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Question

IMPACT OF RELIGION IN DEVELOPMENT OF CULTURES

 

Subject Religion Pages 3 Style APA

Answer

Extensive literature shows that religion and culture are intricately intertwined. For instance, religion influences culture and similarly, culture influences religion. According to Strayer and Eric, religion impacts culture of entire nations, communities, and regions globally[1]. The effect is extensive as it goes beyond influencing individual habits but rather, changes bigger issues such as how the government operates, arts, and social interactions. These changes are realized when religion influences the evolution of social structures not only in one community, but also across neighboring regions. Examples of the impact of religion are depicted in historical cases where it influenced cultures across different regions namely; India, Rome, and Egypt. For this reason, this essay evaluates the impact of religion in the development of three important cultures of the ancient world, Egypt, India, and Rome. It further answers the questions on whether religion was the driving force, if it was used for political reasons, if it shaped social hierarchies, influenced neighboring cultures, and whether it motivated the emergence of particular art forms.

Abdulla notes that religion was the leading social force in the ancient Egypt. It affected everything within the kingdom[2]. The religion grew from simple polytheism to a more complex philosophical monotheism where every community was assigned a guardian deity personifying the power of nature. As a result, ancient literature, philosophy, and ancient art forms in Egypt were embedded with religious symbolism and undertones. Abdulla explains that Egypt was an extremely religious state with each of its towns and cities assigned peculiar deities to represent the ‘Lord of the City’. A list of the religious gods worshiped by the Egyptians is embedded on the tomb of Thutmose III showing that the state worshiped seven hundred and forty polytheistic deities[3]. The gods are believed to have entered marital relationships with the Egyptian goddesses thus bearing sons that created a divine triad composed of a father who played the role of a prince consort, the goddess as the principal deity, and their son. The chief gods or the prince consorts resided in secluded temples and were worshiped by the priests. The priests were representatives of pharaoh who was seen as the living god or the son of the sun-god. These religious beliefs influenced the national culture of Egypt as the people believed that there were hundreds of deities responsible for their wellbeing. They worshiped the deities and treasured their kings by allocating them divine status.

Today, Egypt still treasures the monumental royal cemeteries where the Pharaohs were buried or mummified. The ancient religion continues to influence the cultural beliefs and rituals practiced by the Egyptians. For instance, the citizens are obsessively preoccupied with bizarre rituals of mummification and eschatological rites[4]. Besides, religion created the notion that the leaders had to be valued and treasured. For instance, the pharaohs were the commander-in-chief of the armies and controlled all the assets. Together with the priests, they presided over the religious ceremonies such as burials. Because of religion, Egyptian culture became segmented into three social groups where the upper class lived affluently, the middle class were mostly skilled artisans, artists, scribes, doctors, teachers, and rich traders, while the lower class were the peasants and slaves. The slaves were drawn from neighboring communities that failed to cooperate with the leadership in Egypt. The political rights of the peasants and slaves were often limited. They were subjected to forced labor and heavy taxes. This illustration of Egypt answers the questions raised in the introduction chapter. Religion is seen to be the main driving force that shaped political dynamics, social hierarchies, influence over neighboring cultures, and art forms.

Evidently, the religious beliefs held by the Egyptians led to dominion and dissemination of Islamic principles which were enacted into law and continues to influence the social and political customs of the country. A similar trend is seen in Rome where the religion played a pertinent role in shaping the culture and social norms in Ancient Rome[5]. Roman religion valued the gods. The people believed that a single god could not take care of all their needs. The Romans believed that these gods influenced all the aspects of their lives, thus, they dedicated most of their time to the worship of the gods. Jupiter was considered as the most powerful god and worked alongside Mars, Mercury, Janus, Neptune, Diana, Minerva, Venus, and Vesta[6]. After the death of Emperor Augustus, he was also ranked as a god and was worshipped on special festival days.

