ARC 1311: ARCHITECTURE, SOCIETY
AND CULTURE
San Antonio College
Instructor: Christopher
K. Egan
Fall 2005
Fundamental
concepts in Religion and Architecture
A.
From Introducing Culture, Schusky & Culbert, Chapter 11 “Religion and
Symbolism”
Traditional
psychological view: “….religion was a part of the human personality. This
view might stress the inquiring nature of humans… Another view…is that
religion serves humans under stress. …The difficulty with religion as
explanatory device is that the puzzles explained by mythology or ritual are
quite limited. …Westerners assume that all peoples would want answers to how
human beings and the earth originated and, while many myths do explain such
beginnings, many people take the earth and life for granted.” (177-178)
“….anthropologists
often make use of psychology, but for the most part they have favored
sociological explanations …derived from the nature of social and cultural
life.” (178) “(Marx) saw religion as an institution built up from the
economic system.” (178)
“More and more,
religion is coming to be understood (by anthropologists) as a symbolic
system that is an expression of other institutions.” (family, economics,
politics, etc.)
Natural and
Supernatural:
a distinction between the physical and the spiritual
Sacred and Secular
as a basic concept in many cultures…sometimes there is a sharp distinction,
and in other cases there is little separation between sacred and secular.
Mana
one name for what a
culture considers a sacred and/or supernatural force…. Similar to “the Holy”
Taboo
regulations that direct
people’s interaction with “mana” or the Holy
"In
sum, mana is so powerful that humans must take great precautions. Taboos are
the directions for careful use.” (181)
Individuals in a
society:
“Individuals vary widely in their ability to handle or control mana (the
spiritual or holy force). In some situations, all people may coexist with
it, but often the uninitiated are the least able to deal with the power.
….they often prepare by fasting, going without sleep or taking other steps
that may put them in an extraordinary state. Thus, they may be unusually
ready for dreams, visions or hallucinations…” (181)
State of “trance”
…sometimes associated with speaking in tongues. “Often the person who is
speaking in tongues is recognized as having been taken over by a spirit. The
supernatural is said to be communicating through the person in trance.”
(181)
Shaman:
In many food-gathering societies, the shaman is a person who has
demonstrated an ability to speak a spirit language, to handle fire, or to
otherwise serve as a link with the spiritual world (181)
Sometimes the shaman is
one who seems capable of performing magic…. Even if we in the modern west
consider it trickery…. In some societies a person will apprentice many years
under a senior shaman. Females are as likely as males to be shamans.
Variations of shamans
commonly used in the English language:
·
Medicine Man
or Medicine Woman is a shaman who specializes in the use of medicinal
herbs and practices
·
Witch
is an imprecise term that usually refers to someone who uses magical potions
or spells to try to achieve a purpose….whether for “good” or for “bad”
·
Sorcerer is a
shaman who “deliberately acts to harm or help others.” (184) whereas witches
“…exert much influence
Priests:
Unlike shamans, priests have long training in religious practices. (182)
Priests are responsible
for complex rituals that must be performed correctly in order to be
effective. “Instead of the drama of trance, priests use the drama of
ritual, dance, song, symbol, prayer, and other religious activity.” (182)
Priests are usually
males, but some societies have female priesthoods.
Because of the need to
specialize, priests are usually not found in the most primitive
hunter-gatherer societies where everyone needs to help provide food.
Priests often accumulate
vast amounts of useful knowledge, acquired through generations of
observation and record-keeping: medicinal herbs, meteorology, calendars, the
seasons, etc.
Clergy:
Refers to a large-scale organized structure of full-time religious/spiritual
specialists….often part of or parallel to the structure of the state (Egypt,
the Aztecs, Roman Catholicism, etc.)
Magic and Religion:
Evolutionary sociologists developed what they considered the evolutionary
stages of human explanations for events in the natural world: “…from magic,
through religion and then to science.” (185) James Frazer identified two
types of magic….imitative magic, which works by imitating the desired
effect, and contagious magic, which uses parts of the targeted person
(hair, fingernail clippings, etc.) to produce harm to that person. In all
kinds of magic, the magician attempts to control events directly.
