...The Aztecs people of Central Mexico have been a controversial culture studied by many archeologist and anthropologist a like. The Aztec had an empire in central Mexico when the Spanish arrived in the 1500s. The Aztecs had a very controversial practice not seen in many cultures around the world and that is human sacrifice. To understand the practice of human sacrifice one must look at the reasons why the culture did such practices. There are three main ways of examining a cultural practice from a anthropological perspective. These ways are cultural relativism, ethnocentrism and critical cultural relativism. The purpose of the examining the human sacrifice the way of critical cultural relativism is the best and superior way to look at foreign...
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...130 Individual Research Paper The Aztecs and the role of Human Sacrifice The Aztec was a culture that dominated the Valley of Mexico in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. All the Nahua-speaking peoples in the Valley of Mexico were Aztecs, while the culture that dominated the area was Tenochca. At the time of the European conquest, they called themselves either "Tenochca" or "Toltec," which was the name assumed by the bearers of the Classic Mesoamerican culture, stated in Manuel Aguilar-Moreno’s book, Handbook to Life in the Aztec World. Sadly, many of the Aztec didn't survive after the arrival of the Europeans. But during the earlier years, the Aztec became one of the most advanced civilizations because of their religion, war, and agriculture. The Aztecs gained an infamous reputation for their bloodthirsty human sacrifices with explicit tales of the beating heart being ripped from the still-conscious victims, decapitation, skinning and dismemberment. All of these things did happen but it is important to remember that for the Aztecs the act of sacrifice was a strictly ritualized process that gave the highest possible honor to the gods and was regarded as a necessity to ensure mankind’s continued prosperity. The Aztecs were not the first civilization in Mesoamerica to practice human sacrifice; human sacrifice was practiced to some extent by many peoples in Mesoamerica and around the world for many centuries. But it was the Aztec empire that really took the ritual to...
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...Your Instructor’s Name English and Literature Date of Submission Explain how a given institution or symbol system in a nonwestern culture enhances the viability of that culture or, alternately, serves the purposes of some social group or category within that culture According to Madsen (101), syncretism refers to the fusion of differing religious forms and views into one. When related to religion, it often result into a creation of a new system of belief system which begins when alien viewpoints get introduced to an indigenous belief system and the traditions of the two systems intertwined and the new heterogeneous religion depicts characteristics of the component conglomerate of religious believes. Religious conversion refers to a continuous and consistent process of change in the religious believers’ practices. This is often realized through adoption of new systems and practice by abandoning some of their practices which may be considered as archaic (Hassing 247-248). Integration of the two ideologies explains certain religious factors which appear to be integrated between several bodies of religious belief systems. In movie The Other Conquest, the producer displays out two different belief systems adopted by the Spanish and the natives of the Aztec empire found in Mexico. The opening scene shows Topiltizn, the illegitimate son of Aztec Emperor named Moctezuma, thrashs about to move out from under a corpse. He survived the massacre at their place of worship had been...
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...In the course of history, beliefs and religion have played a major role in ancient civilizations. Beliefs and rituals have considerably influenced people in many ways and are also shown today with religion becoming a major factor in our daily lives especially in how we might act and think. Significantly, ceremonies and rituals were demonstrated mainly in ancient societies that it can be considered as extreme practices. These customs are all unique and different to each civilization that it depicts a large portion of how people lived, which were mainly based off of their beliefs. To emphasize, the ancient civilizations of the Egyptians, Greeks, and the Aztecs, all have notable rituals in their society that it has a significant portrayal of how we might recognize and resonate their culture with....
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...Aztec assignment 1. The role and importance of warfare in Aztec society. Role (warriors)- The Aztec empire was constantly expanding so it's no surprise that the Warriors and warfare is Itself played a very important role is the culture of the Aztecs. Aztec society was very inflexible and had a class system in which each class had a role specifically to support Aztec warriors. In saying this we can see Warfare was the main power force of both Aztec economy and religion.The military itself also played a huge role in Aztec society. The Aztecs were also extreme concerned about growing their slave labour trade and also capturing live sacrifices for their Gods. In order to maintain these two things and other resources they had to establish and...
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...The Aztecs were and ancient civilizations that were successful and created who ruled an empire in mesoamerica from 1350-1590. Rrom the capital city of tenochtitlan, presently the site of modern day Mexico City, the Aztecs had many achievements. Two aspects of their culture the they are known for are human sacrifice and agriculture. However, historians should emphasize on human sacrifice. It was human sacrifice that led the Aztecs expanding their empire. There is a connection between territorial expansion and human sacrifice. Document A states that as the Aztec empire grew, they purposely left territories alone for the use of "flower wars" to capture sacrifitial victims. This meant that the Aztec were getting their sacrifitial victims from their own city....
