Why did early human societies practice violent human sacrifice?

Human sacrifice seems horrifying and costly. But there might be a reason so many early human societies practiced it.

Human Sacrifice & The Aztecs: How & Why Did They Practice This Ritual?

The Highest Altar: Human Sacrifice in Ancient Greece - Femmina Classica

Sacrificial virgins of the Mississippi

What Is Construction Sacrifice? - Owlcation

The Highest Altar: Human Sacrifice in Ancient Greece - Femmina Classica

Aztec Sacrifice - Echoes in the Modern World

There is no such thing as 'Human Sacrifice'”

Human sacrifice, Ancient Rituals & Practices

Why Did the Aztecs Practice Human Sacrifice: Uncovering the Ancient Aztec Rituals - Old World Gods

Ritual slaughter: Why so many early human societies practiced violent human sacrifice

Sacrifices humains - Human Sacrifice and the Rituals of War in Early China - Presses universitaires de Liège

Ancient Greek Human Sacrifice at Mountaintop Altar? - Biblical Archaeology Society