2024-10-01 10:41:35
New Delhi: About 5000 years ago, when the Harappan civilization was flourishing in India, in another corner of Europe i.e. Denmark, two virgin girls were being sacrificed. Even if no one heard or saw their screams, history kept their existence alive. Those girls became the first historical evidence of human sacrifice in the world. Such statues have also been found in the Harappan civilization, which has led to speculations about human sacrifice. Today we will talk about this evil practice of human sacrifice, which has been stopped in the present societies, but even today, splashes of its blood are visible from time to time. Recently, the case of alleged sacrifice of an 11-year-old child living in a two-storey school hostel near Rasgwan village of Hathras, UP on September 23 has been in the news. Let us know about this age-old evil practice.
killed by strangulation to please the gods
According to the book ‘The Highest Altar: The Story of Human Sacrifice’ by American Patrick Tierney, human sacrifice was practiced in early agricultural societies of Europe at least 5,000 years ago. Danish farmers would make human sacrifices along with their stone axes and flint tools, jewellery, and their food to appease the gods. The world’s earliest known case of human sacrifice is that of two virgin girls found in Sigersdal, near Copenhagen, who were murdered about 5500 years ago. One of these girls was 16 years old, while the other was 18 years old. When the skeletons of the girls were found during the excavation, a rope was found tied around their neck.
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When with the death of the king the courtiers also had to die.
5100 years ago, during the reign of the first Pharaoh dynasty of Egypt, when the king died, his courtiers also had to die along with him. Kings needed to take their courtiers and followers with them to the afterlife. In historical evidence, the tombs of such kings were surrounded by the tombs of their courtiers.
kill virgin girls by intoxicating them
Dr. Rajeev Ranjan Giri, Assistant Professor at Delhi University, says that in the centuries-old practice of human sacrifice, humans were killed so that the majority could be protected. Sometimes human sacrifices were made to protect against natural calamities like earthquakes and floods, to protect from diseases and also to win wars. Sometimes due to the desire to have children and sometimes to save the family from sorrows, such evil practices came into practice. The purpose of human sacrifice was to please the gods by offering something valuable. Among the Incas of Peru, virgin girls and children, considered innocent, were killed by intoxicating them.
Courtiers, maids and guards die by drinking poison
Dr. Rajiv Ranjan says that amazing evidence of human sacrifice has been found in ancient Mesopotamia. There, along with the death of the king, the courtiers, guards, musicians and maids also had to sacrifice their lives. Some of the largest mass sacrifices to occur with dead rulers in such royal tombs are the royal tombs of the African state of Kerama, which date back 3500 years. In these tombs, up to 500 people at a time were buried in huge grave pits next to the king and these tombs were covered with a large mound.
In China, workers and soldiers were buried with emperors.
The bodies of sacrifices were also placed in similar manner in the royal tombs of the Shang dynasty at Anyang, China. Workers and soldiers were buried in the tomb of the Chinese emperor about 3500 years ago. In addition he was also given an otherworldly army of clay soldiers.
In Central America, people would cut out the beating heart and offer it to the gods.
In David Carrasco’s book, ‘City of Sacrifice: The Aztec Empire and the Role of Violence in Civilization’, it is said that human sacrifice was very popular in the ancient civilizations of Central America. The Aztec priests of Mexico’s Maya civilization believed that by sacrificing humans to the Sun God in the temples built on the top of the pyramids, there would never be darkness. In this, the beating heart of the person being sacrificed was cut, taken out in front of his eyes and dedicated to the Sun God. A film named Apocalypto has also been made in Hollywood on this subject, which has been made by famous actor and director Mel Gibson.
80 thousand people were sacrificed in building the Great Pyramid of Giza
Male sacrificial rituals, rare in most societies around the world, played an important role in Mesoamerican culture. Human sacrifices were made on many occasions, from farming to wars. Even 80,400 people had to lose their lives in building the Great Pyramid of Giza of the Pharaoh civilization of Egypt.
In primitive and barbaric societies, evil practices like male sacrifice or witchcraft have existed for centuries. These practices are in some way or the other related to human dominance. Such practices were invented to oppress the weak and poor people. If we look at the history of India or Europe or even Central America, such evil practices tell the story of barbarity and oppression, in which slaves, women and children were subjected to the most atrocities.
