It may be because from everyday observation, to obtain something desirable, you need to pay a price. it's a very basic part of human negotiation. when someone is in a position of great power, they can ask for anything they like, for example paying protection fees so no one messes with your property.
with nature being so unpredictable and hostile to humans, people may have thought that nature was a vengeful god that delights in deaths. So deaths became a currency to bargain with the gods for favours like a good harvest, less disasters, rain, and so on.
of course that's all purely speculation. but makes sense to me. which doesn't say much after spending 10 hours writing the same report.
with nature being so unpredictable and hostile to humans, people may have thought that nature was a vengeful god that delights in deaths. So deaths became a currency to bargain with the gods for favours like a good harvest, less disasters, rain, and so on.
of course that's all purely speculation. but makes sense to me. which doesn't say much after spending 10 hours writing the same report.
