The concept of Teotl is central to the Aztec religion. The term is often translated as "god", but may have held more abstract aspects of divinity or supernatural energy akin to the Polynesian concept of Mana.
The nature of Teotl is a key element in the understanding of the fall of the Aztec empire, because it seems that the Aztec ruler Moctezuma II and the Aztecs in general referred to Cortés and the conquistadors as "Teotl"—it has been widely believed that this means that they believed them to be gods, but a better understanding of "Teotl" might suggest that they were merely seen as "mysterious" and "inexplicable".
Read more about this topic: Aztec Religion