Dr. Rajeev Ranjan Giri, Assistant Professor, Delhi University
Sacrifice of children and teenagers for the prestige of the community
According to Miranda Green’s book Dying for the Gods, more than 100 warriors were sacrificed and buried beneath the foundation of the temple of Quetzalcoatl in Teotihuacan, Mexico in 150 AD. At the same time, in the Inca Empire of South America, children and teenagers were sacrificed to the Sun God, which brought great prestige to the child’s parents and their local community.
A person killed with swords, fear of human sacrifice
When the prehistoric site at Fiskerton, Lindisfarne, was first excavated in 1981, archaeologists found part of a human skull among swords, spears, tools and other objects laid out along the paths. It depicted the back of a man’s head and was badly damaged. Excavators discovered the skeleton of Fissure Fred, who had been killed with a sword. The circumstances under which he died remained a secret, but it was certain that he died 2,500 years ago due to being killed by a sword. Evidence of human sacrifice during this period of the Iron Age has been found most in Denmark, Germany and Holland.
Predictions are made after seeing the blood flowing from the body and the dying body.
In Rome, Emperor Julius Caesar and other Roman kings were horrified by the practice of human sacrifice. The geographer and historian Strabo wrote that they would stab a person about to die with a sword in the back and then make predictions from his death struggle. According to Diodorus Siculus, they used to foretell the future by stabbing a person with a knife in the upper part of his stomach and seeing his limbs spasm and his blood flow after he fell.
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When effigies of humans started being burnt in Rome
Human sacrifice was considered a thing of the past in many world cultures. When Rome was still on its way to becoming a state, citizens were sometimes sacrificed to appease the gods. However, according to the historian Pliny, human sacrifice disappeared when Rome became a republic. This practice of human sacrifice was till then associated with the barbarian tribes. Instead, the practice of animal sacrifice and burning of effigies started in Rome.
Horrifying details of a slave girl being burnt alive with a Viking king
A surviving account of the funeral of a Viking king in Russia in 921–22 AD states: ‘The maids of the dead man were asked who wished to die with him, one said she would burn with him… when She was about to die, so the men started hitting the boards of the ship with sticks, so that her screams would not be heard and the other slaves would not get frightened. Also don’t try to escape death with your masters… A dagger was repeatedly thrust between her ribs and the men strangled her with a rope until she died… The fire grew And engulfed the pyre and the ship.
Human sacrifice was considered as payment of debt.
Rajiv Ranjan says that the people of Aztec civilization called sacrifices as payment of debt. He believed that this life was due to the gods. In such a situation, we make them happy with our sacrifice. Religiously motivated sacrifices can take many forms. In China, Mongolia, Egypt, and Mesoamerica, important persons were sometimes buried with their servants and concubines.
Accusations of witchcraft i.e. blind faith in women
Dakan practice or witch practice was a bad practice in Indian and European societies. In India, this practice was earlier quite prevalent in the rural areas of Rajasthan. In this, rural women were brutally killed by accusing them of superstition on Dakan i.e. the one who kills small babies with her tantric powers. Hundreds of women were killed due to this practice. In the 16th century, the Rajput princely states banned this practice by making a law. It was first declared illegal in Kherwara (Udaipur) during the reign of Maharana Swaroop Singh in Mewar in April 1853. Even today, sometimes incidents of killing a woman by branding her a witch have come to light in Bihar, Jharkhand or Odisha.
Lord Bentinck abolished male sacrifice in India.
Lord William Bentinck is credited with the abolition of male sacrifice to Goddess Kali and the practice of Sati in India. William Bentinck served as Governor General of Bengal from 1828–1833 and later Governor of India from 1833–1835. William Bentinck can be credited with laying the foundation of the Indian Administrative Service. Along with the practice of Sati, Bentinck had also banned the practice of cheating. Bentinck made these evil practices illegal throughout India and prescribed strict punishment. Even after independence, the ban on such evil practices remains intact in India, but from time to time, such evil practices are seen in the desire for wealth, property and children. These evil practices are like a stain on the society.