Religion is a special type of worldview associated with a belief in transcendental forces. The word itself, translated from Latin, means "piety" or "conscience." Most often, religion is an idealistic worldview based on faith in God. Its main symptom is belief in a supernatural beginning.
Let's see what religions are. At the early stage of the existence of mankind, there was already a cult of animals (in the so-called
Stone Age) and hunting witchcraft rites. This is confirmed by archaeological data, in particular, preserved ancient images carved by primitive tools on the walls of caves. Around the same time, a belief arose in the existence of the afterlife. In confirmation of this, we can say that the hunters were buried with their weapons, which supposedly would be useful to them in another world. Over time, the level of awareness and culture of people grew. Developed and ideas about the world. If you look at what religions the most backward peoples have today, you can get an idea of what our ancient ancestors believed in the
Bronze Age. This is idolatry, animism, shamanism and reverence for the dead.
However, religion is not just some primitive cult. This is a higher level of worldview, which includes a number of provisions. Otherwise, it degrades to the level of primitive witchcraft. Consider what religions are. All of them can be divided into two main varieties: mono-and polytheistic. What are the religions in the first case? The most famous of them are Judaism, Christianity, Islam. They are very similar in many ways. The monotheistic nature of many areas of Christianity is called into question, since in this religion the triune nature of God is usually recognized. In all these listed worldview systems, the opposition of good and evil, the Most High and the devil is emphasized. It is safe to say that Islam grew out of Judaism, incorporating elements of Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Arabic folklore. What are some religions that do not profess the principle of monotheism (monotheism)? Perhaps the largest of these is Hinduism. It has about 900 million followers. There are four main points in Hinduism: the veneration and study of ancient holy books, faith in
supernatural beings, as well as the immortal soul and the afterlife. Shinto is an
ancient religion of the Japanese. It is based on the veneration of the gods responsible for the forces of nature and the spirits of dead ancestors. This religion was formed under the influence of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. However, a lot of originality remained in it, for example, the practice of shamanism. Here you can also mention the archaic cults preserved to the south of
the Sahara desert. What are the faiths and religions in Africa? It is worth recalling first of all the widespread voodoo cult. This religion teaches that the whole world is filled with invisible energy, that there is infinity in the universe. Priests (ungans and mambos) serve as priests. If they are expelled due to misconduct, they are likely to become bokers - dark magicians. Such people are dangerous in that they can zombie, that is, deprive the human mind to completely subordinate it to their influence. As it turned out recently, the point here is not even in witchcraft, but in the use of certain chemicals. The acts of the bokors usually cause reprimand. Speaking of what kind of religions there are south of the Sahara, it is worth pointing out those signs that are common to all the beliefs of black Africans. Firstly, they have developed the cult of the late ancestors. Huts are often built in family cemeteries. Thus, the deceased ancestors still remain members of the family. Africans believe in evil spirits and believe that sorcerers can use their power. The possibilities of such people have no limits. According to the Africans, they can easily turn into animals, move through the air over great distances, as well as send damage. Soothsayers are fighting with sorcerers - people who are supposedly also endowed with special abilities. Africans believe that there is a single creator, as well as gods of lower and higher rank.
What religions do the indigenous peoples of Siberia and the Far East have? Before the advent of Christianity, shamanism was widespread there. A number of Turkic peoples had faith in Tengri, the God of Heaven. Until today, many Altai people seek help from shamans - mediators between people and the spirit world. These sorcerers, plunging into a trance, try to make contact with transcendental forces.