōtl must continually be fed, else everything will be consumed - including other deities. By feeding him tonalli through sacrifice and offerings, his hunger will be focused on those. To have your tonalli consumed is to experience eternal torture, and yet eternal nothingness.

Cuetzpalteōtl will not consume the tonalli of those who have kept him fed - at least, not immediately - the more you have fed him, the longer your tonalli lingers after death. During this time of limbo, rituals exist to bind the lingering tonalli into Mutite crystals - to keep them save from being devoured.

The other deities, not wanting to be eaten, demand humans provide them with tonalli, so those deities may provide Cuetzpalteōtl with it in their own name. If humanity do not provide sufficient tonalli, the other deities will invite disaster, death, and destruction to take tonalli indiscriminately. If provided with sufficient tonalli, those deities will reward humanity. Thus mortals live under double obligation: to feed Cuetzpalmictēuctli directly for their own salvation, and to supply the gods so they do not murder humanity indiscriminately to protect themselves.

Note:
Cuetzpalteōtl, or Cuetzpalmictēuctli, from the Azcelani word cuetzpal (“scaled beast, glutton”) and teōtl (“god, divinity”).