“In contrast, shamans
and priests on many occasions seem to stand helpless before the
supernatural, simply begging for guidance and protection. Feelings of awe
appear to dominate the relationship; persons seek only to express their
submission to the supernatural or, at best, to placate it. There are no
expressions of control. Frazer termed this approach to the supernatural
religion.” (185)
The explanatory value of
religion:
One function of religion is to provide explanations of events, both rational
and mystical. Mythology explains both the origins of peoples and
events, as well as offers explanations for why we should behave certain
ways. Origin myths explain the genesis of a group as well as the
origins of behavior guidelines. “As explanations for what is right and
wrong, myths codify the norms.” (186)
Some anthropologists
view myth as explanations for repressed feelings. “They interpret myth as a
kind of collective dream in which peoples express feelings they cannot
otherwise show.” (187)
Structuralists such as
Claude Levi-Strauss emphasized the intellectual role of religion, whereas
anthropologists such as Clifford Geertz “…stresses that religion must be as
much emotional as it is intellectual, even in explanation. Whatever it
does, religion must explain the ultimate nature of reality while providing
humans with a coed as to how to live in that reality. In turn, this code
must be emotionally satisfying according to the terms by which people live
in and perceive their world.” (187)
Social Evolution Theory
of Religion:
Seeks to explain the history of world religions through an evolutionary
model….increasingly sophisticated stages that relate to increasingly
advanced civilization.
Death, in which movement
ends, may have suggested the existence of “spirit” or “soul” which could in
turn have a life apart from the body…ghosts, trances, possession, etc.
Western anthropologists sometimes refer to this belief system as “animism.”
Historicist Theory:
The search for specific historical development of religions in specific
cultures…in contrast to the Social Evolutionist approach. It fails
to explain either the evolution or the reasons for religion.
Psychological
Theory:
Early
psychologists, including Sigmund Freud. Attempted to explain religion
through psychological states. Freud, whose work has been criticized by later
psychologists and psychiatrists, focused on his belief that most human
neuroses were caused by sexual jealousy of the child for the parent of the
same sex….. and that children had repressed sexual desires for their own
parents of the opposite sex….the “Oedipus complex.”
Functional Theory:
Anthropologist Emile Durkheim claimed to explain religion through his
studies of Australian aborigines. His approach is called “functionalism”
because he tried to explain religious practices of a culture through
understanding its function in the culture. “Durkheim’s theory is often
condensed into a statement indicating that he equated God with society. It
might be more accurate to say he saw religion as a system of symbols
justifying values of society.” (190-191)
“Durkheim’s major
contribution was his argument that a group must maintain its solidarity by
symbolic identification and by reaffirmation of its norms. Religious
practices, symbols, and beliefs are ideally suited for such a task; they
function to perpetuate society because, on one hand, they restrict
individual whims while, on the other hand, they provide common values and
activities.” (191)
Functional theory
suggests two approaches to the study of religion:
·
What does
religion do for society and individuals?
· What
are the functional relations between religion and society?
B. From World
Religions, Geoffrey Parrinder, Editor, Introduction
“Religion has been
present at every level of human society from the earliest times. But what
exactly is it? The Oxford English Dictionary defines religion as ‘the
recognition of superhuman controlling power, and especially of a personal
god, entitled to obedience.’ Belief in a god or gods is found in most
religions, but different superhuman powers are often revered, particularly
those connected with the dead.” (9)
“The study of religion
reveals that an important feature of it is a longing for value in life, a
belief that life is not accidental and meaningless. The search for meaning
leads to faith in a power greater than the humans, and finally to a
universal or superhuman mind which has the intention and will to maintain
the highest values for human life. There is an intellectual element in
religion’s search for purpose and value, and an emotional element in the
dependence upon the power which creates or guarantees those values.” (10)
“Religion has always
been linked with morality, though moral systems differ greatly from place to
place. Whether morals can exist without religion or some supernatural belief
has been debated, but at least all religions have important moral
commandments.” (10)
“….religion always has
a social side and it is expressed in patterns of behaviour. Sometimes there
is a strong organization, such as a church, while at other times the model
of religious life may be that of a lonely ascetic in a forest. But even the
latter depends upon society for support: giving food is regarded as an act
of religious merit and in return he or she blesses those who offer charity.”
(10)
The origins of religion:
“Speculations as to how, when and why religion began have flourished only in
the last hundred years.” (11)
Some explanations of the
origin of religion….
·
Traditional stories (including Genesis): first humans received a perfect
revelation from the divinity, or else they worked out a pure religion based
on reason. In either tradition, the original perfection was later
lost….either through sin or by corrupt priesthoods.
·
Evolutionary theory in 19th century encouraged an evolutionary
explanation for the origins of religion
·
“Animism”
(from “anima” or soul): primitive people determined from death, dreams,
visions, etc. that humans occupy a world that is not only material. “Since
the dead appeared in dreams it was assumed that their spirits continued to
exist after death, that they might dwell in various objects, and it was
suggested that the dead gradually came to be regarded as gods.” (11)
The Golden Bough:
title of a book written in 1890 by James Frazer… “He held that magic was the
first stage of human intellectual development, a sort of primitive science,
in which people imagined that they could influence their own lives and those
of others by means of magical objects or incantations.” (12)
The Social Importance of
Religion:
Emile Durkheim emphasized that religion is a social fact…not just the
actions of individuals. (in other words…..he claimed that religion is
cultural!!)
