What did ancient people believe to exist? What did ancient people believe?

Today, dear friends, the subject of our article will be ancient religions. We will plunge into the mysterious world of the Sumerians and Egyptians, get acquainted with fire worshipers and learn the meaning of the word “Buddhism”. You will also find out where religion came from and when man’s first thoughts about

Read carefully, because today we will talk about the path that humanity has taken from primitive beliefs to modern temples.

What is "religion"

A very long time ago, people began to think about questions that cannot be explained only by earthly experience. For example, where are we from? Who created the trees, mountains, seas? These and many other tasks remained unanswered.

The solution was found in animation and worship of phenomena, landscape objects, animals and plants. It is this approach that distinguishes all ancient religions. We will talk about them in more detail below.

The term “religion” itself comes from Latin. This concept means a worldview that includes higher powers, moral and ethical laws, a system of cult activities and specific organizations.

Some modern beliefs do not meet all points. They cannot be defined as "religion". Buddhism, for example, is more likely to be classified as a philosophical movement.

Before the emergence of philosophy, it was religion that dealt with issues of good and evil, morality and ethics, the meaning of life and many others. Also, since ancient times, a special social stratum has emerged - the priests. These are modern priests, preachers, missionaries. They not only deal with the problem of “saving the soul,” but they represent a fairly influential state institution.

So, where did it all begin? Now we will talk about the emergence of the first thoughts about a higher nature and supernatural things in the environment.

Primitive beliefs

We know about beliefs from rock paintings and burials. In addition, some tribes still live at Stone Age levels. Therefore, ethnographers can study and describe their worldview and cosmology. It is from these three sources that we know about ancient religions.

Our ancestors began to separate the real world from the other world more than forty thousand years ago. It was at this time that such a type of person as the Cro-Magnon man, or homo sapiens, appeared. In fact, he is no different from modern people.

Before him there were Neanderthals. They existed for about sixty thousand years before the Cro-Magnons appeared. It was in the burials of Neanderthals that ocher and grave goods were first found. These are symbols of purification and materials for posthumous life in the other world.

Gradually, the belief is formed that all objects, plants, animals have a spirit within them. If you can appease the spirits of the stream, there will be a good catch. The spirits of the forest will give you a successful hunt. And the appeased spirit of a fruit tree or field will help with a bountiful harvest.

The consequences of these beliefs have persisted through the centuries. Is this why we still talk to instruments, machines and other things, hoping that they will hear us and the problem will go away by itself?

As animism developed, totemism, fetishism and shamanism appeared. The first involves the belief that each tribe has its own "totem", protector and progenitor. A similar belief is inherent in tribes at the next stage of development.

Among them are Indians and some other tribes from different continents. An example is the ethnonyms - the tribe of the Great Buffalo or the Wise Muskrat.

This also includes cults of sacred animals, taboos, etc.

Fetishism is the belief in a superpower that certain things can bestow upon us. This includes amulets, talismans and other items. They are designed to protect a person from evil influence or, conversely, contribute to the successful course of events.
Any unusual thing that stood out from among similar things could become a fetish.

For example, a stone from a sacred mountain or an unusual bird feather. Later, this belief is mixed with the cult of ancestors, and amulets dolls begin to appear. Subsequently they turn into anthropomorphic gods.

Therefore, the dispute about which religion is older cannot be resolved unambiguously. Gradually, fragments of primitive beliefs and everyday experience were assembled among different peoples. From such a plexus more complex forms of spiritual concepts arise.

Magic

When we mentioned ancient religions, we talked about shamanism, but did not discuss it. This is a more developed form of belief. It includes not only fragments from other worships, but also implies the ability of a person to influence the invisible world.

Shamans, according to the belief of the rest of the tribe, can communicate with spirits and help people. These include healing rituals, invocations of good luck, requests for victory in battle, and spells for a good harvest.

This practice still persists in Siberia, Africa and some other less developed regions. Voodoo culture can be mentioned as a transitional part from simple shamanism to more complex magic and religion.

There are already gods in it who are responsible for various spheres of human life. In Latin America, African images are superimposed on the properties of Catholic saints. This unusual tradition sets the voodoo cult apart from similar magical movements.

When mentioning the emergence of ancient religions, it is impossible to ignore magic. This is the highest form of primitive beliefs. Gradually becoming more complex, shamanic rituals incorporate experience from different areas of knowledge. Rituals are created that are designed to make some people stronger than others. It was believed that after undergoing initiation and receiving secret (esoteric) knowledge, magicians become practically demigods.

What is a magical ritual? This is a symbolic execution of the desired action with the best outcome. For example, warriors dance a war dance, attack an imaginary enemy, and suddenly a shaman appears in the form of a tribal totem and helps his children destroy the enemy. This is the most primitive form of the ritual.

More complex rituals are described in special books of spells, which have been known since ancient times. These include books of the dead, witches' books of spirits, Keys of Solomon and other grimoires.

Thus, over several tens of thousands of years, beliefs have gone from the worship of animals and trees to the veneration of personified phenomena or human properties. They are the ones we call gods.

Sumerian-Akkadian civilization

Next we will consider some ancient religions of the East. Why do we start with them? Because the first civilizations arose in this territory.
So, according to archaeologists, the oldest settlements are found within the “fertile crescent”. These are lands belonging to the Middle East and Mesopotamia. It is here that the states of Sumer and Akkad arise. We will talk about their beliefs further.

