Norse And Aztec Similarities

In addition to displaying many similarities in their creation myths, the Norse and Aztec mythologies have connections relating specifically to the gods they worship. Both mythologies are polytheistic, and when looking at all of these gods, it becomes apparent that in both religions there are few gods that only have one area over which they rule. Most are known primarily for one area, but are actually representative of many more. For example, the Norse god Odin is primarily known for being the ruler of the gods, but is also associated with subjects such as war, the sky, and magic. Within the massive number of gods that the Norse and Aztec revere, there are certain types of gods they seem to value more than others. Interestingly this tends to

Two of the major Norse gods are lacking a body part. Odin is missing ones of his eyes, but not because of violence or war. He desired to drink from the Well of Wisdom but was told that he could only do so if he paid a price; he agreed to give up one of his eyes in exchange for garnering wisdom. Tyr, who is also a god of the sky and war lost his hand, but in a much more violent way. He placed his hand inside the mouth of Loki’s wolf-son Fenrir’s mouth as a sign of trust. When Fenrir found that he couldn’t break the chain that held him, he bit off Tyr’s hand. The Aztec god Tezcatlipoca also lost a limb in a violent manner; his foot while battling with the Earth Monster to create the

Initially, it seemed as if there would be few similarities between the Norse and Aztec mythologies. They come from very different parts of the world. They developed from very different cultures. As this investigation was conducted however, it became evident that there is a good deal that the two have in common. There are common themes such as the world being created through the killing of a monster, and populations being wiped out by floods. As well as smaller details throughout the generalities and specifics of creation myth and a variety of gods. After taking into account these similarities, it is still apparent that the Norse and Aztec mythologies display differences to a greater extent than they do similarities. The Aztecs relationship with their gods was much more representational. The gods were invisible and did not interact with their people, so the Aztecs had to create their own interpretations of them and rely on their priests to connect them with the gods. The Norse on the other hand were connected to the gods via the Bifröst and had more creatures such as the dwarves that were supernatural, but not on the same level of authority as the gods. Overall the religions are fundamentally different, and regardless of the similarities they display, the majority of the mythological content between the two will be