User:Muntuwandi/Origin of religion

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Religion is a phenomenom that is found in cultures around the world. Every religious system found among the various cultures has its own set of beliefs regarding the supernatural. However, recently a number of scholars, using modern scientific findings, have began to search for secular reasons as to how, when and why religion evolved.

Ancient religions adhered to by the majority of people today are a product of the "Axial Age" and subsequent historical development. The development of these world religions followed the increase in population densities in various parts of the world and the subsequent cultural changes associated with modern complex societies. The classical religions however, are rooted in the aboriginal or tribal religions such as animism, shamanism and ancestor worship.[1] By studying these belief systems found among early humans, scientists can make inferences about how religion evolved.

Since the bulk of human history is unrecorded, scientists have had to resort to indirect methods to learn about the social and spiritual behaviors of early humans. These indirect methods include studying the fossils and artifacts of ancient humans. Over long periods of time only a few materials fossilize. These include bones, stone artifacts, minerals and paintings. The fossil record of humans has yielded some of these materials and they are actively being studied. Using these remains, scientists have produced a variety of interpretations of early human behavior, but many of these interpretations remain controversial. However, at present these remains are the only evidence of any of the activities of early humans.

According to the Out of Africa hypothesis, scientists now believe that anatomically modern humans emerged less than 200,000 years ago[2], and around 50,000 years ago humans began dispersing out of Africa and proceeded to populate the rest of the world[3][4]. A variety of behavioral changes become apparent in the fossil record around 50,000 years ago that indicate human social behavior was becoming more sophisticated. These behaviors include works of art and ritual burial of the dead, traits generally associated with religious beliefs. This has led some scientists to suggest that, as a consequence of the age-area hypothesis, when humans began dispersing from Africa 50,000 years ago, all the traits characteristic of modern human behavior, including religion and language had evolved to their modern state.[5] For example, humans reached Australia around 46,000 years ago. Upon arrival they brought with them some of these complex behaviors such as ritual burial. Mungo Man is the oldest know fossil of a modern human outside of Africa and has been dated to around 42,000 years ago. Mungo man was found buried with copious amounts of Red ochre which scientists interpret is evidence of ritual burial. The use of Red Ochre is characteristic of early humans in Africa[6].

Other studies have involved the study of living animals in particular non-human primates to search for any clues or hints of social behavior that may have served as a foundation for religious behavior.

Contents

[edit] Primates

Some scholars have studied the behavior of living animals, in particular non-human primates, to search for any clues or hints of social behavior that may have served as a foundation for religious behavior.[7] [8]The great ape family includes humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans. Though not descended from these other apes, humans do share a common ancestor with them. Thus, scholars such as Barbara King have suggested that, while apes are not religious, they do exhibit behaviors that may have been required for religion to have evolved. These behaviors are associated with the complex social interactions seen among great apes and include include empathy, imagination and rule following.[7]She sites the incident involving Binti Jua, a gorilla at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago. When a 3 year old boy fell into the gorilla enclosure, she fended off the other gorillas and carried the boy to where the Zoo staff could easily retrieve him. This is cited as empathic behavior.[7][9][10] Another study involved macaques (although not great apes, macaques are in the same parvorder, Catarrhini) were trained to pull one chain in response to a light and another in response to a blue light, to obtain a food reward. After the monkeys had learned to pull the chain in order to obtain the reward, the device was rigged so that a macaque in an adjacent cage received an electric shock each time one of the chain was pulled. Most of the macaques stopped pulling the chain that delivered the shock, but consequently deprived themselves of a food reward.[11]

Mourning the dead is one trait that was once believed to be unique to humans. Chimpanzees are known to exhibit mournful behavior when a troupe member dies. Other animals such as Elephants also are known to mourn their dead.[12] Consequently scholars believe that these animals are conscious of the meanings of life and death, critical elements involved in the development of religion.[13]

[edit] Middle paleolithic

Though disputed, evidence suggests that the Neanderthals were the first homonids to intentionally bury the dead. It appears that the corpses were placed into shallow graves along with stone tools and animal bones. The presence of these grave goods may indicate an emotional connection with the deceased and possibly a belief in the afterlife.[14][15]. Neanderthal burial sites include Shanidar in Iraq, Kebara Cave in Israel and Krapina in Croatia.

