UPSC Sociology Mains Syllabus
Paper 1 – Chapter 8
Religion and Society:
(a) Sociological theories of religion.
(b) Types of religious practices: animism, monism, pluralism, sects, cults.
(c) Religion in modern society: religion and science, secularization, religious revivalism, fundamentalism.
- Animism refers to a given form of religion in which man finds the presence of spirit in objects or notions that surrounds him.
- Animism is considered one of the most primitive ideas that gave birth to religion in society and as a religious concept, it is associated with primitive people.
- Even today, many tribals, cults and sects across the world believe in this idea as religious practice.
- Teton Sioux of America practice an animistic religion in which spirits play negative roles in their lives and they perform Ghost Dance ceremony to appease them.
- Evans Pritchard in his study of the Nuer of South Sudan found out that they have an elaborate theological idea of religion centered on ‘Sky Spirit’ or ‘High God’.
ANIMISM – A TYPE OF RELIGIOUS PRACTICE
- Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, either intrinsically or because spirits inhabit them for a period of time. Unlike supernatural forces, animist spirits may be inherently good or evil.
- Often, these spirits are thought to be the souls of deceased relatives, and they are not worshiped as deities.
- In a hunting gathering society, man faced enormous challenges.
- He came to believe that his happiness depend on the happiness of his dead relatives and ancestors.
- If some of their ancestors don’t rest in peace, their lives will be miserable. In India also concept of ‘Pitra’ and ‘Shraadh’ among Hindus are associated with similar beliefs. Hindus make rituals and prayers to placate the souls of their ancestors and demand peace and happiness in their lives from their ancestors.
- Religions which have idea of transmigration of soul as one of the central tenets also have an idea of anima inherent in that.
ANIMISM THEORY OF TYLOR
- Animism means the belief in spirits/soul. Rather than focusing on the idea of ghost, Edward B Tylor emphasized on idea of soul in his ‘Primitive Culture, 1871’.
- Animism refers to a given form of religion in which man finds the presence of spirit in every object that surrounds him.
- Animals, plants and other objects, which help or obstruct man’s activities, are also regarded to possess souls or spirits.
- The soul exists independent of its physical home the body and therefore arises the idea of belief in spiritual beings.
- Tylor says that these spiritual beings later develop into gods.
- Animism is the religion of simple hunting gathering societies.
- Tylor emphasises the element of rationality in magical practices as well.
- He argues that magic among primitives is based on observation and classification of similar elements.
- Whenever magic fails, its failure is rationally explained in terms of the practitioner forgetting to perform some prescribed act, or ignoring to observe some prohibition or some hostile magic has checked it in the way.
TOTEMISM AND ANIMISM
- A totem is any species of plants or animals thought to possess supernatural powers.
- Each group within the society may have its own totem, including associated ceremonies.
- Totemic beliefs may not be as foreign to the Western mind as first expected; many Westerners have totems.
- School mascots, symbols, and emblems all constitute totems.
- Animism is the belief that spirits, apparitions, angels, or demons inhabit the earth.
