In Central and South America, where there are no lions, the jaguar represented the Solar divinity, and the jaguar-deity Ai Apaec was seen by the Maya, Inca and Aztecs “to embody the golden Sun”. He had a cat-like face and was covered in brown spots (Sun spots).
Was it just fanciful that ancient cultures connected these great felines with the Sun? No, it was our Solar Ancestors themselves who chose them as good examples of the dual nature of the visible orb of the Sun: both creative and destructive; majestic and ferocious; generous and demanding; serving and dominating – this same duality also exists within the human psyche. Ancient fifth-dimensional Solar entities sometimes manifested themselves as a combination of human and animal. The intention was to stand out from mortal humans, and they chose creatures that demonstrated qualities aligned with their own particular character. Most famously, the Solar deity Sekhmet, daughter of Ra, manifested herself with the head of a lioness. She bore the Solar disk and the Uraeus, indicating the authority of the Eye of Ra. She was the protector of the pharaohs and led them in warfare as a divine arbiter of Ma'at (Justice, or Order), making the leonine symbol most fitting.
Credit Source for Images Featured on this Page:
(Top Left: LION): http://www.slate.com/content/dam/slate/articles/health_and_science/science/2015/07/150730_SCI_Cecil_lion.jpg.CROP.promo-xlarge2.jpg
(Top Right: Jaguar): http://www.rainforestalliance.org/sites/default/files/styles/responsive_breakpoints_theme_rainforest_wide_1x/public/slideshow/header/jaguar.jpg?itok=DmxW73sp
(Below Left: Sekhmet): http://www.ancient-origins.net/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/field/image/sekhmet.jpg?itok=_MXSmttZ
(Below Right: Jaguar Deity) https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Tepeyollotl_1.jpg