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Basic Religions and World Religions
Chapter One Basic Religions and World Religions
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Sources of Information Concerning Basic Religions
Non-written records: Cave paintings Burial sites Religious statuary Archeological remains Two primary sources: Contemporary basic religions Archeology © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Sources of Information Concerning Basic Religions
Contemporary Basic Religion An anthropologist visits a basic culture and studies its religions practices and beliefs That study allows for inferences about ancient cultures’ beliefs and practices What did Bishop Codrington’s study of the Melanesian people teach him? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Prehistoric Beginnings of Basic Religions
Neanderthal Religion Neanderthal is the earliest hominid with evidence of a religion The Neanderthal buried their dead The remains of animals and stone tools were found in the grave sites Were those remains evidence of religious belief about the afterlife? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Prehistoric Beginnings of Basic Religions
Cro-Magnon Religion This precursor to homo sapiens also buried tools and weapons with the dead The most famous evidence of Cro-Magnon man are European cave paintings Possibly the paintings were made by priests to ensure a successful hunt That practice has been noted in contemporary basic religions © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Prehistoric Beginnings of Basic Religions
Neolithic Religion The development of agriculture greatly influenced early religion People were no longer nomadic and could live in larger groups How did the development of agriculture affect early people’s perceptions of nature? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Animism The world is alive with spirits or souls who influence nature and human life Everything (mountains, rocks, animals) has a spirit or anima All of nature is worshipped We still experience animism today Is a Christmas tree an expression of animism? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Magic Magicians in basic societies sought to control nature for the benefit of their people or the detriment of their enemies One theory is that the line between religion and magic is drawn by the intent of the practitioner Is that theory sound? Why or why not? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Magic Sympathetic of imaginative magic Most common form One attempts to coerce nature into some act by performing an act oneself on a smaller scale Fetish Any object used to control nature in a magical fashion What modern day fetishes can you think of? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Divination The prediction of the future This was usually the work of specially trained priests or priestesses, and was often done by studying the entrails of animals Shaman Originally meant one who was possessed by spirits and spoke their messages to the group © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Taboo To be avoided by the unordained Religions objects were generally not to be touched by ordinary people who were not priests For example, in basic societies, one does not touch the chief or enter sacred places without fear Does our modern society have any taboos? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Totems Totemism is based on the feeling of kinship that human beings have with other creatures or objects in nature It involves the identification of a tribe or clan with an animal (and sometimes a plant or celestial body) Totemism is still used in modern society in national emblems and sports teams © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Sacrifice Sacrifice is one of the most common practices in basic religions Sacrifices can be made to spirits, animals, nature, or the ancestors Sacrifices to the ancestors is called ancestor veneration Sacrifices generally involve an item of value © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Sacrifice Sacrifice can have various meanings It can be used to feed the spirits or ancestors with sacrifices of food or drink It can simply be a gift to the spirit world of items like tools or weapons Sacrifice implies a communal bond between the human and spirit world. The bond is strengthened with each sacrifice. © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Myth One of the most common characteristics for all religions – basic and modern – is myth The modern usage of myth connotes a false belief The religious use of myth relates to stories about the dealings of the gods with humans Religious myths are used to explain the how and why in the world What are some common religious myths? © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Rituals Rituals are rites or ceremonies and can be complex or simple Ex. Mealtime prayers are a form of ritual Rituals often reenact mythologies using religious figures and costumes By acting out myths, the devotees of a religion identify with the divine characters and their actions © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Rites of Passage Rites of passage celebrate key transitional moments in the life of an individual Birth Puberty Marriage Death Rites recall the myths of the culture and symbolize separation from a former status © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Rites of Passage Birth Ceremonies surrounding birth identify the child as a member of the community Ex. Circumcision, baptism The passage from childhood to adulthood is given the most attention Many puberty rites involve going through an ordeal to prove that they can now take care of themselves © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Ancestor Veneration The worship of deceased relatives Some scholars theorized that early people dreamed of their dead relatives and then came to believe that the dead were still a part of the world In that way, ancestor veneration became the first step in creating a religion © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Common Features of Basic Religions
Ancestor Veneration In some societies, the people feared the evil that the dead might do and took steps to prevent the dead from returning from their graves But many societies believe that the dead can also benefit the living By pleasing the dead, some cultures hope to seek favors from them © Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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