was primarily an artificial elevation destined to be a place of refuge in
times of inundation; the pyramid ultimately symbolized: (1) the sacred
stable centre of the world and the Four Quarters; (2) central power and
its four manifestations or elements. The great pyramid of the ancient City
of Mexico which was crowned by two chapels, respectively containing
symbolical images of the two principles of nature, is a striking
illustration of the employment of the pyramid to express the dual centre
(the Above and Below, etc.) and the quadruple organization of all things
which was expressed not only by the four sides of the structure but by its
four superposed terraces. The fact recorded by Friar Duran, that the
flight of steps which led to the summit of the pyramid on its eastern side
consisted of 365 steps, and that the annual ceremony of ascending these,
performed by a consecrated individual, “signified the course of the sun in
a year,” indicates that the pyramid was also associated with the idea of
the quadruplicate division of time which pervaded the entire calendar
system.
It should also be borne in mind that in ancient Mexico the summits of high
mountains were regarded as sacred, “because it was there that Heaven and
Earth met and generated fructifying showers.” As religious cult developed,
the rites performed on the summit of the pyramid or artificial mound were
for the purpose of evoking rain and the renewal of life upon earth, and
symbolized the union of heaven and earth. To the native mind the pyramid
thus represented the consecrated meeting-place of heaven and earth, the
Above and Below, the masculine and feminine elements, the “divine twins,”
as well as universal, all-pervading, quadruplicate organization. The
massive pyramid likewise typified, in an impressive manner, the main idea
connected with the Middle: that of stability, immutability, quietude and
repose, combined with power.
In some localities a remarkable rock or massive block of stone was adopted
as the mark of the sacred centre and became the altar on which offerings
or sacrifices were made, or the throne on which the terrestrial central
ruler seated himself on ceremonial occasions and assumed an attitude of
absolute repose. It is interesting to collate the Nahuatl words Te-otl,
divinity or divine lord, with te-tl=stone and the Maya te-m=stone seat or
altar, of which many carved examples exist in the ruined Central American
cities, and to observe that principal personages, such as are represented
on the carved altars and in the middle of the Copan swastika, are
represented as seated cross-legged, as though this attitude were specially
indicative of repose on the stable centre of the four quarters. As the
natives usually squat or sit on their heels, the cross-legged attitude is
particularly noteworthy in connection with the omnipresent set of ideas.