The Encyclopedia of World Religions

350 S prehistoric religion

It had, obviously, no written scriptures, and was not centered on a single pivotal historical event like the time of M OSES , C HRIST , or B UDDHA . Rather, it would have been “cosmic,” meaning that its sacred time was based on the turn of the seasons, and its sacred places were perhaps mountains, caves, and shrines in the same locale where its followers dwelt. Its lore would have been told in remembered myths ( see MYTH AND MYTHOLOGY ), songs, and dances. Much of the actual religion of people before history is now forgotten forever, but its general character can be estimated from two sources: remains recovered by archaeology and comparison with the religion of recent or contemporary non literate tribal people. Both must be used with cau tion, but they are all we have. The first stage of human culture is what is called the Paleolithic Age, or Old Stone Age. Paleo lithic people were hunters and gatherers using stone tools, but without metal or agriculture. Among the earliest remains that definitely suggest religious themes are burials and the famous cave paintings of up to 40,000 years ago. In some archaic burials, the bones of the dead are covered with red ochre, the color of blood and life, and are buried in fetal posture, suggesting thoughts of return to the womb and perhaps rebirth. This tells us that people were probably already confronting death through reli gion and may have been thinking of life beyond it—ideas always important to religion. The great cave paintings from the Pyrenees region of France and Spain are even more sugges tive and puzzling. Certainly they show distinc tively human creativity and imagination. But what do they mean? Perhaps they were hunting MAGIC , designed to help take the animals they so vividly portray. Perhaps the cave art galleries—which are deep underground, far from any living areas and difficult to reach—were sacred temples and, if we could but crack their code, the pictures records of sacred events or myths. They may have been used for initiation too. In one cave, a soft area is covered with numerous small footprints, as though from the dance steps of youthful initiates into the mys teries of the tribe.

that explore, say, a book of the Bible or develop a complex theme. In some religions preachers are those ordained to a special office. Rabbis, priests, some Christian ministers, and Zen masters fall into this class. Oth ers preach because they feel they have a special calling to do so. Imams preach because the com munity recognizes their learning and stature. Protestant preaching has often been strictly oral. But other preachers have made extensive use of visual aids. In the third century B . C . E . the Indian emperor A SOKA sent “ministers of DHARMA ” throughout the countryside to teach B UDDHISM to the people. His Edicts indicates that these “preachers” based their “sermons” on drawings or paintings of Buddhist stories. In medieval Japan traveling Bud dhist nuns used much the same technique. At one time in the Protestant world, ser mons were important elements of culture. People attended sermons for entertainment as well as edi fication. Respected preachers were public figures. They published their sermons in countless books. People bought and read these books the way peo ple today buy and read science fiction and mystery novels. Although preaching has become less impor tant in American culture, it is not negligible, either. During the second half of the 20th century, many Jewish and Christian preachers abandoned the dogmatic and moralistic sermons that had been common. They tried to preach in the manner of a storyteller. Social reformers and revolutionaries found preaching to be a powerful tool. Two ideal examples are Martin Luther K ING Jr. and M AL COLM X. Preachers also readily adopted powerful new means of communication, such as radio and television. Some conservative and fundamentalist Christian preachers have even become television personalities. prehistoric religion The religion of the earli est humans, before the invention of writing. Pre historic religion had the same central concerns as all religion, but was different in significant ways from religion as we generally know it now.