Download Aztec Religion Documents – DO NOT WRITE Document 1 Religion

Aztec Religion Documents – DO NOT WRITE
Document 1
Religion was central to Aztec life and society. The Aztecs believed that humans needed the gods for
survival. It was the gods who granted a good harvest or, if they were displeased, sent earthquakes and
floods. So it was important to please the gods through elaborate rituals and ceremonies. Priests
presented the gods with flowers, ears of maize, clothing, or images made of wood.
The Aztecs adopted some of their gods from other Mesoamerican groups. The Aztecs’ own chief god
was Huitzilopochtli (wee-tsee-loh-POHCH-tlee), the god of the sun and of war. In fact, the Aztecs called
themselves the “people of the sun.” The Aztecs saw the sun as a warrior who fought each night against
the forces of darkness. In Aztec belief, the survival of the universe depended upon the sun winning
these battles. The way to keep the sun strong was to offer him nourishment in the form of blood.
For this reason, most Aztec rituals included some form of blood sacrifice. Every morning, Aztec priests
sacrificed hundreds of birds to Huitzilopochtli. Priests also pierced their skin with cactus spikes to offer
their own blood.
1. Why did Aztecs believe it was important to please the Gods? (Answer in notes)
2. Who was the Aztecs’ most important God?
(Answer in notes)
3. Why did Aztec rituals include blood sacrifice? (Answer in notes)
Document 2
The highest form of sacrifice was that of humans. The Aztecs particularly valued the sacrifice of warriors
captured in battle, because they believed that the blood of strong warriors was especially nourishing to
Huitzilopochtli. Scholars think the Aztecs also used human sacrifice to frighten other groups into accepting
their rule.
In Tenochtitlán, up to several thousand people may have gone to sacrificial deaths each year. Four priests
pinned the victim to the stone in front of Huitzilopochtli’s temple, while another cut out his heart. Some
victims may have died willingly in the belief that they would accompany the sun god in his daily battle
across the sky.
The Aztecs also made sacrifices to other gods. They threw the sacrificial victims of the fire god into a great
blaze. To honor the corn goddess, they cut off women’s heads. Overall, the Aztecs practiced human
sacrifice on a much larger scale than other Mesoamerican groups.
1. What were two reasons to sacrifice warriors captured in battle?
2. Describe a typical sacrifice. (Answer in notes)
3. What was one other method of sacrifice? (Answer in notes)
(Answer in notes)
Document 3 – U.S. Executions Since 1976
1. Which state leads the U.S. in number of people put to death? How many people have they executed
since 1976?
2. What are two states that have executed only 1 or 0 people since 1976?
3. What generalization can you make about the death penalty in the United States? Is it very common,
somewhat common, or uncommon? Why?
Document 4
Americans are 10 times more likely to be killed by guns than people in other developed countries, a new
study finds.
Compared to 22 other high-income nations, the United States' gun-related murder rate is 25 times higher.
And, even though the United States' suicide rate is similar to other countries, the nation's gun-related
suicide rate is eight times higher than other high-income countries, researchers said.
Here are some of the basic statistics about gun deaths in the United States:
 On average, 93 people die from gun violence each day, including 7 children and teens
 On average, 33,880 people die from gun violence each year
1. What is one statistic that surprised you or that you did not know before?
2. Overall, what does this document show about gun violence in the United States?
Document 5 – Extension
The Aztecs believed in an afterlife. After they died, the Aztecs believed they would be assigned a job to
do that helped their gods. The job you were assigned or what you became in your afterlife did not
depend upon how well you lived your life, but rather on how you died.
Warriors who died in battle were believed to turn into butterflies and hummingbirds. This helped the
gods who created nature. This also helped to create a very strong army, with warriors who were not
afraid of death. Warriors knew their afterlife would be spent in a most pleasurable way, unlike the
people who died a natural death.
People who died of natural causes had the most unpleasant afterlife job. Their job was to serve the
gloomy Lord of the Dead. The Aztecs believed it took about 4 years of dangerous travel, moving
further and further down under the earth, to reach the Land of the Lord of the Dead. Once they
arrived at their destination, these poor people lived their afterlife in darkness. It was not a
punishment. It was just the way things were.
The afterlife job of women who died in childbirth was to help the sun god push the sun each day from
its position overhead to a place where it disappeared for the night, so the sun could rest. This was not
a bad way to spend your afterlife. The women only worked from noon till sundown each day. That was
a much better afterlife job than those who died of natural causes.
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What did Aztecs believe happened after you died?
What happened to warriors who died in battle?
What happened to people who died natural of natural causes?
What happened to women who died in childbirth?
How do you think these beliefs might have affected followers of the Aztec religion?