Everything about The Anthropology Of Religion totally explained
The
anthropology of religion involves the study of religious institutions in relation to other social institutions, and the comparison of religious beliefs and practices across
cultures.
History
In 1841,
Ludwig Feuerbach was the first to state the anthropologic principle that every religion is created by the human community that worships it.
In 1912
Émile Durkheim, building on Feuerbach, considered religion as "a projection of the social values of society," "a means of making
symbolic statements about society," "a symbolic language that makes statements about the social order"; in short, "religion is society worshiping itself".
In order to determine the reasons for the importance of religion, however, anthropologists generally move beyond the literal claims of any religion to look at its metaphorical meaning or latent social functions.
Definition of religion
One major problem in the anthropology of religion is the definition of religion itself. At one time anthropologists believed that certain religious practices and beliefs were more or less universal to all cultures at some point in their development, such as a belief in spirits or
ghosts, the use of
magic as a means of controlling the
supernatural, the use of
divination as a means of discovering occult knowledge, and the performance of
rituals such as
prayer and
sacrifice as a means of influencing the outcome of various events through a supernatural agency, sometimes taking the form of
shamanism or
ancestor worship. According to Clifford Geertz, religion is a system of symbols, beliefs, and patterns of behaviors by which human beings control that which is beyond their control. Today, anthropologists debate, and many reject, the cross-cultural validity of these categories (often viewing them as examples of European
primitivism). Anthropologists have considered various criteria for defining religion – such as a belief in the supernatural or the reliance on ritual – but few claim that these criteria are universally valid.
In Western culture, religion has become more or less synonymous with
monotheism and the various
moral codes that monotheism prescribes.
Moral codes have also evolved in conjunction with
Hindu and
Buddhist beliefs, independent of
monotheism. However, prescriptive moral codes or even normative
ethical codes are not a necessary component of religious beliefs or practices any more than they're a necessary component of science and the scientific method.
Anthony F.C. Wallace proposes four categories of religion, each subsequent category subsuming the previous. These are, however, synthetic categories and don't necessarily encompass all religions.
- Individualistic: most basic; simplest. Example: vision quest.
- Shamanistic: part-time religious practitioner, uses religion to heal, to divine, usually on the behalf of a client. The Tillamook have four categories of shaman. Examples of shamans: spiritualists, faith healers, palm readers. One who has acquired religious authority through one's own means.
- Communal: elaborate set of beliefs and practices; group of people arranged in clans by lineage, age group, or some religious societies; people take on roles based on knowledge.
- Ecclesiastical: Most complex. Incorporates elements of the previous three.
Specific religious practices and beliefs
Further Information
Get more info on 'Anthropology Of Religion'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://anthropology_of_religion.totallyexplained.com">Anthropology of religion Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