The religion of ancient Mesopotamia is known to us from archaeological finds on the territory of modern Iraq. Some literary monuments of that period have also been preserved. For example, the tale of Gilgamesh.

A similar epic was recorded on clay tablets. They were found in ancient temples and palaces and later deciphered. So, what do we know from them?
The most ancient myth tells about the old gods who personify water, sun, moon and earth. They gave birth to young heroes who began to make noise. For this, the originals decided to get rid of them. But the sky god Ea figured out the insidious plan and was able to put his father Abuz to sleep, who became the ocean.

The second myth tells of the rise of Marduk. It was written, apparently, during the subjugation of the remaining city-states by Babylon. After all, it was Marduk who was the supreme deity and guardian of this city.

The legend says that Tiamat (primary chaos) decided to attack the “heavenly” gods and destroy them. She won several battles and the originals became “despondent.” In the end, they decided to send Marduk to fight Tiamat, who successfully completed the task. He chopped up the body of the defeated woman. From its different parts he made the sky, the earth, Mount Ararat, the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

Thus, Sumerian-Akkadian beliefs become the first step towards the formation of an institution of religion, when the latter becomes an important part of the state.

Ancient Egypt

Egypt became the successor to the Sumerian religion. His priests were able to continue the work of the Babylonian priests. They developed sciences such as arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy. Stunning examples of spells, hymns, and sacred architecture were also created. The tradition of posthumous mummification of noble people and pharaohs has become unique.

The rulers of this period of history begin to proclaim themselves the sons of the gods and, in fact, the inhabitants of heaven themselves. The next stage of the religion of the ancient world is built on the basis of such a worldview. A tablet from the Babylonian palace speaks of the ruler's initiation received from Marduk. The texts of the pyramids illustrate not only the chosenness of the pharaohs by God, but also show a direct family connection.

However, such veneration of the pharaohs was not from the very beginning. It appeared only after the conquest of the surrounding lands and the creation of a strong state with a powerful army. Before this, there was a pantheon of gods, which subsequently changed a little, but retained its main features.

So, as stated in Herodotus’s work “History”, the religion of the ancient Egyptians included rituals dedicated to different seasons, the worship of deities and special rituals designed to strengthen the country’s position in the world.

Egyptian myths tell of the goddess of the sky and the god of the earth, who gave birth to everything that surrounds us. These people believed that the sky was Nut, standing above Geb, the god of the earth. She touches him only with the tips of her fingers and toes. Every evening she eats the sun, and every morning she gives birth to him again.

The main deity in the early period of Ancient Egypt was Ra, the sun god. Later he lost the championship to Osiris.

The legend of Isis, Osiris and Horus later formed the basis of many myths about the murdered and resurrected savior.

Zoroastrianism

As we mentioned at the beginning, the religion of ancient people attributed powerful properties to various elements and objects. This belief was preserved by the ancient Persians. Neighboring peoples called them “fire worshipers”, as they especially revered this phenomenon.

This is one of the first world religions that had its own Holy Scripture. This did not happen either in Sumer or in Egypt. There were only scattered books of spells and hymns, myths and recommendations for mummification. In Egypt, it is true, there was a book of the dead, but it cannot be called Scripture.

In Zoroastrianism there is a prophet - Zarathushtra. He received the scripture (Avesta) from the supreme god Ahura Mazda.

The basis of this religion is freedom of moral choice. Man fluctuates every second between evil (personified by Angro Manyu or Ahriman) and good (Ahura Mazda or Hormuz). The Zoroastrians called their religion “Good Faith” and called themselves “believers.”

The ancient Persians believed that man was given reason and conscience in order to correctly determine his side in the spiritual world. The main tenets were helping others and supporting those in need. The main prohibitions are violence, robbery and theft.
The goal of any Zoroastrian was to achieve good thoughts, words and deeds at the same time.

Like many other ancient religions of the East, the “Good Faith” ultimately proclaimed the victory of good over evil. But Zoroastrianism is the first creed in which such concepts as heaven and hell are found.

They were called fire worshipers for the special reverence they showed to fire. But this element was considered the crudest manifestation of Ahura Mazda. The faithful considered sunlight to be the main symbol of the supreme god in our world.

Buddhism

Buddhism has long been a popular religion in East Asia. Translated into Russian from Sanskrit, this word means “the teaching of spiritual awakening.” Its founder is considered to be Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who lived in India in the sixth century BC. The term “Buddhism” appeared only in the nineteenth century, but the Hindus themselves called it “dharma” or “Boddhidharma”.

Today it is one of the three world religions, which is considered the most ancient of them. Buddhism permeates the cultures of the peoples of East Asia, so it is possible to understand the Chinese, Hindus, Tibetans and many others only after becoming familiar with the basics of this religion.

The main ideas of Buddhism are the following:
- life is suffering;
- suffering (dissatisfaction) has a reason;
- there is an opportunity to get rid of suffering;
- there is a way to deliverance.

These postulates are called the four noble truths. And the path that leads to getting rid of dissatisfaction and frustration is called “Eightfold”.
It is believed that the Buddha came to these conclusions after seeing the troubles of the world and sitting for many years under a tree in meditation on the question of why people suffer.

