The Religious Imagination of Early Humans: Animism, Shamanism, and the Foundations of Culture

For the majority of human history, Homo sapiens, emerging 300,000 years ago and spreading globally 50,000 years ago, lived as peaceful, egalitarian, and artistic hunter-gatherers. While not entirely devoid of violence, archaeological evidence suggests in-group conflict rather than organized warfare. Egalitarianism meant a lack of hierarchy in status and power between genders and wealth, though individuals like shamans held higher status due to their religious roles. Art, particularly cave paintings and monuments, served as an expression and celebration of their religion, which is believed to have been animism and shamanism. This early worldview contrasts sharply with later societies, such as the Yamnaya, who introduced warfare, patriarchy, and wealth-based hierarchies.

The core tenets of early human religion, exemplified by animism and shamanism, included the belief in a Mother Goddess as the source of all life, the permanence of the soul, and the existence of a spirit world more real than the physical one. This cosmology emphasized a universal order where humans had a role to play, requiring tribute and respect for all living beings, even those hunted for sustenance. Creation myths, like that of the Barasana tribe, were not merely origin stories but served a crucial function in establishing the legal and moral framework of society, explaining why certain actions (e.g., incest) were forbidden. For a religion to be authoritative, it needed grandness, completeness (explaining everything), and unity (a clear beginning and end).

Understanding these early belief systems provides profound insights into the pre-modern mind. Anthropological studies of contemporary indigenous cultures, such as the Barasana of the Amazon and the Pygmies of Africa, reveal sophisticated, imaginative, and complex cosmologies. These cultures demonstrate that every aspect of their lives is saturated with religious meaning and ritual, where the visible world is merely one level of perception, and the spirit world holds ultimate significance. Shamans act as engineers of the cosmic order, mediating between the human and spirit realms to maintain harmony and address imbalances. Hunting, for instance, is not a right but a sacred act requiring negotiation with animal spirits and expressions of gratitude.

A key distinction between the pre-modern and modern mind lies in their relationship with nature: early humans saw themselves as an integral part of nature, fostering trust, while modern humans perceive themselves as separate, driven by a desire for control and fear of the unknown. This fundamental difference shapes societal values, where for indigenous groups, disrespecting a religious ritual (like sleeping during a ceremony) is considered a grave crime, not just an insult to authority, but an act of violence against the collective belief system, the community, and the divine, threatening the very fabric of their perceived reality.

for most of human history we have been peaceful egalitarian and artistic

peaceful does not mean we were not violent there's lots of evidence that there was ingroup conflict

egalitarian meaning that there was no difference in status and power between men and women

we suspect that it was animism and Shamanism

what all chisan myths is doing is build explaining to you the legal structure of your Society why you can't do certain things

for religion to be powerful for it to be authoritative you need these three ideas grandness completeness and unity

our world is just a manifestation a physical manifestation of the spirit world but what matters is a spirit world

one major um Prejudice that we might have all these people is well they don't drive cars they don't have cell phones therefore they must be stupid but clearly from our understanding of their religious beliefs they're actually extremely imaginative and extremely sophisticated

their lives are extremely ritualized meaning what they do every second has a religious meaning and religious significance

our world doesn't matter guys okay our world is insignificant what matters is the spirit world because the spirit world is what controls everything

our minds think that we are separate from nature... but they think they are part of nature

the worst thing you can do is sleep why is that the case... you're committing violence on the community you're committing violence on the religion you're insulting the forest you're insulting the God