This narration highlights how the Romans adopted cultural practices in line with the prevailing religious beliefs. The art forms and architectural designs were made in favor of the gods. The temples were built for the gods. They all followed a similar building design and pattern. Apart from the temples, family homes were required to have a shrine and altar dedicated to the gods. The people were required to worship either the spirits or the gods every day. Romans worked so hard to please their public gods and the spirits. By so doing, the religion influenced the culture of the societies. McGiffert explains that the worship of the gods was praised for the stability of the society[7]. The Romans shared their gods with the neighbors while others imported them from Greece. In the later years, The Romans embraced Christianity. Rome depicts a similar narration on the influence of religion on the cultural practices in Egypt, as religion is seen to be the main driving force that shapes political, social, and cultural dynamics. Religion shaped social hierarchies, impacted neighboring communities, and influenced the ancient art forms.

Religion has significantly influenced the economic, cultural, and political aspects of India. The country has a rich religious history accredited for the founding of Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. More than 79.8% of the Indians practice Hinduism and their beliefs continue to impact the culture of the contemporary society[8]. A historical preview of the Indian religion and the resultant culture dates back to the 1500 BCE and 500 BCE where early Indo-Aryans adopted four canonical mantras and hymns called Veda. The society therefore embraced the Vedic rituals and later on introduced other forms of religions that continue to gain dominance in India. The rituals entailed conducting animal sacrifices and reverence for royal rituals. Religion is cited as the leading movement that led to the Indus Valley Civilization. Indus symbols evidence that religion influenced the country’s art forms. For instance, the ceramic pots, small tablets, and seals had the sign board that communicated religious symbols[9]. Some of the deities were engraved on the Indian pottery as figurines to represent the Mother-Goddess they worshiped.

The Indian religious beliefs impacted the neighboring communities as far as in the Middle East.  The social structure as noted with the caste system was propagated by the Varna system which is deeply rooted in the Hinduism religion[10]. The resultant social classification recognized people and the whole society based on four categories namely; Brahmin composed of the priestly caste, the Kshatriya who are the nobility caste, the royals, and the warriors, the shudra composed of laborers and artisan caste, while the fourth group is the vaishya who are merchant and commoner castes. These cultures in addition to the hereditary culture were adopted in line with the ancient religious beliefs where the priestly family was mandated to pass on the mantle to the next generation within the caste.

To this point, it is notable that religion was a primary driving force in shaping ancient cultural practices. Even today, religion still plays a significant role in dictating the behavior, norms, and cultural practice across these societies. For instance, the social hierarchies continue to be highlighted across the three countries analyzed in this essay. The essay evidences that Rome, India, and Egypt had special religious forms that enabled them to define their cultural practices. It is seen that religion influenced political landscapes across the three countries. Additionally, it influenced the formation of social hierarchies, the neighboring cultures, and the art forms adopted across the three societies.

 

 

 

[1] Strayer, Robert W., and Eric Nelson. Ways of the World: A Brief Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillan Education Imprint, 2018

[2] Abdulla, Mariam Rawan. “Culture, religion, and freedom of religion or belief.” The Review of Faith & International Affairs 16, no. 4 (2018): 102-115

[3] Abdulla, Mariam Rawan. “Culture, religion, and freedom of religion or belief.” The Review of Faith & International Affairs 16, no. 4 (2018): 102-115

[4] Ibid

[5] McGiffert, Arthur Cushman. “The Influence of Christianity upon the Roman Empire.” The Harvard Theological Review 2, no. 1 (1909): 28-49

[6] Ibid

[7] Ibid

[8] Mark, Joshua J. “Religion in the Ancient World.” Ancient History Encyclopedia (2018)

[9] Ibid

[10] Ibid

References

Abdulla, Mariam Rawan. “Culture, religion, and freedom of religion or belief.” The Review of Faith & International Affairs 16, no. 4 (2018): 102-115. Retrieved from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15570274.2018.1535033

Mark, Joshua J. “Religion in the Ancient World.” Ancient History Encyclopedia (2018). Retrieved from: https://www.ancient.eu/religion/

McGiffert, Arthur Cushman. “The Influence of Christianity upon the Roman Empire.” The Harvard Theological Review 2, no. 1 (1909): 28-49. Retrieved from: https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/1507353.pdf

Strayer, Robert W., and Eric Nelson. Ways of the World: A Brief Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin’s, a Macmillan Education Imprint, 2018. Retrieved from: https://www.trcc.commnet.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/his-122_patsouris_fa16_mw-130.pdf

 

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