Today this belief is considered a philosophical movement, not a religion. The reasons for this are:
- in Buddhism there is no concept of God, soul and redemption;
- there is no organization, uniform dogmas and unconditional devotion to the idea;
- its adherents believe that there are an infinite number of worlds;
- besides this, you can belong to any religion and be guided by the principles of Buddhism, this is not prohibited here.

Antiquity

By adherents of Christianity and other monotheistic beliefs, people's first worship of nature is called paganism. Therefore, we can say that it is the oldest world religion. Now we will move from India to the Mediterranean coast.

Here, during the period of antiquity, Greek and Roman cultures were especially developed. If you look closely at the pantheons of ancient gods, they are practically interchangeable and equivalent. Often the only difference is the name of one character or another.

It is also noteworthy that this religion of the ancient gods identified the celestial beings with people. If we read ancient Greek and Roman myths, we will see that immortals are just as petty, jealous and self-interested as humanity. They help those they favor and can be bribed. The gods, angry over a trifle, can destroy an entire people.

Nevertheless, it was precisely this approach to understanding the world that helped shape modern values. On the basis of such frivolous relationships with higher powers, philosophy and many sciences were able to develop. If we compare antiquity with the era of the Middle Ages, it becomes clear that freedom of expression is more valuable than the inculcation of the “true faith.”

The ancient gods lived on Mount Olympus, which is located in Greece. Also, people then inhabited forests, ponds and mountains with spirits. It was this tradition that later resulted in European gnomes, elves and other fairy-tale creatures.

Abrahamic religions

Today we divide historical time into the period before and after the birth of Christ. Why did this particular event become so important? In the Middle East, the ancestor is considered to be a man named Abraham. It is spoken about in the Torah, the Bible and the Koran. He spoke about monotheism for the first time. About what the religions of the ancient world did not recognize.

The table of religions shows that the Abrahamic faiths have the largest number of adherents today.

The main movements are Judaism, Christianity and Islam. They appeared in the order listed. Judaism is considered the most ancient, it appeared somewhere in the ninth century BC. Then Christianity appeared around the first century, and Islam appeared in the sixth century.

However, these religions alone have given rise to countless wars and conflicts. Intolerance towards people of other faiths is a distinctive feature of adherents of Abrahamic faiths.

Although if you carefully read the Scriptures, they talk about love and mercy. Only the laws of the early Middle Ages described in these books are confusing. The problem begins when fanatics want to apply outdated dogmas to a modern society that has already changed significantly.

Due to disagreements between the text of books and the behavior of believers, different currents arose over the centuries. They interpreted the Scriptures in their own way, which led to “wars of faith.”

Today the problem has not been completely solved, but the methods have improved a little. Modern “new churches” are more aimed at the inner world of the flock and the priest’s wallet than at conquering heretics.

Ancient religion of the Slavs

Today on the territory of the Russian Federation one can find both the most ancient forms of religion and monotheistic movements. However, who did our ancestors originally worship?

The religion of Ancient Rus' today is called the term “paganism”. This is a Christian concept meaning the faiths of other peoples. Over time, it took on a slightly derogatory connotation.

Today, attempts are being made to restore ancient beliefs in different countries of the world. Europeans, reconstructing the faith of the Celts, call their actions "tradition". In Russia, the names “relatives”, “Slavic-Aryans”, “Rodnovers” and others are accepted.

What materials and sources help restore bit by bit the worldview of the ancient Slavs? Firstly, these are literary monuments, such as “The Book of Veles” and “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”. Some rituals, names and attributes of various gods are mentioned there.

In addition, there are quite a lot of archaeological finds that clearly illustrate the cosmogony of our ancestors.

The supreme gods were different for different tribes. Over time, Perun, the god of thunder, and Veles stand out. Rod also often appears in the role of progenitor. Places of worship of deities were called “temples” and were located in forests or on river banks. Wooden and stone sculptures were placed on them. People came there to pray and make sacrifices.

Thus, dear readers, today we have become acquainted with such a concept as religion. In addition, we got acquainted with various ancient beliefs.

Good luck, friends. Be tolerant of each other!

For many hundreds of thousands of years, primitive man did not know religion. The beginnings of religious beliefs appeared among people only at the end of the Old Stone Age, that is, no earlier than 50-40 thousand years ago. Scientists learned about this from archaeological sites: sites and burials of primitive man, preserved cave paintings. Scientists have not found any traces of religion dating back to an earlier period in the history of primitive mankind. Religion could only arise when human consciousness had already developed so much that he began to attempt to explain the causes of those natural phenomena that he encountered in his everyday life. Observing various natural phenomena: the change of day and night, seasons, the growth of plants, the reproduction of animals and much more, man could not give them a correct explanation. His knowledge was still insignificant. The tools of labor are imperfect. Man in those days was helpless before nature and its elements. Incomprehensible and menacing phenomena, illness, death instilled anxiety and horror in the minds of our distant ancestors. Gradually, people began to develop faith in supernatural forces supposedly capable of causing these phenomena. This was the beginning of the formation of religious ideas.

“Religion arose in the most primitive times from the most ignorant, dark, primitive ideas of people about their own and about the external nature around them,” wrote Engels.

