Development of Religion in State
Societies
Text extracted from
Our Kind
By Marvin Harris
Role of Priests
• Humans wish for
goods and services
from the gods
• It was the job of
ecclesiastical
specialists (priests) to
obtain these
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/priest2.jpg
Obtaining favors from gods
• Aggressive approach:
Threaten to harm the
gods who do not
cooperate.
– Does not work with
supreme beings.
• Exchange goods and
services with the gods
– Offerings
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2277/2206148646_1b04e16a50.jpg?v=0
Obtaining favor from the gods
• Appeal to the gods' mercy and
generosity
– promising love and devotion in
return
• Sacrifice as an expression of
devotion:
– destruction of one’s property
– self mutilation
– slaying a loved one.
http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/LX/SacrificeBoarLouvreG112.jpg
The gods want food
• For exchange with gods,
what do gods want?
• Answer: gods want what
people value most -- food and
drink
• Without gods help, humans
cannot feed themselves
• Must feed the gods to get that
help.
Offering of food to the gods
Redistribution
• But gods only require
spiritual essence
– of food set out for them
• The material food itself
– can be redistributed to the
people.
• Gifts of food and
donations to the gods
Ziggarut (Mesopotamia)
http://teachers.sduhsd.k12.ca.us/ltrupe/art%20history%20web/final/chap2NearEast/Ziggurat.jpg
– became taxes for the church
in larger state societies.
Meat offerings
• Meat: central focus of
food sacrifices to the gods
• Meat is the most
prestigious and desired
food among humans and
therefore also gods
• Thus animal slaughter and
religious ritual closely
intertwined
Hebrew animal sacrifice
Meat Redistribution in State Societies
King
Meat
redistribution
Animal
sacrifice
Peasants
Meat Redistribution in State Societies
Government
Meat redistribution
validates right to rule
Temple
Economy
Animal
Agriculture
State Religion
Animal
Sacrifice
Solomon’s Temple
• At the dedication of first
temple in Jerusalem, King
Solomon sacrificed 22,000
oxen and 120,000 sheep as
a peace offering.
• Meat was not left to rot,
but was redistributed to
people in feasting.
Solomon’s Temple
http://www.templeinstitute.org/storeimages/item-B5.jpg
Human Sacrifice
• Human flesh was not
generally viewed as meat the
gods liked to eat.
• Human sacrifice in most
instances was intended to
win the sympathy of the
gods.
• Usually children were
sacrificed: buried beneath
foundations of buildings or
burned in Biblical times.
Abraham to sacrifice Isaac
Human Sacrifice
• In Carthage, 20,000
children were sacrificed
– 400-200 B.C.
• Buried in urns.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/20/72293006_9e227bc44d.jpg?v=0
Human Sacrifice
• Prisoners of war also
sacrificed.
• Most widespread human
sacrifice occurred at the
death and burial of kings.
• Often all wives,
concubines, cooks,
grooms and other servants
killed when king died.
Zhou Dynasty, China
http://www.destination360.com/asia/china/images/s/china-terra-cotta-warriors.jpg
The gods who would not eat people
• Why did the gods not like to eat
people?
• Not an ethical impulse of
humans to protect human life
– humans readily slaughtered on
battlefield.
• Did people not prefer to eat
humans?
– Not likely –
Remains from cannibal feast
http://www.celticnz.org/images/VikingMeasures/CannibalVictims1.JPG
• Cannibalism practiced in many
band-and-village societies and
chiefdoms:
– often prisoners of war eaten
Large State Societies
Slavery in Egypt
http://lazerbrody.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/slaves_in_egypt.jpg
• It was more cost effective
to turn prisoners of war
into slaves.
• Each farmer and worker in
a state society can produce
a surplus of goods and
services.
• The larger the population,
the more surplus
– and the more powerful the
governing class becomes.
Band and Village Societies
http://www.mexicolore.co.uk/uploadimages/325_06_2.jpg
• Cannot produce large
surpluses
• Have no large central
government to unite defeated
enemies
• Have no governing class to
benefit from taxation.
• Bringing a captive home to
be a slave is just one more
mouth to feed.
