Modern and primitive religions are the belief of mankind that some higher power control not only people, but also various processes in the Universe. This is especially true of ancient cults, since at that time the development of science was weak. Man could not explain this or that phenomenon in any other way, except for divine intervention. Often, such an 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 compulsion. If the belief was not accepted by a person, then he was tortured and tortured until he changed his point of view. Today, the choice of religion is free, people have the right to choose their own worldview.

The emergence of primitive religions dates back to a long period, about 40-30 thousand years ago. But which belief came first? In this regard, scientists have different points vision. Some believe that this happened when people began to perceive the souls of each other, others - with the appearance of witchcraft, others took the worship of animals or objects as a basis. But the very emergence of religion is large complex 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 leads to the conclusion that attempts to search for an ancient religion are unlawful. Each tribe that existed then had its own object of worship.

We can only say unequivocally 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. African tribes, in turn, plan their gods out of wood. If they do not like something, then they can cut or pierce their patron with a needle. This is also supernatural. Therefore, every modern religion has its oldest "ancestor".

When did the first religion appear?

Initially, primitive religions and myths are closely intertwined. In modern times, it is impossible to find an interpretation of some events. The fact is that their primitive people tried to tell 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. The excavations, the burials of which date back to 80 thousand years ago, definitely indicate that ancient man did not think about other worlds at all. People were just buried and that's it. There is no evidence that this process was accompanied by rituals.

Weapons, food and some household items (burials made 30-10 thousand years ago) are found in later graves. 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 are next to him. People buried or burned took on an invisible ghostly form. They became kind of guardians of the family.

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

Reasons for the emergence of the first and subsequent religions

Primitive religions and their features are very similar to modern beliefs. Various religious cults have operated for thousands of years in their own and public interests, providing psychological impact to the 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 occurs in his life. And if he cannot get it thanks to his knowledge, then he will certainly receive a justification for what he observes through supernatural intervention.
  2. Psychology. Earthly life is finite, and there is no way to resist death, at least for this moment. Therefore, a person needs to 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 anyone who violates them. It is much easier to scare and prevent these actions. If a person is afraid to do something bad, due to the fact that 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 this or that belief is capable of rendering it.

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

totemism

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 could not provide himself with everything necessary. This is how the cult of animal worship appeared. Societies hunted animals for food without which they could not live. And the appearance of totemism is quite logical. So humanity paid tribute to the means of subsistence.

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

There are two features of totemism. First, each member of the tribe had a desire to outwardly resemble their animal. For example, some inhabitants of Africa, in order to look like a zebra or antelope, knocked out their lower teeth. Secondly, the totem animal could not be eaten unless the ritual was observed.

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

Fetishism

Primitive religions cannot be considered unless fetishism is taken into account. It was 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, then in more complex form. Magic helped to have an additional effect on some phenomenon, but did not affect its occurrence in any way.

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

Magic and religion

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

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

Animism

Primitive religions did 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 reflections, the belief that everyone has a soul appeared. 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 the belief in spirits, and it does not matter whether they refer to a person, an animal or a plant.

A feature 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 spiritualisms, belief in ghosts, essences, and so on.

shamanism

It is impossible to consider primitive religions without singling out the clergy. This is most acutely seen 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 more 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 kind of king or khan, who can only do natural movements (weapons, troops, and so on).

Elements of shamanism are present in virtually all modern religions. Believers especially treat priests, mullahs or other worshipers, 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. Among them is the agricultural cult. Primitive people who led 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 today's 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, the primitive forms of religion cannot be considered briefly. Each ancient belief exists before today, even if it actually lost its face. Rites 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 would not have a strong direct connection with the most ancient cults.

Today it is difficult to give an unambiguous answer to the question which of the religions is the oldest, which arose first. Archaeological excavations give more and more new ground for the next conclusions regarding the emergence of religion.

Islam is a young religion

Surrendering oneself to God - this is translated from Arabic as "Islam". This religion, which is one of the world's, originated only in the seventh century. Its followers are Muslims, whose communities are in one hundred and twenty countries. Twenty-three percent of the world's population is Muslim. In forty-nine states they are in the majority.

From a historical point of view, this is a very young religion. gaining personal experience, not harming anyone, openness to the gaze of God - this is what lies at the heart of Islam. Believers believe that only God decides when to create a soul, and when to dissolve it, respectively, it does not appear with birth and does not disappear at the moment of death of a person. According to Muslims, only Allah decides the fate of a person.


This religion can be called the youngest also because the average Muslim is only twenty-three years old.