One of the earliest forms of religion was totemism - the idea that all members of one genus descend from a specific animal - the totem. Sometimes a plant or some object was considered a totem. At that time, the main source of food was hunting. This was reflected in the beliefs of primitive people. People believed that they were related to their totem by blood. According to them, a totem animal, if it wants, can turn into a person. The cause of death was seen as the reincarnation of a person into a totem. The animal, which was considered a totem, was sacred - it could not be killed. Subsequently, the totem animal was allowed to be killed and eaten, but the head, heart and liver were prohibited from being eaten. When killing a totem, people asked him for forgiveness or tried to blame him on someone else. Remnants of totemism are found in the religions of many peoples of the ancient East. In ancient Egypt, for example, they worshiped the bull, jackal, goat, crocodile and other animals. From ancient times to the present day, tigers, monkeys, and cows have been considered sacred animals in India. The indigenous people of Australia at the time of its discovery by Europeans also believed in the kinship of each tribe with some animal, which was considered a totem. If an Australian belonged to the kangaroo totem, then he would say about this animal: “This is my brother.” The genus that belonged to the totem of the bat or frog was called the “genus of the Bat”, “the genus of the Frog”.

Another form of primitive religion was magic, or witchcraft. This was the belief that a person could allegedly influence nature with various “miraculous” techniques and spells. Paintings on cave walls and stucco figures have reached us, often depicting animals pierced with spears and bleeding. Sometimes spears, spear throwers, hunting fences and nets are drawn next to the animals. Obviously, primitive people believed that the image of a wounded animal helps in a successful hunt. In the Montespan cave, discovered by the outstanding cave explorer N. Casteret in 1923 in the Pyrenees, a headless figure of a bear sculpted from clay was discovered. The figure is riddled with round holes, probably marks from darts. Around the bear there are human footprints on the clay floor. A similar discovery was made in the Tuc d’Auduber cave (France). Two clay sculptures of bison were discovered there, and around them, prints of bare feet also survived.

Scientists suggest that in these caves, primitive hunters performed magical dances and spells to bewitch the animal. They believed that the enchanted animal would allow itself to be killed. The same magical rituals were performed by the North American Indians of the Mandan tribe. Before hunting for bison, for several days they performed magical dances - the “buffalo dance”. The dance participants, holding weapons in their hands, wore buffalo skins and masks. The dance depicted hunting. From time to time one of the dancers pretended to fall, then the others shot an arrow or threw spears in his direction.

When a bison was “hit” in this way, everyone surrounded it and, waving knives, pretended to skin it and dismember the carcass.

“Let the living beast be pierced with a spear in the same way as this image of him was pierced or as this skull of his was pierced” - this is the essence of primitive magic.

Painted pebbles of the Mae d'Azil cave.

A new form of religion gradually developed - the cult of nature. Man's superstitious fear of formidable nature evoked a desire to somehow appease it. Man began to worship the sun, earth, water, and fire. In his imagination, man has populated all nature with “spirits.” This form of religious ideas is called animism (from the Latin word “animus” - spirit). Primitive people explained sleep, fainting, and death by the departure of the “spirit” (“soul”) from the body. Associated with animism is the belief in an afterlife and the cult of ancestors. The burials speak about this: along with the deceased, his things were placed in the grave - jewelry, weapons, as well as food supplies. According to primitive people, all this should have been useful to the deceased in his “afterlife.”

An interesting discovery was made by archaeologists in 1887 during excavations in the Mae d'Azil cave in the foothills of the Pyrenees. They discovered a large number of ordinary river pebbles covered with designs made with red paint. The drawings were simple, but varied. These are combinations of dots, ovals, dashes, crosses, herringbones, zigzags, lattices, etc. Some designs resembled letters of the Latin and Greek alphabets.

It is unlikely that archaeologists would have unraveled the mystery of the pebbles if they had not found similarities with similar drawings on stones of the Australian Arunta tribe, which was at a very low stage of development. The Arunta had warehouses of painted pebbles or pieces of wood called churingas. The Arunta believed that after a person dies, his “soul” moves into stone. Each Arunta had his own churinga, the seat of the soul of his ancestor, whose properties he inherited. The people of this tribe believed that every person from birth to death is connected with his churinga. The churingas of the living and dead Australians of the Arunta tribe were kept in caves with a walled entrance, known only to the old people, who treated the churinga with special attention. From time to time they counted the churingas, rubbed them with red ocher - the color of life, in a word, treated them as objects of religious worship.

The words “spirit” or “soul” in the minds of primitive people were associated with the animation of all nature. Gradually, religious ideas about the spirits of the earth, sun, thunder, lightning, and vegetation developed. Later, on this basis, a myth arose about dying and resurrecting gods.

With the disintegration of the primitive community, the emergence of classes and slave states, new forms of religious ideas appeared. Among the spirits and deities, people began to identify the main ones, to whom the rest obey. Myths arose about the kinship of kings with the gods. Professional priests and ministers of worship appeared in the ruling elite of society, who used religion in the interests of the exploiters as a weapon of oppression of the working people.

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The Origin of Primitive Religions

Simplest forms religious beliefs existed already 40 thousand years ago. It was at this time that the appearance of the modern type (homo sapiens) dates back, which differed significantly from its supposed predecessors in physical structure, physiological and psychological characteristics. But his most important difference was that he was a reasonable person, capable of abstract thinking.