These burials however have been disputed by other scholars who argue that the bodies may have been disposed of for other reasons other than intentional burial[16].

At middle stone age sites in Africa, increased use of Red Ochre by homo sapiens is noted around 100,000 years ago. Red Ochre is of little practical value to hunter gatherers and is thus thought to have symbolic meaning. Some argue that red has symbolic meaning in all cultures, symbolizing blood, sex, life and death[17][18].[19]

[edit] Behavioral modernity

See also: Behavioral modernity

Behavioral modernity is loosely defined as a list of traits that distinguish modern humans and their recent ancestors from both living primates and various fossil hominids. It is the point at which homo sapiens began to demonstrate its reliance on abstract thought and to express cultural creativity. These traits include the ability to create art, complex social behaviors such as trade, rituals and religion. As of 2004 many date its emergence to between 90,000 and 50,000 years ago, and place its origins in Africa. This is based largely on fossil record.[5]It has been reasoned that religion in its modern form would have emerged alongside behavioral modernity. For example Steve Mithen states,

"Many of the new behaviors I have been describing such as the anthropomorphic images, cave paintings and the burial of people with grave goods, suggest that these Upper Paleolithic people were the first to have beliefs in supernatural beings and possibly an afterlife. We are indeed seeing the first appearance of religious ideology"
"We cannot reconstruct the religious ideologies of the earliest Upper Paleolithic societies. But we can be confident that religious ideologies as complex as those of modern hunter gatherers came into being at the time of the Middle/Upper Paleolithic transition and have remained with us ever since."[20]

The manufacture and use of stone tools is one aspect of human behavior that distinguishes the human lineage from all other species. Though stone tools appear 2.5 million years ago, the technology changed very little for the next 2 million years throughout the era of homo erectus and the Neanderthals. Though anatomically modern humans first appear 200,000 years ago, their behavior, based on the fossil record, was largely indistinguishable from other hominids such as the Neanderthals since they used the same crude stone kit. However starting from about 100,000 years ago, evidence of more sophisticated behavior becomes more apparent. By 50,000 years ago full modern behavior is noted at sites in Africa and these are later fully expressed after 40,000 years ago in Europe during the period referred to as the Upper Paleolithic. For the first time a greater variety of stone tools are found that unlike previous generic tools, these tools were designed for specific purposes. For the first time bone is used as a material and humans begin fishing. Evidence of long distance trade also appears[5][21]

The first human artwork is believed to be a slab of ochre found at Blombos cave in South Africa and has been dated to 77,000 years ago[22]. Later in Europe a significant amount artwork is found dating to the upper paleolithic. The cave paintings of Chauvet have been dated to 32,000 and those at lascaux have been dated to 17,000 years ago. At Lascaux the anthropomorphic paintings show depictions of strange beasts such as ones that are half human and half bird. Consequently some have suggested that these are indications of shaministic beliefs.[7]

[edit] Neolithic religions

Main article: Neolithic religion

There are no extant textual sources from the Neolithic era, the most recent available dating from the Bronze Age, and therefore all statements about any belief systems Neolithic societies may have entertained are glimpsed from archaeology.

The archaeologist Marija Gimbutas has notably put forward views which describe a matriarchal "Old Europe" set of societies dominated by goddess worship, in particular postulating a bird goddess and a bear goddess. Gimbutas considered the Bronze Age Minoan civilization a native continuation of Neolithic Europe, with the labrys and bull worship continuing symbols of matristic power.


