Britannica Sources used in this answer

Why were sacrifices and offerings important in Aztec religious ceremonies?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Mythologies of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas Haida argillite carving, c. 1890, depicting a folktale in which the Bear Mother endures a cesarean birth; in the National Museum of the American Indian, George Gustav Haye Center, Smithsonian Institution, New York City.

In Aztec religious life, sacrifices and offerings were considered essential for the survival of the universe and the maintenance of the cosmic order. The Aztecs believed that the world was inherently unstable and constantly threatened by destruction. Their mythology taught that the gods had sacrificed themselves—offering their own blood—to create the sun and moon and to bring humanity into existence.12

Consequently, the Aztecs viewed themselves as the "People of the Sun," with a divine duty to provide the gods with tlaxcaltiliztli (nourishment) in the form of blood and hearts. This ritual feeding was believed to be the only way to ensure the sun would continue to move across the heavens and to prevent the world from ending.23

These practices were deeply integrated into Aztec society:
* Religious Obligation: Sacrifice and bloodletting were seen as necessary preconditions for approaching the supernatural and gaining the favor of the gods.43
* Warfare: Ideologically, war served as a religious obligation to obtain sacrificial victims to nourish the sun god, Huitzilopochtli.43
* Priesthood: A professional priesthood performed these elaborate rituals, which included theatrical dramas, dances, and songs, to sustain the delicate balance of the cosmos.143