The existence of religious beliefs in this remote period of human history is evidenced by the burial practices of primitive people. Archaeologists have established that they were buried in specially prepared places. At the same time, certain rituals were previously carried out to prepare the dead for the afterlife. Their bodies were covered with a layer of ocher, weapons, household items, jewelry, etc. were placed next to them. Obviously, at that time religious and magical ideas were already taking shape that the deceased continues to live, that Along with the real world there is another world where the dead live.

Religious beliefs of primitive man reflected in the works rock and cave paintings, which were discovered in the 19th-20th centuries. in Southern France and Northern Italy. Most ancient rock paintings are scenes of hunting, images of people and animals. Analysis of the drawings allowed scientists to conclude that primitive man believed in a special kind of connection between people and animals, as well as in the ability to influence the behavior of animals using some magical techniques.

Finally, it was found that among primitive people there was widespread veneration of various objects that were supposed to bring good luck and ward off danger.

Nature Worship

Religious beliefs and cults of primitive people developed gradually. The primary form of religion was the worship of nature. The primitive peoples did not know the concept of “nature”; the object of their worship was the impersonal natural force, designated by the concept of “mana”.

Totemism

Totemism should be considered an early form of religious views.

Totemism- belief in a fantastic, supernatural relationship between a tribe or clan and a totem (plant, animal, object).

Totemism is the belief in the existence of a family connection between a group of people (tribe, clan) and a certain species of animals or plants. Totemism was the first form of awareness of the unity of the human collective and its connection with the outside world. The life of the clan was closely connected with certain types of animals that its members hunted.

Subsequently, within the framework of totemism, a whole system of prohibitions arose, which were called taboo. They represented an important mechanism for regulating social relations. Thus, the gender and age taboo excluded sexual relations between close relatives. Food taboos strictly regulated the nature of the food that was supposed to go to the leader, warriors, women, old people and children. A number of other taboos were intended to guarantee the inviolability of the home or hearth, regulate the rules of burial, and fix positions in the group, the rights and responsibilities of members of the primitive collective.

Magic

Magic is one of the earliest forms of religion.

Magic- the belief that a person has supernatural power, which is manifested in magical rituals.

Magic is a belief that arose among primitive people in the ability to influence any natural phenomena through certain symbolic actions (incantations, spells, etc.).

Having originated in ancient times, magic was preserved and continued to develop over many millennia. If initially magical ideas and rituals were of a general nature, then gradually their differentiation occurred. Modern experts classify magic according to the methods and purposes of influence.

Types of magic

Types of magic by methods of influence:

• contact (direct contact of the bearer of magical power with the object at which the action is directed), initial (magical act directed at an object that is inaccessible to the subject of magical activity);
• partial (indirect influence through cut hair, legs, leftover food, which in one way or another reaches the owner of the mating power);
• imitative (impact on some semblance of a specific subject).

Types of magic socially oriented and impact goals:

• harmful (causing damage);
• military (a system of rituals aimed at ensuring victory over the enemy);
• love (aimed at invoking or destroying sexual desire: lapel, love spell);
• medicinal;
• commercial (aimed at achieving success in the process of hunting or fishing);
• meteorological (weather changes in the desired direction);

Magic is sometimes called primitive science or pre-science because it contained elementary knowledge about the surrounding world and natural phenomena.

Fetishism

Among primitive people, the veneration of various objects that were supposed to bring good luck and ward off danger was of particular importance. This form of religious belief is called "fetishism".

Fetishism- the belief that a certain object has supernatural powers.

Any object that captured a person’s imagination could become a fetish: a stone of an unusual shape, a piece of wood, an animal skull, a metal or clay product. This object was attributed properties that were not inherent to it (the ability to heal, protect from danger, help in hunting, etc.).

Most often, the object that became a fetish was chosen by trial and error. If after this choice a person managed to achieve success in practical activities, he believed that the fetish helped him in this, and kept it for himself. If a person suffered any misfortune, then the fetish was thrown out, destroyed or replaced by another. This treatment of fetishes suggests that primitive people did not always treat the object they chose with due respect.

Animism

Speaking about early forms of religion, one cannot fail to mention Obanimism.

Animism- belief in the existence of souls and spirits.

Being at a fairly low level of development, primitive people tried to find protection from various diseases and natural disasters, endowing nature and surrounding objects on which existence depended with supernatural powers and worshiping them, personifying them as the spirits of these objects.

It was believed that all natural phenomena, objects and people have a soul. Souls could be evil and benevolent. Sacrifice was practiced in favor of these spirits. Belief in spirits and the existence of the soul continues in all modern religions.

Animistic beliefs are a very significant part of almost everyone. Belief in spirits, evil spirits, an immortal soul - all these are modifications of the animistic ideas of the primitive era. The same can be said of other early forms of religious belief. Some of them were assimilated by the religions that replaced them, others were pushed into the sphere of everyday superstitions and prejudices.

Shamanism

Shamanism- the belief that an individual (shaman) has supernatural abilities.

Shamanism arises at a later stage of development, when people with a special social status appear. Shamans were the keepers of information that was of great importance for a given clan or tribe. The shaman performed a ritual called ritual (a ritual with dances and songs, during which the shaman communicated with spirits). During the ritual, the shaman allegedly received instructions from the spirits about ways to solve a problem or treat the sick.