[edit] Language and religion

See also: origin of language and myth and religion

Science writer Nicholas Wade states:

"Like most behaviors that are found in societies throughout the world, religion must have been present in the ancestral human population before the dispersal from Africa 50,000 years ago. Although religious rituals usually involve dance and music, they are also very verbal, since the sacred truths have to be stated. If so, religion, at least in its modern form, cannot pre-date the emergence of language. It has been argued earlier that language attained its modern state shortly before the exodus from Africa. If religion had to await the evolution of modern, articulate language, then it too would have emerged shortly before 50,000 years ago.[23][24]

Some scholars suggest that these complex behaviors must have been achieved with the use of fully modern language. There is still some debate on whether language and behavioral modernity occurred suddenly or whether these traits were continuously evolving. Those in favor of the sudden occurrence include scholars such as Richard G. Klein, who believe that a genetic mutation that occurred just before 50,000 years ago largely responsible for modern language. He argues that the abundance of fossils indicative of modern behavior are found after 50,000 years and few incontrovertible fossils of this nature are found before. Those in favor of behavioral continuity site a number of controversial fossils such as the Katanda bone points that have been dated to 90000 years ago as indication that evolution of behavioral modernity has been a continuous process. In any case by 50,000 years ago it appears that humans were behaving in much the same way as they do today and possessing fully articulate speech. It is around this time that modern humans left Africa and proceeded to populate the rest of the world subsequently reaching the continents of Australia and the Americas. These regions had never before been populated by archaic humans. Consequently it has been suggested that the use of Modern language was a prerequisite for the succesful colonization of these previously uninhabited continents.[25][26][24]

[edit] Genetics

Some scholars have suggested that religion is hardwired into the human condition. One hypothesis referred to as the God gene hypothesis states that some human beings bear a gene which gives them a predisposition to episodes interpreted by some as religious revelation. One gene identified is VMAT2.


[edit] Timeline

  • 2,500,000 ya, Hominid brain size increases significantly bringing forth Homo habilis, the first species in the genus homo. Homo habilis is the first species to use stone tools. Scholars believe the large brain and the use of stone tools is evidence that human social behavior at this stage was becoming more complex.
  • 300,000- first evidence of intentional burial of the dead. Sites such as at Atapuerca in spain, bones of over 32 individuals are found in pit within a cave[27].
  • 130,000 ya, - Neanderthals are burying their dead at sites such as Krapina in croatia[27].
  • 100,000 ya- The oldest ritual burial of modern humans is thought to be from a Qafzeh in Israel. There is a double burial of what is thought to be a mother and child. The bones have been stained with red ochre. By 100,000 years ago anatomically modern humans migrated to the middle east from Africa. However the fossil record of these humans ends after 100kya, leading scholars to believe that population either died out or returned to Africa.[28][29]
  • 100,000 to 50,000 ya- Increased use of red ochre at several Middle Stone Age sites. Red Ochre is thought to have played an important role in ritual.
  • 50,000- Humans have evolved the traits associated with modern human behavior. Much of the evidence is from Late Stone Age sites in Africa. Modern human behavior includes abilities such as modern language, abstract thought, symbolism and religion[29].
  • 50,000 ya- Humans begin to migrate from Africa. These new behaviors enable humans to reach regions that had never been inhabited by any hominids. Around 46,000 years ago humans reach Australia.
  • 42,000 ya- Ritual burial of Man at Lake Mungo in Australia. The body is sprinkled with copious amounts of red ochre. this is seen as evidence that the Australians had brought along with them religious rituals from Africa.
  • 40,000 ya-Upper Paleolithic begins in Europe. There is an abundance of fossil evidence including elaborate burials of the dead, venus figurines and cave art. Venus figurines are thought to represent fertility goddesses. The cave paintings at chauvet and Lascaux are believed to represent religious thought.
  • 11,000 ya- The Neolithic Revolution begins. The first transition from hunter gatherer lifestyle to agriculture occurs in the middle east. In the coming millennia agriculture would spread to most regions of the world.The hunter gatherers lifestyle is egalitarian and general purpose. Hunter gatherer populations densities were low.The neolithic revolution introduces dramatic social changes, including a dramatic increase in population density and specialization in non-agricultural crafts. Societies become more complex and increasingly stratified. Religion plays an important role in the establishment of these societies. For example, the Indian caste system was established in during the Neolithic. Specialized religious roles become more common[29]..
  • 4000 ya- The earliest known writing systems are developed. These include the Sumerian script, which was used for agricultural records, and Egyptian hieroglyphs. Subsequently writing spreads or is developed independently in Asia. Writing enables religious laws, beliefs and philosophies to be stored permanently. The spread of agriculture and the development of writing enables the formation of the first states such as in Mesoptamia and Egypt. Religion plays an important role in these states and the first religious texts are written. It is in this period that the foundation of the world religions is established[1].