• Therefore, more benefit
derived from eating a captive
The gods who ate people
• Aztecs had a large state
society
• Their gods craved human
flesh, especially human
hearts.
• Big question: why
cannibalism here and not
in other state societies?
http://www.gnosticassociationny.org/AC_Complete.jpg
Job of Aztec Priests
• To satisfy craving of gods
for human flesh
• If craving not satisfied
– gods would destroy the
world.
• Prisoners held down on
top of pyramid temples
– heart cut out still beating
– offered to gods.
http://history.missouristate.edu/jchuchiak/aztecs40.gif
Redistribution
• Body of prisoner rolled
down pyramid
• Head cut off and displayed
• Flesh redistributed for
meat.
• Cortez found 136,000
heads of sacrificial victims
Why Aztec prisoners eaten,
not slaves?
Aztec ritual sacrifice
http://www.jrbooksonline.com/images/aztec-stone1.gif
• Lack of domesticated
animals for meat in new
world.
• No other way Aztec rulers
could play the role of
being great providers by
redistributive feasting
• Also satisfy human
physiological dietary
needs for protein, vitamins
and minerals found in
meat
The Non-killing Religions
• In the 1000 years before
birth of Christ:
– New charismatic leaders
arose in the Mediterranean,
Middle East, Persia, India
– New leaders denounced
ritual killing of people or
animals as way to win
favors from gods.
Zoroaster
http://www.atlantazarathushtiassociation.org/images/faith/Zarathushtra2.GIF
The Non-killing Religions
• Gods demand lifetime devoted to
–
–
–
–
good deeds,
love,
kindness to people
and all living things
• If
– Defend the poor and weak
– Restrain appetites and ego
• Then
– expect reward in heaven:
• immortality or eternal peace.
http://www.thelightisgreen.com/Hubble-eagle-nebula-wide-field-04086y.jpg
Zoroastrianism
• Ancient Iran and Persian Empire, then
died out.
• Founded by Zoroaster (Zarathrustra)
– 7th century B.C.
– after a vision of Ahura Mazda,
• Lord of Enlightenment
• Cosmic struggle between
– god of Good (Ahura Mazda) and
– god of Evil (Ahariman)
• Dualism
– good versus bad
http://www.malaspina.com/jpg/zarathustra.jpg
Zoroastrianism
• Humans free to choose
one side or other
– Dualism
• If choose Ahura Mazda
– must give up intoxicants,
• ritual slaughter of
animals,
• and shedding of blood
– go to heaven when die
• If choose Ahariman
Ahura Mazda: god of Good
http://i-cias.com/e.o/ill/ahura_mazda02.jpg
– go to hell when die.
Jainism
• Arose in India, still practiced by
2 million followers
• Founded by Mahavira in 6th
century B.C.
– after he achieved spiritual
fulfillment
– opposing Vedic traditions of animal
slaughter and redistribution.
Mahavira
• Accepted rebirth,
• but denounced caste system and
Brahmin rituals
http://religion-cults.com/Eastern/Jainism/mahavira.jpg
Jainism
• Path of liberation involves 5
vows:
• do not kill, tell lies, steal, fornicate,
• or acquire excessive riches
• Animals, even insects not killed.
• Adepts had higher standards:
• complete chastity,
• self mortification including exposure
to hunger, thirst, cold, insect bites
and intense heat.
http://www.tiscali.co.uk/reference/encyclopaedia/hutchinson/images/71034.jpg
Buddhism
• Arose in India, spread to far east
• Founded by Guatama Siddhartha
• 6th century B.C. after enlightenment
• He realized that
• he must give up self-inflicted fasting
and punishment
• and find a middle way.
• Opposed
Enlightenment of Buddha
http://www.utilitarianism.com/gautama-buddha.jpg
• caste system and
• animal -killing religion of the Vedas
Buddhism
• Eight-fold way to achieve nirvana
– (deliverance from cycle of
reincarnation and pain):
• mental and physical discipline to
avoid
–
–
–
–
–
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Kamakura_Budda_Daibutsu_front_1885.jpg
lying,
lusting,
killing of animals or people,
stealing, or
bringing harm to others.
