Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Aztec sacrifices human essay
In order for the gods to be satisfied; and in order for the people of this great civilization to survive and live a steadfast, healthy, and rewarding life, a human sacrifice must be given to the gods. In order for this great civilization to prosper and grow there must be a human sacrifice offered up unto the gods. In order for the sun to keep burning and producing light and heat, which is necessary for our crops, agriculture, and all of life, there must be human sacrifice given to the gods. Thankfully, in today’s society this is not the case and people no longer believe that sacrificing a living human being is what makes the world go around. However, in the ancient Aztec civilization ranging from approximately 1100 to 1522 B.C.E. this is how the world revolved and without this procedure and practice all of human kind would fall and disappear within a short amount of time and the gods as we know would shun civilization forever. This practice of offering human sacrifice was very vital to the Aztec civilization and plays a very significant role within the military, political, and religious practices, as well as having a profound impact on the social structure of Mexica, and has had varied explanations far and near from scholars who have studied what seems to be inexplicable practices of the Aztec civilization.
To begin with, in order to maintain a profound and efficient life by living off of the land, the society must offer human sacrifices as a way to keep the gods happy and rain down their blessings upon their people. According to the text in Understanding World Societies, in Mexica society religion was the dynamic factor that transformed other aspects of the culture within economic security, social mobility, education, and war....
... middle of paper ...
...is was the every day beliefs and the faith that the Aztecs held true to life, as they knew. In today’s society, offering up a human sacrifice sounds absolutely insane and absurd, yet this was a way of life and an everyday ritual. Perhaps this was just a belief without any scientific proof that this was indeed what caused life to continue and what was needed; however, what if these findings became true and the sun really did require human blood to continue to move. What would society do? Perhaps there is some hidden village or society that is still practicing these acts and allowing the earth, the gods, and the sun to remain in constant and they have never strayed away from their beliefs that originated many years ago.
Works Cited
John P. McKay et al., Understanding World Societies A Brief History Volume 1 to 1600. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2010. Print.
One of the main things the Aztecs are known for are their human sacrifice rituals. They believed that life and balance would not be possible without offering sacrificial blood to the gods since the gods sacrificed themselves to give them the sun. Burying the dead was seen as an act of feeding the earth. The Aztecs preformed two rituals for the dead, the first being for children and the second being for adults. The ritual for adults put special focus on warriors who died in
The religion and culture of the Aztecs played a role in the way the way they thought and fought. They worshiped the war-god Huitzilopochtli. He was identified with the sun and was called "the Giver of life" and "the Preserver of Life" (xxxix). The religion carried some ridiculous rituals such as human sacrifice along with using magicians and wizards to cast spells. In war conditions, human sacrifice played a big role because the Aztecs would not fight to kill,...
The South American Andes was a harsh environment to live in thousands of years ago going from its dry coastal desert to its long steep mountains and billon acres of Amazonian jungle. The people living there must have had and expanse knowledge of agriculture, scavenging, trade, and will power in order to have lived in such harsh conditions for so long. With no written language to tell us what they thought or did we turn to the Andean artwork that is found as our insight into the past. The art found came in the forms of mostly textiles and ceramics. Among all the pieces found made from the different cultures living in the Andes, there seemed to be a common theme. It seems ritual sacrifice was a wide spread practice, from textiles depicting figures with detached heads, ceramics showing mythical beings having their own trophy heads, to other paintings displaying prisoners being sacrificed. The Paracas, Nazca, and Moche people had some form of sacrifice depicted in their artwork, but each culture had its own way of showing their rituals in either various art forms or use of imagery. Why is this common theme among these cultures? Was it for worship or was for wishes of prosperity? I will go through each culture and explore this theme.
Edu/LA260/Aztecs.htm> Benson, Sonia. The “Aztec Religion” Culture, and Daily Life.” Early Civilizations in the Americas: Almanac Vol.2.Ed. Deborah J. Baker, Ph.D. Michigan: Farmington Hills, 501-527. Print.
Some people may say that we should emphasize agriculture when looking at Aztec society because they made chinampas, and used slash and burn farming to fertile the land and they had may food they they ate. But in reality Human sacrifice is more important because they did it for agriculture so they conducted each other. They assumed that without sacrifice the crops wouldn't be okay. So this all revolved around human sacrifice, human sacrifice for
The Aztecs had an interesting way of honoring Tezcatlipoca, as well as some of the other gods, they sacrificed a living representative of the god. Each year, priests would choose a healthy young man, free from any scar or blemish, and ritually make him the representative of Tezcatlipoca on earth. The official title of the young man was __Ixiptla__. For a year, he would live in the height of luxury showered by gifts, women, and banquets in his honor. At the end of the year, he would climb the steps of the temple where the priest would be waiting to sacrifice him by ripping his heart out of his chest. You might ask why someone would allow such a thing, but among the Aztecs, it was an honor to be chosen and the height of sacred duty to serve as the god for a year and die at the appropriate
Both the Mayas and the Aztecs worshipped their gods through human sacrifice. The Olmecs were so dedicated to their gods that they transported 50 tons of boulders from the mountains to the shore. For the Mayas, even their games were related to their religion. The Aztec society was constantly at war for the sole purpose of making sacrifices to their many gods. Religion dominated the cultures of these Mesoamerican empires.
Human sacrifice was important in religious purposes as it was seen as a way to please the Gods. The Aztecs seen it as the human sacrifices would please Huitzilopochtli who was the Sun God as well as the God of War. The Aztecs believed in order for the Sun to keep burning and to also keep humans prospering was through human sacrifice. Leading up to the sacrifice there would be huge festivals and feasts following up to the sacrifice. The sacrifices would be killed at the “center stage” where they would be surrounded by a dancing group dressed in costumes and decorations, lots of flowers, and even had thousands of the people living there attending the sacrifice. The victims either were beheaded, had their beating heart cut out while they were still alive, and some were even skinned while still alive. After the sacrifice was complete the victim’s skulls, bones, skin were kept and even seen as relics.
Although there are good reasons for emphasizing human sacrifice, there are even better reasons for emphasizing agriculture. An example is the Aztecs' exceptional use of their surroundings, such as the willow trees for anchors, and reeds for frames. Human sacrifice can be also emphasized for the Aztecs' belief that the Gods needed blood, but the spotlight is on agriculture.
Why did the culture and customs require human blood to survive? How did high Aztec society view these sacrifice? These answers are easy to obtain using anthropology and archeology and historical documents from the time such as the infamous letters of Cortez. To the first question o why did the Aztecs practice human sacrifice to understand the reasons one must understand their epic religious beliefs. The Aztecs thought the world would end if they did not sacrifice human blood to their gods. The Gods were always locked in an epic battle and needed human blood to keep the universe from being destroyed. According to Aztec mythology, this world was the fifth and last universe so human blood was needed to continue the universe and prevent its destruction. The world had been destroyed four times before by the gods and it was up to the Aztecs who thought they were in the center of the world to stop its
The topic of human sacrifices has been relevant throughout history. It has been practiced, usually as a ritual, in numerous cultures each having their own special twist added to it. Many people have disagreed with this act simply because it is the act of taking one’s life. Sacrifices in general are typically done to appeal to their kings, gods, spirits or ancestors. Human sacrifice can also be done with the intention of winning the favor of the gods in warfare. These rituals were performed as religious symbolism towards their way of life and how they function as one civilization.
The Aztecs cosmology was a unique combination of mythology. Their beliefs about themselves and their purpose were not something they took lightly. “The mystic-militaristic approach characteristic of Aztec religion…felt that the purpose of man’s creation was to provide blood for the maintenance of the Sun’s life” (Leon-Portilla, Aztec Thought & Culture, 122). With this perspective of themselves, the Aztecs believed that human sacrifice was not only justified but necessary for the lives of civilization. Simply put, mankind was “food” for god.
Some cultures in the Spanish Caribbean participate in sacrificing and they also hold clergy to a different standard than those in the United States. Some of the religious practices they have also involved monotheism although polytheism is more customary. Some often look at their sacrifice as odd, disgusting and inhumane. When in reality most of us come from cultures that historically made sacrifices and were
McKay, J/P/, Hill, B.D., Buckler, J., Ebrey, P.B., Beck, R.B., Crowston, C.H., & Wiesner-Hanks, M.E. (2008). A History of World Societies, Volume A: From Antiquity to 1500. New York, NY: Bedford/St. Martin's
Wole Soyinka, like other Nigerian writers, characterizes the conflict of cultural and religious choices in his country and emphasizes the distinct customs of society (Tucker 9). Born into the Yoruba tribe and culture, Soyinka’s writings are clearly influenced by Yoruba culture and practices. Communities and societies in Africa today religiously partake in ancient rituals that some may consider extreme, such as cannibalism and self-mutilation. In the village in The Strong Breed, the extent to which individuals will go in order to rid a community of its sins and faults is tested by the sadistic annual sacrificial killing of an innocent individual for communal benefit. Wole Soyinka introduces ritualistic human societies that expose the ferocity of human beings and emphasize the cruel nature of their members. The moral disgust that permeates the community prior and subsequent to the ritual, the uncommon traits seen in characters triggered by a ritualistic society, and dialogue that highlights increasing ferocity of human beings, brings into question the validity of whether or not ritualistic sacrifice is ultimately beneficial to a community.