Adriana Citlali Brenes-Rios is the writer behind the pen name Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl. The name Diosa means “Goddess” in Spanish and Xochiquetzalcóatl comes from the Nahuatl language. The name itself has many meanings, depending on how one wants to divide the three-word compilation. Xochiquetzal is known as the Mexica deity of fertility, sexuality, and pregnancy, whereas cóatl means “snake.” Xochitl means “flower,” whereas Quetzalcóatl is the Mexica deity of wind, motion, and wisdom. If we take the name and break it down into its three words, we have: xochitl, meaning “flower;” quetzal, meaning “bird;” and cóatl, meaning “snake”—collectively, the “blossoming of spiritual enlightenment.” Either way, Adriana Citlali resonates with all of these, and as thus, takes you on a poetic journey through the beginning phases of the Sixth Sun, the Aquarian Age, and the New World in an attempt to shed outdated belief systems, dismantle the oppressive structures of the past, and bring to light that which serves the greater good.

About the Author

Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl, or Diosa X for short, is a multilingual and multidimensional Xicana, Indigenous, MeXicana poetiza. She is a seasoned language arts educator with a Bachelor’s in English and a Master’s in Cross-Cultural Education, as well as a Level 1 Kundalini Yoga Instructor and a student of Nahualísmo. Diosa X has been writing since her preteen years, first publishing her poems in her high school’s bilingual literary magazine, Las Voces. But it wasn’t until adulthood that she began to participate in open mics at Tia Chuchas and Tonalli Studios; and it was then that she recommitted to her poetry and finally embraced her life as a poet, and eventually, author.

In 2022, Diosa participated and won Chicago’s only Spanish-language slam, Slam Diáspora, which sent her, in partnership with the Fiesta Literaria de la las Periferias (FLUP) to the continental tournament, Abya Yala: Copa América de Poetry Slam in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Prior to this experience, she also competed in the 2017 CABE Conference Spoken Word Competition, tying for first. Most recently, Diosa X became the RGVIPF’s first slam champion in 2023.  

This poet has facilitated poetry workshops in English, Spanish, and bilingually for the Sims Library/Los Angeles Public Library’s Adult Literacy Program; Tumblewords Project; Contracorriente: Cruce de poesía y transgresión, a binational women writers retreat in Ixtapa, Mexico; Ovitt Library in the city of Ontario; the Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival; and the La Raza Youth Empowerment Conference at LA Mission College.

Diosa Xochiquetzalcóatl is a proud member the international women’s poetry troupe, Tesoro at https://firesingers.com/; California Poets in the Schools as a poet-teacher at https://www.californiapoets.org/; Circulo de Poetas and Writers at https://circulowriters.com/, CABE, and Inlandia.

May we always continue to seek the light in the darkest moments of our journey.

~Adriana Citlali Brenes-Ríos

Photograph by Stacy Soriano Photography