Cover of Aztec philosophy

Aztec philosophy

by James Maffie · first published 2014

3mentions
2recommended by
3HN commenters
2019–2025first – last mentioned

67% recommend33% neutral

"In Aztec Philosophy, James Maffie reveals a highly sophisticated and systematic Aztec philosophy worthy of consideration alongside European philosophies of their time. Bringing together the fields of comparative world philosophy and Mesoamerican studies, Maffie excavates the distinctly philosophical aspects of Aztec thought. Aztec Philosophy focuses on the ways Aztec metaphysics—the Aztecs' understanding of the nature, structure and constitution of reality—underpinned Aztec thinking about wisdom, ethics, politics, and aesthetics, and served as a backdrop for Aztec religious practices as well

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What Hacker News says

  • ftyers · Dec 6, 2020 · Recommends

    James Maffie's "Aztec Philosophy" is pretty great, as is "Filosofia Náhuatl" by Miguel Leon Portilla. (If you are interested in process metaphysics) Oh and the latter seems to be available online: http://www.historicas.unam.mx/publicaciones/publicadigital/l...

    on “Ask HN: Learning about philosophy” ↗
  • pell · Nov 20, 2025 · Recommends

    Similarly overlooked is the philosophy of the Americas before European colonization. A great read I recommend to anyone who’s interested: “ Aztec Philosophy: Understanding a World in Motion” by James Maffie It obviously only focuses on the Aztecs so hardly a deep dive on all there is to learn.

    on “Interactive World History Atlas Since 3000 BC” ↗
  • abrowne · Feb 2, 2019 · Mentions

    From the blurb on the Amazon page https://www.amazon.com/Aztec-Philosophy-Understanding-World-... > In Aztec Philosophy, James Maffie shows the Aztecs advanced a highly sophisticated and internally coherent systematic philosophy worthy of consideration alongside other philosophies…

    on “Aztec Political Thought (2013)” ↗

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