Elements of shamanism are present in modern religions. For example, priests are credited with a special power that allows them to turn to God.

In the early stages of the development of society, primitive forms of religious beliefs did not exist in their pure form. They intertwined with each other in the most bizarre way. Therefore, it is hardly possible to raise the question of which form arose earlier and which later.

The considered forms of religious beliefs can be found among all peoples at the primitive stage of development. As social life becomes more complex, forms of cult become more diverse and require closer study.

Modern and primitive religions are humanity’s belief that some higher powers control not only people, but also various processes in the Universe. This is especially true for ancient cults, since at that time the development of science was weak. Man could not explain this or that phenomenon in any other way other than divine intervention. Often this approach to understanding the world led to tragic consequences (the Inquisition, the burning of scientists at the stake, and so on).

There was also a period of coercion. If a person did not accept a belief, then he was tortured and tormented until he changed his point of view. Today, the choice of religion is free, people have the right to independently choose their worldview.

Which religion is the most ancient?

The emergence of primitive religions dates back to a long period, approximately 40-30 thousand years ago. But which belief came first? Scientists have different points of view on this matter. Some believe that this happened when people began to perceive each other’s souls, others - with the advent of witchcraft, and others took the worship of animals or objects as a basis. But the very origin of religion itself represents a large complex of beliefs. It is difficult to give priority to any of them, since there is no necessary data. The information that archaeologists, researchers and historians receive is not enough.

It is impossible not to take into account the distribution of the first beliefs throughout the planet, which forces us to conclude that attempts to search for each tribe that existed at that time had its own object of worship were illegitimate.

We can only say with certainty that the first and subsequent basis of every religion is belief in the supernatural. However, it is expressed differently everywhere. Christians, for example, worship their God, who has no flesh but is omnipresent. It's supernatural. in turn, they plan their own Gods from wood. If they don’t like something, they can cut or pierce their patron with a needle. This is also supernatural. Therefore, every modern religion has its own ancient “ancestor”.

When did the first religion appear?

Initially, primitive religions and myths were closely intertwined. In modern times it is impossible to find an interpretation for some events. The fact is that they tried to tell them to their descendants with the help of mythology, embellishing and/or expressing themselves too figuratively.

However, the question of when beliefs arise is still relevant today. Archaeologists claim that the first religions appeared after homo sapiens. Excavations, the burials of which date back to 80 thousand years ago, definitely indicate that he did not think about other worlds at all. People were simply buried and that was all. There is no evidence that this process was accompanied by rituals.

Weapons, food and some household items are found in later graves (burials made 30-10 thousand years ago). This means that people began to think of death as a long sleep. When a person wakes up, and this must happen, it is necessary that the essentials be near him. People buried or burned took on an invisible, ghostly form. They became peculiar guardians of the clan.

There was also a period without religions, but very little is known about it to modern scientists.

Reasons for the emergence of the first and subsequent religions

Primitive religions and their characteristics are very similar to modern beliefs. Various religious cults have acted for thousands of years in their own and state interests, exerting a psychological impact on their flock.

There are 4 main reasons for the emergence of ancient beliefs, and they are no different from modern ones:

1. Intelligence. A person needs an explanation for any event that happens in his life. And if he cannot obtain it thanks to his knowledge, then he will certainly receive a justification for what he observes through supernatural intervention.
2. Psychology. Life on earth is finite, and there is no way to resist death, at least for the moment. Therefore, a person must be freed from the fear of dying. Thanks to religion, this can be done quite successfully.
3. Morality. There is no society that would exist without rules and prohibitions. It is difficult to punish everyone who violates them. It is much easier to scare and prevent these actions. If a person is afraid of doing something bad, because supernatural forces will punish him, then the number of violators will significantly decrease.
4. Policy. To maintain the stability of any state, ideological support is required. And only one or another belief can provide it.

Thus, the emergence of religions can be taken for granted, since there are more than enough reasons for this.

Totemism

The types of religions of primitive man and their description should begin with totemism. Ancient people lived in groups. Most often these were families or their association. Alone, a person would not be able to provide himself with everything he needs. This is how the cult of animal worship appeared. Societies hunted animals to obtain food without which they could not survive. And the emergence of totemism is quite logical. This is how humanity paid tribute to its livelihood.

So, totemism is the belief that one family has a blood relationship with a particular animal or natural phenomenon. People saw them as patrons who helped, punished if necessary, resolved conflicts, and so on.

There are two features of totemism. Firstly, each member of the tribe had a desire to look like their animal. For example, some Africans knocked out their lower teeth to look like a zebra or antelope. Secondly, it could not be eaten unless the ritual was followed.

The modern descendant of totemism is Hinduism. Here some animals, most often the cow, are sacred.

Fetishism

It is impossible to consider primitive religions without taking into account fetishism. It represented the belief that some things have supernatural properties. Various objects were worshiped, passed from parents to children, always kept at hand, and so on.

Fetishism is often compared to magic. However, if it is present, it is in a more complex form. Magic helped to have an additional impact on some phenomenon, but did not in any way influence its occurrence.

Another feature of fetishism is that the objects were not worshipped. They were revered and treated with respect.