[edit] See also

[edit] footnotes

  1. ^ a b The Religious Mind and the Evolution of Religious Forms 14.. “The interplay of religious evolution and mind reveals that even as religion and society evolve, the basic psychological functions of religion remain intact only expressed in different modes”
  2. ^ Oldest Human Fossils Identified
  3. ^ Skulls Add to "Out of Africa" Theory of Human Origins
  4. ^ New Research Proves Single Origin Of Humans In Africa
  5. ^ a b c Archeology and the Evolution of Human Behavior
  6. ^ Dating of Australian Remains Backs Theory of Early Migration of Humans
  7. ^ a b c d King, Barbara (2007). Evolving God: A Provocative View on the Origins of Religion. Doubleday Publishing. ISBN ISBN 0385521553. 
  8. ^ Gods and Gorillas, interview with Barbara J King
  9. ^ Religion, empathy and a Brookfield Zoo gorilla: An anthropologist
  10. ^ Video of Binti Jua carrying boy
  11. ^ Empathy: Its ultimate and proximate bases Stephanie D. Preston & Frans B. M. de Waal
  12. ^ Elephants mourn their dead
  13. ^ Not so Dumbo - elephant intelligence
  14. ^ EARLY HUMAN BURIAL
  15. ^ Death and Relition
  16. ^ Evolving in their graves: early burials hold clues to human origins - research of burial rituals of Neanderthals
  17. ^ The Religious Mind and the Evolution of Religion
  18. ^ An early case of color symbolism
  19. ^ Ritual, Emotion, and Sacred Symbols: The Evolution of Religion as an Adaptive Complex
  20. ^ (1996) The Prehistory of the Mind: The Cognitive Origins of Art, Religion and Science. Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-05081-3. 
  21. ^ An overview of the patterns of behavioural change in Africa and Eurasia during the Middle and Late Pleistocene
  22. ^ BBC article, 'Oldest' prehistoric art unearthed
  23. ^ *"Wade, Nicholas - Before The Dawn, Discovering the lost history of our ancestors. Penguin Books, London, 2006. p. 8 p. 165" ISBN 1594200793
  24. ^ a b Johansson, Sverker (2004). "Origins of language—constraints on hypotheses". doi:10.1017/S002222670629409X. “A related argument is that of Barnes (1997), who postulates language as a requirement for religion, for much the same reasons as for art — religion requires the ability to reason symbolically about abstract categories. M¨uller (1866) proposed instead a more direct role for religion in the origin of language, with religious awe as the root of the need for speech (Gans, 1999c).” 
  25. ^ Wade, Nicholas. "Early Voices: The Leap to Language", The New York Times, 2003-07-15. Retrieved on 2007-09-10. 
  26. ^ Johansson, Sverker (April 2006). "Constraining the Time When Language Evolved" (PDF). Evolution of Language: Sixth International Conference, Rome. “Hyoid bones are very rare” 
  27. ^ a b When Burial Begins
  28. ^ Museum of Natural History article on human human evolution
  29. ^ a b c The beginning of religion at the beginning of the neolithic

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading