Aztec religion and mythology

The Religious and Mythological Aztecs

Introduction

The Aztecs has been the most studied civilization in the timeline of Mesoamerican history . This is because they were the builders of an empire so great that it spanned nearly all of Mesoamerica during their time . This was their economic and political status on the eve of their discovery and subsequent colonization by the Spaniards

Apart from the foreigners ' awe upon setting sight of the grand city of Tenochtitlan , then the capital city of the Aztec empire , what really struck the Spanish were the Aztec

's religious traditions . Christianity was the religion of the West then , which they wanted the whole world to embrace , and they saw Aztec religious practices as its antithesis

Many accounts were later made to document this aspect of Aztec culture and traditions with expressions of utter revulsion . However this revulsion is also coupled with esteem as in the words of Father Bartolomy de las Casas (1965 ) when he said that they have never witnessed a people so spiritual , pious and staunch in their fulfillment of their religious duties to the gods of their cult as the Aztecs

Even today , the mention of the Aztecs evokes images of pyramid temples and bloody , human sacrifices to the ordinary person and has been depicted in many a Hollywood movie . In retrospect , religion played a large part in the Mesoamerican societies because of the absence of modern scientific practice and revolutionary economic developments then .In this aspect , the religious practices of Mesoamerican civilizations and their mythology , to the common observer today , are quite unusual and sometimes uncivilized because of the reign of the legendary gods and the hierarchy of priests who had access to them , the barbaric rituals and powerful sorcery

This attempts to corroborate this view by providing a descriptive account of the Aztec civilization , their religious practices and mythology

Review of Related Literature

Mesoamerican civilization spans 27 centuries . It was around 200 B .C that civilization in this ancient region started and later gave rise to the Olmec , Maya , Teotihuacbn , Toltec civilizations and culminating with the Aztec civilization prior to Spanish conquest (Lamberg-Karlovsky and Sabloff 305-306

In for a better appreciation of Aztec religion and mythology , it is imperative that we also be acquainted with their civilization - their beginnings , how they came to rise to power and the characteristics of their society

Further , we also need to know about some of the different perspectives or studies undertaken on Aztec religion and mythology in to also know the breadth and depth of current knowledge regards to this This is essential in providing a more objective look at a controversial such as religion and mythology

The Aztec Civilization

The Aztecs were a group of semi-nomadic Chichimecs who began their settlement in the Valley of Mexico in 1200 A .D , forced out of Aztlan their place of origin , because of the onslaught of drought (James Their distinct characteristic which eventually made them rulers of an empire was their superiority...