What was ancient Christianity like?

The traditional worldview of the population has undergone significant changes with the advent of new religion- Christianity. It appeared at the end of the first century BC - in the first half of the first century AD in the Eastern Mediterranean.


With the advent of Christianity, the mythological idea of ​​​​life and the world order began to crumble, and there was a belief in a savior god who could save every person. Justice became the main attribute of a just and pure god.


The cults of the Eastern Mediterranean manifested themselves in different form. In the end, the soil was prepared for the spread of Christianity, since it was in it that the trends that had arisen by that time found their greatest embodiment. IN early Christianity suffering was deified, since God's grace was revealed exclusively to the suffering. Faith called for unity in love, not dividing people into strangers and friends.


Christians perceived themselves on earth as temporary wanderers. At the center of the teaching, at the same time, was precisely man, bearing responsibility for his actions and having the opportunity to choose his path to the Kingdom of God. This was the beginning of the transformation of Christianity into a world religion.


At first, the followers of the preacher Jesus were only a small group. The doctrine of it arose in the first half of the first century AD. Jesus, continuing the prophetic movement, at first acted as a prophet. He opposed ritual regulation, formal rituals, which influenced the further spread of Christianity.

The idea of ​​Christian mercy was to help all those who suffer, and the causes of these sufferings are not important, it does not matter whether it is a woman or a man, a poor man, a cripple or a harlot. Mercy was for the individual. Christianity said that anyone can be saved through faith. Gradually, Christianity, conquering the souls of people, began to turn into a world religion.

The oldest religion on earth

The oldest religion in the world from the now known (we do not take into account primitive cults listen)) is Zoroastrianism. The exact chronologization of the teaching that originated in Iran is difficult due to the prescription of years. Most experts agree that the roots of Zoroastrianism go back to the sixth millennium BC, which means that the age of Zoroastrianism exceeds 7 thousand years. First written monuments this religion appeared at the turn new era However, at that time, Zoroastrianism was already extremely ancient. The first material sources of the teachings were written down to the present day. dead language"Avesta" is the name of the sacred book of the Zoroastrians.


The central place of Zoroastrianism is occupied by the deity Ahura Mazda - the beginningless creator of all things, the father of all the laws of the universe and the leader of the side of Good in the fight against Evil, which occurs in the world without his permission. His only prophet among the people was Zarathustra, who, according to the teachings, conveyed to the people the truth about God's revelation and opened their eyes to bad customs: bloody raids on neighboring tribes, looting, teachings of priests that encourage violence.


Zoroastrianism had a huge impact on the Abrahamic religions, including the largest ones: Judaism, Christianity, Islam.

What other ancient religions are there

Several of the most ancient religions are known. One of these is the religion of the Sumerians. They had a rather complex pantheon of gods. Man had to subordinate his life to the service of these gods. Intermediaries between people and the seven main gods were the gods, who were called the Anunnaki.


One of the most unusual is the religion of the Incas. Their pantheon is very diverse, as, conquering new peoples, they added their deities to their pantheon. Of the modern world religions, the most ancient is Buddhism. It appeared more than two and a half thousand years ago. The basis was the ancient teachings of India - the desire for the divine principle, nirvana and enlightenment. This can be achieved only by rising above all attachments, through meditation and self-improvement. It is known about such ancient religions as the religion of the Druids, Celtic beliefs, shamanism, etc.

New religious movements appear almost every year. The site has a detailed article on the youngest religion.
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Which world religion came before the others?

Before answering this question, it is necessary to clearly indicate why among the many different religions the status of the world was awarded to a few, what are their differences. To date, on the globe there are more than twenty thousand different denominations, religious movements and sects.

As for world religions, there are only three of them. Surely their names are familiar to everyone: Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. And they differ in their scale: they are practiced all over the world, regardless of political, national and cultural factors. Indeed, real Christians can be found both in developed European countries and in abandoned settlements in Africa. What can not be said about Shintoism or, say, about Judaism, whose influence is outlined certain territory. Contrary to popular belief, the world's oldest religion is not Hinduism, which originated in the 15th century. BC, and not even paganism, which appeared even earlier. This proud title is borne by Buddhism, which originated much later, but quickly spread throughout the planet and influenced the development of many cultures. Each world religion is unique and has a number of specific features, which we will analyze below.