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...The Aztec empire was formed during the early 13th century and was founded in 1428. From the 13th century the Valley of Mexico was the heart of Aztec civilisation. Mexico is a country made up of 31 states and one federal district. It has a rich history of tradition and culture. Although the many changes that have occurred over time such political and social, there is evidence of past beliefs and events that have occurred everywhere in Mexico. Many rural of Mexico are still occupied by indigenous people who lives are still to this day similar to their descendants. Part 2: Describe a religious belief, story, or ritual that arose from or is linked to the environment of the religion (e.g. An island or sea-faring society worships a god of the...
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...give my audience the summation of the Aztec Indians in Mexico beliefs and practices of sacrifice. Thesis: To explain the Aztec’s sacrificial philosophy is look into their history, religious beliefs and ceremonial rituals that are constantly misunderstood. I. Introduction: Mahatma Gandhi quotes: “A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was a perfect act.” According to the Webster’s dictionary, Sacrifice is the act of offering something to a divine being in propitiation, especially the ritual slaughter of an animal or person. When most imagine the Aztec Empire, many will think of pyramids of gold or worse a picture of a blood thirsty murdering priest holding a heart up over a sacrificial victim. These images are ethnocentric (tendency to believe that one's ethnic or cultural group is centrally important, and that all other groups are measured in relation to one's own) because the Aztec Empire was much more than gold or sacrifice. My ancestors, the Aztec Indians lived a spiritual lifestyle based on pleasing their Gods through many religious ceremonies, including frequent human sacrifices. To explain the Aztec’s sacrificial philosophy is look into their history, religious beliefs and ceremonial rituals that are constantly misunderstood. Transition: So, let’s get started with where the Aztecs came from. II. Body: A. Aztec History: 1. Legends says they originated...
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...The Aztecs, also known as Mexicas, dominated northern Mexico all the way to the early 16th century until Hernan Cortes invaded during a Spanish conquest. Legends reveal they originated in Aztlan, somewhere in northern Mexico. In the 12th century they extended their wandering to new boundaries and settled in the central basin of Mexico roughly a century later. Refuge was found in 1325 on the islands in Lake Texcoco where the major city Tenochtitlan was founded. What is now modern-day Mexico, this city quickly flourished and was inferior to only Paris and Constantinople in population size. The fall of the Aztec empire created ripples throughout history. What was once the most prominent and powerful empire, suddenly ceased to exist, in only two years time. The tactics of Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes, the religious affiliation with the invasion, cultural sacrifices, and the disease and natural disaster that was brought upon the Aztecs, contributed greatly to the rapid downfall of a major world superpower. Sacrifice It is widely believed that the religious rituals of sacrifice the Aztecs participated in contributed to the decline, in multiple ways. The killing of thousands of people is detrimental to society, never beneficial. The population took a drastic hit and the civilizations established around the Aztec empire never allied because of the violent measures they took. Tlaxcala is a prime example. Many of their people had been killed and they inevitably joined the...
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...Jose Beltan Beltran 1 Dr. Karanovich History 100 August 2007 Mesoamerica: The land that witnessed it all, the peoples, the culture, and the conquest. The land referred to as Mesoamerica runs west from a point on the Gulf coast of Mexico above what today is the port of Tampico, then expands south to the central desert of highland Mexico, meeting the Pacific coast. On the southeast, the land extends from northwestern Honduras on the Caribbean across to the Pacific shore in El Salvador. About half of Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and parts of Honduras and El Salvador are included in Meso-America. This land has great history to it, it is the land that fostered great civilizations and cultures, it is the land where great artifacts were built, where agriculture flourished to support thousands of civilians, and where a brutal and macabre conquest took place. This land witnessed it all. It is important that we understand the history of this land, because if we do, we can understand who founded its cities, who dominated this region, and what Gods influenced its peoples, and who explored it, invaded and colonized this land. It is very uncertain when we speak about the Mexica (people of Mesoamerica) people, because we know very little about them. Much of the information that has been gathered about them comes from large scale excavations, and archeological endeavors that have found ancient ruins, sculptures, temples and the like. But, the things that we...