One Supreme Being:
Some writers have claimed that belief in a single god came before belief in
multiple gods….but there is no evidence to support this in historical terms.
Developing Beliefs:
While some religions may have suffered from the effects of cultural and
technological change, others clearly have developed over time. Examples:
·
Buddhism
is different in Tibet than it is in Burma
·
Christianity has developed into different forms in different areas
·
Judaism
gave birth to Christianity, and Hinduism gave birth to Buddhism
One
or more gods?
·
Theism
is belief in a god….and it is a natural feature of most religions
·
Monotheism is
belief in one god
·
Polytheism is belief in multiple gods
·
Monolatry is
when one group worships one god, but grants the rights of other groups to
honor their own gods
·
Henotheism is
when a believer worships one god at a time, but changes their worship to
different gods at different stages of life
·
Monism
believes that there is only one reality…and all are part of it
·
Dualism
believes in two opposite forces…one good, one evil
Fetish and Totem:
·
Fetish
Based on a Portuguese word for fabricated objects. “Fetishism” suggests that
magical power can be carried by objects…but it is too broad a notion to be
useful
·
Totem
Comes from a
word used by the Ojibway Indians of North America to describe the
relationships among members of a clan, and between humans and special
animals. For them, both clans and individuals had special relationships with
particular animals, who became their spiritual guides and symbols.
·
In many
societies, members of the same clan could not marry each other….they were
“exogamous”
·
Taboo
(or tapu)
come from a Polynesian word meaning “marked” or “prohibited.”
Life after death:
“Reverence for or worship of the dead is found in all societies, because
belief in life after death is universal.” (16)
·
In Europe
over 100,000 years ago Neanderthal peoples buried their dead with food for
travel in the world of the dead
·
More
ancient remains in China and India suggest similar beliefs
·
Ancient
Greeks believed that the gods had once been powerful human kings.
Order and Worship
“The organization of
religion in churches is especially characteristic of Christianity, and it
may owe much to the organizing ability of Greek, Roman and later rulers.
Many eastern religions have little organization. There are priests in
Hinduism and special religious communities, but no overall organization. In
Buddhism there is a monastic order, but little in the way of societies for
lay people. This has an effect upon worship. Christian churches stress the
value of communal worship and social service, but there is no obligation for
a Buddhist or Hindu to visit a temple. That many people go there is due to
the noise and lack of privacy in many eastern towns, where the temple,
pagoda or mosque affords a quiet sanctuary for private prayer and
meditation. There are great annual festivals at which temples are crowded
and processions enliven the streets, but much religion is centered on the
home and the sacraments of family life: naming of babies, initiation rites
in adolescence, marriage and burial.” (19)
Some elements of
worship:
·
Prayer:
Private individual
action…usually speaking directly with the divinity
·
Sacrifice:
Includes the offering of something precious to the divinity
·
Libation:
The pouring out of a liquid on an altar or the ground
·
Ritual:
A
formalized pattern of words and actions to express the needs and aspirations
of the group
Myth,
Ritual and the architectural setting:
“The elaborate rituals of many religions form sacred dramas, and there is a
close association between religion and many forms of dramatic and other
arts. The dramas of ritual express the myth or sacred story which is
celebrated at intervals. There are myths of many kinds: of creation, divine
example, renewal, construction, initiation and eternal life.” (20)
“It is better to confine
the term ‘myth’ to supernatural beings and stories, and to speak of legends
when referring to historical people and past heroes.” (20)
Ritual cults may perform
their rites at special locations considered sacred…invested with holy power.
“The place is sacred, separate from the profane and ordinary, and it may be
seen as the center of the world where the sacred drama is played out.” (20)
Worship can take place
in open air or in closed spaces
In many climates,
worship takes place in large courtyards open to the sky
“Temples are constructed
in symbolical shapes, perhaps in the form of a cross or a stepped pyramid.
They enclose sacred objects or relics, and there are focal shrines with
altars for gifts or rituals. Around the shrine there are usually passages to
allow for circumambulation, normally keeping the shrine on the right hand,
though at Mecca Mohammad ordered processions to go in an anti-clockwise
direction round the sacred Kaaba so as to break with ancient pagan rites.”
(21)
“Rituals in temples are
performed by specially selected and trained sacred persons called priests,
although in family rites and the commemoration of ancestors the head of the
family may officiate. Priests are married in most religions, but monks and
nuns live in enclosed communities and are celibate. Preachers who are
regarded as inspired by a divine being or coming with a sacred message are
designated as prophets.” (21)
“Religious belief and
practices are found at all levels of civilization, though reforms and
changes come with growing knowledge.” (21)
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