Buddhism

Appeared presumably in the 6th century BC. in present-day India. Its founder - Siddhartha Buddha Gautama - an Indian prince who preferred a measured luxurious life hermit's way. By the age of 35, he achieved enlightenment and began to preach his teachings. All life, in his opinion, from birth to death,
permeated with the spirit of suffering, and the cause of this is the person himself. The path to liberation from suffering, or the Noble Eightfold Middle Path, lies through the renunciation of earthly passions and pleasures. Only with the help of meditation and constant self-control, as the Buddha teaches, is it possible to achieve a state of harmony - nirvana. Today, this world religion is widespread in the southeastern, eastern, central regions of Asia, as well as in Far East. The number of Buddhist followers around the world reaches 500 million people.

Christianity

This world religion was born about 2 thousand years ago on the territory of modern Palestine, at that time the former one of the provinces of the Holy Roman Empire. Christianity preached love for one's neighbor, mercy and non-resistance to evil, which made it unlike cruel pagan rites. Despite the persecution of the followers of the "religion of the slaves and the downtrodden", the teachings of Christ very quickly spread throughout the Eurasian continent. Over time, the unified Church was divided into many currents: Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Protestantism and various Eastern confessions.

Islam

This is not the earliest world religion, but it currently ranks first in terms of the number of adherents (more than 1 billion people). The official date of its occurrence is known - 610 AD, it was then that the first verses of the Koran were given to the prophet Muhammad. By the end of his life, Islam professed the entire Arabian Peninsula. The popularity of this young religion is explained by the traditionally high birth rate in Muslim families, in which very strict rules prevail and immoral behavior is not allowed.

70 thousand years ago

Today it is quite difficult to answer the question, what was the most ancient religion. It is known that before the birth of modern world religions, paganism dominated the world. It used to be considered that the most ancient religious rituals were performed approximately 30-40 thousand years ago in Europe.

However, recent archaeological excavations carried out in South African country Botswana, give reason to believe that 70 thousand years ago, even before homo sapiens formed, the predecessors of Homo sapiens performed ritual worship.

In the summer of 2006, Sheila Coulson, a professor at the University of Oslo, discovered on the northern side of the Tsodilo Hills (Kalahari Desert) a small cave, inside which was a stone statue of a python two meters high and 6 meters wide. Scientists believe that this statue could serve as an object of worship.

Sumerian religions

Also in this place, as a result of excavations, about 13 thousand tools for working on stone were found. It should be noted that until the 90s, access to the cave was difficult, and therefore it could not be found earlier. In the event that scientists were not mistaken with the dating, then this find will force us to reconsider modern ideas about human evolution and migration.

Of course, the religion of one of the most ancient civilizations is very interesting - the Sumerian civilization. The pantheon of the gods of the Sumerians was very complex: there were seven main gods and gods called the Anunnaki, who were considered intermediaries between people and the main gods. Oaths were sealed with the names of the Anunnaki.

According to the myth of the creation of people "Enki and Ninmah", the gods fashioned a man from clay, the fate of man was to serve the gods. Each had a personal deity that guarded the person (the prototype of the guardian angel in Christianity).

Afterlife and Inca Religion

The Sumerians' ideas about the afterlife were quite specific. It was believed that the dead, having passed through the seven gates of the underworld, crossed the river, which served as the border between the world of the living and the world of the dead. The Sumerians have no representations at the court of the dead. It was believed that the fate of each deceased in the afterlife is not easy, only those who fell in battle, those with many children and those for whom the funeral rite was performed were honored with a tolerable life.

The Inca religion is one of the most unusual. The pantheon of gods is very diverse, which is explained by their tolerant policy towards the conquered peoples: they generously included foreign gods in their pantheon, and did not try to ban other beliefs, therefore the duties of many gods are repeated.

The holy places of the Incas were called "huaca", they could be rocks, hills, cliffs, streams, mountains, caves, houses and even mummies. Many of them are still revered by the peoples of Peru. From the Report to the King of Spain it is known that the Indians of Peru had 10422 idols, of which 1365 were mummies. It is noteworthy that some of the mummies of the Huacs were the founders of the Inca clans, tribes and villages.

ancient buddhism

To date, it is reliably known that Buddhism is the oldest of the three modern world religions. Buddhism originated about 2500 years ago on the basis of the ancient teachings of India. The founder of Buddhism was Buddha Shakyamuni (623-544 BC).

In Buddhist teaching earthly life, as well as heaven and hell, seems to be just one of the steps that a person must overcome on the path to the divine, through liberation from the chain of rebirth. Liberation from the chain of rebirth is achieved by strict observance of all the rules such as: do not cause suffering to either a person or an animal, do not eat animal food, meditation, etc.

