Aztec & Mayan Temples in Focus. Sample file

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1 Aztec & Mayan Temples in Focus This Enrichment4You e-guide focuses on the temples of the Aztec and Maya. In this e-guide you will: *Read about Aztec & Mayan temples *Write about an Aztec or Maya temple *Make an Aztec or Mayan Temple Diorama ENRICHMENT4YOU Published by Henrich Incorporated Original Copyright 2005 Revised 2012 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without first obtaining the written permission of the copyright owner.

2 AZTEC OR MAYAN TEMPLES IN FOCUS ABOUT THIS ENRICHMENT GUIDE This enrichment guide is designed to give you a short, but interesting description of the Aztec and Mayan Temples. 1. Overview of Aztec & Mayan Temples - Pages Selection of Setting Development Statements - Pages Selection of vocabulary - Additional Details for Setting - Pages Write a Description of an Aztec or Mayan Temple - Page Make a 3-Tiered Temple Diorama - Pages

3 As in many societies, religion played a central part in the lives of the Aztec and Mayan people. Their social structure, government, art and festivals were based on their religious beliefs. These beliefs were carried out in great part at magnificent architectural buildings - their temples. THE AZTECS The Aztecs had many gods and many beliefs. Their temples were constructed to please their gods. The Aztecs believed in 13 heavens and 9 hells. They believed the earth was flat and worshiped approximately 1,000 gods. Religious events were recorded with number symbols and hieroglyphics. Among the different gods the Aztecs worshipped were Huizilopochtlid, the god of war and the sun. This god had directed the Aztecs to the lands they would claim for their home. Another god the Aztecs worshipped was the rain god Tlaloc. The feathered snake god, Quetzalcoatl was the god of self-sacrifice and the arts. The god they worshipped the most was the sun. Each day, the Aztecs worship the sun as it fought against the darkness of the night to rise in the morning to save mankind. At a temple called Teocalli, many religious ceremonies took place. This temple featured sacred pools used for ceremonial cleansing and living quarters for Aztec priests. It was the responsibility of the Aztec priests to make human sacrifices to insure the constant rising of the sun. This was based on their belief that to keep the sun rising each day, a sacrifice of blood was required. 1

4 AZTEC OR MAYAN TEMPLES IN FOCUS Aztec sacrifices were awful, but many prisoners believed that at their death they would automatically rise to heaven. Prisoners of war were sacrificed on God s Feast Day. The human sacrifices were offered to both the earth and sun gods to insure successful growth of food. Captives would be stretched over an altar that had been placed on the top of an extinct volcano. The high priest would then light a fire on the sacrificial victim s heart and rip it from his chest. The heart was then cut and the priest would raise it to the sun and then place it into a sacred dish. How an Aztec died determined where he or she would go after death. Normal death would indicate that the soul would pass through nine lives of the underworld before reaching the land of the dead or Mictlan. Warriors who died in battle or women who died during childbirth passed directly to the sun god who resided in the sky. 2

5 THE MAYANS Like the Aztecs, temples played an enormous role in Mayan society. The Mayan religion was called Popol Vuh. They had many festivals and carried out many rituals to honor their many gods. Their gods included the gods of the rain, wind, harvest, war and death, birth and the cardinal points. Throughout the Mayan territory, magnificent stone pyramids were constructed. Mayans would make pilgrimages to the sacred cities of Iazmal and to the island of Cozumel. Human sacrifice was not originally part of the Mayan religious process. Chichen-Itza, another temple site did conduct human sacrifices during times of national crisis. When sacrifices were conducted, many were voluntary victims, often virgins. Chichen-Itza also featured an observatory where the skilled Mayans were able to track the war star - Venus. Temples and pyramids were constructed to honor the Mayan kings and their gods. The main temple was always the highest. Many of these stone pyramid temples were built in the middle of the rain forest. The temples and pyramids were constructed based on astronomical calendar. One of the most reknown temples is El Castillo. This temple has 365 steps that represent the days of the year. There are 91 steps per side with four steps at the top. 3

6 AZTEC OR MAYAN TEMPLES IN FOCUS One of the grandest Mayan temples was located at Teotihuacan. Located in the central Mexican highlands, the buildings were constructed to align with the solar system and stars. In the Nahuatl language, Teotihuacan means The City of the Gods or Where Men Become Gods. Surrounding the great Pyramid of the Sun were a complex of approximately 600 other pyramids ranging in size. The great Pyramid of the Sun was constructed over a natural cave that featured four chambers. Mesoamericans believed that caves were the entrance to the spirit world. The Maya called the spirit world Xibalba. It is estimated that at its height, Teotihuacan had as many as 200,000 people. Another Mayan city with temples was Tikal inhabited over 1200 years ago. Located in the rain forests of Guatemala, huge plazas that once were populated by the Mayans are now homes for wild animals and birds. Tikal was surrounded by cultivated fields and farms. 4