Analytical Concepts

For over 500 years, the Indigenous people have been oppressed by Europeans. The struggle to overcome cultural destruction has intensified. White and European elites began to give Indigenous people credit for their culture, agricultural success, and social competence with an ideology called "indigenismo." This ideology led many elites to focus on how they could use the Indigenous peoples' abilities to strengthen the assimilation of these people into a unified structure by recognizing the Indigenous cultures. Although Indians were beginning to be recognized, they were not being heard. The cultural and traditional values that they held so tightly were beginning to be broken apart by foreigners. The exploitation of there homeland and communities broke down the harmonious lines between a people which had always stood together.

As for the Mayas, Aztecs, and other ancient civilizations, this type of ideology was not present. Europeans who destroyed and captured Indigenous lands thought that these people had no mind set at all. They believed that they were not capable of controlling their people in a structured and logically way. Any beliefs or ideas that Indigenous people thought of were not taken seriously. Indians were thought of as an ignorant people which needed to be assimilated into the 'white man's' world in order to survive.

All of these civilizations though were far from simple and ignorant. Structures such as the pyramids themselves were extremely complex. These early civilizations had developed such tremendously advanced technology and sciences, as well as, languages. The Europeans were most likely threatened by their advanced knowledge of math, science, and structure of government that the only way to enforce their culture on the Indigenous people was by physical force.

Many ancient civilizations were destroyed because they had to fight to save their advanced territories from being taken over by Europeans. Instead of communicating and trying to learn from each other's cultures, to gain a unanimous respect towards one another, Europeans and Indians fought and eliminated any connection they could have had to live civilly in the same world.

Relation of Pyramids to Quetzalcoatl

Quetzalcoatl face Photo by Theresa Mycek
Quetzalcoatl was a ruling deity of the Toltecs and Aztecs in ancient México. He is represented by the plumed serpent. He was worshipped as the creator and the god of civilization. Quetzalcoatl was considered the light force, and was beneficial to his people. He brought the ancestral bones from which the first man was created and brought knowledge to humankind. He was also the patron of the priests.

http://www.highfiber.com/~nahualli/Quetzalcoatl.htm

The story of his disappearance from Tula has two versions. Some believe that he set himself on fire to become Venus the Morning Star. Upon reaching the eastern shoreline of México he was consumed by fire and his ashes became birds and his heart became the morning star. Others say that after a conflict with Tezcatlipoca (Smoking Mirror), a warlike god, Quetzalcoatl was driven from Tula, the Toltec capital and was exiled from Tula. He left across the ocean telling his followers that he would return in 1 Reed. This set the stage for the defeat of the Aztecs in 1519 by Cortés.

When Moctezuma, the Aztec ruler, heard of the arrival of Cortés and his men, he was convinced that Cortés was indeed Quetzalcoatl returning as promised, since Cortés's arrival was on 1 Reed.

Link to more information on Quetzacoatl:

http://www.quetzalcoatl.com/serpent.html

Page created by Amanda Belzer, Kamis Courtney, Sharice Welch, Jennifer Wells