The Kaweq lineage of the Kʼicheʼ built a temple to Tohil at their first capital Jacawitz, identified as the archaeological site of
Chitinamit. Jacawitz was overlooked by a shrine to the god placed on a neighbouring peak, this shrine was known as Pa Tohil. Later the Kʼicheʼ built their main temple to Tohil at
Qʼumarkaj, their new capital. They made him offerings on the day
Toh, one of the days of their
20-day calendar cycle. The Kʼicheʼ performed the Great Dance of Tohil in honour of the deity in the month of
Tzʼikin Qʼij, prior to the
maize harvest (which takes place in November). This dance took place at
Qʼumarkaj and involved a gathering of all the principal lineages subject to the
Kʼicheʼ Kingdom of Qʼumarkaj, and as is described in the Kʼicheʼ chronicle
Título de Totonicapán, they were expected to bring tribute, slaves and sacrifices. The
priests of Tohil were known as
Aj Tohil and were selected from the ruling Kaweq lineage of Qʼumarkaj. During their ceremonies to Tohil, the Kʼicheʼ would offer
quetzal feathers to the god. Writing at the end of the 17th century,
Francisco Ximénez described the tradition that upon the temple
human sacrifices were tied before the representation of Tohil, where the priest would open the victim's chest and cut out his heart. After sacrifice, the victim's body was probably hurled down the front stairway of the temple where his head would be severed to be placed on a
skull rack that was located in front of the temple. Equivalents to Tohil were worshipped by other groups closely related to the Kʼicheʼ. These included Belehe Toh of the
Kaqchikels and Hun Toh of the
Rabinal, this last name meaning "One Rain", a calendrical date. The Kaqchikel and the Rabinal did not merely think their own patrons were
equivalent to Tohil, they claimed that they were the same deity under a different name. The Kʼicheʼ themselves claimed in the Popul Vuh that their patron Tohil was the same as
Quetzalcoatl of the
Aztecs.
Temple of Tohil The Temple of Tohil at Qʼumarkaj was the tallest structure in the city. The rubble core of the building still stands but the stone facing has been looted. The temple was originally a pyramid with stairways on all four sides, the summit shrine faced towards the rising sun in the east. This form of radial pyramid temple was built by the Maya since the Late Preclassic with examples at many archaeological sites such as
Tikal,
Copán and
Chichen Itza, among others. According to
John Lloyd Stephens, who visited the site in the 1830s, the temple base measured square and it stood high. At that time the radial stairways were more-or-less intact. The temple was originally covered in painted
stucco, with the decoration including the painted image of a
jaguar. ==Modern worship==