Magic and religion

Primitive religions could not do without the participation of magic. It is a set of rites and rituals, after which, it was believed, it became possible to control certain events and influence them in every possible way. Many hunters performed various ritual dances, which made the process of finding and killing the animal more successful.

Despite the apparent impossibility of magic, it is magic that forms the basis of most modern religions as a common element. For example, there is a belief that a rite or ritual (the sacrament of baptism, funeral service, and so on) has supernatural power. But it is also considered in a separate form, different from all beliefs. People tell fortunes with cards, call upon spirits, or do anything to see deceased ancestors.

Animism

Primitive religions could not do without the participation of the human soul. Ancient people thought about such concepts as death, sleep, experience, and so on. As a result of such thoughts, the belief arose that everyone has a soul. Later it was supplemented by the fact that only bodies die. The soul passes into another shell or exists independently in a separate other world. This is how animism appears, which is a belief in spirits, and it does not matter whether they belong to a person, an animal or a plant.

The peculiarity of this religion was that the soul could live indefinitely. After the body died, it broke out and calmly continued its existence, only in a different form.

Animism is also the ancestor of most modern religions. Ideas about immortal souls, gods and demons - all this is its basis. But animism also exists separately, in spiritualism, belief in ghosts, essences, and so on.

Shamanism

It is impossible to consider primitive religions without highlighting the clergy. This is most acutely visible in shamanism. As an independent religion, it appears much later than those discussed above, and represents the belief that an intermediary (shaman) can communicate with spirits. Sometimes these spirits were evil, but most often they were kind, giving advice. Shamans often became leaders of tribes or communities, because people understood that they were associated with supernatural forces. Therefore, if something happens, they will be able to protect them better than some king or khan, who is only capable of natural movements (weapons, troops, and so on).

Elements of shamanism are present in virtually all modern religions. Believers have a special attitude towards priests, mullahs or other clergy, believing that they are under the direct influence of higher powers.

Unpopular primitive religious beliefs

The types of primitive religions need to be supplemented with some beliefs that are not as popular as totemism or, for example, magic. These include the agricultural cult. Primitive people who practiced agriculture worshiped the gods of various cultures, as well as the earth itself. There were, for example, patrons of corn, beans, and so on.

The agricultural cult is well represented in modern Christianity. Here the Mother of God is represented as the patroness of bread, George - agriculture, the prophet Elijah - rain and thunder, and so on.

Thus, it will not be possible to briefly consider the primitive forms of religion. Every ancient belief exists to this day, even if it has actually lost its face. Rituals and sacraments, rituals and amulets - all these are parts of the faith of primitive man. And it is impossible in modern times to find a religion that does not have a strong direct connection with the most ancient cults.

Religion exists in different forms among all peoples of the Earth. But its original origins lie in such distant antiquity that only assumptions about them are possible. The discoveries of archaeologists dating back to the era of the Old Stone Age - Paleolithic, and the study of the religions of modern most backward peoples allow scientists to imagine the religion of primitive man. Religious beliefs and rituals reflected the helplessness of primitive man before the overwhelming forces of nature.

When did the beginnings of religious beliefs appear? Some scientists believe that they already existed among our Neanderthal ancestors, that is, at the end of the Lower Paleolithic. Others attribute the origin of religion to a much later time - the era of early class society. The solution to the question depends largely on how you look at the remains of Neanderthal burials and at various art monuments that were found by scientists in the caves of people of the Upper Paleolithic period.

Archaeologists know only a few dozen bones and skulls of Neanderthals. Many of them, for example those found in caves in France, Crimea, Central Asia, Italy, were clearly buried by human hands. Why did Neanderthals bury their dead? Most archaeologists believe that it is for superstitious reasons - believing that the dead person (or his soul) continues to live after death and must be neutralized so that he does not harm his relatives, or to make his afterlife easier. This assumption is plausible. But it is possible that everything was much simpler: Neanderthals were driven by instinctive neatness - the desire to get rid of a rotting corpse - and at the same time an unconscious attachment to a deceased relative - after all, they sometimes buried the body in a living cave. Funeral rites exist in our time even among the most backward peoples. They are also woven into Jewish, Christian, Muslim and other complex religions. These rituals are often associated with a belief either in the supernatural properties of the dead person, or in the fact that his soul continues to live after the death of the body.

Apparently funeral cult, that is, various rituals and beliefs associated with the burial of the dead can be considered one of the oldest forms of religion.

No less ancient, obviously, is another form of primitive religion - totemism. This is what science calls the belief in some mysterious connection between human groups (genus) and certain species of animals or plants. Totemic beliefs were most clearly preserved among the aborigines of Australia, who until the end of the 18th century. lived on their small continent almost completely cut off from the rest of the world. Australians lived in clan groups, each group called itself after an animal - a totem: Kangaroo, Snake, Raven, etc. People believed in their kinship with this animal, considered it their ancestor, or father, or older brother. They did not kill this “relative” of theirs, did not eat his meat, except for special solemn occasions, when religious rituals of “reproduction” of the totem were held and people ate a little of this sacred food with fear and trembling.

For a long time, many scientists could not explain such a strange form of primitive religion for us. But the latest research by foreign and especially Soviet scientists has shown the origins of totemic beliefs. Apparently, primitive hunters, who constantly lived among animals, sometimes dangerous, sometimes useful as prey, unwittingly transferred the relationship of consanguinity between people to animals - they simply did not know any other relationship.