The basis of the Buddhist doctrine is the desire of a person for the divine principle, enlightenment and nirvana, which can be achieved by rising above earthly attachments, spiritual self-improvement and meditation.

An unsolvable question? Basically. There are several recognized most ancient religions.
One of these is the religion of the Sumerians. They had a very complex pantheon of gods. Man had to subordinate his life to the service of these gods. Intermediaries between people and the seven main gods were the gods, who were called the Anunnaki.
The most ancient drawings of people in the caves reflect clearly religious subjects.
I think that as soon as man "has arisen" the mind, so there is a corresponding and appropriate religion. A reasonable person and faith in gods or God are inseparable concepts.
Zoroastrianism is one of the oldest known religions.
There is no exact dating of this religious doctrine, which originated in the territory now occupied by Iran. Experts agree that the foundations of Zoroastrianism arose in the sixth millennium BC. That is, the age of Zoroastrianism exceeds 7 thousand years.
The first written monuments of this religion appeared in the now dead language. "Avesta" - a collection of Zoroastrian texts - is the oldest monument of ancient Iranian literature, compiled in a special language, called "Avestan" in Iranian studies.
The main place in Zoroastrianism is occupied by the deity Ahura Mazda - the beginningless creator of all things, the father of all the laws of the universe and the leader of the side of Good in the fight against Evil, which occurs in the world without his permission. His only prophet among the people was Zarathustra, who, according to the teachings, conveyed to people the truth about God's revelation and opened their eyes to bad customs: bloody raids on neighboring tribes, looting, teachings of priests that encourage violence.
The German writer-philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche made a name for himself with "Thus Spoke Zarathustra".
The book presents the life and fate, teachings and thoughts of a wandering philosopher who took the name Zarathustra in honor of the ancient Persian prophet Zoroaster (Zarathushtra).
One of the main defining ideas of the novel is the idea that a person is an intermediate step in the transformation of a monkey into a superman (German: bermensch): "Man is a rope stretched between an animal and a superman. A rope over the abyss."
The book reveals Nietzsche's ideas about the place a person occupies in his environment, how a person understands his life, how he travels, how he knows himself and the world. The work is given great attention communication of man with nature, with himself, and with people around him. The idea is carried out about the need for each person to go his own way.
This, by the way.
On all continents and in all places of the Earth, their religious teachings were created. And everyone has both differences and common. One gets the impression that all these teachings originated from one. And the specificity of each is determined by specific circumstances and the people who wrote these teachings. "Everything came from one..."
I think that this is a reflection of the unity of being and cognition ("Unity of being and cognition. Part 1"). Or, as Hermes Trismegistus said: "What is below is similar to what is above. And what is above is similar to what is below ..."
The Buddha was not a Buddhist.
Lao Tzu was not a Taoist.
Confucius was not a Confucian.
Moses was not a Jew.
Christ was not a Christian.
Muhammad was not a Muslim. Marx was not a Marxist...
All this was then invented by cunning followers.
Not always, however, wise enough.

Reviews

Dear Alexander, with all due respect to the religion of Zoroastrianism and to the wandering philosopher who took the name Zarathustra in honor of the ancient Persian prophet Zoroaster (Zarathushtra), there is another ancient religion, this is Russian paganism with a pantheon of Gods - Rod, Svetovit, Perun, Svarog ... In general Slavyasko 0 Aryan chronology has 7519 years from the creation of the world. And some sites of Slavic paganism generally count 32.515 years ... We will not discuss the truth of such an understanding of the chronology now, but even such terms say a lot ... For example, counting years - time is important not only for agriculture, but also for performing religious rites to the Gods , if, as you suggested, that with the advent of reason, a person has a need for faith - the need to turn to the Gods.
And one more argument for the secondary nature of Zoroastrianism... The very name of Zoroaster in the Russian sensual understanding of sound is a reflection of the name Svetovit, Light is Zoro - Zaoa - Dawn, and the rest of the word Vit is the understanding of the luminary Astra - Tustra, He shines like Astra - Star, He is The light of the luminary - Tustra ...
And you are right, dear Alexander, all modern religions once came out of one thing - from Russian paganism ... Just one example, in Christianity there is an understanding about God the Holy Spirit, that no one can see the face of God, so the face of God is luminous - radiant. But in physical world there is an analogue of the luminosity of the Face of God, that a person can see and cannot see, so a visible object is radiant, this is the disk of our Sun, as an analogue of the pagan God Yaril.
With respect to you, isho he knows, Only the wind.