tter, it was said,
than the rest how to choose a god, and they declared that men should
worship the sun, who gave light and heat and made things grow; they
should be grateful for his benefits, and he would reward them if they
were obedient. The Indians accordingly took the sun for their god
"without father or brothers"; they considered the moon to be his
sister and wife, but did not worship her. Besides this, we hear the
Incas sought a supreme god, and called him "Pachacamac," that is
"soul of the world." This being gave life to the world and supported
it, but they did not build temples to him or offer him any sacrifice;
they worshipped him in their hearts as an unknown god.

The practice of the Inca religion as described to us by several
Spanish writers falls a good deal short of this doctrine. Many beings
were worshipped besides the sun; a number of prayers were addressed
to the Creator and the sun and thunder. Many sacred objects also were
adored, such as embalmed bodies of ancestors and various idols. They
practised all kinds of magic, and, worst of all, many boys and girls
were offered in sacrifice, even before the Incas and on great public
occasions. The reformation of the Incas is evidently not complete; if
it had not been arrested by the arrival of the Spaniards it may be
that the purifying agency of the new religion would have found much
still to do. Enough, however, is seen to afford strong confirmation
of the principle that religion gains infinitely in elevation when a
national worship appears. The Incas were no doubt the heads of a
tribe which had conquered others, and imposed its religion on them.
The lesser conquered worships do not die out at once, but continue
along with the central one. But the latter expresses the national
spirit and aspirations; and, as settled life fosters the growth of
intelligence and of public spirit, the central worship must more and
more supersede the others, while itself casting off its superstitious
and backward elements and becoming reasonable and elevating.

It will be convenient to indicate at this stage the further line of
study to be followed in this volume. As it is our aim to trace,
however inadequately, the growth of the religion of the world as a
whole, it is necessary that we should confine ourselves to those
parts of religious history which lie in the line of that growth, or
which serve in a conspicuous manner to illustrate the principles
according to which it has