Hinduism
• Evolved in India from Vedas
• Vedic Brahmans gave up killing
of animals
– and instead became guardians of
animal life
• All Hindu castes work to
– prevent slaughter of cattle, and
– consumption of beef
• Ahimsa, or reverence for all
living beings
– became central ethical component.
Krishna
http://www.guruji.it/galleria/krishna/krishna1.jpg
Judaism
• Judiasm was not an otherworldly,
soul-saving religion
• Israelites followed Yahweh's
commandments to be
–
–
–
–
blessed with progeny,
free from disease,
victorious in battle, and
Have abundant wheat, wine, oil,
cattle, and sheep.
• Animal sacrifice occurred on a
large scale in ancient Judaism.
• Not really a non-killing religion
Moses
http://metamedia.stanford.edu/imagebin/moses.jpg
– despite commandment "Thou shall
not kill"
Christianity
• Arose from Judaism
• One of the more recent non-killing
religions
• Christianity removed animal
sacrifice and redistribution of meat
– and replaced it with symbolic meal:
Eucharist Ritual (last supper).
• Apostle Paul said that the blood of
animals cannot take away sin:
– God had sacrificed his only son to
remove human sin, and those
without sin would have eternal life.
Jesus Christ
http://www.heart-cry.com/love/Jesus_ws.jpg
Origin of Non-Killing Religions
• Why did Non-killing religions arise,
replacing redistributive feasting?
Jesus and the poor
http://rtone.files.wordpress.com/2007/02/jesus-teaching.jpg
– States were being ravaged by brutal
and costly wars
– Environmental depletions, population
growth, and the rise of cities created
food shortages
– Thus difficult to maintain a steady
supply of meat for redistributive
feasting
– The class system produced widespread
poverty among the common people
Origin of Non-Killing Religions
Government
Wars, Poverty,
Overpopulation,
Ecological
Destruction
No meat redistribution
Economy
Livestock not
plentiful
State Religion
Cannot require
animal sacrifice
Non-Killing Religions
Government
No requirement
to feed people
Temple
Economy
Animal ag
cannot feed all
State Religion
Focus on
afterlife
Zoroaster
• Zoroaster lived in a
time of political
instability and
cultural change
http://www.wga.hu/art/r/raphael/4stanze/1segnatu/1/athens7.jpg
1500-500 BC India
• Vedic meat-redistributive
religions (Ganges
Valley) thrived
• Populations were small
and spread out in villages
• There were dense forests,
and fodder for animals.
• No conflict between
raising animals and
plowing fields.
http://www.abc.net.au/reslib/200712/r212565_818342.jpg
India 600 BC
• By 600 B.C. when Jainism
and Buddhism arose:
– Most people in the Ganges
Valley lived in a state society
– Population had risen to the
millions
– Towns and cities had sprung
up
– The Gangetic plain had
become deforested
http://www.farhorizons.com/India/images-india/Ajanta_Cave_2_mural_of_buddhas_762.jpg
India 600 BC
• There was a shortage of
pasture and fodder
• Oxen were too scarce to
be consumed in feasts
– (and were needed to plow
fields)
• Warfare was incessant
• droughts produced dust
bowls.
http://www.moxon.net/images/india/holi_festival3a.jpg
India 600 BC
• “Lakes, wells and springs were dried up...
Sacrifices were in abeyance. Agriculture and
cattle-rearing were given up. Markets and shops
were abandoned... Festivals died out. Everywhere
heaps of bones were seen and cries of creatures
heard. The cities were depopulated, hamlets burnt
down. People fled from fear of one another or of
robbers, weapons, and kings. Places of worship
were deserted. The aged were turned out of their
houses…”
•-- Hindu epic poem Mahabarata
India 600 BC
• “…Kine, goats, sheep and buffalo fought
and died in large numbers. The Brahmans
died without protection. Herds and plants
withered. The earth looked like trees in a
crematorium. In that dreadful age when
righteousness was at an end, men...began to
eat one another"
-- Hindu epic poem Mahabarata
Christianity
• Arose At a time of guerrilla
wars aimed at overthrowing
Roman power.
