Book Review: Aztec Philosophy: Understanding A World in Motion by James Maffie

by Vincent Turner II, Cohort ’24

Mexico City is vibrant and energetic, filled with constant motion and activity. Maffie’s work, Aztec Philosophy: Understanding A World in Motion, was among the assigned readings for IDSVA’s 2025 Mexico City Residency, which stood out due to its philosophical depth. In particular, it takes readers on a memorable metaphysical journey expanding beyond traditional Western intellectual frameworks and into the thought-world of the Aztecs. According to Maffie, within contemporary academic philosophical discourse, Aztec and similar voices are noticeably absent (3). Maffie’s work attempts to resolve this absence by presenting and placing a novel philosophical perspective and voice in the form of his scholarship of Aztec metaphysics and philosophy in the larger conversation of academia. 

Maffie’s text starts by challenging the antiquated notion of the primacy of Western philosophy as the pinnacle of critical reflection on nature and reality for all humanity. He contends that Aztec culture is just as philosophical and critically reflective as its Western counterpart by demonstrating that the Aztecs not only possessed a philosophy but engaged in philosophical activities, namely rigorous critical and self-conscious thinking (7). Moreover, Aztec thought, according to Maffie, satisfies the definition of philosophy and philosophical thinking by North American standards (7). One such definition and goal of philosophy in Maffie’s book is “[t]he aim of philosophy, abstractly formulated, is to understand how things in the broadest possible sense of the term hang together in the broadest possible sense of the term” (7). Aztec philosophy, as Maffie’s text thoroughly illustrates, undoubtedly meets this definition, especially with its intricate Aztecan explanation of reality and the critical underlying force that manifests reality: teolt (more on this central concept soon).

While Aztec philosophy may satisfy Western standards regarding its critical and reflective character, a question may arise: how does Aztec philosophy and metaphysics differ from Western philosophical thinking, particularly Western metaphysics? Traditionally, due to its nature, metaphysics can be highly generalized, abstract, and theoretical, seemingly rendering it distant from everydayness and practical affairs (Maffie 12). Maffie, however, demonstrates that Aztec philosophy and metaphysics encompass a wide range of reality, extending from cosmogony—defined as “the creation of an ordered cosmos from nothingness”—to everyday practices such as cooking (24). Aztec philosophy’s expansive and inclusive range and meticulous attention to the most everyday details of life are some of its most distinguishing features. Unlike certain strands of Western philosophy that draw sharp distinctions between the natural and supernatural, Aztec metaphysics recognizes no such division. In Aztec metaphysics and philosophy, the sacred is everywhere, and there is no discernment between higher and lower realms – the gods, humans, and nonhuman animals (Maffie 29-30). Everything is connected through the energy or force, teotl. 

Teotl is not a rational deity with grander designs for the cosmos; rather, it is a non-intentional, creative, generative, and transformative process-oriented energy or force that constitutes and produces all of reality (Maffie 22). Hence, teotl does not represent a separate transcendent or abstract reality; teotl is the singular immanent reality that consists of everything that perpetually unfolds (Maffie 29). Under Maffie’s Aztec philosophy, the totality of reality comprises a singular, homogenous force or energy that is always in the process of becoming, which is teotl (12). Teotl, as a metaphysical process, does not advance a specific agenda; rather, teotl is a nonhierarchical interconnected energy or force between everything in the cosmos (Maffie 29). For instance, in Maffie’s description of Aztec philosophy, there is no preference for ordering or disordering; “[b]oth ordering and disordering power are sacred” (106). Nonhierarchical paired relationships are essential to teotl and Aztec philosophy in Maffie’s work.

Although teotl is all of reality, and reality consequently is homogeneous, teotl still consists of micro-processes or patterns that individual inhabitants within reality and the cosmos practice in accord with others. According to Maffie, underlying and critical to teotl’s constant process of becoming and transformation is his concept of agonistic inamic unity (137). Agnostic inamic unity is a pattern that entails “the continual and continuous cyclical struggle (agon) of paired opposites, polarities, or dualities” (Maffie 137). The duality in agonistic inamic unity is complementary and antagonistic, meaning that both paired elements are simultaneously hostile and amiable towards one another (Maffie 137). Nevertheless, the paired opposites in this duality are not superior to each other or utterly separated and distinct; instead, the dualistic elements are united (Maffie 137). They are necessarily intertwined, representing a symbiotic relation, a twoness signifying completeness and wholeness, essential for teotl's transformative and energetic processes that create reality (Maffie 147). If one returns to the previously mentioned example of ordering and disordering or order and disorder, these two elements are paired opposites or inamic partners (Maffie 166). As Maffie explains, they are complementary and competitive, yet neither order nor disorder is metaphysically or conceptually prior to the other – both are required for creation (166).

Maffie’s text and portrayal of Aztec philosophy, particularly the depiction of teotl as the essential creative energy or force of reality, are intellectually captivating and accessible to a broad audience. Aztec Philosophy: Understanding A World in Motion was an apt reading for the Mexico City residency, as it provided an essential philosophical perspective that assisted in understanding cultural and intellectual diversity in Mexico City and this city as a dynamic place that has transformed and continues to do so throughout its history. Maffie’s work provides unique insights that expand the range of philosophy and compel its readers to shift their views on what constitutes philosophy. Maffie’s text is a fascinating and excellent book for anyone looking to broaden their scholarly, cultural, and personal horizons and perception of the world.