Book Journal 2015: 8
This Tree Grows Out of Hell: Mesoamerica and the Search for the Magical Body, by Ptolemy Tompkins
This book is basically a guy trying to find traditional shamanistic roots to the Mayan and Aztec human sacrifices. As with many things, I'm assuming the research is sound, regardless of how whack the interpretations are. And they are, a bit. Guy has opinions about shamanism and what is important to humanity. But I learned more than I had previously about Mayan and Aztec religions.
Also: I learned about the Aztec goddess Tlaleuctli, "a monstrous toad whose entire body was alive with multiple, unblinking eyes and a series of mouths that croaked incessantly for human blood." Man, I want to play a horror game (RPG or video) based in Aztec mythology. This stuff is heavy.
This book is basically a guy trying to find traditional shamanistic roots to the Mayan and Aztec human sacrifices. As with many things, I'm assuming the research is sound, regardless of how whack the interpretations are. And they are, a bit. Guy has opinions about shamanism and what is important to humanity. But I learned more than I had previously about Mayan and Aztec religions.
Also: I learned about the Aztec goddess Tlaleuctli, "a monstrous toad whose entire body was alive with multiple, unblinking eyes and a series of mouths that croaked incessantly for human blood." Man, I want to play a horror game (RPG or video) based in Aztec mythology. This stuff is heavy.