The Anthropological Study of Religion Magic Supernaturalism Weeks

The Anthropological Study of Religion, Magic & Supernaturalism Weeks 1 & 2 Articles: n. Geertz- Religion n. Harris- Why We Became Religious & the Evolution of the Spirit World n. Lee- Religious Perspectives in Anthropology

Origins of Religion n 100 KYA- Neanderthal’s burials- controversy 30 KYA- Homo Sapiens 10 KYA- Neolithic Period ¡ ¡ n n Burials Agriculture Medieval Europe Enlightenment Period ¡ ¡ Kant Rousseau Darwin Lett

Religious Categories n 19 th Century Scholars ¡ World religions- higher vs. lower n Main Three: ¡ ¡ Judaism Christianity Islam Primitive religions

Religious Categories n Features of World Religions: ¡ ¡ ¡ Based on written Scriptures Notion of salvation Universal Can subsume or surplant a primal Forms a separate sphere of activity n Features of Primal Religions: ¡ ¡ ¡ Oral This world dimension orientation Confined to single culture/ethnicity Form basis for development of world religions Religion & social lie are inseparable & intertwined

Functions of Religion n n Solution to adversity Psychological- Freud & Malinowsky Sociology- Durkheim & Radclife Anthropology- “Include all that is not natural, unexplainable” Wallace ¡ ¡ Positivistic approach- “typology based on cult institutions a set of rituals all having the same general goal, all explicitly rationalized by a set of similar or related beliefs, and all supported by the same social group. ” Doomed to die out n n Geertz ¡ n Shamanic Communal Ecclesiastical Interpretative semiotic approach Pandian ¡ ¡ Mytholiminal rationality Evolutionary adaptation

Religion, Magic & Supernaturalism (Pandian) Concept of “religion” n 17 th century ¡ ¡ n Definitions of religion (p. 25 -26) ¡ ¡ n n Religion= civilized/organized Magic= inferior/unorganized Tylor, Durkheim, Wallace, Spiro, Geertz Norbeck- ideas, attitudes, creeds & acts of supernaturalism. Science & religion not mutually exclusive Origin of word “religion” ¡ ¡ religio religare

Disciplinary Domains in the Study of Religion n Anthropology of religion- comparative, cross-cultural, & evolutionary study. ¡ ¡ ¡ Sociology Psychology History Philosophy Anthropology

Explanation & Interpretation in Study of Supernaturalism n Heelas- positivism inadequate ¡ ¡ ¡ n n Theoretical stagnation Neglect of meaning Neglect of intra-religious explanations Comte- scientific positivistic stage Horton- today’s truth will change Kuhn- science non-linear fashion Fundamental difference between study of physical and cultural phenomena ¡ ¡ Study of knowledge & meaning “Understanding of understandings” n Analysis of different levels of cultural reality

Religion By Clifford Geertz

3 major Intellectual Developments n n n Emergence of History Radical Split of the Social Sciences Primitive reasoning vs. civilized thought Evolutionism & its Enemies Psychological approaches ¡ ¡ ¡ Freud’s major work Bettelheim Malinowski

Religion by Geertz n Sociological approaches ¡ ¡ ¡ n n n Durheim Rise of Functionalism or Structuralism Radcliffe Brown Analysis of symbolic forms Primitive thought Symbolic systems ¡ Levi-Strauss

Why We Became Religious & the Evolution of the Spirit World By Marvin Harris

Why We Became Religious & the Evolution of the Spirit World n Religion in non-human species ¡ n n n Pigeon food pellets Superstitious responses Mana The Evolution of the Spirit World ¡ Band & Village people

Religious Perspectives in Anthropology Dorothy Lee

Religious Perspectives in Anthropology n n Religious perspectives vary among Western and “primitive” societies In Western societies: ¡ n Nature was ordained by heaven to be dominated and exploited to human’s desires and needs. In “primitive” societies: ¡ ¡ “Religion is present in human’s view of his/her place in the universe” “Human’s relatedness to the universe, nonhuman nature, reality & circumstance” n Religion is evident in daily life, agriculture, hunting, health measures, arts, and crafts.

Religious Perspectives in Anthropology n Agriculture ¡ Navaho- no word for religion n n ¡ Maya of Yucatan n n ¡ Farming- “mirage stone” Art- Sand painting Farming = Worshipping World inhabited by supernatural beings Hopi- masks, costumes, etc. n Drama- more than mere form of art