It is assumed that every religion of the ancient worlds appeared at the dawn of mankind, at a time when it was just beginning its path to a modern civilized society. This is partly true. For an ancient man , not only the elements of his own environment in particular were incomprehensible, but also all the events in general. And he could not explain them to himself in any other way, except religiously. He believed that it was raining after the shaman knocked on a tambourine, or that if he did not make a sacrifice, then the Gods could be angry and send some kind of curse on his tribe. In a word, the ancient faiths were significantly different from those that modernity dictates to man.
What were the first beliefs based on?
Any religion of the ancient worlds was a belief in certain forces that seemed to rise above nature. A man could not separate himself from his environment - trees, animals, stones, mountains, plains and all that. He imagined himself as something that revolves within the world and nature. People of that time could not explain how they differ from wolves or, for example, mammoths. Everything was the same for them. It was previously believed that this is how the first religion of the ancient worlds appeared.
First ancient beliefs| Title | Description |
| Animism | Faith in nature, but here only its living side is understood |
| Totemism | The belief that a certain animal may be close to a person in spirit. It was also believed that people were in their previous lives with their totem beasts (according to some, they will be after rebirth) |
| Fetishism | The belief that inanimate objects can think, feel the same way as a person |
| Shamanism and magic | The belief that certain people can interact not only with their fellow tribesmen, but also with spirits |
Mythology, or the First Steps of Separating Humanity from its Natural Environment
After these first beliefs, mythology appeared, or, in a sense, a new, improved religion of the ancient worlds. Here man has already begun to gradually separate himself from nature. If at first he thought that there were people, animals and plants, and all this lives nearby, without interfering and complementing each other, now he began to elevate himself above the environment. And, accordingly, Gods or mythological creatures rose above him . In this religion, a primitive thread was still visible: animals easily turned into people, plants into animals, and so on.
The first religions are the basis of modern religions
Modern scientists refuse those explanations that were several decades ago. It used to be that religion could be anything that at a certain moment was impossible to explain and was interpreted by an ancient person as a higher power. Now the concept of religion has got a slightly different meaning. After the formation of mythology in the further creation of beliefs, man began to completely separate himself from the natural environment and placed God or Gods above himself. The latter took a direct part in the life of people, could create favorable or negative circumstances for them, but they themselves never showed up. It is from this time that it is believed that religions in the modern interpretation have acquired civilizations of the ancient world.
Religions of the Ancient World| Title | Description |
| Judaism | The first religion is “from Abraham” (there are a total of 7). It is on a par with such common beliefs as Christianity and Islam. |
| Taoism | Religion is based on finding the way. Moreover, this does not have to be done by a person, but also objects and phenomena |
| Hinduism | Religion is based on the mythology of the Hindus, and if in the rest of such creeds the theory is facilitated, then here it, on the contrary, has become more complicated. It is the basis for many other beliefs, such as Krishnaism or Buddhism. |
| Zoroastrianism | Religion based on belief in fire, regardless of its manifestation |
Based on the foregoing, one cannot say for sure what is the oldest religion in the world. Many scientists and philosophers still argue whether totemism or, for example, Egyptian mythology should be attributed to religion . One thing is for sure - the newest modern religions have certain similarities with those that were formed millennia ago. Consequently, a relationship remains between them, regardless of whether or not they belong to faiths.