The Cultural Differences Of Primal Religions

Religions have very distinct differences because every religion has something that another one does not. The differences can even cause conflicts between different religions even if they are in the same family. Religions also have similarities that can cause feuds to end if people use it in the right way. You can see these similarities and differences in Hinduism and Native American religions if you look at how they do their rituals, rites of passage, view of gods, view of holy book, afterlife, and the role of women.

According to the book, World Religions Today, by John L. Esposito, Darrell J. Fasching, and Todd Lewis, under the section entitled The Sacred, it states that religion “expresses our sense of being “tied and bound” by relations of obligation to whatever powers we believe govern our destiny-whether these powers be natural or supernatural, personal or impersonal, one or many” (9). Furthermore, the book World Religions Today, by John L. Esposito, Darrell J. Fasching, and Todd Lewis, states that the religions of various people over the years or centuries have proven to be essentially as diverse as the types or forms of power that people essentially believe govern human destiny. In which these types or forms of power “ have ranged from gods as

Historically, the major religions of Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism began to spread across Eurasia and Africa from the 5th century through trade routes and conquest. As these ideas and practices traveled to new and distance places, local populations adapted and transformed many of them in ways that reflected traditional beliefs and customs, also known as syncretism. The rise of rulers, such as Sundiata in Mali helps illustrate this process of partial adaptation, or syncretism, in order to get a boost of support from the subjects of the kingdom. The actions concerning syncretism, can be explanation of the rise of kings such as Sundiata. These examples can be seen through the texts “Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali”, “Worlds together, Worlds

Indigenous religions exist in every climate around the world and exhibit a wide range of differences in their stories, language, customs, and views of the afterlife. Within indigenous communities, religion, social behavior, art, and music are so intertwined that their religion is a significant part of their culture and virtually inseparable from it. These religions originally developed and thrived in isolation from one another and are some of the earliest examples of religious practice and belief. The modern world; however, has taken its toll on these groups and many of their stories, customs, and beliefs have been lost to, or replaced by, those brought in as a result of popular culture and the missionary work of Christians and Muslims.

From the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations to the Muslim world, antiquity has always been filled with religions of all sorts. These religions helped guide how ancient peoples lived life and came about doing even the most common tasks that people like us do today. Religion impacted the civilizations of the ancient world by greatly influencing how peoples of ancient civilizations acted, how they thought about the world around them, how civilizations were organized and maintained, and how they interacted with civilizations of another religion.

The rise and fall of different civilizations and empires is caused by various social, political, and cultural factors that affect its societies. One of the most important concepts seen in empires are the creation of its culture and its relation to the beliefs of its society. Religion plays an enormous role in understanding the purpose behind the actions of the people in a civilization. Religion and culture are dependent of each other as it reflects the ideas and values that society has agreed upon. As a new urban civilization during 2500 B.C, The Indus Valley Civilization created a sociopolitical system that

The Mandans were a Native American tribe located in North Dakota plainlands. They endured hot summers and cold winters and had many resources available to them.

Many of the religions of Plains Indians focused on the earth as a symbol for and a reflection of the divine. Nasr describes a sentiment shared by many tribes, “a reverence of nature as locus of Divine Presence, a kinship with all forms of life, a union of the sky or Heaven as their father and Earth as their mother,

Those who are raised within one religious tradition may find it difficult to understand the traditions of another religion. It is not until one is educated in the basics of the other major world religions, that it is possible to see the many similarities between them. Just as there are many similarities between the countries culturally, the major religions share more things than they are different. In viewing Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism with an open mind, it is easy to see the differences, similarities and ideals that make these religions as widespread as they are.

Continuously Religion has partaken and will constantly stay essential in our lives, whether we whole heartily have great faith in it or we do not. Yet, what exactly is Religion? Religion is having the certainly in a God or in a group of Gods. As well as, a structured system that takes into account strict beliefs, rituals, and guidelines that must be followed. In addition, carried out to worship a God or a group of Gods who are idolized. Today across the world there is nearly 4,200 Religions which are present. They include Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, and many more. Religions followers who remain dedicated to the Christian and Catholic faith are identified for following one God. In an Article called Incommensurability, Incomparability,

Throughout the world there are many various religions, some very common to you and I. However, there are many religions that are common in several isolated places all around the world in Japan, Australia, and the Americas. Many of these religions, called Indigenous Religions are based on nature, and the earth. The practice of these religions is considered sacred to the people that follow them. Many of these indigenous people are fully sacrificed to their religion. They live their lives according to these religions and are fully indebted to them. The four major Indigenous Religions are Shinto, found in Japan, the Australian Aboriginal, African, and Native American.

There are may religions in the world, but through out the different religions there are many crossovers and similarities. Mattie Stepanek said “It doesn't matter how you pray. Just pray. All religions are beautiful and they all have one common belief. There's something bigger and greater than us that can give us and take from us life. It is better than the here and now”. Religion itself means “a belief in and worship of a greater power” (dictionary.com). By people believing in any kind of religion, it means that similarities can start there. With so many religions having similarities, it might be hard to distinguish from certain religions from another. Religions like of African and Native Americans might not at first seem alike, but as you look deeper into their religions and see they have similarities. These similarities are attributed as beliefs, rituals, and history. Their growths and struggles might not have happened at the same time, but both religions are still celebrated today.

Smith does not believe primal people are primitive, rather he suggests they are called primal because they came first. Smith argues that while the numbers of primal people are diminishing, traces of their ideologies can still be seen in our deep consciousness. Furthermore, he also suggests that we can learn insights and virtues from primal people because they have not been exposed to the urbanized and industrialized society we have now. This is because with the invention of technology we have forgotten to respect our ancestors and our surroundings. Thus, he suggests that primal people should be respected since they are our great ancestor and they have not forgotten these important

The eastern religions that we have discussed in class are Hinduism, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. The western religions that we have discussed in class are Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The Eastern Religions have originated in countries such as China, India, and Japan. The western religions originated in Europe and the Americas. There are few similarities between eastern religions and western religions, but many differences. The biggest difference between the two religions is that eastern religions believe in more than one god, whereas western religions believe in one God.

Primal Religions are often mistaken to be the religion of the primitive man, often thought to be unintelligent. There is a definition of “primal” that is better suited than unintelligent or primitive. Primal in terms of religion, refers to the lack of exposure to technology, it is not “knowing” the state of consciousness given to many by the technological environment. Primal religions preceded organized religion as we know it today by thousands of years, in some cases millions, but are still present in the world today; we now call them tribal religions. Within primal religions there are people who are knowledgeable about life, who are knowledgeable about