• High priests, big landowners,
and wealthy merchants lived
in splendor, admidst
Pontius Pilate, Roman
procurator of Judea
http://www.forumancientcoins.com/forvm/Articles/Pontius%20Pilate/images/fontanille1.jpg
– widespread unemployment,
– landlessness, and
– mistreatment of peasants
and slaves.
Christianity
Roman Slave Market
http://studygroup-bd.org/Slavery_clip_image001.jpg
• Throughout the Roman
Empire one did not have
to be a slave or peasant
• to be appalled and to feel
threatened by the
• corruption,
• brutality,
• class antagonisms and
• ceaseless wars
Christianity
• Apostle Paul preached that the
promised kingdom was not on
earth but in heaven.
• Neither worldly riches nor
worldly pain were important
– because those who loved
humankind,
– lived in peace, and
– believed in Jesus …
– would be rewarded with the gift
of eternal life.
Apostle Paul
http://www.dennyburk.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/11/rublev.jpg
Religions of Love and Mercy
• To become world
religions, the religions of
love and mercy:
– Sponsored and encouraged
military conquest
– Aided and abetted harsh
forms of political
repression
• and control.
Catholics versus Protestants
http://www.atheists.org/nogodblog/media/st_barts_massacre.jpg
How Non-killing Religions Spread
• None of the non-killing
religions has reduced the
incidence or ferocity of
war
• Each is implicated in
devastating inversions of
the principle of nonkilling and reverence for
life.
Joan of Arc
http://www.maidofheaven.com/maid_assets/extras/lenepveustake.jpg
Appeal to Founders of Empires
• Concern with the soul's prospects in
the next life
• Advantages in preserving and
incorporating defeated populations as
as source of labor and wealth.
• Non-killing religions reassured the
enemy that they could survive capture,
and made foreign rule easier
• Promise of rewards in afterlife instead
of rewards to the body in life was
convenient
http://www.travelbeat.com.au/kerry-crusader-trails-02-top-kingdomofheaven.jpg
Appeal to Founders of Empires
• Life on earth was painful,
– but poverty and suffering improved ones chances of eternal bliss
• Governing class did not have to provide wealth and happiness
– to validate its right to govern.
• Redistribution could not work anyway
– in times of high population, environmental destruction, economic
crisis
• Killing justified by self-defense
– or wars that were Just, Good and Holy
• Soldiers went into battle convinced that their souls would be
rewarded
– if they died in combat
Non-killing Empires
Government
Kleptocracy
Organizes religious wars
Economy
Conquest, colonialism,
and slavery
State Religion
Afterlife motivates soldiers
Conquered population less
fearful
Buddhism
• Spread throughout India
and into the far east via
1000 years of war.
• Kublai Khan converted
to Buddhism, then
conquered China
– 1279 A.D.
Kublai Khan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kublai_Khan
Spread of Buddhism
http://go.hrw.com/venus_images/0306MC06.gif
Hindus drive out Buddhists
• Hindus battled
Buddhists in India for
hundreds of years
• Buddhists eventually
defeated, driven out of
their homeland (India)
Buddhist Temple, Myanmar
http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=4040&rendTypeId=4
Christianity
• Roman Emperor Constantine
converted to Christianity in
312 A.D.
• The Roman Empire became
Christian
• Christians were obliged to
perform military service for
the Empire
• Rival Christian factions
(Gnostics) were suppressed:
Roman Church dominated
Christian Gnostic Factions
Christianity
• Pagan worship, Pagan
temples, Judiasm, and
Manichaeism all
severely dealt with
• Emperor Justinian (529
A.D.) ordered all who
refused to become
Christians to surrender
their property and go
into exile.
Justinian
http://www.mlahanas.de/Greeks/Medieval/Bio/Justinian.jpg
Religions of Europe:
1100-1200 A.D.
World Religions
http://qed.princeton.edu/images/thumb/3/34/World_Religions_750-1450.jpg/693px-World_Religions_750-1450.jpg
http://www.neiu.edu/~ejhowens/104/religion.gif