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Human Sacrificing was the center of religious contact with gods. The Mayans thought of gods to be nourished by blood. As a
result, they would take the sacrifice and place it at the top of a pyramid and take out the heart and burn it. The Mayans
also worshiped through dance, ball games and prayer
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| The Mayan Pantheon |
The Mayan were at constant warfare with their neighboring cities. Any captives or prisoners were often used as sacrifices.
The Mayans also worshiped gods through dancing and prayer. If the Mayans believed if the gods weren't properly worshiped,
they would then bring chaos and destruction to the universe.
The Mayan afterlife was considered a tortuous journey for the soul in which the majority of the Mayans went. The underworld
was a place in which sinister gods existed and tortured the condemned souls. Heaven was considered for only people who were
sacrificed or either died in childbirth.
Mayan religion was strongly linked with astrology. The Mayans developed a calendar based on astronomy and they had a very
strong but unknown connection with the planet Venus. Mayans also believed that the world was destroyed 4 times and created
5.
They were also precise in knowing the position of the moon, the sun and Venus and were able to accurately predict when
an eclipse would come.Thus the Mayans based their ritual activity and agricultural activity on this.
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