Early forms of religion: factors of formation and types of beliefs

Religion is a phenomenon of culture that accompanies society throughout much of its historical development. In addition, religious beliefs in the course of historical development have become widespread, and today one or another form of faith is inherent in virtually the entire population of our planet.

Today, there are many different beliefs in the world that refer to different directions. In addition to the four main religions: Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism, there are more than a hundred different forms of worship for some deity, which may be characteristic of only a few people; however, in the course of their history, they were assigned to a group (tribe, ethnicity, ethnicity Groups) and are considered the main form of faith.

The early forms of religion are often called polytheistic beliefs. It is these religions that became the basis of those beliefs that exist today, at the present time. In the course of the development of primitive human society, several factors appeared that served as prerequisites for the formation of various types of worship.

One of the main factors due to which early forms of religious beliefs were formed are many different natural and life phenomena. Lack of knowledge of the surrounding world made people view the events as the influence of a multitude of diverse supernatural beings, each of which was responsible for some phenomenon (weather phenomena, crops, etc.). Early forms of religion did not distinguish one god but created some forces , Which at the level of animism were presented in the form of invisible souls, fetishes, symbols, etc.

A certain influence on the formation of primitive polytheism was provided by the structure of society. A certain and established hierarchy of human groups (family, tribe, village, city or state) was transferred to the early forms of religion, where there are main gods and a subordinate deity. At the same time, various versions of the social situation, personal qualities were transferred to the gods, the main one of which is likened to the father of the family, the leader or the king. The main god almost always had a life story: a birth, a wedding, the appearance of children, who later became his assistants and performers. In addition, a deity could arise within a certain circle: the gods of war, drought, revenge, as well as agriculture, art, love, etc. appeared.

Forms of primitive religion borrowed the principles of the organization of human society (in particular, the division of territories, the creation of a set of laws, rules and norms). The leaders and kings shared their possessions in separate territories, and this division was transferred to the world of the deity. In addition, people can be divided into simple and noble, good and evil, stupid and intelligent - and this differentiation is reflected in the first religions. In particular, paganism empowers all supernatural beings with a set of personal qualities that determine the uniqueness of this or that god.

Early forms of religion were based not only on the existence of faith in the deity, but also on the material embodiment of supernatural forces. The gods were depicted on rocks, in caves, made of wood or metal. In this case, the deity could be represented in absolutely different ways: in the form of a person, a bird or an animal. Such images are called idols, which in Greek means "view", "image". It is more correct to say that the idol is the material embodiment of God, in which, based on the opinions of believers, the spirit of the deity lives. It is noteworthy that any thing can become an idol if for a person this particular thing becomes the place of a god.