Totemic beliefs originated in ancient times, at the dawn of the tribal system. When later, in the Neolithic era, tribal relations began to weaken and disintegrate, totemic ideas also began to weaken. The images of totemic animals - “ancestors” began to imperceptibly merge with the idea of ​​​​real human ancestors. However, remnants of totemism are also found among more developed peoples. They were also woven into complex religions: for example, many deities of the ancient Egyptian religion were represented in the images of half-animals, half-humans (the god Horus - with the head of a falcon, the goddess Hathor - with the head of a cow, the goddess Sokhmet - with the head of a lioness, etc.).

Close to totemism commercial cult. These are various rituals and beliefs associated with hunting and fishing. They are generated by the feeling of powerlessness of the primitive hunter in front of the harsh nature that surrounded him. Unsure of his own hunting skills, his fishing gear and weapons, the ancient hunter unconsciously sought to “replenish” (K. Marx’s expression) his strength by turning to witchcraft.

Some finds speak volumes about this. In several Lower Paleolithic caves discovered in Switzerland, Bavaria and other places, bones of a cave bear, which ancient people hunted, were found; the bones were laid in strict order between stone slabs, and one might think that some kind of witchcraft, “magical” rituals were performed over them. This is, however, debatable. But more expressive monuments of “trade magic” have been preserved from the Upper Paleolithic era. In the Montespan cave in the French Pyrenees, a headless figurine of a bear was found, molded from clay and covered with round holes. Apparently, this clay bear was stabbed with spears or darts in order to later hit the real bear more accurately. Two clay figurines of bison were also found in the French cave Tuc-d'Odubert. In both caves, the imprints of bare human feet are visible on the clay soil - as if ritual dances were being held there. In the Niau cave (also France), on the body of a bison painted on the wall, visible signs depicting spear tips. Apparently, the purpose of the design was also magical.

Our Upper Paleolithic ancestors were generally skilled draftsmen. On the walls of many caves where people lived at that time, especially in southern France and northern Spain, there are thousands of superbly executed realistic images of various animals, mainly wild horses and bison. Traces of magical rituals are rarely found on them. But there are quite a lot of drawings of either human figures, usually in some kind of masks and fantastic outfits, or bizarre figures of half-humans, half-beasts. Perhaps these are images of performers of some kind of witchcraft rituals.

And ethnographic data shows us how such rituals were performed. The Mandan Indian tribe lived in North America in the first half of the 19th century. mainly by hunting bison. The traveler artist George Catlin, who visited there in those years, said that if a herd of bison did not appear for a long time, the Mandans staged a witchcraft hunting dance to attract them. 10-15 hunters dressed up in buffalo skins with horns and tails and, holding a bow and arrows in their hands, danced in a circle. The dance continued sometimes for days, or even weeks. The dancers took turns: a tired dancer pretended to fall to the ground, another shot him with a blunt arrow from a bow, the rest rushed at the fallen one with knives, as if they were skinning him, and then dragged him out of the circle, and took his place. another. And on the surrounding hills there were sentinels, looking out for bison, and when they appeared, they gave a signal to the dancing hunters.

Such rituals were performed according to the rule of “imitative (imitative) magic”: like causes like. They believed that ritual imitation of hunting would bring success in real hunting,

In a later era, the trade cult took the form of veneration of “master spirits.” Thus, the peoples of northern Siberia believed that each animal has its own invisible “master” and, if the hunter manages to appease him, he will allow him to kill this animal. They also believed in the “masters” of individual areas, in the “masters” of the taiga, rivers, mountains, and seas; They tried to appease them all with sacrifices.

Belief in invisible “spirits” or “souls” is called animism (from the Latin word “anima”, “animus” - soul, spirit). They also believed in the evil spirits of disease - they were especially feared, since primitive man was powerless in the face of disease; they believed in the spirits of the dead, in spirits - assistants to shamans (shamans were people who were supposedly able to communicate with spirits and, with their help, drive away the spirits of illness, ward off all sorts of misfortunes and failures).

When our ancestors began - in the Neolithic era - to move from hunting and gathering to agriculture and raising domestic animals, their religious beliefs took on new forms. The ancient farmer, no less than the hunter, depended on the elemental forces of nature. A bountiful harvest could be followed by several lean years, and with them famine, and the primitive farmer turned to the help of mysterious supernatural forces. For example, the islanders of Melanesia, when planting edible yam tubers, usually buried stones of the same shape nearby in order to obtain tubers as large and hard as the stones.

To appease the cruel fertility deities, in many countries they sacrificed animals, and sometimes even humans.

The veneration of gods and goddesses - patrons of fertility, rituals and holidays in their honor are known among all agricultural peoples. This is the so-called agricultural cult.

With the collapse of the communal-tribal system, the increase in social inequality, and the exacerbation of class contradictions, religious ideas became more complicated. Former sorcerers and shamans became professional servants of the gods; gradually they became isolated into a hereditary caste of priests, which lived on income from their profession. Class state religions took shape, which once dominated in Egypt, Babylonia, Phenicia, Judea, Iran and other ancient states. In most countries they were subsequently supplanted or absorbed by the so-called world religions - Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. But these very complex religions also included many elements of ancient, primitive beliefs.