The Dependence of Sacrifice
The art of the sacrifice was practiced by the Incas; it was referred to by the people as “capacocha”. It defines as a sacrificial ritual involving children, in honor of the sun and other deities or solemn sacrifice (Andrushko 323). For this Incan ritual, children of immense physical beauty were often chosen. They have been selected because in the polytheistic religion of the Inca’s it is believed that the many gods must be appeased continuously (Andrushko 324). This can be done through prayer, offerings of food, gifts, animal sacrifice, but the ultimate sacrifice was that of a human, and in most cases a child. The human sacrifice was utilized to combat Incan issues such as famine, earthquake, volcanic eruptions, or the death of an emperor (Andrushko 324). This is how their problems were supposedly solved during the reign of their civilization. Their
…show more content…
From there, the Incas expanded northward and southward which gradually built up to being a massive, powerful society. Their empire at its peak spanned from northern Ecuador to central Chile, running along the slopes of the Andes Mountains of South America; the name of their land/state was Tawantinsuyu (History.com Staff). They became such a successful society because they were able to use the most readily available resource, themselves. Becoming the largest pre-Columbian society did not happen by chance; the Incas were well educated people but yet, they were dependent on their religion to succeed. Without it they may have not been able to utilize many different disciplines of engineering ranging from architectural, agricultural, civil, and environmental aspects (History.com Staff). Each of these disciplines of engineering had their own unique place in the advancement of the Incan society and made it possible to sustain such a massive population and land