Lectures on the Origin and Growth of Religion as Illustrated by the Native Religions of Mexico and Peru

CONTENTS.

Lecture I. INTRODUCTION.—CENTRAL AMERICA AND MEXICO. THEIR COMMON BASES OF CIVILIZATION AND RELIGION.
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Importance of the history of Religion	1
The religions of Mexico and Peru, and the special importance of studying them	7
Journey to another planet	8
Parallelism of religious history in the New World and in the Old	9
Central America and Mexico, and the authorities as to their history and religion	14
Area and general character of this civilization	18
The Mayas	20
Toltecs, Chichimecs and Aztecs	24
The Aztec empire	29
Character of the religious conceptions common to Central America and Mexico	35
The serpent-god and the American cross	38
Estimate of the character and significance of the parallelisms observed	39
Lecture II. THE DEITIES AND MYTHS OF MEXICO.
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The Sun and Moon	45
The pyramidal Mexican temples	47
The great temple of the city of Mexico	48
The narrative of Bernal Diaz; and the two great Aztec deities, Uitzilopochtli and Tezcatlipoca	51
Mythical significance of Uitzilopochtli	54
Significance of Tezcatlipoca	60
The serpent-god Quetzalcoatl, god of the east wind	62
Netzalhuatcoyotl, the philosopher-king of Tezcuco	69
Number of Mexican deities	70
Tlaloc, god of rain	71
Centeotl, goddess of maize	72
Xiuhtecutli, god of fire	74
The Mexican Venus	75
Other deities	76
The Tepitoton	77
Mictlan, god of the dead	78
Summary and reflections	79
Lecture III. THE SACRIFICES, SACERDOTAL AND MONASTIC INSTITUTIONS, ESCHATOLOGY AND COSMOGONY OF MEXICO.
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Recapitulation	85
Original meaning of sacrifice	86
Human sacrifices and cannibalism	87
Importance attached to the suffering of the victims	90
Tragic and cruel character of the Mexican sacrifices	91
The victims of Tezcatlipoca and Centeotl	93
The children of Tlaloc	96
The roasted victims of the god of fire	97
Mexican asceticism	Clyx.com