Religious Control

• Aztecs are polytheistic
• Gods are shared with other people in south America e.g Maya
• Gods are not always nice
• Festivals are held at all times of the year
• Religion is a central part of Aztec life
• Huitzilopochtli is the god of sun and war and is either an eagle or a hummingbird
• Tlaloc is the god of rain and fertility and is a jaguar
• Xipe Totec's festival is Tlacaxipehualitzli when priests wear skin suits. The strongest captive is tied to a block while eagle warriors fight him until he dies
• Cannibalism Theory:

  • Sacrifice is an excuse for cannibalism as Aztecs don't have much meat in their diets.
  • Theory widely disputed
  • The victim's flesh became sacred so by eating it the Aztecs are closer to their gods
• Warfare Theory:

  Human sacrifices were a scare tactic for their enemies and was a part of warfare
• Religious belief Theory:

  • The sun didn't want to orbit until all the other god's were sacrificed
  • Believed sacrifice needed to be maintained for the sun to keep rising
  • Believed if they stopped the life cycle would end