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...Human Sacrifice; A Religious Right “Then God said, 'Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.'" (Genesis 22:1-2). When one thinks of human sacrifice as in relation to religion, the most often-cited example is the story of Abraham and Isaac. Abraham is asked by god to sacrifice his son, Isaac, to him. To prove his faith, Abraham attempts to. God only stops him at the last moment, impressed by Abraham’s show of devotion. Religion is something that is practiced solely out of faith. To have faith is to believe in what cannot be seen or heard, what cannot be held; a belief that is not based on proof. The bible describes the Christian god as more of a present being, but to the Aztec, their gods were spiritual. Abraham had the voice of god to tell him that sacrifice was not what he truly wished but what if there was no presence there to stop him? For the Aztec there were no voices. They had developed the idea that their purpose on earth was to appease the gods for all that they had given them, and that is life. That being said, the most logical way to repay them for the life they had given is to give it back, bringing the Aztec upon human sacrifice. The number of lives taken by their people is unknown, however what is known, is that the number is much larger would care to believe. The Aztec, as Abraham had prepared himself to do, sacrificed themselves out...
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...Aztec Questions and Statements - 1 Statements 1) Positive – Statement - SS 2) Positive – Statement - SS The Aztecs ruled over 500 small states and their population was over 5 to 6 million people. They expanded by conquest or commerce. Conquest is when you take over people by force. Commerce is when you take over people by negotiation/deals. The city of Tenochtitlan at its peak had over 140 000 people and the city was the most populated city in Mesoamerica. The Aztecs, the Texcobans and the Tacubans formed an alliance to conquer the Tepanecs’ city, Azcapotzalco. Tepanec is later then taken over by the Spanish to form their new colony of Cuba. 3) Positive – Statement - SS The Aztecs had a legend. The Aztecs believed that Huitzilopochtli,...
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...The Spiritual World of the Aztecs Religion can be described as a shared set of fundamental beliefs and practices. “The Aztec religion was a complex set of beliefs, rituals and gods that helped the Aztec/Mexica to make sense of their world, reality and death (Maestri Nicolette, 2013)”. Today, we will explore the famous Aztec world of gods, sacrifice, and magic in an attempt to better understand their culture and worldview. The traditional Aztec religion was on that focused on the services provided by a series of gods, all to whom a debt was owed. The debt was perpetual and came to be when the gods made the decision to sacrifice themselves to enable human life. “Life for humankind was only possible with a moving sun, and this the gods provided. It then became the responsibility of humanity to feed the sun thereafter, lest it stop and the universe stop with it (Holly Peters-Golden, 2012)”. The Aztec’s shared belief in this theory gave rise to a number of traditions and ceremonies involving human sacrifice. These ceremonies were conducted frequently and were often scheduled in accordance with their ritual calendar. These rituals were sacred to the Aztecs and were performed without hesitation or remorse. In every situation, those who were to be sacrificed were held in high regard for their contribution to the continuity of human life entitled them to great honor and the promise of a rewarded afterlife. In addition, the remains of the sacrificed individuals were...
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...Aztecs and Conquistadors The Role and Importance of Warfare in Aztec Society: The Aztecs had two different main reasons why they would go into warfare, the first reason was purely political, as they attempted to conquer the territory of their enemies to expand their empires as well as they’re political power and hegemony. The second reason was to do with the Aztec religion, the Aztec’s would search for worthy sacrifices and held them captive the religious ceremonies where they would then be sacrificed to the Aztec Gods. The warfare that was practiced by the Aztecs was largely impacted by these objectives in warfare. But of the two objectives in Aztec warfare, it was mainly driven by the desire of political expansion and was powered by their...
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...Aztec Vs Spanish (Comparison Essay) The Aztecs and the Spanish were both dominant groups in their region, and both had very long and prosperous civilizations. But when the two groups met up, who would prevail?? It was in 1519 that the clash of the century occurred. Spanish conquistadors led by Hernan Cortes met up with the Aztecs in Tenochtitlan, and ultimately conquered the city and empire, leaving the Aztecs as slaves working their own land to benefit the Spanish Crown. Even though the Spanish obviously seemed much more powerful, the Aztec people actually had many similarities to their conquerors. Firstly, both civilizations relied heavily on religion and made most decisions based on their religious beliefs. Yet there were also many differences in the worldviews of these people. I think that the biggest elements we can compare between the Aztec and Spanish civilizations are how their societies functioned. In many ways, their social hierarchies were similar, but also quite different. Lastly, it is important to take a look at the education received by people in each group, to better understand their societies. First, it is crucial to recognize how these two societies operated, which brings our focus...
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